Participants:
| Scene Title | To See It For Yourself |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Seren Evans joins Marlowe Terrell on-site at the Agartha digsite. |
| Date | July 10, 2021 |
It's strange flying into the SEA-TAC airport– into a would-be Safe Zone that's completed most of its reconstruction. The ruins of downtown Seattle linger to the north, an urban rainforest reclaimed by the elements in many ways– but new construction closer to ground has taken root in the area south of the city heart. When the plane tilts to show off some such construction as banks to get a better angle to land on the airstrip, Seren Evans shifts and arches their posture up to try and peer down at as much of it as they can see.
In his seat beside them, Baird chitters as he stands with his white paws against Seren's thigh, observing this would-be… would-have-been new city as well.
"Don't I know it," Seren answers him softly, then leans back to brace for landing when it's time.
"I guess…"
Baird tilts his head at them, and they give him a small smile. Better to take silver linings where they come up at this stage of the game.
"I guess it's lucky they were already at work building out here."
Vashon Island Digsite
SEA-TAC Safe Zone
July 10, 2021
It takes little time at all to settle in before Seren moves on from their assigned lodgings to see what they came here to see and meet who they came here to meet. The digsite goes beyond what they imagined it would be in terms of scope. It almost gives one vertigo to look upon it if they peer straight down– a hole over a mile wide, getting ever-deeper. The cranes haul up ever more earth and exchange it out for materials to fortify the hole with and expand wider far below the surface. A giant lift allows for materials to be brought up and down its depth.
There's more than just digging being done now, the framework for the great construction ahead being gathered, and in some cases begun to be laid. Tetsujin robots facilitate the moving of arrived materials that need sorted or prepared before they're moved below, a sight Seren can't help but ascribe mentally to that of tinker toys set about a mysterious work only they know.
A raised prefabricated building onsite is where they observe from while waiting for others here for the first joint meeting regarding Agartha's construction progress, and when they realize some of the giant yellow Tetsujin outside suddenly are appearing with mechanical turnkeys on their back, Seren has to blink once– twice–
then turns away quickly from the sight they've conjured, lifting both hands to tap their cheeks lightly. Their silver-limned eyes glimmer as they stare down at the trailer's carpet, trying to distract themself. Baird comes back from where he's wandered off to to nose his way between the gap in their feet, ferret head tilting up at them while his nose twitches. It's enough to bring Seren to smile and does its job well enough in creating distraction that they crouch down to smooth a hand over the back of his head.
Naturally, this sets the winged, horned ferret trying to wriggle away from too much affection– he's dressed for business today, Seren!– but ends up on his back with his stomach being tickled, his darker black-ish color offset spots of white and brown… and the distinct split of that coloration alluding to him wearing a suit with a bowtie.
"Hai, sou desu. Sono keikaku wa susumerareteimasu. Ima, miitingu no mae ni, atashi wa Raytech no kenchikuka to isshoni shisatsushimasu. Hai. Shitsureishimasu."1
In the overheard one-sided conversation, Yamagato Tech Director Marlowe Terrell sounds crisp, all business, professional. Her appearance has the same style, albeit it is far from the office suits that one would normally come to expect. Instead, the woman has a tailored, natural linen colored long sleeve shirt and belted, dark work trousers, along with safety vest and helmet. There's no heels today, but sturdy work boots. As Marlowe opens the door to the trailer, she utters a short ojamashimasu to indicate her entry. Brown eyes sweep the interior to find her aforementioned architect, and she lights up a warm smile for them.
"Hi Seren," Marlowe greets them, "glad you see you finally made it out here— oh, and I see your friend. Baird, am I right?" Indoors, she takes a moment to pull the helmet off her head for a respite from the protective shell. The tight bun of hair has managed to stay in place, hardly a wisp threatening to fly away. "How was your trip out here, smooth, I hope?"
The sound of Marlowe's conversation wrapping as she approaches gives Seren and Baird both enough time for them to adopt a more professional air for themselves. Seren rights, smoothing down the grey-teal waistcoat they wear, a white dress shirt beneath it. Black slacks cling to their slender form, capped with black boots as well– they either came to be comfortable on the walk today, or they just don't ascribe past a certain level of formality when it comes to footwear.
Baird has scampered onto a desk and is standing on his back legs, quite gentlemanly and polite as he waits to be acknowledged. His head dips, and he chuffs excitement– sounding more like a dog than the amalgamation of animals he is. Whatever they hear in what he says, it brings Seren to smile.
