Indie fandomless Alien OC rp blog, semi-selective - Phew! - Old blog moved to lxttlest-blue-star
421 posts
Stxr-bxster - Shooting Star - Tumblr Blog
sea-m0nster:
A FRIENDLY CREATURE! HELL0 THERE.
Oh, well that’s a speedy sorta’ greeting. She wasn’t expecting that! Krigg pauses a bit, before lifting a hand up to wave at the stranger.
“Hey! Technically, Imma’ friendly alien! I mean- pedantics, shmemantics. Groovy gear either way, bubble-head!”
@heliotropez started following stxr-bxster
“Oh this some uncanny valley type shit.”
As a rule of thumb, any one specie in the universe would someday find another that had taken the exact same shortcuts to deal with the exact same issues during its path to evolution. Weird similarities-but-not-quite-canny-ones across the universe were nothing unusual - it was a statistical certainty that you’d be able to draw comparisons between things from two different ends of the milky way.
So yeah, maybe it was rude to say your coworker’s face looked like that of an angry glurk. You could be right though!
But just because something was LIKELY, didn’t mean being faced with that situation was PLEASANT. Especially when the situation was, give or take a few crumbs, comfortably more than twice her height.
@sea-m0nster started following stxr-bxster
“...Hehe. Feesh.”
Seems that Krigg’s braincells were left at the door today. But, come on- cool piscine alien with an actual sense of gear tastefulness. Wouldn’t you be vibing a bit too?
the27percent:
A small nod in response to Krigg’s acknowledgement. They had been starting to notice some of the patterns of how the trees seemed to interlock in some places. Looking at the branches and how some of them started to intertwine was something that had captured their attention for a little bit.
Atieno had even got close to a tree themself to trace some of the grooves of the tree that had been left behind. Remnants of the growth of the tree and how it demonstrated itself in the moment.
It was during this time that they had noticed that Krigg had climbed up the tree and so they could be looking up at her.
“Hm, and so the tables have turned.“ They spoke with a dry, somewhat amused tone to their voice.
“I mean.. yeah. It gets a bit repetitive from time to time. That’s when I tend to just disperse for a while until I feel like trying to engage with people for a moment. I take a lot of breaks over the years.“ That’s probably the main thing that has kept them ‘together’ after it all.
“People tend to find the patterns of behavior that work within a given civilization and rely on them. So they will try out everything they are familiar with and unless they have information from elsewhere, it may not immediately occur to them to try things differently unless.. really forced to do so.“
“I mean, I’ll be the first one to admit people can be smart, but boy - we’re not infallible.” Krigg hooked her legs to the branch, before slowly lowering herself over the other side of it - until she was effectively dangling by her legs in front of Atieno. Feeling her hat slip from between her antennae, she quickly moved to plant it back against her cranium, continuing to talk. “Sometimes, our squishy organic brains just refuse to give us the straightest answer to a problem, or they just take the outlandish route because we missed a detail.”
“Honestly, I love that part exclusively because it trips the ever living shit out of more efficient, synthetic minds.” Krigg grins, amusement beaming through her expression. “Five times out of ten, they can’t compute that we’d do something dumb because of a brainfart, or because the wind blew in the wrong direction-”
Growwwlllll- Krigg blinked slowly at the gurgle that emanated quite rudely from her stomach, prompting her to look to it with wide, almost offended eyes. “Or because THAT, I guess?” She reached her free hand up to the branch, digging her claws in before unhooking her legs from it in a careful uncurling motion. She dangled in place for a moment, before kicking her legs, allowing herself to sway gently until she finally let go - and landed on her feet with a muffled thud, on soft leaf litter.
She perked up, shooting a look over her shoulder to Atieno with a wide grin, pointing a thumb towards the city. “Yo, it was a nice conversation, but I’m getting peckish. I’m going to head out to the city. You fancy eating something too? I can pay your grub, if you wanna’ continue to wax poetics about the nature of mortal life.”
cometofjustice:
Duo had almost raised his left arm to catch the coin-like object, but the soreness sharply reminded him to keep still. He curiously peered over his breastplate at the device as he listened to Krigg explain its purpose.
“Alright.” He said with a nod.
Just as she was about to leave, Duo remembered that he had something more to say.
“Krigg-” He spoke up. “…Thank you.”
Krigg froze in the middle of her departure with one foot up in the air, comically enough, before shooting a small look of surprise over her shoulder. She slowly placed her foot back down, shuffling to face the ancient being, only for a sheepish grin to creep up onto her face, skin darkening subtly. She reached up to nervously paw at the skin behind her neck, antennae rubbing together.
“Bah, it’s nothin’ much.” She chuckles nervously, tone dismissive as her free hand is waved into the air for emphasis. “You saved my bones, it’s only fair I return the favor. ‘sides, between travellers, it’s common courtesy to help one another when you can. Survival in the void doesn’t hold onto much - every bit of aid counts.”
“ ‘sides. I’m not the superstitious type that thinks it’s conducive to souls drifting forever in limbo, but it’s not right to leave injured people out voidside. Your life shouldn’t end in the cold dead space between stars... even if I don’t think you were anywhere close to kicking the bucket.” Krigg added after a pause, snappily turning around and pittering away from view, affixing her own end of the radio to the collar of her jacket.
