[closed] and since we've one place to go

[nonscriptum]

Who: Nathan Drake, Elena Fisher, Agent Washington, Agent Maine, Kyna Midha, Staci Pratt, Poe Dameron, Taako Taaco, Lup Taaco, Peter Parker
What: Nate leads a polar expedition out to the mountains.
Where: Out on the tundra; at an undisclosed excavation site in the foothills.
When: February 1-14
Warnings: PG-13+ for swearing, descriptions of dead bodies/science torture. :(




[source]

WELCOME TO SNOW HELL

the journey | the door | the bunker | the lab

Comments

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What, creepy, underground facilities full of nightmares?

[ Nate says lightly, trying to inject a little levity into the vacuum. Despite the humor he is intimately familiar with claustrophobic hallways full of decrepit tech.

At least there aren't any naked humanoid creatures crawling along the ceilings at them. ]

Thought I'd build my next vacation home in one.

[volitaunt]

[ Poe's amusement, such as it is, comes out as a small puh. ]

Probably cheap to buy, too. Not much of a view. Needs to be aired out, probably. Serious remodeling.

[ That's about as quippy as he can manage to be at the moment. He tries to keep his focus straight ahead, away from the artificial lights that remind him so much of the Finalizer. ]

I'm fine. [ He says it as much for himself as for Nate. ] You don't have to walk me out if you've got more you need to do down here.

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[ I'm fine must be universal code for I'm barely keeping my shit together, because Nate recognizes the intonation as if he'd said it himself. He huffs a laugh through his nose, quiet but unmistakable. ]

I could use the fresh air.

[ Not a lie, but also an easy excuse to act as a friendly escort. ]

I'm not worried about you falling over, okay? [ He clarifies, sincere. ] It's just...sometimes nice to have company.

[volitaunt]

...Yeah. Yeah it is.

[ Poe holds his breath all the way up in the elevator, half-expecting it to stop, or collapse, or for something else to go wrong. His sensible self says that Lup and Taako would have a way out of a collapse of some kind. He knows there are ropes they could use to climb out and people up top to make sure they're secured.

It's safe, it just doesn't feel safe. Nothing about this place feels safe.

The bite of frozen, moving air is a relief. He inhales, deeply, closing his eyes, even as the tears still on his face make his cheeks go numb.

Another inhale. A slow exhale. He shudders.

Will he be able to go back down there? ]

What's the watch rotation for tonight, do you know?

[ He tries for subtle. He does. But honestly, how subtle can a question like that be. ]

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[ His experience with elevators isn't stellar and for that reason Nate keeps one hand on the rope at his side, the grappling hook, should he need to resort to saving both their asses. Catastrophic lift failure thankfully passes them by, however, evidenced by the first waft of chilly air that makes the skin prickle on the back of his neck, pushes a shudder through the man at his side.

How messed up does he have to be, Nate wonders, to not feel that same winnowing thread of fear and upset? Nate encounters so many dead in his work that he barely notices it anymore, window dressing for an otherwise dismal tableau. He forgets that other people aren't exposed to it the way he is. ]

I've got first watch. Then Maine.

[ Nate would never consider himself a master of physical subtext, but Poe is all but screaming that he'd prefer not to be below ground level. ]

You've got base camp duty, but nothing downstairs.

[volitaunt]

[ Poe relaxes, feeling the pang of a muscle in the back of his neck that was wired tight from tension. He would have done it. He would have done what he had to do, if he'd been on the roster.

He's pathetically glad that he isn't. ]

Place reminds me of a First Order battle cruiser. [ Which probably gives away more than he means it to. All it took for John to know what happened to him, once upon a time in Riverview, was Poe saying he got caught once and Finn helped him escape. There's only so many things that can happen when you're trapped in an enemy ship.

The elevator thumps to a halt at the top of the tunnel, and Poe closes his eyes, letting the wind cut through him. A moment of silence, then, awkwardly: ]

Thanks, Nate.

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[ Even if Poe had been scheduled for duty, Nate would have taken the watch. For all that he considers himself ill-prepared in this role, he organized these people, brought them out here. It isn't coddling if he's willing and able to do the work others can't, it's that Nate is naturally restless and feels responsible for them. Save for Peter they're mostly adults, but that doesn't mean Nate wouldn't throw himself between them and a bullet if push came to shove.

He picks up on the cagey comment, something Poe would only know from firsthand experience. Time spent as a POW, maybe? Having been drugged or knocked unconscious and then interrogated before, Nate assumes the worst. ]

Don't sweat it. [ He quips easily, stepping off the platform at Poe's side. ] If that bunker was full of clowns, you couldn't pay me enough to go down there.