P:AE Group 2, Team Z83

You slowly regain consciousness, after being frozen in stasis pods for roughly four-decades of spaceflight.  Hearing no alarm, you deduce that the S.S Harmony must be nearing the 2nd planet of the Alpha Equulei system.

Your pod, which had been stationed upright against the wall for the duration of the journey, slowly begins a descent to a horizontal position, before the glass case keeping you contained slides away, and you regain your ability to move.  All of the stasis equipment folds back into the walls of the pod:  for the small remainder of the flight it will serve as a crude bunk: not comfortable, but serviceable enough for a few nights.  Next to your bed is a small locker that contains your personal belongings, a simple pillow and blanket, and a few other necessities for the next few days.  

As you sit up and look about, shaking off the grogginess, you notice that one (or more) of your companions have successfully woken from stasis, only to decide that a couple of decades still wasn't enough sleep. They seem fine- just really tired. Perhaps they'll be up later.

OOC:

There's a video screen flanked by a couple computer terminals at one end of the room: and a door at the other.  You expect you'll probably be getting a message from the captain or other official soon, once they're awake and completed some checkups on the ship's status and preliminary scans of Planet.

Meanwhile, it'd be a good idea to get to know who you'll be living and working with for the foreseeable future in your new home...

Coral promptly falls onto the ground, before even getting the chance to stretch her legs and tail. Disoriented from the non-aquatic environment, it takes her a moment to remember the spell to make herself visually and physically indistinguishable from a landlubber. Getting up at stretching, she walks around to look for... something, food, other ponies, anything. She didn't really get to meet the others, as she was the last to show up and the first into the stasis pods.

Perception:

Flairvoyant didn't like the pins and needles feeling one bit.  Hated it in fact.  But today she was loving it.  It reminded her that she was alive, which was a wonderful feeling indeed. Getting up out of the rudimentary bed, she danced in place to try to loosen up.  When she started to move around, Flair spotted the blue mare a few pods over.  Happily bounding over, she greeted her fellow shipmate.  "Glad to see another up and ready to go.  I'd tell you good morning...but I don't know where the sun is right now."

"Well, morning is relative until we settle on the planet, I guess. Name's Coral Wrench." She extends her hoof, remembering it to be a traditional landlubber greeting to shake hooves. Doesn't exactly work very well with her finned relatives, often referred to sea ponies, where she would be a merpony. She also just couldn't understand how landlubbers could get comfortable with the obtrusive extremities of the hind legs, constantly shifting them to adjust her balance. Back in college some classmates had thought that habit of hers meant she just had to pee all the time, not knowing her actual race. She also hates the concept of a bladder, since sea ponies and their ilk just dissipate what would normally go into a bladder directly into the sea, like any other sea creature. Good thing she'd learned this spell when she was a teenager, or she probably would have dropped out of college from embarrassment.

Excitedly accepting the hoofshake, "The name's Flairvoyant, the light, bright navigator of this wonderful crew. If I may be so bold to guess, you're a mechanic?" The whole time she talked, Flair's head bobbed back and forth like she was listening to music.

"Actually, no, though I do usually use such skills to do what my job actually is. Just days before we left, I graduated from college with a degree in civil engineering. Basically, I'm in charge of building and designing and laying out this group's settlement. Obviously I'm not in charge of that for the entire colony: that's up to some much more experienced ponies than I. Do you know where we could get some food around here? I'm starving. Some scallop oil-fried seaweed would be amazing right now..." Coral says, twitching her tail in another habit of living most of her life underwater.

"Well, I tried looking, but I'm kinda blind without my glasses, so I didn't really find anything at all. Maybe I lost them when I fell... Anyway, while I try to find my glasses, if you're so good at finding things, maybe you could look for the food?" Coral says, making her way back to where she woke up.