A minute or two later, a voice crackled from Duo’s own receptor. “Yep, works just fine!“
cometofjustice:
“No, no, - tourism is allowed in the Astrean Alliance’s space.” He said, briefly raising his right hand to reassure her. “It’s a hospitable area, though there are restricted zones around sensitive archeological sites.”
“Oh.” Was Krigg’s summary, yet doubtlessly relieved response to Duo’s reassurances, accompanied by a light quirk of her antennae. “Good to know.”
The diminutive alien quickly found new ways to make herself busy by putting away her tools back whence they came, somewhat glad for the lack of sticky grease and other unsavory fluids normally found in synthetic life forms. At least she wouldn’t have to mop her floors thwice in a row for the stupid thing to leave - at least plasma had the decency to evaporate.
“A’ight, I’ve got a ship to put back into the stars! Or, at least good enough to haul ass to the nearest void station.” Krigg huffed, sounding oddly jovial for someone who had a LOT of repairs to get through. “Just sit tight for a while, let your systems finish the job. I’ll pop on by when I’m through. If you need me just...”
Krigg paused to rustle into the pockets of her jacket, fishing out a small, circular device with a large touch dial in the center, that she proceeded to flick with a thumb at Duo. The item landed on his chestplate, somewhat off-center, sticking itself on with a light clang that sounded rather magnetic in nature. “That’s a radio. It goes both ways - if you need anything, just holler.”
“Brother I would be raising all sorts of hell if I’d gotten stranded, solely to try to get off this ball of dirt. I would not be sitting here having this conversation.” Krigg’s answer was blunt and to the point, with not a hint of hesitation to her voice. There was no way of saying that in any other way, really - if she’d been stuck on earth, her main priorities would not have been dumpster diving.
Unless that somehow directly correlated to getting her back spaceborne, but she had her doubts on that ever occuring.
Krigg was not nearly asking herself as many questions on Trotters’ nature. For one, from her point of view, EVERYTHING was an alien. And from what she’d seen, the general area seemed to be home to a lot of bizarre things - this one just so happened to have enough brain matter to hold a conversation. Even if the conversation was just them throwing snark back and forth.
Krigg groaned, moving to rub her thighs. The uncomfortable posture was starting to wear on her muscles, and so she eventually decided that enough was enough, and she carefully vaulted back onto the ground, landing with a few wobbly steps forward. “Phew, that’s a bit better.” She sighed, before realizing, with something of a bitter scowl, that she now had to look UP to the strange creature.
He was short, but she remained shorter still. The curse of the teeny tiny was upon her once more. “It’s a pit stop. It’s not like I’d wanna’ LIVE here, but the food is pretty decent. Enough for me to bother coming back. Though, if you mean /here/ here, as in here, this city? Yeah, first time around the block.”
“...Which I GUESS makes you the de-factor authority of weird nonsense. Seriously though, every town around here is a hot mess.”
“First of all, ew, I’m not so sure about that.” Krigg’s face twisted into an expression of overt disgust at the thought of attempting to take a bite out of the lumpy-ish person. “Donuts are a safe food bet, but you?
’s not so much that I should, it’s that I definitely would NOT. No thanks. Nuh-uh, get away from my mouth, I don’t want you there even for testing purposes.” She groaned, before shifting on one foot to bang her heel against the edge of the garbage can for added emphasis.
“Second of all, you’re being dramatic. It’s not like I’m reaching in there blind, I know what I’m doing, thank you very much. I’m not going to cough up the cash for fresh donuts when I can just snatch some free of charge.” Krigg huffed, bumping out her chin at the strange humanoid with a disgruntled look on her face. He was trying to poke fun at her and - unfortunately, it was kind of working. She was being sassed by a walking meatball, and it was working. Ouch, there went her ego.
And then, there was the going home joke, where expression went from utterly flat, to a look of measured exhaustion of someone who’s definitely heard something one too many times. “Really. You’re going to do THAT one.” She grumbled, voice monotone, before sucking in a deep breath, pinching the bridge of her nose.
“First of all, I’m homeless, ya’ assuming prick.” She groaned out, voice heavy with exaustion, before droppin ger hand back, resting it on her knee and maintaining eye contact. “Second of all - what are you, border patrol? If you’re not, then I’m going to need you to get all the way off my ass. I’m not taking advice from a guy that tries to talk an alien out of eating garbage donuts.”
“First of all, ew, I’m not so sure about that.” Krigg’s face twisted into an expression of overt disgust at the thought of attempting to take a bite out of the lumpy-ish person. “Donuts are a safe food bet, but you?
’s not so much that I should, it’s that I definitely would NOT. No thanks. Nuh-uh, get away from my mouth, I don’t want you there even for testing purposes.” She groaned, before shifting on one foot to bang her heel against the edge of the garbage can for added emphasis.
“Second of all, you’re being dramatic. It’s not like I’m reaching in there blind, I know what I’m doing, thank you very much. I’m not going to cough up the cash for fresh donuts when I can just snatch some free of charge.” Krigg huffed, bumping out her chin at the strange humanoid with a disgruntled look on her face. He was trying to poke fun at her and - unfortunately, it was kind of working. She was being sassed by a walking meatball, and it was working. Ouch, there went her ego.
