Futuristic THE SEA (Lore based, Futuristic RP, OPEN & ACCEPTING)

[Steviemac]

There's a loud crash from the kitchen as Wally drops the plate he had just gotten out of the cupboard. "The intruder!?" What should he do? As he's trying to figure out how to handle this news, the man leaves. Wally rushes to the door, trying to see where the man may be heading. He sees two security officers lying on the floor just outside his dwelling. There is no sign of the intruder in either direction.


Wally bends down, checking to see if the officers are dead. They both still seem to be breathing. It appears that they have been rendered unconscious by the intruder. There is an intercom in the corridor about ten feet from Wally's door. He rushes over and presses the controls. "I need a medical detachment to habitat area five, section seventeen alpha. You might as well send security too." He goes back to see if he can do anything for the two downed officers.


In just a few short minutes, the first person arrives on the scene. It's his son, accompanied by two coremen. Apparently he was on duty in the hospital when the call went out. He rushes over to his father. "Dad! Are you o.k.? Where are you injured?" His voice is filled with concern for his father.


"I'm fine Lawrence. It's these two officers. I wasn't injured at all." Lawrence turns his attention to the two officers.


Wally hears more footsteps approaching and looks up. He groans inwardly as the chief of security reaches them. He's not looking forward to this meeting. After all, he had the intruder in his home and didn't even realize it.


"What happened here Wally?" the chief demands. Wally tells him the whole story. Frowning, the chief rounds on his friend, "I thought I told you to report ANYTHING out of the ordinary? I had already informed you the expedition had been postponed. What the hell were you thinking?"


"Calm down. It's not entirely my fault. The man woke me after just a few hours of sleep. My mind was still groggy and I wasn't thinking clearly."


"Well THAT'S obvious! What did this man want exactly? Don't leave anything out Wally."


Wally thinks back, trying to remember exactly what the man had said to him. "He seemed to know who I was, although I'm certain I hadn't met him before. He then asked to see everything I had on the Sea. That's what threw me off I guess. The previous expedition is highly classified. No one outside of the current expedition should have even known those reports existed. All I had were a few botanical reports, cataloging new species. He downloaded them and left."


Lawrence has finished his examination of the two unconscious men. "They don't seem to be in any danger. We're transporting them to the medial ward to keep an eye on them." He has the two coremen who accompanied him place the men on the gurneys they brought. They then head off to the medical ward.


The chief turns back to Wally. "I'll need to report this to the cardinal. They're going to want to know about it. I find it interesting he was looking for information on the Sea. Did he say anything else? Mention the expedition at all?"


"No. He just seemed to want information on the Sea itself. As far as I could tell, he didn't know anything about the expedition. Tell that to the cardinal. Maybe they'll lift the delay when they realize this person isn't trying to sabotage the expedition."


"That's just a guess on your part Wally, but I'll let them know your opinion." With that, the chief heads off in the direction of the cardinal chamber. Wally goes back inside. He cleans up the broken dish and continues to make his meal, hopeful that the expedition might set off as planned.

 

[Azuria]

@Steviemac

The metallic floor rumbled at each step before the entrance to the engine bay. The reports the engineering team revealed a decline in power output. His colleague down in the electrical sector had shrugged it off, central having assigned priorities to hull repairment and they needed to repair some of the wiring in the storage bay. No other statements were made, but he had mentioned a thought on the conservation of momentum, so the ship would begin accelerating soon if it wasn’t addressed. Law pressed a high clearance security key against the electronic lock, the sliding mechanical door parting to his approach.


Passing through one of the backup generators, he reached the housing dock of the propulsion drive. A loud hum emitted from the colossal machine. Law fiddled with the hatch, opening it with one of the keys in his office for engine repairs. The sounds of a multitude of machines drowned his thoughts, although years of experience gave the benefit of functioning through memory alone. A spark flickered amidst the darkness of the engine bay, unnoticed by Law, his concentration focused entirely on the radio frequency resonating magnets within the propulsion drive. Many of the wires had been blown out, likely the source of the electrical output decline coming from the engine. Had it been one or two it wouldn't have been a problem, yet with this many the magnet was generating a reaction mass as normal, with hardly any output between it and the motor. Once they were properly reconnected the motor should function at peak efficiency. Despite the industrial cooling tanks that filled the bay, it was boiling within, sweat dripped from his brow, squinting with teeth clenched while he reconnected the broken circuit to the electric motor.





Stepping out and closing the hatch, he dusted himself in futility, his clothes ruined once more by grime. He returned to the entrance of the bay, checking the area twice over making sure everything was locked down before he closed the security door. He walked leisurely through the ship's mechanical halls to his habitat sector with a yawn escaping from the scruff of his jaw. Pyxis had no day or night cycle, perpetually in twilight, exposed to the darkness of space yet illuminated by artificial lighting at all times. Regardless, he was ready to lay in bed and have a quick nap before returning to his office.


Upon reaching the door to his residence, reaching for the door he recalled one more task. The expedition. Central would be briefing them within the next day or two and the expedition would set off soon after. He knew the name of one of the botanists joining him, a Dr. Wally Scranton, and he lived nearby. Letting go of the handle, he shuffled through dark lit metallic corridors, until he arrived at the residence of his expedition colleague.

 

[Steviemac]

Just as Wally is placing his plate into the washing unit, his door chime goes off. "Now what?" he mumbles under his breath. Then a thought strikes him. What if it's the intruder come back for more information? Wally had already told him all he had was botanical reports, which was the truth. But what if the intruder didn't believe him? He crosses into the living room, heading for the com unit on the wall. He's not about to take any more chances. Security could be here in moments. "What am I doing?" he thinks to himself. "I won't let some unknown intruder make me a prisoner in my own home."


Having made up his mind, he takes his hand away from the com unit. Walking to the door, he gets about a foot away and calls out. "Whose there?" he asks, loud enough to be heard through the metal of the door. His heart begins to race as he awaits an answer from his visitor. He can still run over to the com unit should he need to call security.

 

[Lenchan]

A slender billow of white smoke, flowing upward in docile cadence, melding with the sky.


As the young woman departed the city center and made her way back up to her beloved woodland home in one of the once-highrises, she caught a glimpse of its phantom menace in the bright moonlight. It was much too thick and could be viewed at too great a distance to be the result of a Sea-Dweller keeping warm on such a cool, foggy night. A chill crawled up her spine and along her arms, leaving goosebumps in its wake; it was her first time consciously acknowledging the cold that stiffened and stabbed at her limbs, causing her body to shiver. How human. Perhaps next time, floating around in the earlier pond on a day like this, she’d think better to do.


Perhaps not.


The woman wrapped her arms across her chest and tucked her fingertips between them on either side, her blood-moon eyes taking peace from the view for several long minutes. The night was alive as always; quiet to the untrained ear, but bustling with the nocturnal, busying themselves with the requirements of survival. She listened intently, honing her skills of heightened perception: another pair of squirrel-beasts scampered across the branches of trees, their tiny claws scratching the bark in rasps; several pesky moth-like insects buzzed in a school above what smelled like rotting flesh; the modern-day crickets chirped in song with the night breeze; the trees themselves rustled and flowed along with it in a noisy chorus. Yu closed her eyes and hummed into the night air as well.