"It's good to see you again," they're sure to say first, head dipping in a meek hello. "Yeah, the trip was– honestly better than expected. I was expecting flying private to have been much more prop plane than jet…"
After saying as much, they look back to the window again. "I was really relieved to see things coming along the way they are here, too. It's one thing to see updates on paper, another thing to…" Their smile returns again, a self-conscious one. Rather than finish their statement, they turn back to Marlowe. "Helps make it real, you know?"
Setting her hardhat down beside Baird, Marlowe reaches out a hand with palm up and fingers relaxed in entreating the small chimera to sniff and offering a chin scratch. "Kind of wild, right?" she comments on the subject of airplanes, but also in a segue to the sight of the construction seen and heard outside the prefab trailer window. There's a look to the woman's gaze outward that dims with a tint of internal troubles, but quickly disappears as she turns her attention back to Seren.
"The idea that we're trying to build this in the timeframe we have, anyway, is quite the challenge, isn't it? I agree. On paper, on a screen, it's nothing quite like seeing it for yourself. Even the smell is incomparable." Marlowe's nose wrinkles a little as amusement returns. "You haven't gone all the way down yet, right? We can. I'd like to get your eyes on the dig dimensions for the foundation posts, see if there's a need to make adjustments."
The question brings Seren somewhat to attention. They knew they'd come here for a reason, but this was the first time they've been hands on with a project at this stage … much less of this size. Baird more than makes up for their freeze, having sniffed Marlowe, deemed her worthy, and butted his head along the side of her hand firmly before leaning into the scritches. He's soft to the touch, a fluffy thing that could be squeezed like a plush.
"Of course," Seren says when they regain their better sense. "As for the smell– weirdly enough– it smells like home?" An awkward smile follows that before they explain, "Where I'm from is by the sea, so I'm used to that scent nearby… and a family friend owned a farm outside of town, so…"
It's easy to tell they feel like they've said too much, like maybe they're supposed to be a little more serious than this. Their nerves are hard to conceal, even though their ability could theoretically grant them the opportunity to put their best and only their best foot forward. "… A-anyway," they stammer. "Should we go take a look?"
Marlowe looks down as she scritches Baird, finding the fluffy creature surprising still in his softness. "Oh my goodness you're so soft," she coos for a brief moment, graduating from chin scritches to between-the-ears when he leans in. She turns back to Seren when they speak on their background, a mirroring smile returned though not an awkward one. "You're from near the ocean too, huh? Pacific or Atlantic?" she inquires curiously, her tone attempting to ease their nerves.
At Seren's prompting, Marlowe smiles wider and stops in the scritching in order to scoop up her hardhat once more. "Absolutely," she says upon fitting her protective helmet back on and tucking her bun in. "We'll have to stop by the gear shed and get you a hard hat. Part of the protocol and all." The woman pauses, glances to Baird for a moment, then back to Seren. "Not sure if we have any in his size though," she teases lightheartedly.
"You know, we might find him one," Seren remarks thoughtfully, following after Marlowe with a tick of a smile. Baird jumps from the desk to cling into Seren's sleeve, crawling up onto their shoulder to get the best-level view of where they're headed. They cross one hand across their body to stroke his head once appreciatively.
"Atlantic, northern," they answer warmly. "I'm from Nova Scotia– from Halifax, if you know it. You know, I didn't stop to wonder where everyone's from, in all this." Once they head outdoors again, Seren looks up to the sky momentarily. "We're, uh… all about to be from the same place, when this is done, aren't we."
Marlowe chuckles at the thought of a small sized hard hat for Baird happening to exist at the gear shed. Little does she realize between the two of them, they could very well engineer one on the spot. "Heee, sou deshou," wonders the woman aloud. "I've not been out that way before. But Canada, parts of it…" She trails off in recollection of the reasons and circumstances of those travels. The second Civil War took many people to many places, and for some, left them permanently settled.
With a sniff, Marlowe composes herself as they step out of the trailer, leading the way to the gear shed where personnel safety equipment is stacked neatly in steel racks ready and marked by size. She doesn't comment on Seren's observation immediately, but speaks as she swipes a keycard to a maglock that opens the gate. "Counter point," the woman remarks in wry humor, "we're already from the same place. Earth. As we are, after all, human."
"But for more specifics," she adds to smooth the possibility of offense and meet Seren where they've revealed intimate detail of themselves, "I was born in Okinawa, where my father and mother met near the base. They're still there." Her tone holds a fondness made stronger by distance.