And then, there was the going home joke, where expression went from utterly flat, to a look of measured exhaustion of someone who’s definitely heard something one too many times. “Really. You’re going to do THAT one.” She grumbled, voice monotone, before sucking in a deep breath, pinching the bridge of her nose.
“First of all, I’m homeless, ya’ assuming prick.” She groaned out, voice heavy with exaustion, before droppin ger hand back, resting it on her knee and maintaining eye contact. “Second of all - what are you, border patrol? If you’re not, then I’m going to need you to get all the way off my ass. I’m not taking advice from a guy that tries to talk an alien out of eating garbage donuts.”
This time, it was Krigg’s turn to open her mouth with an offended chitter, brows furrowed at the accusations that she herself might have been less than sober for talking to... to... Yeah no, there was no flattering or simple term to describe the being standing in front of her. Suspiciously lumpy tusked creature, maybe?! She wasn’t sure what they were, and she didn’t really want to know what kind of mistery mosh pile was going on under all the clothes!
“Hey! I’ll let you know, those donuts are PERFECTLY edible, just part of the unsold batches people throw away! These don’t even ferment, anyways!” Krigg objected loudly as she hopped around the can lid, legs still folded in a crouch making her look like an unusually loud bird. And brandishing a donut with a few bites taken out of it where he could see it, for the sake of proof. “What, you thought I was scarfing down trash?!”
“I mean, on a technicality...” Krigg looked back at her donut with a bummed out frown. As long as someone threw it away in a garbage can, by the law of every dictionary ever printed, it WAS garbage. She angrily crammed the rest of the pastry in her mouth to shut down that train of thought, pointing a vengeful finger his way. “And yeah, you’re not less weird-looking than me! Whatever!”
“...I was going somewhere with this.” Krigg grumbled, halted in her tracks by a lack of point she was making.
I hope these aren't too many at once. ^^;
7. What would you (mun) yell in the middle of a crowd to find them? What would their best friend and/or romantic partner yell?
16. What kinds of people do they have arguments with in their head?
19. What would they do if stuck in a room with the person they’ve been avoiding?
42. If invited to a TED Talk, what topic would they present on? What would the title of their presentation be?
7. What would you (mun) yell in the middle of a crowd to find them? What would their best friend and/or romantic partner yell?
"HEY, GREEN PEA! YOU FORGOT YOUR HEIGHT AT HOME!"
Krigg really does not like people picking on her height, despite her having thick enough skin to handle it, so that would get her attention expeditiously quick. A friend who knows her well enough might call her name, instead take advantage of her appetite by mentionning her favourite treat.
"I got Yon blossoms!"
16. What kinds of people do they have arguments with in their head?
People she's not likely going to meet again, be it because they've passed, or because she's actively trying not to see them again. Beyond that, they're usually people whom she looked up to, or had a level of responsibility towards, either sworn or entirely self-made. Often times, her wandering mind fills in the blanks of what they might have said to her. They're rarely ever saying nice things, presiding as harsh judges over her present actions.
On less distressing notes, the person she talks most and argues with in her own brainscape is herself, and those conversations can be entirely humoristic, or her sense of caution acting up, or her calling herself an idiot. 19. What would they do if stuck in a room with the person they’ve been avoiding?
Lie. Lie through her TEETH to avoid speaking honestly to the person she's been cornered with and do anything to throw them off her path. It takes a very severe reason for Krigg to even consider dodging someone to the point of avoidance - possibly them poking their nose into something private of hers that she is not willing to speak on. In that case though, straight refusal is likely to occur rather than her wriggling around the topic.
But if pushed enough, Krigg is likely to lash out in anger and to drop every lie all at once in an explosive, very unpleasant rage-filled rant. Fight always was her preferred response to percieved danger.
42. If invited to a TED Talk, what topic would they present on? What would the title of their presentation be?
"Threats and troubles - the galactic hitchiker's guide to avoiding them!"
A short, but comprehensive talk on the galaxy's various sources of problems that Krigg has encountered in her long time wandering from world to world. From rowing bands of energy-devouring mechanical beings, to warring empires, to even weird singularities - nothing that she wouldn't talk about in exhaustive detail. Perhaps, too exhaustive for her to have truly avoided them! But hey, if you follow her talk, maybe you WON'T run face first into them like her!
((3 and 22 for the specific asks!))
3. How often do they show their genuine emotions to others versus just the audience knowing?
Krigg doesn't hide her genuine emotions often - it's not her type to tone down feelings of joy or annoyance for the convenience of others. Though one thing she does tend to mute, dodge, or control, is how much she actually cares for or likes a given person. Or at least, how much she admits she does. She's somewhat overly cautious about having too much of a bleeding heart, and she knows she's the type who quickly gets into trouble if she's too emotionally invested. Being too itchy and quick to jump to people's help will do that for you.
People who care too easily or too deeply often get hurt at the end of the day. Shielding yourself is important, even if it might involve beating your own knee-jerk reactions into submission. Or so she feels, anyways. Not that she's very good at it.
22. What simple activity that most people do / can do scares your character?
People picking their ears. For a specie whose ear structure is 90% outside of her body, and a little bit of complex machinery inside that is NOT meant to see air, at all, the sight of people sticking a finger in there makes her physically ill. Ears are FRAGILE and COMPLEX and you're rummaging in there like a maniac! EW!