The evening tune was interrupted by another familiar sound. She opened her eyes and let them settle on the two squirrel-beast’s heat signatures. They were blissfully unaware of the predator sizing them up from the upper canopy, but luck was in their favor: a branch creaked under the weight of the bird and one of the beasts screeched out a common warning call, letting the predator know it’s cover was blown, and then another, slightly louder in pitch. Many other animals paused and perked up, alert and checking their own bearings for signs of danger. The woman tilted her head and watched as the chase began and ended as expected.


Why in the world would you purposefully give away your position for the sake of saving others? Such an altruistic adaptation was one she’d never thought to implement. The benefit was increasingly unclear to her every time she watched it happen and more often than not it always ended in the same dying light they all raged against constantly. In truth, she saw little need for speech as a form of communication, but her view was jaded by her capabilities. The only time she felt the use for it was practicing recreating the sounds of other animals and humming, a trick she’d adapted from the songbirds that populated the area.


The pillar of smoke thinned even further and became part of the fog hanging low over the treeline. A gust of wind sent her hair whipping about along with another chill up her spine. She tied her hair into a bun and sneezed quietly, watching the bird devour its meal. A familiar longing for the sun tingled her skin as the bird took flight, leaving the carcass behind for some other scavenger.


She watched it ascend into the deep azure of sky and thought of ascending herself.

 

[Anaxial]

@Anaxial @BloodyKharma @Integra
Will had become unresponsive. Really, it was the only method he’d equipped himself with to handle the barrage of things unknown. Why was his wrist glowing? And what the hell was up there? Why was his strange protector bowing before him? His brain clicked like Barumal’s gears and his gaze sat downcast for a moment as he took in a long ragged breath--eyes mewling over the sword protruding from the damp soil and then back up at the massive fingers curling and uncurling at his person. He wanted to understand, he truly did. All he could surmise from the machine-man’s actions was that it seemed as though he were being worshipped? His lips turned down at the thought, his frown immense as he shook his head at the words, at the gestures, at the entirety of his situation.


“No, no, noooo….” He whined these, hands dragging down his face as he did so. The blue orb in his wrist blinked a slow blue against his features and he appeared more sickly in this lighting than he knew. The giant’s hands settled into the earth before he called out yet again and thrust a pointing arm toward the canopy. The light from his wrist grew ever brighter with the motion and he groaned, clutching his own arm tightly, fingers molding against the small gel-like orb there. Pain seared through him, a deep stabbing singe he’d never imagined he could feel, and he fell to his knees, all gritting teeth and darkness. And as he dropped a flicker of an image passed over his vision. Like two blips on a radar.


In an instant he knew two others were within the area. And he looked up, pain-stricken, at the leaves, his eyes seeming to meet the stranger’s there, yet he could see nothing. He stared for a long moment, knowing just where the watcher sat. He knew. How did he know? Again, time would not appease him and a voice called out from where he recollected the other was positioned. Yet, this voice spoke in his tongue and a glimmer of hope that it was one of his people crossed his face before his instincts, or some other force, thought better of hope.


“Who’s there?” His voice hitched, scratchy and dry in his throat, and he dropped his speculating glare toward the male who’d just inquired of them. He was quite near, yet Will hadn’t heard a single movement, and he looked to his large friend for some semblance of an answer to the happenings. He sat on the ground like a small child as the pain subsided from his arm. What had he been cursed with? Everything on Pyxis was a secret or a curse, and somehow he missed it.

Unyielding in prostration before the Ghost, Barumal looked at his new deity with a sense of wonder, it was ironic for such a titan to look upon this frail creature they way a child may have looked up to their father. He stayed on his knees but eventually lifted himself up and still, was slightly taller than the Ghost before him. Though he may have been an apex predator, all creatures could be outdone and that truth became reality as he hadn't picked up on the new arrivals to the landing site of the Steel Womb, until one made his voice heard.


The moment the boy spoke, Barumal's twisted face snapped dead center on the new arrival. His wide eyes seemed to grow wider as the beady red pupils centered in on the archer and the Iron Titan roared to life, the machinery on his body screaming in agony as it was suddenly forced into action. A solid billow of steam erupted from the exhaust ports on his back filling the air with the unforgettable scent of ozone. Rising to his feet faster than a creature of his size deserved to move, Barumal drew the large rusted blade from the earth with a terrifying ease and took a defensive stance in front of the Ghost.


For a moment, it almost seemed that the Titan was ready to charge and gore whoever had spoken out, however it was the Ghost himself who saved the new Arrivals. Speaking out to them in a similar tongue and with a twinge of hope, though the words were different: Barumal understood the tone.


"Wahd go'din, Kosm? Ut enta fa' baroo? Barumal hagajawala!?" while his head remained locked on the new arrivals, Barumal gave a demonstration of his strength by heaving the sword in a massive, wide, horizontal swing in front of him, challenging the new arrivals to attack his deity. Though the tone of his voice seemed... quizzical, as if he was asking a question of sort.

 

[yonmita rae]

Ruffled sheets lie beneath fingers painted in dark shadows, while silken curtains draped down, basking a simple coating of light on a bare collarbone melting into a lightly bobbing chest. A slight toss to the left to have the bare fingers twinge at an absent feel, slumber broke from a barely tired face. “No....” A callus tone echoed through a muffled shield…”No…” Broken shards of light split this moment into rippled fragments, bursting in and out with ruptured vibrations, coating clear vision with screeching orange burnt into pulsating retinas. A snapping motion yanked back pulling on the head to show eyes seizing in a frenzy trying to latch onto a singular moment, while being whipped to and fro whilst wrists and abdomen were still confined.


Bombarding waves battered into the descending vessel, winds belted the ivory frame while sparks erupted from the seamless lines sealing the container. Images flashed over the mirrored glass, shielding the life form inside from a constant barrage of elements and atmospheric turbulence. Fog slightly steamed a porous looking mask under wearily beaten eyes framed with lazily cropped hair. The orange lights bounced from the hollow white of the small cabin to the lightly fallow skinned woman. As the manic rocking seemed to settle, her eyes began to lull, whether it was from the blurred flash of *WARNING* O2 LEVEL DECREASE or a tired physic from constant jostling, Chia, simply let her eyes fall as did her chest, elevating slower with each fallen number under the monochromatic digital indicator.


As the young woman seemed to give into a muffled silence, a scream bellowed through, joined by another and another until a unsettling chorus rose while she seemed to wake with a lifting feeling in her gut. The cabin began to depressurization with the screeching whistle sucking out her precious time and limited oxygen. A sudden crash vibrated the vessel to a point of cracking her teeth under clenched pressure. A second jolt sent her twirling, as her head slipped below and her feet flew high, panic melded into delusion. Exacerbated breathing choked the young woman to a light headed state before a stray piece of interior vibrated feverishly and broke free whipping by to greet her lower face with a simple and razed kiss, tearing the breathing apparatus from her face in the process. Vocal chokes now escaped into the singing cabin, while crimson drops skid into oval blotches painting small sections of the ivory cushioned vessel.


As her nostrils flared images returned, night, shadows, broken light painting veiled thieves, disgusted eyes with pity, all flashed mixing with the orange colors of now. Chia clenched her jaw, pressing her teeth to the point of breaking to take the pain of her wound while her eyes furrowed into an angered mess. The panicked screams of the cabin were broken with a monstrous blow to the pod, which sent it careening into the ground, where it came to rest in defeated silence.