The computer terminals start up, humming softly, displaying a loading bar under three streaks of light going up the screen and exploding into brilliant fireworks, before freezing and forming into the logo of the computer system's manufacturer:

Spark Industries:

.  Once loaded, one terminals switches views to the ship's exterior.  You can see the planet that is to be your new home, covered in swirling clouds and oceans as home was, even with familiar smatterings of green on land... though with equally large patches of unfamiliar red.  You see two of its small moons- recalling that there is a third which must be out of sight.  The other terminal displays maps of the S.S. Harmony, highlighting and zooming in on your section, showing your room, as well as nearby facilities such as the section's cafeteria.

The video screen starts up as well, showing the Equestrian flag before showing a smiling light blue pegasus. :

 
She begins talking, answering your concerns about food at the end of her speech.

"Rise and shine, campers!  Whew, it's been a long day...  At least you're the last to wake up, group Z.    We are now nearing our new home, and will be entering a stable orbit later in the day.  Ship's systems appear normal, aside from a few fluctuations in non-essential memory banks, but in any case we're all here, safe and sound!  If you're really interested in the technical nitty-gritty, that's what you're computer terminal is for: go tune in to the Engineeering net.  

All facilities are now open for your section:  Please go eat and keep in shape:  being inactive for so long isn't very good for the body.  Ship's gravity will slowly adjust as we make our approach, to help accustom you to Planet's gravity.  Scans and probes of Planet are in progress: your team's clock will be set once a suitable location for your colony is found.

Stay tuned for further updates!  And have a nice day!"

The video screen shuts off again.

Coral, having just gotten back with her glasses on her face when the fireworks started, goes straight to the cafeteria when Sunny Sky finishes without a second thought.

OOC:

Appearance: Natural

"Lakaida..."

The changeling's eyes fluttered slightly as she moaned. "Whuuh..."

"Miss Tattersoul. It's time to get up."

"Bucket..."

The floating head insisted. "Lakaida, it's time to get up!"

"No, BUCKET!"

Ruby's eyes widened as she caught the meaning. A plastic tub was produced almost instantly, and Lakaida let out a stream of cryo fluids, stomach acids, and other things not meant to see the light of day. The bucket was dumped into a nearby chute, and tossed in after the contents.

The robotic head examined her with slight concern. "Is that better Miss Tattersoul?"

The changeling nodded in reply. "What is it this time?"

"We're there! That's the last time we have to wake up."

"Oh, thank god..." She managed to roll over onto her back, her legs sticking up in the air. All in all, it had been a rough trip. Several years in the ship's A.I. had noticed a pod failure, and Lakaida had to be temporarily woken up while they fixed it. Which proved fortunate, as she had also turned out to be allergic to the cryofluid. Which meant the doctor had to be woken up to to help her recuperate from the shock and try to remedy it. Moreover, it was determined that Lakaida would have to be re-awoken several times during the remainder of the trip to periodically flush the cryo from her system; else the trip might have been lethal.

So she knew what to do from here; she started pedaling her legs as if she were walking to shake off the familiar pins and needles. After several minutes she rolled over and stretched her wings before buzzing them for several minutes. Then, with Ruby's help, she slid off the bed; and found she could in fact stand up. She started towards the hallway, fighting the urge to vomit a second time. Ruby apparently sensed it, because a second bucket floated a short distance behind. She scarcely noticed the message by Chancellor Sky.

"Which way is th' kitchen," she asked quietly, still sounding (and feeling) rather queezy.

"It's this way. It looks like we're not the first ones up, though. But that shouldn't be an issue. We'll get you fed and then we'd best see if the doctor is up yet."

Lakaida only nodded as she focused on taking another step and making sure to buzz her wings once in a while.

Coral starts eating the moment she finds food, and happens to have a bite halfway into her mouth when the changeling walks in. Coral just stares for a moment, with her mouth hanging open around the food, but remembers her manners and looks down at her food and taking a bite. After she swallows that bite, she extends her hoof to the changeling. "Hi, my name's Coral Wrench, but you can call me Coral. Or Wrench, if you prefer that. What's your name?"