This time, it was Krigg’s turn to open her mouth with an offended chitter, brows furrowed at the accusations that she herself might have been less than sober for talking to... to... Yeah no, there was no flattering or simple term to describe the being standing in front of her. Suspiciously lumpy tusked creature, maybe?! She wasn’t sure what they were, and she didn’t really want to know what kind of mistery mosh pile was going on under all the clothes!
“Hey! I’ll let you know, those donuts are PERFECTLY edible, just part of the unsold batches people throw away! These don’t even ferment, anyways!” Krigg objected loudly as she hopped around the can lid, legs still folded in a crouch making her look like an unusually loud bird. And brandishing a donut with a few bites taken out of it where he could see it, for the sake of proof. “What, you thought I was scarfing down trash?!”
“I mean, on a technicality...” Krigg looked back at her donut with a bummed out frown. As long as someone threw it away in a garbage can, by the law of every dictionary ever printed, it WAS garbage. She angrily crammed the rest of the pastry in her mouth to shut down that train of thought, pointing a vengeful finger his way. “And yeah, you’re not less weird-looking than me! Whatever!”
“...I was going somewhere with this.” Krigg grumbled, halted in her tracks by a lack of point she was making.
To be completely fair, Trotters wasn’t the only person involved to be guilty of looking at someone with a particularly ridiculous expression. The tiny green creature perched precariously on the edge of an open garbage can at the back of the bakery had a very “deer in the headlights” look to her, exaggerated by her wide orange eyes, staring unblinkingly back at the...
Krigg’s gaping mouth slowly closed, a stray flick of her long tongue over the corner of her mouth mopping up some of the sugar sprinking that had been deposited there by her last bite out of the garbage donut. To be fair, she had no idea WHAT was staring at her, exactly. Wasn’t human though, she was sure of that much, despite it enjoying a canned drink and having a grasp on how to dress itself, sort of. That disguise was not convincing, unless standing exactly fifty meters away in a dark alleyway.
Well, the very least, it looked shocked enough that there MAYBE was a way for her to get out of that situation without having to stew in her remarkable ability to break the prime directive. Stars blast that delicious sugary treat for making her attention to her surroundings lapse!
“Go home, brother. You’re too drunk for this.” Krigg hasarded, trying her best to sound matter-of-fact.
From {X}, @strebcr
“...What.”
Of all the reactions - turn around, balk, scream, or just keep going as though nothing was wrong... THAT, she was not expecting. She was really starting to have a bad track record with getting caught out in the open by random people, but it seemed that this one specific time, the person involved was not acting like what he was seeing was anything out of the ordinary.
Just... a normal instance of someone skittering up a wall, getting ready to hide with a fresh stash of plundered sweets from the nearby shop’s discarded garbage? Or did they think she’d somehow acquired her loot in all legality - oh yeah, that probably was that, what with the whole advice on gummy worm availability. Did he know what he was looking at? Ah, whatever - best roll with it.
It then occured to Krigg that she was staring at the guy as though he’d grown a second head. The diminutive alien furiously shook her head with a “BRLRLRLLRLRLR-” noise, somehow without losing her hat in the process, and stared at the lollypop she was holding precariously in one hand. She considered what to do with it for a minute, before deciding to bring it up to her mouth, opening her fanged jaws wide and-
CRONCH.
The discarded stick, onto which clung a few bits of hard sugar, was shoved into a busy pocket as Krigg reassured her grip on the bricks, maintaining eye contact with the stranger.
“Thankch’, but nah’. Guy at’ the counter look’ch’ like he could use chom’ normal cuchtomers, ya’nno’, cho’ I didn’t wanna’ bother.” Krigg shrugged her shoulders, grinning through the crunchy sugary treat. “Ch’ not often ya’ see folks frequent the candy store often enough to know ‘bout ‘chales. Well, grown’acchh’ adults, anyways.”
To be completely fair, Trotters wasn’t the only person involved to be guilty of looking at someone with a particularly ridiculous expression. The tiny green creature perched precariously on the edge of an open garbage can at the back of the bakery had a very “deer in the headlights” look to her, exaggerated by her wide orange eyes, staring unblinkingly back at the...
Krigg’s gaping mouth slowly closed, a stray flick of her long tongue over the corner of her mouth mopping up some of the sugar sprinking that had been deposited there by her last bite out of the garbage donut. To be fair, she had no idea WHAT was staring at her, exactly. Wasn’t human though, she was sure of that much, despite it enjoying a canned drink and having a grasp on how to dress itself, sort of. That disguise was not convincing, unless standing exactly fifty meters away in a dark alleyway.
Well, the very least, it looked shocked enough that there MAYBE was a way for her to get out of that situation without having to stew in her remarkable ability to break the prime directive. Stars blast that delicious sugary treat for making her attention to her surroundings lapse!
“Go home, brother. You’re too drunk for this.” Krigg hasarded, trying her best to sound matter-of-fact.
@stxr-bxster liked for a starter
Trotters sniffed at the empty drink can in his hand. No, there probably wasn't anything wrong with it. Then why the hell was he seeing some sort of little green person?