Inside the pod, a dilapidated young woman lay, her right eye sliced shut, an arm released from its captor only to be strewn across the other with three broken fingers, and legs unbound overlapping one another, while her head and neck lie deadly still in a slowly growing pool melding crimson with clear fluids. The only semblance of life was a weakly elevating chest, beaten as it was, it moved with a shallow cry.


The cry came followed by a violent set of coughing before a choking jerk sent gags into the wounded pod. Whether it were the sudden taste in her mouth or the pain she had just endured, Chia released her will and vomited. The bile stung her fresh cut as much as her throat, while other seemingly translucent liquids trickled from tubes and thimble sized cords, strangely however, only two of the variety of supports were attached to the woman.


Reluctant as she was to move, she needed to, this numbing pain in her jaw and the sharp, radiating nuisance of her right eye were driving her to retaliate. As Chia lie there, her eye finally opened to a stabbing sensation in her vision, a winced whine let out before she reached to touch her eye only to flinch at yet another pain. Trembles in her hand made it clear something was wrong, her left eye circled and searched to see the damage, after her peripherals cleared and adjusted the woman saw that three of her fingers had begun to turn an odd dark color, and the sensitivity in them was excruciating. Tears began to well in her eye but the stings thwarted any continued self pity, Chia suddenly felt a sensation to sleep, almost to the point of paralysis swelling in her joints, but her torn jaw bit at her shock. Shaking feverishly, she moved her free hand to unbind the restraint from her other wrist, faint breaths, shallow and raspy, pushed from her lips until a strained, almost muzzled screech broke free with the freedom of her wrist.


It looked like her unharmed hand was free but the very straps that bound her in safety, now showed her no remorse. Chia frantic in mind, was slow in pace, she reached over the sides in hopes of finding the releasing mechanism, perhaps a fail safe. In a moment that made her rattled mind rejoice, a smooth circular indent moved under her middle finger, playing the trigger for a moment, she felt a reaction to the nudge, and without a second thought mashed it in and felt her chest loosen from its restriction. The young woman's body dropped from the padded seat with an aggressive pull, almost as if forced, ...what is this..., her mind finally had thoughts on something other than pain, but this was to uncomfortable, especially being splashed in a plethora of fluids pooling in the base of the turned vessel. A strained inhale forced its way through her lungs as she pushed up, skillfully keeping her broken fingers from touching the floor before rocking herself into a seated position once again.


As she sat there, drearily scanning over the mess she had helped make, a glimpse she had caught grabbed her by surprise. A second look and the woman sucked in a gasp before backing into a rounded angle in the pod with panicked expression. The streaked glass, broken from impact, mirrored a bizarre picture....Grooved monumental statues guarded her ship, while almost black floors littered in...trash ran as far as the scratched glass let her see. Frightened to even think what was happening to her, this, outside her current "sanctuary" baffled her, but for all the seconds this ran on, as she cupped her hands to her mouth, a pain quickly brought back a less than welcome gravity to the situation, Chia was losing blood, and in dire danger of shock. Aside from the unfathomable fantasies that lingered in mind about the realm outside of these padded white walls, she needed help.


Looking over the decorated base, her eye caught sight of a tainted box in a weirdly displaced fashion, with furrowed brows she scanned the casing and saw a distinct stain of crimson splashed on its corner. It still throbbing in her skull, a faint glimmer of beginning pelted in the head with a heavy object kept her from frantically scavenging the box for a moment. Chia felt a very bitter irony drip down when she opened the latched lid to reveal a meager rationed kit holding medical provisions. The woman slowly but surely began to remedy her fractured self, taking a selfish amount of precaution with her tender eye, and broken appendages.

 

[Integra]

@Anaxial @Wixed


The beast Ailwyn seemed to have angered gave off some frightful exhaust and gurgled a language that he had never heard of before. It gave off the impression of protecting the smaller being, one that appeared to share his language, strangely enough, and wasn't waving a giant stick of sharpened metal in front of him. It was his first instinct to shimmy up the trunk of a tree and perch himself on one of the thicker branches high above the ground, where he would have a better vantage point and hopefully better protection from this gargantuan animal that was challenging him. But, determined to stand his ground, Ailwyn lowered his weapon hesitantly. If there was some way they could come to an understanding, perhaps they wouldn't be trying to slice each other open.


The slender male nodded towards the brute before him, sweat collecting on his forehead. "Hello," he said at last, hearing his voice ring across the distance between himself and the pair of strangers, and just as quickly become absorbed into the forest, forming an eternal bond with the soil and the leaves, each sapling and seedling. The forest never forgot, that was the only thing Ailwyn knew for sure, and if he was to die today at the blade of the strange titan, he knew the soil would never forsake the feel of his body, and the trees would absorb his blood, making him one with his home. With this thought in mind for comfort, he continued.


"I mean you no harm." The smaller figure seemed afraid, with good reason. If what Ailwyn assumed was true, the figure just dropped from the heavens and landed in a natural maze. Perhaps both of them came down from the sky, that would explain how outlandish they appeared. Remembering to speak slowly, and to keep a safe distance away from the metallic predator, Ailwyn continued. "My name is Ailwyn. I live in this forest. I mean no harm." His gaze deliberately fell on the monster, hoping his message of peace would get through to it. More than anything, he hoped his message would get through to them both.

 

[yonmita rae]

Drifting streams of cold caressed simple rising bumps along skin panning over a leaning figure, propped up against a fallen seat. An eyelid shifted, revealing a dim green with a slowly decreasing pupil, Chiaro adjusted once again to the distaining view of monocular vision. The cold sensation ebbed its way up her abdomen before tapering off again as she began to move. Chiaro moved her right arm into view, she then let it drop as she remembered fainting after having to pop the bent appendage into place. Moving up right, the young woman noticed temperature drop faintly, looking about the cabin again, she noticed that it was no longer protected.


Gliding over the streaked glass toward what looked to be a puncture, the young woman furrowed her brow, what was going on? Clearly it was pitch black on the exterior of this ivory pod, noting how the illumination of the inside made such a distinct reflection...but there was no pressure, no sign of forcibly being inhaled by the gaping fracture in the glass, and the clear, simple fact that she was still alive. So, she concluded she was no longer in space, but…”Pyxia….no….” She put that out of her mind, having endured the previous situation and now this ordeal. Defeated, Chia simply pressed her face into her hand, avoiding her mended chin.


Fatigue gripped the woman harshly but giving into sleep was not a viable option at the moment. This cold though, it began to get more aggravating to her and her wounds, as a retort she looked over the vessel for a familiar contraption. Stretching out her hand in a futile and misguided attempt to stabilize her visions depth was as silly a gesture as trying to repair her broken finger. Yet she tried, what other choices did she have, her hand moved along the former wall of the vessel, now the floor, to find a seemless indent marked in the white. Pressure released the secret compartment to reveal cloth tucked into the boxed sectional. Pulling the clothes free, she inspected them with another look of fearful curiosity...why would they give her these...It seemed like a trivial aspect to ponder given her situation, but Chia wondered if they knew what this place was. A sound escaped as she noted disbelief in her own naivety, “...Of course they did….”, looking to the clothing in her hands and then up to the confined space of the pod, a chilling notion came to mind, she needed more space….unless she wanted to endure another excruciating fight with her own fractures.


