DECK B · AFT
The Null's Berth
Overview
Ivan's berth is the null zone — three meters in every direction where plants refuse to thrive, garden cuttings wilt, and Elias's cantrips feel like they hit a padded wall. Ivan didn't ask for the physics; he claimed the aft cabin farthest from the dome and decorated it like a bachelor pad that armories itself.
Sniper rifle on wall mounts, brass cartridges in a ranked rack, workbench with cleaning solvents and a vinyl record player (pre-Concord, sounds like guilt). Vanity bulbs around a mirror — Ivan's ego is maintenance-heavy. Silk sheets, fur throw, gym rings from the ceiling for pull-work. Framed photos and a red garment on the wall: souvenirs from ports he'd rather the crew not ask about.
Human-standard bunk frame, reinforced after Talyra sat on the edge once. The room is clean on purpose — contrast to the chalk chaos forward. Smells like gun oil and cologne, not soil.
In the art
Long narrow cabin — dark metal walls, string lights, vanity mirror bulbs. Right wall: mounted sniper rifle, ammo rack, workbench with tools, bottles, record player with vinyl. Left/center: industrial bunk with silk sheets, fur, pillows. Bar cart with decanters. Gym rings and pull-up bar from ceiling. Dumbbells/kettlebell on rug. Padded bench center. Photo wall with red cloth. Porthole to starfield.
What it's for
**Ivan's quarters, fitness space, and precision-weapons maintenance** — null field makes it the safest place on ship to store loaded hardware away from garden humidity.
Weekly upkeep
₡60–₡140/week — cleaning solvents, vanity bulbs, vinyl needles, gym chalk. Ammo is job-specific, not weekly. Silk sheets: Ivan's problem.
Operations
- Null radius **+5 on greenhouse d100** if Ivan sleeps garden-adjacent — he doesn't
- Plants die here — **do not** store Talyra's cuttings on his sill
- Magnetic sweep required before Elias visits (bullet drift joke, actually real)
- Sound from record player carries to cargo bay — thin bulkheads
- Room reads **cold** on sensors — life-magic instruments glitch at the door
Crew on this deck
Ivan — maintains weapons, trains, entertains guests, vanishes into the mirror. Talyra — enters only for armor-adjacent strategy talks; won't sleep here. Elias — uncomfortable after ten minutes; compares feeling to "stepping into a unplugged freezer."