He couldn't say he didn't believe in aliens, considering that stranger things -such as himself- exist. But he certainly haven't counted on running into one that's so...obviously an alien. Well, it was also obvious he wasn't human if one took even a couple of seconds to look at his legs and feet but whatever.
He's just kinda gawking at her really.
WEIRDLY SPECIFIC BUT HELPFUL CHARACTER BUILDING QUESTIONS
What’s the lie your character says most often?
How loosely or strictly do they use the word ‘friend’?
How often do they show their genuine emotions to others versus just the audience knowing?
What’s a hobby they used to have that they miss?
Can they cry on command? If so, what do they think about to make it happen?
What’s their favorite [insert anything] that they’ve never recommended to anyone before?
What would you (mun) yell in the middle of a crowd to find them? What would their best friend and/or romantic partner yell?
How loose is their use of the phrase ‘I love you’?
Do they give tough love or gentle love most often? Which do they prefer to receive?
What fact do they excitedly tell everyone about at every opportunity?
If someone was impersonating them, what would friends / family ask or do to tell the difference?
What’s something that makes them laugh every single time? Be specific!
When do they fake a smile? How often?
How do they put out a candle?
What’s the most obvious difference between their behavior at home, at work, at school, with friends, and when they’re alone?
What kinds of people do they have arguments with in their head?
What do they notice first in the mirror versus what most people first notice looking at them?
Who do they love truly, 100% unconditionally (if anyone)?
What would they do if stuck in a room with the person they’ve been avoiding?
Who do they like as a person but hate their work? Vice versa, whose work do they like but don’t like the person?
What common etiquette do they disagree with? Do they still follow it?
What simple activity that most people do / can do scares your character?
What do they feel guilty for that the other person(s) doesn’t / don’t even remember?
Did they take a cookie from the cookie jar? What kind of cookie was it?
What subject / topic do they know a lot about that’s completely useless to the direct plot?
How would they respond to being fired by a good boss?
What’s the worst gift they ever received? How did they respond?
What do they tell people they want? What do they actually want?
How do they respond when someone doesn’t believe them?
When they make a mistake and feel bad, does the guilt differ when it’s personal versus when it’s professional?
When do they feel the most guilt? How do they respond to it?
If they committed one petty crime / misdemeanor, what would it be? Why?
How do they greet someone they dislike / hate?
How do they greet someone they like / love?
What is the smallest, morally questionable choice they’ve made?
Who do they keep in their life for professional gain? Is it for malicious intent?
What’s a secret they haven’t told serious romantic partners and don’t plan to tell?
What hobby are they good at in private, but bad at in front of others? Why?
Would they rather be invited to an event to feel included or be excluded from an event if they were not genuinely wanted there?
How do they respond to a loose handshake? What goes through their head?
What phrases, pronunciations, or mannerisms did they pick up from someone / somewhere else?
If invited to a TED Talk, what topic would they present on? What would the title of their presentation be?
What do they commonly misinterpret because of their own upbringing / environment / biases? How do they respond when realizing the misunderstanding?
What language would be easiest for them to learn? Why?
What’s something unimportant / frivolous that they hate passionately?
Are they a listener or a talker? If they’re a listener, what makes them talk? If they’re a talker, what makes them listen?
Who have they forgotten about that remembers them very well?
Who would they say ‘yes’ to if invited to do something they abhorred / strongly didn’t want to do?
Would they eat something they find gross to be polite?
What belief / moral / personality trait do they stand by that you (mun) personally don’t agree with?
What’s a phrase they say a lot?
Do they act on their immediate emotions, or do they wait for the facts before acting?
Who would / do they believe without question?
What’s their instinct in a fight / flight / freeze / fawn situation?
What’s something they’re expected to enjoy based on their hobbies / profession that they actually dislike / hate?
If they’re scared, who do they want comfort from? Does this answer change depending on the type of fear?
What’s a simple daily activity / motion that they mess up often?
How many hobbies have they attempted to have over their lifetime? Is there a common theme?
cometofjustice:
Duo’s expression had softened slightly at Krigg’s amusement, which he mirrored with another small smile. He had also winced when she put in the clamps, but this time he remained silent. However, some of his exposed mechanisms subtly tensed.
“I… suppose it is strange.” Duo said, gazing to his left in contemplation. “…Luckily, those who came before me eventually found new people to protect. There were other civilized worlds within our borders, which my people guarded against outside threats as their technology developed. Once the inhabitants had invented interstellar travel, my brothers offered to help them govern this new frontier. The civilizations who partnered with us and adopted our galactic law are still my allies to this day.” Duo explained.
“Also, I'm… really not that old. I don’t know how your people measure time, but I will say that there are still many lifeforms alive today who are older than me. I’m from the… most recent batch, you see.” He said.
Krigg’s antennae gave a light twitch as her brows furrowed, expression growing thoughtful, the delicate appendages’ rhythmic tensing and relaxing seeming to mirror the grinding gears within the extraterrestrial’s mind.
“Hmm.” She gave a small aknowledging hum, an index digit tapping on the welding stylus briefly before she mustered the focus to resume her work, mindful of the tensing mechanisms and metal muscle. “Sorry about the stinging, I’ll work quick.” She voiced out loud. It occured to her then she hadn’t really thought about apologizing about such things. Painful first aid was something she was used to, and few drifters really apologized about that necessary evil. The forgotten piece of grace didn’t sit right with her then.