Time seemed endless as Chiaro ponder leaving her captive sanctuary and the temperature had begun to nibble at her cuts and fractured fingers. These two opposing creatures made her angst riddled mind wild, several breaths inhaled and exhaled trying to psych her into moving. As Chia moved a familiar crimson stained box caught her eye, a thought came to mind, a weapon would be smart decision. Grabbing the box up, she folded it and the clothing under her arm before creeping through the puddled mess on the floor before nearing the glass. Eye darting from the familiar scene of grooved monuments and a trash addled path made no difference in easing her mind, her reflection spliced into this picture turned the uneasiness into a soft irritation. As if staving off possible suffocation or intoxication, Chia sucked in a gulp of air while feeling around for the latch release, as her eye narrowed in and her fingers adjusted something caught her gaze...the gaping gash in the pod’s window.


Chiaro's eye darted from that to the outside image twice before she paused, in this moment she realized she was breathing in everything from the outside...with no recognizable problems. Pushing the button, the young woman released her held precaution while gazing out into an unbroken expanse of darkness. Chia shifted her gaze to the floor, crouched as if primitive, allowing instinct to dictate the next action, her fingers grazed the ground just outside the pods wall and with a jerk reaction she pulled back...it was moist. Another exploration with her fingers brought back a sample, rolling the matter between the tips of her fingers revealed an astonishing discovery, with an added whiff of the substance she pondered, “...Is this dirt?....But…” She voiced this lowly as if testing something, her foot moved before her body and lead her crawling free into a naked environment, her spectacle of it confined only to the light spread from her pod, the rest elusive in darkness

 

[Wixed]

@Integra @Anaxial


Exhaust hissed from his guardian’s backside and Will choked back a cough, virgin lungs burning with the foreign fumes. The sharp scent caused his eyes to water as the titan stepped between him and the unknown man. His vision blurred for a moment as tears welled and dropped down his cheeks. He thumbed them away quickly, the giant brandishing his sword at the stranger in the leaves—calling out what seemed to be some sort of question. His only ally… and he had no idea what was even being said. Maybe he was laying claim to Will. To eat him or kill him. He couldn’t know the nature of the beast’s words.


At the faint “hello”, Will raised a brow. Hello? Seemed like an appropriate intro to one’s impending death. “I mean you no harm.” That made a bit more sense to say, given the situation. Muffled footfalls just reached Will’s ears and he could see the foliage stirring as the stranger grew ever near. Ailwyn? Will repeated the name in his mind so as not to forget it, though his ability to focus was hard pressed in the wake of his current stress level.


A slender figure emerged from the greenery, and Will gave a heavy sigh, eyes glued to the blond. Clearly Will was the smallest humanoid creature on this planet. Everything and everyone towered over his minute stature. That and the blatant differences between himself and the two before him sent him into a state of worry. He wondered if humans still existed on Earth, and though Ailwyn was a bit closer to his idea of what was considered human, he was also realms away. He could see in the lithe movements of the elf-boy that he was well versed in scouting the forest, and Will dropped his forehead against his knee and groaned at his lap. How the hell was he going to survive here?

 

[Azuria]

@Steviemac


Law chimed the bell, his demeanour 6"ft tall, proud, ever so intimidating for a Pyxan, averaging roughly 5ft"10. His gaze shifted around the perimeter of the little geometrical building. Dark red marks littered the normally glistening metal floors. His gaze focused on the exterior of the building in a search for more suspicion. The door did not open within the second, time continually passing. It was irregular for any Pxyan habitat to be disorderly, and with the unexpected wait, habit had him study, crafting scenes, possible explanations his colleague had, his own paranoia projected onto his perception of the man.


What does one possibly say in regards to a partner on a highly confidential expedition? He could easily discuss his own role in the trip, overseeing mechanical operations and craft while they map out the geography of their landing zone. Nor could he give to much away no, he had to be careful, he was always careful. His stance remained proper, his breathing controlled, his eyes shut, his mind focusing on the possible questions and discussion at hand. He was distracting himself with random thoughts. Better to stay prepared to expertly converse with the man, establish rapport and perhaps gain a tidbit of info he wasn't supposed to know.

 

[Steviemac]

Having convinced himself that it couldn't possibly be the intruder returning, Wally goes to the door and activates the sensor. Standing before him, at an imposing six feet tall, is someone that he has never before met. Yet, this person is familiar to Wally. It takes a few moments for him to realize this is one of the others that have been assigned to the expedition. An engineer he believes. He soon remembers his manners and invites the man into his home.


"Please, come in. Forgive me, I recognize your face from the expedition memos, but I'm afraid your name eludes me. I'm Wally Scranton, head of botanical research and horticulture. I suppose that you're here about this intruder business. I can't believe that the cardinal wish to postpone our expedition over this!" Wally's voice conveys his irritation with this decision. "Ah, but I forget myself. May I offer you something to eat or drink? I've just finished my morning meal, but I could prepare something quickly if you'd like anything. Please, make yourself at home." Wally indicates that the man should have a seat on the sofa. He then politely awaits a response from his visitor regarding refreshments.

 

[Anaxial]

@Integra @Anaxial
Exhaust hissed from his guardian’s backside and Will choked back a cough, virgin lungs burning with the foreign fumes. The sharp scent caused his eyes to water as the titan stepped between him and the unknown man. His vision blurred for a moment as tears welled and dropped down his cheeks. He thumbed them away quickly, the giant brandishing his sword at the stranger in the leaves—calling out what seemed to be some sort of question. His only ally… and he had no idea what was even being said. Maybe he was laying claim to Will. To eat him or kill him. He couldn’t know the nature of the beast’s words.


At the faint “hello”, Will raised a brow. Hello? Seemed like an appropriate intro to one’s impending death. “I mean you no harm.” That made a bit more sense to say, given the situation. Muffled footfalls just reached Will’s ears and he could see the foliage stirring as the stranger grew ever near. Ailwyn? Will repeated the name in his mind so as not to forget it, though his ability to focus was hard pressed in the wake of his current stress level.


A slender figure emerged from the greenery, and Will gave a heavy sigh, eyes glued to the blond. Clearly Will was the smallest humanoid creature on this planet. Everything and everyone towered over his minute stature. That and the blatant differences between himself and the two before him sent him into a state of worry. He wondered if humans still existed on Earth, and though Ailwyn was a bit closer to his idea of what was considered human, he was also realms away. He could see in the lithe movements of the elf-boy that he was well versed in scouting the forest, and Will dropped his forehead against his knee and groaned at his lap. How the hell was he going to survive here?

The intruder spoke in a way similar to the Ghost and the it seemed that he appreciated hearing his own divine tongue. Though Barumal didn't understand the words, he eventually relaxed with a slow hiss as the hydraulics released and allowed him to lower the blade. With the sharp grinding screech that was on par to nails on a chalkboard through a megaphone, the iron giant sheathed his sword and walked to the tree that he assumed to be called; Ailwyn. Barumal slammed a giant hand against the trunk of the tree and rattled the bark up into the intruder's thighs.


"Ah-lwehn..." He struggled to repeat the word, he only assumed it to be this creature's name as it was the only word that didn't reflect on the Ghost's speech. "Barumal ut enta fa, Kosm. Ah-lwehn ut enta fa Kosm? Fa Barumal? Hafalamajelik." He slapping the tree again and digging his metal fingers into the bark, heaving his massive form up with a single arm before he dropped and crashed onto the forest floor with a thundering noise.

 

[UlyssesTheSnowman]

Caleb walked along the deserted streets in the early morning towards the launch bay, trying to focus on the blueprints and map in his hands and not the girl with the metal arm from a few days ago.