Seren nods when Marlowe begins to trail off. "Parts of it were very welcoming to people with abilities… Parts of it were very welcoming to the people who left after the war settled in favor of those with abilities." It's a reality they live with, glad that they've seen less of the latter in their life. "I went to university in Vancouver, things were open out there. Progressive."
They let out a breath of laughter when Marlowe points out the world's connectedness already, and admits, "You're right. If only more people realized that, these days." After heading through the gate, they smile briefly.
It's only briefly, though. "I… hadn't thought about it until now, but I don't know if I'll have time to take away from this to go back and see my own family. I can only imagine, with yours being even farther away." Seren's look blanks as they realize they've found yet another thing to be anxious about in all this. With a stab at finding some kind of thing to look forward to, they suppose, "If we finish all this quickly, though…"
"We still talk," Marlowe says with a slow nod and small smile. "But they… they don't know yet," she admits after a short pause. Seren's encouraging note finds purchase in the woman, and she reaches over to unhook a hard hat off the hangers with a pass over to them. "When we finish, and get everybody together, it'll be a damn fine sight to behold. Regardless of what happens." Emphatically, the engineer turns her smile and her words more wry. "Now follow me. Baird, you stay safe."
Once they've reached one of the wide cargo lifts, they step onto a wide platform set on a track that descends a set height roughly the size of an average five story apartment building. Marlowe's eyes are on the quarry pit, casting a discerning gaze upon the construction in progress. "Your building plans," she starts up again after a bit, "We've mostly accounted for the possible surface-level effects of the Event. But we should continue checking on the calculations for the support structures that are going to be underground and underwater. Especially at the ingress and egress points. We… should consider the timeline for safe surface return. At least."
Seren takes hold of the hard hat and fixes it to their head, lagging for a moment as they snap it closed– and then reach for something on another hook before following quickly after Marlowe.
The step out onto the lift going down, down, down causes their eyes to flicker, silver strengthening into greys as their anxiety gets ahead of them. "nope," they whisper. "nope, just gonna…"
Out of one hand curls the small hard hat they've snagged, and they turn to Baird on their shoulder– who wriggles his head under the shape that doesn't fit his head well, but ultimately sighs. Safety first. Distracting Seren from terrifying drops also first.
Seren turns back to Marlowe when she speaks, looking only in her direction until the lift nears the bottom of the dig. "The, ah, underwater egress point is something I've been thinking on a bit. I'm waiting for data on best and worst-case scenarios for sea level shrinkage owing to the Event. Initial estimates didn't account for the possibility of shift, and it means we may want to put any subaquatic entrance either a floor or two lower– either that, or increase the shielding around that egress." They slip one hand into their pocket before the lift lurches stopped. "Given we were relying on the surrounding ocean and lake we'll build on top of us to provide some amount of shielding …"
"Regardless, I think we'll want to keep entry points as small and shielded as possible, regardless of location." Their nose wrinkles as they remark, "I'm thinking let's not go full Vault-Tec-sized doors or anything unless there's machinery we plan on storing that would require it."
"We'll have as many secure and locked points as possible in keeping with the natural environment," Marlowe says nodding as they descend. "And I sure as hell don't want to get caught like all those flawed portrayals in cinema. I mean, even the Death Star, one thermal exhaust port to the power generator and…" They all know that was on purpose for film, but lessons are certainly taken away from it.
"Here we are." Marlowe unseats her key to lock the operation of the cargo lift and pockets it so they can return when required. On a wide metal grating making up the walking path, the dig site's mid level overlooks the further subterranean operations below with heavy construction drones and machinery carving into the earth's crust. "We're going to have to consider where to put all these when we're done," she exhales in admission of not looking forward to that Tetris puzzle of space versus storage. "But your design plans have given us enough room to at least consider it. In case Agartha in the future needs expansion." Stepping off the lift, Marlowe turns to wait for Seren and offers a hand if needed.
Hand gladly accepted, Seren does their best not to look directly down deeper into the hole to avoid getting any vertigo, and the intensity of their grip shows the appreciation for something helping give them confidence as they step out onto the platform. "In that case," they admit, "Those fuckoff Vault-Tec doors might be needed after all, then. Some of these machines are… giant." There's not a good substitute term for that, really. Baird on their shoulder skitters down their arm and then jumps over to Marlowe's to curl around her other shoulder and roost there.