There was an odd caution in the way the large entity had been wording his story - a tiny piece of unmarked information not being communicated. It was subtle, but Krigg was used to the things people did not say.
And, perhaps, didn’t wish to think about.
She resolved not to poke her finger where it ought not to have been poked. Her privacy was something she treasured a great deal, and she readily extended that courtesy to other wanderers.
“Well, can’t say for sure I have any time units that fit any galactic standard. Measuring those when you constantly hop planets is not a fun activity, lemme’ tell ya’.” At least, the confirmation his age was within that of a living being’s gave her something of a range - even if that range could flicker from a heliocentric century, to several millenia. “From peace guardians, to lawmakers. Talk about a transition.” Krigg chuffed to herself, tapping the non-welding end of the stylus against Duo’s armor with a satisfying clink. “Ah- done, I’ll pull the clamps now. You should be leak-free!”
“If I get the chance, maybe I’ll pop on by that sector, it sounds like it’s got a few things to see! At least, I wouldn’t have to worry about wandering into a warzone - that’s no fun either.” Krigg paused, loose clamps in hand, opening and closing her mouth before turning back to look at Duo. “Wait - I’m not breaking some form of law by going THERE, am I?”
@5mind, From [X]
“What the... Number two? The heck you doing here?!”
Krigg hadn’t exactly been expecting company on her latest venture out into abandonned places - in that particular case, a dust-filled building whose barred windows and empty rooms marked it as soon to be past tense. She’d been expecting instead a long, quiet evening of scrounging up wiring from some of the walls, and other forgotten bits and bobs, skulking around the shadowed corners of the dead husk...
Then again, things hadn’t quite been progressing the way she’d have liked. She hadn’t even gone past the entrance hall yet!
Something about the cold, musty-smelling stale air of the building had sparked an odd feeling of caution in the small alien’s hindbrain. Some unexplainable sentiment of dread that had kept her in good view of the exit, though not enough to outright abandon her project. She liked to think she was not a superstitious person, though when she finally found a smashed computer tower, a potential source of interest, bitter disappointment soon ensued that was more a cause for consideration.
The flaky green plastic of the chips and graphic cards she’d ripped out from the cracked casing just crumbled into chunks between her fingers at the slightest squeeze. Not even worth recycling. She’d considered then and there calling it quits...
That is until Blue Two, local ai-piloted drone, decided to make its... her, entrance, stoping in from the main entrance and surprising a crouched Krigg. The small extraterrestrial blinked a few times at the unexpected, but not entirely unwelcome newcomer, readjusting her cap with a thumb.
“Huh- Guess I really picked my spot. Su’p, it’s been a while!” Krigg huffed to herself, the beginnings of a friendly smile beginning to creep onto her face, before freezing in an odd grimace as a sound echoing in the dusty, stale air made her antennae twitch.
Groaaaannnnnnnnnnnnnn-
Before Krigg could open her mouth to formulate a response to the unusual, and frankly worrying sound, it morphed into a crash, bang, rumble and BOOM as part of the building’s ceiling collapsed... on top of the exit, pulling a startled chirp from the extraterrestrial. Which felt entirely un-coincidence like. She stared in livid disbelief at the pile of debris, now sitting prettily behind Blue Two’s heels, blocking the... er, only exit path she was aware of.
“Oh, son of a BI-”
cometofjustice:
Duo felt an unpleasant sensation when she took the clamps out, but his arm didn’t hurt as much now that his tubing had been reconnected. The reduced pain allowed him a bit more mental clarity as well.
“Thank you. But… I admit there isn’t very much of a story to tell. The creators of my people disappeared so long ago that almost everything about them has been lost to time, but I have managed to piece together some of their history in my travels… According to my studies, they were once a sprawling, highly advanced spacefaring civilization that lived in perfect harmony with machines, but the invention of Justice & Evil Energy caused their entire nation to divide. The two sides then designed powerful robots using their respective energies, and waged war up until their mysterious disappearance. My people were created during this war to serve as a galactic police force, and to guard our creators’ star systems against invaders. Even after they were long gone, we continued to patrol their ancient boundaries. Although I am young, somewhere within I still know the outline of where their empire once stood…” He said, briefly gazing off in what was presumably the direction of his home. “…The fifteen-headed serpent who attacked you was also a remnant of the war. His name was Araxxus, and he was working against my efforts from the shadows. His kind were designed to oversee a variety of dark operations, but I think he may have been the last… Once I regain my strength, I’m going to gather up his remains and dispose of them in the nearest star. The secrets of this abhorrent technology must never be rediscovered…” He explained, his eyes narrowing slightly.
When Krigg would approach Duo’s wounded leg, he would remove the hand he had been using to suppress the bleeding. Liquid plasma dripped from his gloved fingertips and hit the floor with sharp hisses, causing him to flinch at the sound.
“Sorry.” He mumbled.
As promised, Krigg listened to Duo’s story with quiet attention, setting briefly down her tools and sitting cross-legged on the cool cargo bay flooring with a little thump, hands folded on her lap. Faint star-shaped pupils kept minutious track of the ancient being’s subtle facial expressions, antennae perked as could be without looking ridiculous.