You haven't even spoken to her. What's more important? Her or getting out of here?


He had managed to...persuade one of his colleagues to let him have temporary access to the files containing the design of the ships they were going to use in the journey to Pyxis and The Sea. Turns out his robotic physicality made him more threatening than he would've thought.


Once he got to the right hangar, he hoped that the blueprints were accurate and up-to-date so that he could find somewhere to hide.


He'd debated about doing this for days. All he could think about was his homesickness, his cowardice for not even speaking to that girl before she ran away (probably in disgust) and just how easy it would be to sneak aboard. The ships were massive, with so many tunnels and hiding places. It would be almost too easy to not get caught.


He stood on the edge of the ramp leading into the largest ship, took a deep breath and walked in.

 

[typhoon]

"For the second time, the problem is the oil pump in the damn engine. I could've had it fixed by now if you weren't so intent on arguing with me." Vi twirled the wrench in annoyance as she stared into the beady eyes of the man opposite of her. He bared his teeth, and she caught sight of the pointed pearly-whites. The commander was ruthless, and it was said at sea he ripped out the throats of his men who didn't cooperate. It was a simple mutation but paired with his reputation and disposition, it was slightly nerve-wracking. Vi stepped back a bit. "How dare you speak in such a manner to your betters, you insolent girl. I should have you punished." He hissed, and Vi clenched her fists in anger, trying to control it. The commander straightened up though, and the tension relaxed. "You will come tomorrow and fix it at noon. I have a meeting and I don't want you down here where I can't keep an eye on you. You're dismissed." Vi turned on her heel before he even got his last word out and stomped her way through the ship, her toolbox clanking and echoing through the ship. She made her way down the ramp and something caught her eye. The boy from earlier? He was entering the largest ship, the Rampion. Vi had been in there fixing the slightest machinery issues for so long she knew the entire layout of the damn ship. What was someone from the office doing onboard? The ship was leaving soon, she knew that. She still was curious of him, and she didn't even stop herself from hiding her toolbox for later and making her way into the ship. His steps were the opposite of quite, and Vi was soon a few paces behind him. She caught the piece of paper in his hands when he turned a bit, and she knew them to be a blueprint. The more she studied his metal arm the more she was doubted the similarity of herself and the boy. His was clunky and a lot less agile than hers, and she saw it more and more as she looked at it. The boy started walking again and she followed, but her metal arm caught the pipe she was hidden behind and made a resonate clinking sound. Vi froze, her heart beating in her chest.


@UlyssesTheSnowman

 

[BloodyKharma]

She watched from the safety of the trees, as another figure approached, with his own weapon drawn and at the ready. She knew very little about the art of combat herself, but judging by the puny stick he seemed to be wielding, it didn't seem like he'd stand much of a chance against the metal behemoth. What she did know, was that where there was one of his kind, more were sure to follow. She turned her gaze in the direction he had come, peering into the dark forest, catching sight of nothing but the occasional animal scampering across the forest floor. Okay, so maybe he had come alone, which was ultimately a poor choice on his part. As the three figures below sized each other up, she considered taking this opportunity to descend further down from her current position, onto one of the branches farther below. For while she could clearly see them, their words were completely inaudible, the pulsating forest drowning out their words entirely. She toyed with the thought for a moment, before deciding against doing so. The otherworldly being had disturbed her greatly, seeming to peer in her very direction, as if he knew exactly where she was.


I'll wait it out, bide my time, and move when I'm beyond certain I haven't been detected...

 

[yonmita rae]

Faint breaths dissipated from streaks of weak heat into the dark overhead, although she was unaware of the massive grandeur that surrounded her, the young woman felt her surroundings reach far beyond her beholding. It was an understatement that she felt awkward, it verged on newborn adding that she was barely bandaged and now a cyclops. Nevertheless, the young woman stood erect while gawking at the grooved lines that stood stretching far beyond the touch of the pods’ frail gleam. A curious look came to her eye before she inched close to the entity stretching out her arm in the process, her fingers flinched as they caressed the bark almost as if they would slip through the unbelievable mass. “...It...feels like...bark?” Chiaro uttered in disbelief as her finger almost faded in the gap of this monument. That was fairly hard to grasp, the trees she’d been exposed to at home were accurately standard...these must be gigantic.


The cold began to bite at her bare legs, common sense flooded back to the woman as she had remembered why she had left her captive holding. Chiaro needed to get the hard part over with, with a deep breath she first dropped the shirt to the ground before crouching and managing to get one foot in the sewn slipper, before advancing to another. Once that was done a difficult dilemma came about...using her hands, a tight jaw and rolling eyes met a snapping pain when she demanded her fingers to conform to the bending motion. A bead of sweat caressed her cheek while she trembled at the pulsating pain, a quick yank brought up a release with a sigh, but the pants only reached her thigh to a midway point before she gripped them again and this time skillfully twisted the two unharmed fingers to do her bidding. A match well met, the shirt was simple enough however, as she scooped up the clothing a small ball (it looked to be) rolled from the micro-fiber ruffles. An unfazed eye sat idly glancing at the “rock”, until it jostled and needled appendages wiggled free, spreading along a ribbed oval like shape. Chiaro's spine had never been colder as her eye widened and she snatched a gasp back to her lips, solid as the surrounding trees, the young woman watched the small creature rock and wriggle its way back to a standing position, it scuttled off until it was swallowed by the unwavering darkness.


A moment snuck by before a shot of bravery flashed in the young woman and she moved swiftly back to her confined domicile. Crouching in and moving over the what now seemed to be growing mess on the floor to the strewn seat. As she took a seat toward the head cushion Chiaro met her hands with the soft heat of her breath before pulling her shirt over the thermal bandages. Fishing up the thermal sleeves, she paused, looking to the dark scape just outside the pods light Chiaro gave a slight sigh before pulling the sleeve up her arm slowly. The other arm proved to be more compliant this round, although a pinch in her finger still gave her a trickle of pain. Now dressed to some degree the young woman felt warmth soaking in, a simple gesture of swiping her thumb down her chest to her abdomen sent the slightly reflective dots pulsing with a slight shimmer before she repeated the action with down her arms. The warmth now emitted from the clothing melted away the licks of cold bothering her, Chiaro felt a small reassuring calm as her body temperature regulated.


The woman’s forearms met her bending knees restfully, this minuscule euphoria lasted for only a moment as another realization inched it’s way into mind, she wasn’t going to be able to stay here. As that notion crept uncomfortably close, Chiaro let the panic shake her limbs for a good minute, but this fear had to subside...and she would need to leave. As the pain in one eye and the monocular vision in the other started to fade into her unconscious like her breathing, the young woman let her calculating bluntness take over. “ No use...being weaker then you need to be.” As these low words escaped, her limbs caught up with her thoughts in salvaging this wreckage for usable supplies. A little bit of know how went a ways as she looked through the familiar compartments for their shielded stores. Laying out her provisions, she found them abysmal (in her eyes) to say the least, military issued ration packets to last the minimum of three days, water pouches to last the same approximate time, Chiaro assumed however that she would need to stretch them further, to what length of time though made her head sink and stomach tight. As she reached up to pull her fingers through her hair she paused at the feel, an almost pitiful scoff escaped as her fingers grazed the raggedly chopped edges. Not wanting to reflect on those sins at the moment, Chiaro continued her calculations, she found nothing else, food and water was it, aside from the already half used medical kit...and, it looked to be a palm light? The small device wrapped around the knuckles with bending plastic, as the name suggested the palm held the rounded light, this was somewhat helpful, the light was low but in that stark darkness could prove to be a beacon.