Appearance: Still Natural

Lakaida couldn't help but chuckle. "Hehehe... Y'know, the best aspect of my career is that everyone knows who I am and yet nobody recognises me.... I'm Lakaida Tattersoul. I can't though," she said, looking at the extended hoof wearily. "I just woke up - again - and I'm still having a little trouble," she explained as Ruby pulled in a chair and helped her sit on it. "And this is my assistant, Ruby. My telekinesis isn't that great anymore, so she does that for me."

"What, are you famous? Sorry if I've never heard of you, I'm kind of a shut-in, since I spent all my free time studying for school. I'm a merpony, actually, not a normal unicorn, so hoof shaking isn't a custom for me." Coral says, relaxing and going back to eating. "So, being famous and all that, have you been all over Equestria or something? I never really got out of my small little home of Port Pegasus, or far from my college, so our new home is going to be just as alien to me as where you're probably from."

"Actually I only ever read the books, sorry. I do remember seeing film crews and such sometimes, though I don't remember which book they were making a movie of. Besides, I'm rather horrible with names, and remember faces better, so I probably have no idea who you were."

((Don't worry, I don't really know much either. The closest I've gotten to even reading the books is watching the TV series of 2 hour long episodes :I))((Also, yay 1000'th post!))

Appearance: Still Natural

"Really? My, this is refreshing! We must sit down sometime and have movie night! But what would I show you first? I think the Dark Knight Trilogy is my proudest moment, I loved every second of playing Moon Wane and Batmare. Funny though, that was really forty years ago; they've probably re-made it several times now, hee."

Meanwhile, seeing that Lakaida would be busy awhile, Ruby zipped off in search of nommage for the changeling... she dearly hoped they had properly frozenand thawed her supply of cayenne peppers, especially. Miss Tattersoul sometimes could scarcely function without her cayenne tea; although she did seem to be coping well today.

Coral blinks, already done with her food. "Excuse me for asking, but you're how old?" The Changeling didn't look that old, but then again she had never gotten a good look at a changeling before, let alone talked to one and learned how to tell their age.

Happily trotting over to the serving counter, Flairvoyant smiled and gave her order. "If you have it available, I'd like some carrots, lemons, raisins, and honey.  If you only have one, hopefully it's the carrots." Spotting where Coral Wrench was sitting, Flair was initially taken aback by the new seating partner. "Guess I shouldn't be too surprised to see a changeling on board.  Well, hopefully we'll get along fine.  I've traveled too much to judge someone new off of preconceived notions.  The name's Flairvoyant. You know, you almost look like that one actress but that can't be right."

"Actually," Coral says, half looking to see if they have any scallop-fried seaweed, "Apparently she is an actress. I believe you said your name was Lakaida Tattersoul? Or was it Lakita Tonsil?"

"I'm guessing you were in that old Sheerclop Holmes movie, A Stable in Scarlet? Wow, what was that like?" While talking, Flair sliced her carrots and started mixing things together.

Appearance: Earth Pony

"Tattersoul. And I'm 40 years older than I was before the trip, just like everypony else who came; this was a 40 year trip, wasn't it? Hmm? Yes, although that was quite some time ago even before the trip and I don't remember it clearly. But that's not my true claim to fame, anyways; here, does this help?" She explained, before deciding to attempt a shape shift; momentarily, a green flame revealed her Moon Wane persona.

"Behold! For I am the Batmare!" She declared dramatically, looking perhaps a little foalish but leaving no doubt for anyone familiar with the popular film.

Coral facehooves. "Feels like yesterday, so I kinda forgot about the 40-year long part of our trip."

Appearance: Natural

As the changeling let Moon Wayne drift off, Ruby returned with a hovering tray. It had a teapot with the hot cayenne tea, and several seedcakes. "Let's not do any more of that for a while, please Miss Tattersoul? Your vitals spiked briefly when you did that and I don't like it."

"Worrywort. I'm feeling quite a bit better now," she admonished as Ruby set the tray down.