Despite the little alien’s idle hands soon starting to drum on her thighs, she hushed the easily irked part of her that always seemed to chide her idle hands. He needed some time to get back the fuel flow to optimum in his arm, anyways - best not prod at him and overload his circuitry with the sensations of her operating on his leg in the meanwhile. She might as well pay attention while that resolved itself.
Her own face going from unabashed curiosity, and just a sprinkling of wonder, to a light concerned frown, to a thoughtful pinch of her cheeks, she eventually scoops herself back onto her feet as the story comes to an end, and pitters ‘round the large being, tools in hand. The wound is no less messy than the first one, burning lifeblood dripping and splattering onto the metal flooring from the hand once applying pressure, eating at the protective coating with a bubble and a hiss.
“Don’t mention it. Rather that flooring be burnt than you fixing this with one hand.” She huffs, almost a laugh, at the ancient being’s surprisingly sheepish apology, inspecting the wound. No severed cables, but scratched and punctured ones, and she’ll need to patch them up and bring back the clamps, which she does with a light pat on his armor as warning.
“Remind me NOT to ask how old you are, I’ve got a feeling the answer would scare me a little. Organic beings operate on rather tiny timetables on the scope of the universe..” She continues to muse, half-laughing and humming to herself as patches of flexible material are applied to the torn, frayed cables, providing temporary band-aids. “...I’m surprised that anyone would even CONSIDER using robots like that Araxxus guy for anything, really. Making artificial life is one thing - making it INTENTIONALLY cruel is a recipe for disaster. Then again... that thing packs more punch for its size than most anything around. Clearly, there’s something tempting about that kind of energy source.”
“...Doesn’t that feel off, though? Working from a framework made by people who no longer exist, for a purpose they can’t benefit from? Even if that purpose looks like it’s changed somewhat.”
cometofjustice:
“Alright.” Duo acknowledged quietly, having listened to her words attentively.
“…I do hear those sorts of questions from nearly every life form I contact, but I don’t mind answering them. I’m often the only one who can.” He said, tensing slightly in anticipation of Krigg removing the clamps. “Your assumptions were actually correct though…” He mused.
“...Speaking from experience, the universe is big and full of dead things that stopped working long before my specie evolved sentience. If it’s weird, hard to explain, and behaves like something out of a myth, a lost civillization is probably to blame for it being there.” Krigg hummed thoughtfully, moving to grab hold of the welder once again and tugging lightly on the clamped fuel lines to begin reconnecting the delicate tubing, patching them where the ends were too frayed to be put back together. No use removing the clamps then - that’d only result in messier, plasma-spewing lines and gloves catching on fire every other second.
Not that she didn’t need to occasionally put them out by whacking them casually against the nearest hard surface when the clamps let through a few drops of the burning substance. But Krigg showed little care in that factoid.
Only when the lines were securely patched, did she remove the clamps, wincing in anticipation for what had to be the worst feeling of pins and needles imaginable.
“...I’ll check your leg. And be quiet. I’ve got a feeling that not many people get to hear that story and... things that were forgotten by a lot of people don’t need to be forgotten more. It’s not right by them. I’ll just listen.”
caracalclaws:
@stxr-bxster || Permenant starter call
“… Hey! Sorry for interrupting. Just couldn’t help but notice you looking a little lost!”
Arms fold behind her back, head tilted to one side at the… Well, the stranger didn’t look like any Mobian she’d seen before. But who’s Mint to judge?
“Don’t suppose I can help you at all? Uh! If you are lost, that is!”
Clickclickclickclick-
Starmap after starmap after other, obscure starmap, transparent patterns whizzing past Krigg’s eyes on the screens of her glasses. And not a single match to be found between the stars above the planet’s light blue skies, and the maps in her posession.
It’s quite rare. And it’s maybe a little bit of a terrifying situation. The universe is a bad place to get lost into.
The interruption in her search sets her worried mood to broiling, especially when that fateful observation that she might be a little lost manages to pinch juuuust the wrong nerve. The diminutive alien’s noggin snaps to the intruder with an expression of contained fury, shoulders hiking high and tongue held between her teeth to avoid spilling a loud burst of “WHAT DO YOU THINK, GENIUS?” and other related noises.
The anger boiling in the pot, however, quickly falls flat at the sight of the stranger’s unusually fuzzy, well-meaning face, all gas taken out of the metaphorical stove. And Krigg slumps forward with a quiet, defeated look on her face. No, really, she can’t be mad at that poor person.
“...Yeaahh... I am.” Krigg admits, sheepish. “Can I, uh... know where I am right now? Just planetwise, not... any more specifically.”
cometofjustice:
“It’s because of the Justice Energy that courses through my veins.” He said. “It’s an opposing form of Living Energy, and the only substance in the universe capable of permanently destroying Evil Energy. It’s the source of my life, which is why I can’t be corrupted.” Duo explained.
“But… that doesn’t mean Evil-based attacks can’t harm me.” He added, looking over the numerous grey streaks burned into his armor.