Dull glances from item to item got no reaction from the woman, only when a faint cool wind licked at her nose did her gaze shift. Looking back up to the dark opening, her spine tingled at her next thought...Leave….Leave and go where? I just meander about aimlessly in that darkness until starvation or...or something...These thoughts trotted about for a few minutes before she finally decided. “ I guess I’ll waste these rations in that alien wild”, rising to pack up the provisions in the only container she could find, the blood stained medical box, Chiaro crept from the pods’ fluorescent gape. As she stood she fitted herself with the palm light, as it illuminated, it staggered in contrast to the light of the pod, giving off a fickle gleam. Looking only ahead her feet were heavy, but her gut was testing a weight all its own, and yet one foot moved forward and another crept from behind to succeed that one. The light from the pod began to grow weak in her slow stride, while the light in her palm grew to illuminate the darkened ground at her feet, she kept the light there to give her steps meaning. As she moved deeper into the ink her thoughts melded with the darkness, from a sinner’s cage to a guerilla's jungle.

 

[Integra]

@Anaxial @Wixed


Ailwyn watched the bulky individual handle the tree, moving swiftly to avoid the wrath of the creature. He wasn't quite sure what it was doing, but just the look of it was strange and ominous, even. Not something he would like to be close to. Instead, the slender male approached the pale boy, who was not as small as he looked from afar. He was very odd looking, even by Ailwyn's standards. White from head to toe, with the exception of his eyes, he was one of the most peculiar creatures Ailwyn had ever seen. Realizing that he was staring, he glanced over his shoulder to the great mechanical beast that still seemed to be attacking a tree for one reason or another.


"Do you have a name?" Ailwyn asked the boy on the ground. Then, nodding to the monster a few paces away, he asked another question. "Does that have a name?" He assumed the two of them to be together, some sort of strange team, bound together by fate for whatever reason. He didn't mean for his questions to come off as sounding pretentious, and was surprised at himself for feeling almost guilty because of his tone, despite their situation. A million more questions came to mind after these, but he held his tongue, trying not to further overwhelm the already panicked stranger.


Waiting patiently for the boy to answer him, Ailwyn turned his attention back to what he deemed as his greatest threat at the moment, and he watched the brute with an eye that was once part of a golden pair, his vision permanently halved. He watched the creature with a sense of unease and suspicion, but also wild curiosity. While the pale boy sitting in a tight ball on the forest floor was fascinating, the other figure was an entirely different situation.

 

[UlyssesTheSnowman]

Caleb heard a clinking sound behind him and spun around.


It was her.


He was frozen to the spot, and she was looking directly at him.


He ran blindly into the ship, dodging confused guards and constantly looking over his shoulder.


He was faster than her at first but he panted as he felt his rusty lungs overheating and slowed to a fast walk as to not attract suspicion. He tried to go further but his legs collapsed from under him and he cursed himself for not being able to find proper bolts for them.


He heard footsteps and was sure she was following him, so he ducked around a corner and scanned the blueprint for somewhere to hide.


That is, until it was snatched from him and she pulled him up to his feet and slammed him against a wall.


An announcement rang through the intercom: Takeoff in five minutes. Please assume your positions for the departure to Pyxis. Thank you for your cooperation.


@Coal

 

[Wixed]

@Anaxial @Integra @BloodyKharma


Will blinked after his giant friend, and found he too was confused on the brute’s part. Clearly he hadn’t seen Ailwyn slither through the brush, as he took to assaulting a tree and bellowing the blonde’s name at the canopy. The elf-boy’s movements were nearly undetected. Each step as silent as the next and Will watched him skip out of Barumal’s range and saunter in his direction with ease. This approach was accompanied by a thorough once over, he could see the taller boy sizing him up and down—surely plotting an easy kill. Though before he ended Will’s life, they both glanced over at the beast smashing the tree and knowing he could end both of them if he so wished.


His gaze snapped back toward Ailwyn at the question of his name and he hauled himself upright, soil falling from the slick suit that coated his person. He raised a brow at the stranger and wondered of sharing his name, knowing it wouldn’t make much of a difference as he’d probably die on this godforsaken planet. He didn’t believe in a god and yet, he understood the term to perfectly suit this place. “Uhh…” He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. “Yeah. I’m Will. And he’s…. I’m not sure. I think his name is Barumal. I cannot understand him.” His admittance to lack of understanding somehow lifted a weight off of his chest. He wasn’t so inept after all.


Ailwyn’s tone might have been condescending had Will not already gone through the same thought process. He watched Ailwyn watch Barumal, and hooked a thumb over his shoulder. “Really. I don’t think we need to worry about him. He’s going to kill us if he wants. But there’s someone up there.” He turned himself to point at the hidden spy in the leaves, glancing about before he looked down at his glimmering wrist. He knew this, this thing, was the only reason he’d sensed or “knew” of the intruder. He scowled at the implant, though quickly righted his features before peering back to Ailwyn and Barumal.


“Ehh—uhh, Baru-mal?” He muttered the giant’s name and hoped for a response as he took a tentative step in the machine-man’s direction. The word rolled off his tongue sloppily. Clearly language wasn’t his forte and noise from his destruction would draw even more attention. Will was already at the bottom of the food chain. That was certain. And he was sure that survival wasn’t his forte either.

 

[Irubus]

Though the night had only begun, a feeling of unease was beginning to settle within The Sea; creatures that would be dormant at this time anxiously peeked out of their lairs. The usual ambiance of screeching and chirping was absent in the canopy, as if that uneasiness was smothering the area in its dreadful eerie silence. An encompassing mist trickled in over the foliage as the hours passed; each cubic area filling to its brim before overflowing and pouring out from the abyss to an unnatural ecotone that lay between the Sea and Seoul9. Carrying a scent of dirt, decaying foliage, and residues of pollen, the mist made little head way as it slowly tried to take hold of Seoul9 only to be foiled by a dome that encased and protected the city.


Only a few meters from the outskirts of the city stood a figure, though it was difficult to view the details of the person it was distinctly female in form as the shadows and low light of the moon only allowed a vague view. With what seemed to be her front turned towards the mist, she stood motionless and seemingly concentrating on every intake she allowed into her lungs. A low lit device that lay before her pierced through the immediate area revealing through a few rows of tree line and bouncing back from the wall of mist.


It was only after a few minutes that she finally made any other motion beyond breathing. The mist had always been a troubling atmosphere on her eye, considering how the water droplets obscured the usual trails of pheromone she used to stay safe.


An hour had passed since witnessing the comet-like objects that made touchdown within the Sea; while it could be debris from satellites or stations, she wanted to make sure it wasn’t another Pyxis scum intruding. Even if it was a piece of old technology, she could make use later by adding it to the museum that was being constructed. Humorous as it was to her, perhaps someday they would let her add a Pyxis corpse to the showcase; they were, after all, a historical artifact and nothing more.


A deeper breath dispelled her trailing thoughts as she was about to fantasize on dissecting a Pyxis. Grabbing the device that lay on the ground it illuminated her face for a moment before she shut it off, barely allowing someone to get a good luck at her had they been watching.