"Hey!" Seren chides. "Baird, you gotta ask before just doing that." He is surprisingly light, though– the pressure of paws certainly there without the weight one might expect for a creature like him. They sigh at him when he stays put, looking up toward Marlowe like he's asking for her permission belatedly.
Breathing out slowly, they realize they've been distracted away from their fear of the yawning abyss in the process, at least. They settle a hand on the railing of the walking path and take their first steps forward on it.
"I've been wondering– I know we at Raytech came at this pretty strongly wanting to make sure there was enough space for our people, our contributors… have there been any other conversations happening about space usage? Any other, um, special requests other parties have been making?" The question is followed by a sheepish smile. "… Maybe it's too early to know, but if there's special site considerations to build in from other parties– like the Tetsujin storage power requirements we talked about recently– it'd be good for us to adapt before we get any farther in all this."
Marlowe startles when Baird hops on unbidden, but she recovers quickly and laughs. Her features make an effort to seem chiding as well in support of Seren's lightweight rebuke, but the woman can't be mad about it. If anything, she welcomes the familiar with a quick knuckle stroke of her finger down the cutely, professionally patterned fur down Baird's nape. There's his approval.
"Worst case, we'll leave them out here as windbreakers," Marlowe concedes of the construction equipment noisily working away. To the acknowledging of special requests, she takes a moment to think. "No," comes the conclusion, "nothing yet. I… well, I haven't quite entertained anything of note outside of Ms. Ezell's packet." She absently continues to stroke Baird's back, unaware of the action as she notes, "I do have one other main party to ask: Monica Dawson, who now heads the Deveaux Society, and is a very dear friend. Oh god." Her walk pauses as she realizes with a soft gasp, "How are we going to fit in pets?" The distress feeds a curdling in her insides, and she turns to stare out at the yawning hole that at once feels huge, but still too small for everything.
Baird is chuffed to find Marlowe to be amenable to his presence, leaning into the attention he receives. Seren only shakes their head, biting back an apology only because the distraction proved to be a momentary reprieve from their heavier topics.
It's a short one, though, and Seren can only blink hard, twice as they try to come up with an answer. The only thing they can immediately promise is, "I'll examine the plans for the vivarium again. Perhaps we can irrigate green flooring as well, give… some space for pets to roam." It would be beyond them to promise that anyone could bring their pets at all. They could at least make sure the space could be comfortable for them, though.
"What do we need to consult the Deveaux Society on, though?" Seren wonders curiously. They're largely unfamiliar with that group.
"And fly," Marlowe murmurs absently while stroking Baird's soft fur, temporarily overcome with the worry for a whole new set of unforeseen problems. Ever the engineer, though, she comes back to listen to Seren's promise of review on the design plans, nodding in agreement. "If we manage to expand the green and exercise spaces for all, I'm sure it would be better yield for overall…" She wants to deliver a corporate sounding term 'satisfaction', but instead lands on a different, more emotional, "Hopefulness."
Her hand shifts away from the idle rub along Baird's back to gesture towards the open pit as if to imagine another section further down. "The Society's aim, if I've got the right understanding of it, has always been to serve and guide the community. They go far back, and I think Monica would want some place that can secure their records, alongside as much data as we can muster and hold. For the future. For our survival." Marlowe draws her hand back, where it clutches to her shirt collar lightly as she looks at the seemingly woefully small space. How to house the knowledge of an entire world? Do they have the technology? Do they have the time?
"I want to save everything," she utters, brow furrowing and jaw twitching as she fights to maintain a smile. "As messy and inefficient and impossible as that might sound, I do." She sucks in a steadying breath, exhales less shakily than she thinks she was going to. "That's the challenge though, isn't it? That's what we have to do, see the problems before everybody else, and try to solve them. That is, of course, not an easy task to do alone, so. I’m glad you’re able to come and see the site, and help figure out what needs done.”
Marlowe glances to her shoulder where Baird sits. “And you too,” she says with a light, quick boop of a finger on the creature’s muzzle.
Seren gives Marlowe a small smile. "If you want to save everyone… it's my job to imagine a way to save as many as we can, and our job make that happen." They turn their gaze toward the hole already so deep it gives them vertigo. "And then once that's done, we start again, and try to save that many more."
Baird croons pridefully, wiggling his head after he's booped.
"Between the two of us… we can do this." Seren is confident in that, genuinely. "You, and me…" Their eyes turn up to the sky, the silver lining the edges of their grey eyes shining. "And so many others."
"We can do this."