“...Justice, evil... the terms are plain, but I’ll be a space kraken’s uncle before I deny it’s a little silly-sounding. Feels like the sort of thing you tell grubs to make it easier for them to understand some more complicated terms. I’d probably kick you under the table if you came at me with that kind of story at a void station pit stop.” Krigg admitted rather bluntly, switching from her welder to another tool, seemingly unphased by splitting her attention between her work and the conversation. Her antennae were still tilted upwards, moving slightly with the sound of Duo’s voice, making it hard to deny where her attention was.
“But, seeing as some beastie infused with that “Evil energy” tried to snatch me off my ship, I can’t really say it sounds THAT silly, in retrospect. I could expect there being a term more appropriate to describe those types of energy in whatever language you started out with, maybe their own word even, but not one that can be translated.” Krigg gave a small pat to the heavy armor surrounding the wound, leaning back to watch her work with a satisfied quirk of her smile before resuming working.
“...I have... so many questions about all that. I mean, if you were equipped SPECIFICALLY to hunt down evil energy, who built you? Where does it even come from? Is it the result of some eon-old conflict that just puttered off and died over a stretch of stupidly long time?” Krigg’s agitated chatter died down, almost abruptly, with a light cough. “...Maybe not the best time to ask all that. You probably hear those questions all the time.”
“Alright, that’s... most of the internal mechanisms welded back together. Gonna’ reconnect the fuel lines, and then you should be good to, er... sit still for a while.”
cometofjustice:
Duo made a short, quiet hiss when she put in the clamps, but he kept perfectly still.
“I’m impressed by your fighting spirit.” He commented. “I feel a strong sense of Justice in you as well.”
“But… allow me to clarify what Evil Energy is: it’s a form of Living Energy that feeds on the evil thoughts, impulses, and actions of sentient beings. It multiplies rapidly and infects the minds of any thinking creatures that are exposed to it. It’s an extremely dangerous substance that has brought entire worlds to ruin… The robot who tried to destroy your ship was using it as a power source.” Duo explained. “He was most likely going to try and corrupt you, but greatly underestimated your defenses.”
Krigg felt somewhat glad she’d been busy leaning back over the wound, trying to figure out the best start to start fixing the internal mechanisms, because the mere mention of her having anything like a sense of Justice was enough for her expression to sour. The only indication of her displeasure was the light tensing of her antennae from their resting arc, and the long appendages pressing tightly together until they crossed inwards.
“Hm. Thank you.” She tried not to sound too dry, managing somewhat. The mention of a quality that shiny and noble being applied to her didn’t sit right with her on a fundamental level. A sense of right and wrong - yeah, she had one of those! A well honed one!
But justice implied all sorts of selfless-ish acts, the kind of ooey-gooey stuff that got people very injured, if not dead, because things rarely went so well as to let that persist in the universe. And she mostly went after the guy he’d scrapped with out of anger and spite - what’d HE know about that?
...Breathe, Krigg, breathe. Don’t get grumpy about it. The small alien un-crossed her antennae, keeping them pricked up towards Duo to let him know her attention was on him, despite her having started rummaging through her toolbox to pull out a small, handheld welding stylus and a stick of binding material.
“Alright, going to try and reconnect what I can see clearly. Hoping your self-repair can handle the rest - wouldn’t see you going around without one.” She mentionned, leaning over the wound once more to begin working on plugging cracks and mending broken mechanisms.
At least the detailed description of what evil energy was took her mind off the subject matter. Krigg gave a grimace as he explained himself, antennae going briefly flat. “Geez. And I almost got in contact with... that? I’ve heard of energy sources with weird lifelike behaviors across the universe, but nothing that malicious. Nevermind my plans of studying that guy’s leftovers - thanks for keeping him off of me. But how are you not getting all... corrupted an’ crud from straight up touching that nasty stuff?”
cometofjustice:
“It’s not the strangest thing I’ve been called…” He murmured, glancing away with a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
“My name is Duo.” He said. “My purpose is to eradicate Evil Energy from the galaxy.”
“Well, at least you’re not MAD about it.” Krigg couldn’t help but feel a snicker bubble at the back of her throat as she spied with her little eye the giant crack a small smile. Well, that solved it - he WAS capable of smiling at all! She started to busy herself with unfolding her toolbox, giving her access to a somewhat puzzling range of alien-looking devices, most looking to be handheld, and a variety of small metal clamps, tubes and parts.
The unusual necessity of mentioning a “purpose” associated to a name was not that strange - the protector, whose name was actually Duo, was obviously synthetic in nature. That purpose, however, did earn him a strange look as the diminutive alien pulled out a handful of small clamps from the toolbox, leaning over the wound, looking between it and Duo himself.
“...You’ll have to excuse me, but I’ve... got no idea what that is. I’ve been around a while, but I’ve hardly scratched the surface of all the weirdly messed up things going on in the universe. Sorry- you might feel a pinch, I’m going to clamp shut the broken fuel lines for a bit.” Krigg warned before sneaking a free arm into the cracks in Duo’s armor.
She seemed relatively nonplussed when the gloved arm she pulled back out of the crack seemed to have indeed caught the slightest bit on fire, waving the glove sharply until the flames died down. “Name’s Krigg - of no purpose, no home but my ship, and nothing much at all. Just a drifter. A really good one at kicking butt though!”