Steady. The thought kept repeating in her mind. Rushing anything within The Sea would be detrimental and hazardous. Primarily to my life, she mused to no one but herself.


Stepping deeper with each passing second her feet began to feel the mash of dead leaves start to build. A soft groan left her throat as she stopped for the first time. The almost stream like pheromones that she was accustomed to was obscure and hazzy. Everything looked as if a fresh coat of paint was pressed by a towel to remove its more distinct lines. It was a beautiful sight in its own way but it was difficult to appreciate it when it was only a hindrance. Scanning the floor idly for an exposed root her hands worked on their own as they removed the gloves that covered them. Delicately placing the fabric in her bag she gave the object a quick pat before bending over and pressed her now exposed fingers against the root.


The sensation was immediately overwhelming as the world seemed to collapse around her. To an onlooker it only seemed as if her body relaxed completely, but somehow remaining upright despite how it leaned. A pulse like vibration was the first thing she felt as vague figures began to fill the empty space around her. The tree before her was the first to become clear, its solid structure stood firm before her as she took a moment to adjust. Concentrating on the sensations of the roots beneath her body she felt the heavy pressure just above them as her own weight pressed down on the soil.


Her brain was processing every breath she took, its vibration on the air exceptionally subtle but usable. The change in temperature in the soil and bark from her hands were added to the list of information. Her hands were directly correlated to a human and each beat from her pulse verified a living being. The weight and pressure in different points in the soil made her figure bent over, and on all fours. As if loading a file her figure slowly became more distinct over time as it imagined what she looked like. The minor details were almost impossible to get but it was incredible how close it got to her actual form, she was certain there were a million other ways her mind was gathering information. Even after ten years of testing it would take another hundred to even cut deeply into her mutations true potential. Maybe she’d even be able to see the world as a whole before her death, that would be an incredible experience and it made her giddy just imagining it.


Moving upwards she took note of every outstretched branch; each leaf that stood strong or even those that were on the brink of falling were clear to her. A piece of bark on the opposite side of the trunk had been gashed at by a bird, likely looking for grub that lurked beneath. The spewing sap that mended the wound was dull to her senses as it would for her body when it numbed an injury. A few seconds later she felt the talons of a bird of prey, its sharpened appendages digging into the bark as it paid little mind to her body below. A few insects slowly crawled across the leaves or chewed on them which give her a light burning sensation, the tree’s internal body spewed chemicals into its blood as a reaction. Almost immediately the creature seemed to reconsider the taste of the leaf and stood still before she felt its wings buzz away.


By the time she was done examining the tree’s entire structure only fifteen seconds had passed. Processing everything at the rate of chemical reactions was outstanding to her intellectual side, of course all while she did this her mind was busy processing the entire forest like a background download. A once vague scenery of fuzz was now almost completely fleshed out, each tree adding as a main source of vision and details to every creature and object around them. It was almost like a virtual reality as she roamed the world through the air, her mind updating her senses with the plant life as she approached them.


Thirty seconds passed. Forty. Fifty. Opening her eyes once again her conscious returned to her fleshy body. Pressing her hands together she took a moment to calm her nerves as it adjusted once again to the change. It had taken a considerable amount of time but she had found what she was looking for, two impacts to be precise. One was only about a kilometer and a half away from where she stood. There wasn’t much movement beyond one figure in that location, it had been a frail looking body, perhaps one and a half meters tall. Definitely human. The metallic structure she had sensed not too far from it definitely reinforced her idea of a Pyxis.


The second option was far clearer to her, but thinking it over made her look askance. There was too much activity and it was only an extra kilometer in distance from the other site. Four figures: one massive mobile structure, another smaller behind it but more human like, and two seemingly watching the former. One laid above in the canopies while the other seemed to be on the ground voicing itself to the two exposed beings. She wasn’t able to make what was said, but the vocal vibrations were distinct during the few seconds she examined them. There could be bloodshed in that spot, and if her assumption were correct about the largest figure, getting in the path of a Hominem was more of a suicide mission. Maybe it would even kill the Pyxis if everything went as she thought it would.


There was a third option that nabbed at her mind. A lone figure that sat in the canopies not too far from the crash sites, human in structure but there was something off about how the tree interacted with beings touch.


Perhaps another mutant. She would have to get a clear view of its form to distinguish its actual nature, perhaps even examine the pheromones that it emitted with her eye.


Regardless, she chose the former of the two options and kept her eyes trained forward. She had a vague understanding of where the being was moving towards, but her issues came with the third party. The mist would block her eye’s view of the… creature? And despite sonar touch she would need to waste another minute to get the same clear image. After a certain time she’d redo it but for now she kept it as a future plan. Feeling ready her feet instantly began to sprint, her mind going through the route she had prepared beforehand every step keeping her clear of dangers that lurked in the shadows.

 

[Steviemac]

Wally has finished up his conversation with his visitor. It turns out he was Law Kent, senior mechanical and processing engineer on Pyxis. This is why Wally had originally recognized him, although they had never met in person. Law had a certain charm that made it easy to speak with him. They had a conversation about the expedition, Wally voicing concerns over the delay. Law informed him that he had been assigned to the mission as senior mechanic. After finishing with their drinks, Law left the apartment.


It had been several hours since Wally had heard any more about the intruder. He logged onto his console, but there was no new information available. Knowing that information about the incident may have been withheld from the general public, he contacts the head of security to inquire about the incident. His friend the chief informs him that they have been unable to apprehend the intruder and it is believed that he may have left the ship by unknown means. Wally's ears perk up at this information. That means that the cardinal might lift the delay on the expedition!


He decides that his next course of action should be to address the cardinal himself. With the ship on alert, they should be assembled in their chamber, ready to make any decisions related to the security of Pyxis. Changing into something more presentable, he leaves his home and heads right down the corridor. The cardinal chamber is three decks up so he heads to the nearest lift. Once the lift stops, he gets out and heads down the corridor. The chamber is about fifty feet down from the lift. Arriving at the chamber door, he is stopped by a member of security. The officer demands to know his name and the business he has with the cardinal. After receiving the information, the officer tells Wally to wait and then enters the chamber. In just a few short moments, he returns and lets Wally know that the cardinal will see him.


The chamber isn't very large, about the size of an average conference room. Along the wall opposite the door is table at which the cardinal are seated, all facing the door. As he enters, the members of the cardinal are all looking at him. He approaches them and stops a few feet away. One of them asks his business with them. He explains who he is and that he feels the delay of the expedition should be lifted. The cardinal listen to his speech with their full attention. After Wally finishes, they confer with each other briefly. Having reached a consensus, they inform Wally that they will think about his words and that he will hear their decision by the end of the day. Having completed his task, Wally makes his way back home.

 

[typhoon]

{thats godmodding btw but its fine this time}


Vi held the man with her metal fist, a growl on her lips. "You idiot, no one is trying to kill you! You put me through all that for what? What are you hiding!" She held him roughly until she heard the whirring of his mechanisms, and they didn't sound to good. The man's state was pitiful, and she let him go. She heard the voice over the speakers and alarm was written on her features. "Look what you did! We are in the underbelly of a giant ship that is about to depart for Pyxis of all places! Pyxis! I'm leaving everything behind! Not that there was a whole lot but still. We're dead. We're sitting targets because of you, you insufferable hunk of metal! Here I was thinking you were like me. I was wrong and its costing me." Vi scraped her finger over his metal arm, regarding the grime that covered it after with exasperation. She gave out a sigh of defeat and walked to the opposite side and sank to the floor, burying her head in her hands. She had never cried, but she was feeling the urge to.


