[h3][hr][color=#38547C]Keaton Plasse[/color][/h3][hr]
Keaton’s eyes were closed and she hadn’t moved in a good few minutes, but though sleep buzzed at the corners of her mind, it eluded her, slipping out of her grasp every time she felt like she was getting close. Perhaps it was the stress of what was to happen, or of nerves she’d refused to acknowledge so many times she’d forgotten about them. It wouldn’t be the first time she lost sleep due to anxiety, and as she shifted, one thumb rubbing the rough skin on the other, the alarm on her phone sounded.

Slapping a hand out to her nightstand, she turned the alarm off, eyes trained up at the ceiling as she lay on her back. Above was a square pattern of black vinyl tile, which was shone white where the morning sunlight hit its edges. Though she’d learned about color concepts in her interior design class, she only started appreciating the aesthetics of a black ceiling when she started living under one, and considering the furniture that came with the room, she had to admit the ship had some good interior designers. Or was it all AI?

“Caroline, did you pick the ceiling color?” she asked, not budging from her spot in bed. 

“Good morning, Keaton. And no, I didn’t. The Promise predates me by three years,” Caroline answered back, and Keaton exhaled a sigh, remembering her facts. 

“Sorry, yeah, my bad,” she said, getting up and stretching. “How’s your morning been?” Ever since Packet’s explanation of Cara, Keaton had made an active effort to talk to her like she would a friend, though it was difficult considering that Cara still talked like a program that knew exactly what to say when Keaton asked it. While Cara paused and thought over her answers like anyone in casual conversation, her actions were hard for Keaton to believe when her power filtered true from false with a single thought. Still, Keaton had been trying, hence Caroline instead of Cara, and sometimes she could almost believe it was working. 

“Hm, my morning’s been normal. It snowed last night so it’s a bit chilly out right now. Remember to bundle up if you’re heading out, Keaton.”

“Right, will do,” Keaton said, walking over to her wardrobe to start layering sweaters. As usual, her power interrupted to tell her that yes, asking about the morning would trigger an automatic weather report, and she focused on adjusting the way the collar of her denim jacket fit over her sweater and under her hoodie. “You know, I actually hadn’t seen snow before coming here,” she said as she laced up her boots. “It doesn’t snow in LA, and I’ve never been farther north than Fresno. I guess that’s what happens when none of your relatives move around much.”

“Huh, that’s very interesting, Keaton,” came the automatic response, and Keaton swallowed a sigh as she looked at herself in the mirror. The bags under her eyes were a normal sort of dark, and apparently her lying in bed not sleeping had helped, even if she couldn’t tell how much. She could throw on some makeup, pretend that she was off to do something normal, but that didn’t feel right. What felt right was the way she could instantly picture the layout of the Spire, call up the schematics she’d memorized by heart with barely a thought. Sure her power would check her when the time came, but she had to first commit it all to memory, and that’s exactly what she’d done.

“We’re still good on the dad thing, right?” she asked, rubbing a thumb against her pointer finger. “Voice recordings, ARCH 101 TA?”

“Yes, Keaton.”

“Right.” Keaton nodded, glancing over her outfit again in the mirror before heading towards the door. “Well, I’m off then, Caroline. Thanks for being there for everyone,” she said as she opened the door. A gust of cold air blew her hair back as she stepped out.

“No problem, Keaton. I’m just doing my job.”

[hr]
After a bagel and coffee at the closest diner open at five in the morning, Keaton made her way to Tia Cori’s, idly reviewing maps in her head. Though she and Nic had made some headway in terms of Spire layout, the schematics Packet had provided were a lifesaver that moved both their schedule and understanding of the Spire forward. A large part of their success, then, had been due to Packet’s contributions, and as a result Keaton’s view of him had changed from awkward teen into capable young adult, teen or not. Considering what types of jobs his power lent him to, his maturity wasn’t surprising, but it was respectable nonetheless. If not for their circumstances, Keaton could’ve seen herself befriending Packet. Sure she had nothing to offer a technomancer, but in her experience, people immersed in technicalities all day liked being able to leave that behind and relax, and that she could help with. That Packet was friends with Eli was further testament to his character, and if they got out of the Spire alive, getting to know him was on Keaton’s to-do list.

Taking the alleyway behind the coffeeshop meant walking through the dirtier part of the street where snow mixed with grease and smoke to create a sort of black sludge that Keaton deliberately refused to consider, lest her power inform her exactly what might be in said sludge. Whether she minded it coating her shoes didn’t matter; they’d soon have to walk through worse, and she’d dressed accordingly, with black leather boots and nylon pants that were advertised as waterproof. Leather was a bit extra here, but she’d wanted lace-ups over rubber, which tended to squeak, so she’d settled for looking like some covert ops wannabe from waist down. As for the top half, she was sticking with keeping her fingers crossed that no one splashed her in the sewers. The backpack on her back was small and contained simple necessities: an overstuffed first aid kit, a flashlight, and a can of pepper spray. Sure pepper spray wouldn’t get her anywhere considering where she was and who she was dealing with, but the hot pink canister had been a gift from her dad when she left for college, and packing it now, when she knew she might actually use it for the first time, seemed appropriate. 

Spotting Packet and Lynn, Keaton waved, a smile crossing her face when she saw the distance between them and the awkwardness on their faces. Seeing the two together brought to mind Packet’s toaster comment, which never failed to make her smile, though by the looks of the simple annoyance on Lynn’s face, Lynn hadn’t been thinking of it.

“Did I miss anything important?” she asked, looking between them as she came to a stop beside them, her smile teasing. Jokes in the alleyway at just before six in the morning seemed to naturally fall flat, but she didn’t mind. Anything to lighten up this mood worked for her.