@UlyssesTheSnowman

 

[Anaxial]

@Anaxial @Integra @BloodyKharma
Will blinked after his giant friend, and found he too was confused on the brute’s part. Clearly he hadn’t seen Ailwyn slither through the brush, as he took to assaulting a tree and bellowing the blonde’s name at the canopy. The elf-boy’s movements were nearly undetected. Each step as silent as the next and Will watched him skip out of Barumal’s range and saunter in his direction with ease. This approach was accompanied by a thorough once over, he could see the taller boy sizing him up and down—surely plotting an easy kill. Though before he ended Will’s life, they both glanced over at the beast smashing the tree and knowing he could end both of them if he so wished.


His gaze snapped back toward Ailwyn at the question of his name and he hauled himself upright, soil falling from the slick suit that coated his person. He raised a brow at the stranger and wondered of sharing his name, knowing it wouldn’t make much of a difference as he’d probably die on this godforsaken planet. He didn’t believe in a god and yet, he understood the term to perfectly suit this place. “Uhh…” He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. “Yeah. I’m Will. And he’s…. I’m not sure. I think his name is Barumal. I cannot understand him.” His admittance to lack of understanding somehow lifted a weight off of his chest. He wasn’t so inept after all.


Ailwyn’s tone might have been condescending had Will not already gone through the same thought process. He watched Ailwyn watch Barumal, and hooked a thumb over his shoulder. “Really. I don’t think we need to worry about him. He’s going to kill us if he wants. But there’s someone up there.” He turned himself to point at the hidden spy in the leaves, glancing about before he looked down at his glimmering wrist. He knew this, this thing, was the only reason he’d sensed or “knew” of the intruder. He scowled at the implant, though quickly righted his features before peering back to Ailwyn and Barumal.


“Ehh—uhh, Baru-mal?” He muttered the giant’s name and hoped for a response as he took a tentative step in the machine-man’s direction. The word rolled off his tongue sloppily. Clearly language wasn’t his forte and noise from his destruction would draw even more attention. Will was already at the bottom of the food chain. That was certain. And he was sure that survival wasn’t his forte either.

The machine-man seemed fixated on the trees, pacing between the larger ones and peaking out between them as if looking for something peticular. In truth, he was concerned more of his people, more Ne'ok would show themselves and attempt to devour his newly found God. The exhaust ports on his back steadily billowed out a thick steam and continued to choke the air as he let out a few higher pitched groans and whimpers as he searched the canopies and the brush around them. Something was spying on them, something had obviously upset him, however when his name was called, he reeled around and stared at the Ghost with his bulging eyes.


"Kosm ca unto so Barumal. Barumal." He repeated his name and patted his armored chest as he approached the pale-white Ghost like a skittish dog. "Barumal ut enta fa' Kosm." He repeated, brandishing his rusted hulking sword and giving it another demonstrational swing, his pack roaring to life as the machines cried out on his body and hurled the blade forward, slicing clean through one rather thick tree and burrowing deep into the trunk of another. Barumal turned to look at the Ghost with a twisted look on his face that may have a smile.


"Ak lor'a Kosm? Halafamajelik?" His head twitched oddly and just as easily as he swung the sword into the tree, the iron giant wrenched the blade from the tree trunk, to the sorrowful cry of splintering wood. Barumal quickly rushed the Ghost and stood close to him, turning to the woods and getting the blade ready for a second swipe. "Moah baroo."

 

[Integra]

@Wixed @Anaxial


Muscles twitched in Ailwyn's face as the creature called Barumal began ravaging the forest. His forest. For a moment he could only stand and watch helplessly, a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He clenched his hands into tight fists, keeping his sudden surge of emotions inside. There was no doubt that if he showed any hostility towards the monster, Ailwyn would be dead within a moment, and it would be no use to agitate the giant that seemed upset over... something. Turning his face to hide the disturbance he felt, he turned and took a few long strides in the direction of one freshly fallen tree, kneeling by it and touching it with the flat of his hand, a ritual of silent mourning.


Straightening soon after a moment of contemplation, Ailwyn whirled to face Will and the mechanical giant. "Barumal," he called sharply, maintaining distance between them. He wanted there to be peace, but he understand that this would never be, not in his society, at least, if this creature was going around destroying the center of their religion. Ailwyn had no doubt that Barumal could destroy his entire town without exerting all his effort, and had a feeling it could come to that very easily. "Don't do this again," he commanded, waving his arm in the direction of the fallen tree. He didn't even know if Barumal could understand his warning, but he hoped that some comprehension was taking place behind the working machinery and steaming gadgets.


His single-eyed gaze fell on Will next, taking in a breath to begin questioning him. "What are you doing here? Did you travel here together?" Ailwyn's eye narrowed in curiosity and judgement. If the boy's answer wasn't satisfactory, he could attack them and make an escape. Ailwyn was more advantaged in these woods than either of them, but he speculated the other entity nearby that hadn't yet shown itself might be just as well-versed on the area around them as he was.

 

[Wixed]

@Integra @Anaxial


Will flinched as Barumal whirled toward him. He flinched again when the beast spoke and beat his chest. He could understand nothing the brute said save for it’s own name and tried not to appear skittish when Barumal seemingly cowered toward him as if he’d been scolded. “Whoa… whoa…” Will took a tentative step back watching the sword being tossed around with relative ease. Barumal’s sword zipped by Will and through a tree, and he stared after the weapon and back to Barumal, almost dismissing Ailwyn’s presence entirely. Though he peered over at the lanky elf to see his expression hard pressed to stay stoic. The sword ripped free of the tree’s flesh and Will noted Ailwyn’s displeasure, despite the blonde’s attempt to disguise it.


Barumal hurried back to Will’s side and Will shuffled in place awkwardly, trying to make out what exactly he’d gotten himself into. He needed to understand Barumal, and he also needed to keep the peace with Ailwyn as the boy strode off toward the damaged trees and dropped into a kneel. “Barumal, you can’t--” Will’s voice faded in the wake of Ailwyn’s firm tone. Brave or stupid, Will wondered of the elf-boy. And yet he made no move to silence Ailwyn’s scoldings. When he met the other’s single eye, Will’s lips pursed into a tight line. It was clear then, that Ailwyn had no quarrel with killing and when he questioned Will sternly, Will’s face twisted into a flat stare. He wasn’t going to die to Ailwyn. He’d decided in that instant that he wouldn’t. He’d been through enough on Pyxis. He’d survived the fall. And he’d somehow managed to not be squished by Barumal, be it luck or blessing. And he surely wasn’t going to be off-ed by this guy.


“Does it make a difference if we traveled together or not?” His red gaze locked with Ailwyn’s gold stare and his stance was no longer cowering beneath Barumal. Instead he stood beside the odd machine-man. “I’ve come too far.’ He stated this as if the answers to Ailwyn’s questions were obvious. There’d have been no way for Barumal to have traveled with him. Based on the small pod behind them, and Barumal’s meager and aged tech. The giant would rip apart at such a velocity. He’d burn up entering the atmosphere. Will caught himself then. Obviously Ailwyn’s people were too primitive to even fathom such a thing. He hadn’t noticed he was staring at the elf as if Ailwyn were a complete idiot.