Despite all my rage, I'm still just a rat in a cage

It had been so long since they had the vast expanse of space to roam freely. They had spent so long, stuck in that lab discovera, a plaything for those... people. A lab rat no more, Elfilis freely soars across the vast cosmos, taking in the changes to the world around them. No more were there pests dabbling the vastness of the galaxies with their outposts, native life has once again set solid roots in this world.

Of course, the wonders of the native galactic life are put on hold once a familiar... feeling, reaches Elfilis. Searching around, The shilouette of a ship catches their eye, and the energy no doubt signifies this is ancient technology. How cruel, to be continually parading about, essentially using their own severed limb as a stilt. Drawing nearer to the ship, They send a message to whomever lives within the vessel.

ɸI mean no ill will. Who is the captain of this vessel? I wish to commune with such.ɸ

She looks down a bit, ears twitching. So they were just looking through her mind, which was already weird to think, and that meant they couldn’t know anything she didn’t already know… But it might be nice to have a grown-up(? They certainly looked like a grown-up to her.) offer their thoughts on what had happened…

She holds one of her little hands out to them.

“It’s a deal.” She nods, looking them in the eye. “‘N’ you can call me Morastrum, stranger.”

They very gently take her tiny little paw in-between the claws of their own fingers, shaking as small and as gently as possible. ɸYes, I will call you Morastrum. That is your name. You may refer to myself as Elfilis. It was the name of my former self, before I was split, but I have no other names, so it will do.ɸ

They rest their hand on their lap, the other on the deck of the ship. ɸNow. It seems the last known location of ‘Magolor’ was Halcandra, yet your memory of it shows it has diminished in size since I was last there. Has some form of cataclysmic event torn the planet asunder? Perhaps warp, or eruption?ɸ They drummed their fingertips along the deck of the Lor, head tilted to one side in thought. ɸ Unless, of course, the guardian Landia saw fit to shatter the planet. ɸ

It had been so long since they had the vast expanse of space to roam freely. They had spent so long, stuck in that lab discovera, a plaything for those... people. A lab rat no more, Elfilis freely soars across the vast cosmos, taking in the changes to the world around them. No more were there pests dabbling the vastness of the galaxies with their outposts, native life has once again set solid roots in this world.

Of course, the wonders of the native galactic life are put on hold once a familiar... feeling, reaches Elfilis. Searching around, The shilouette of a ship catches their eye, and the energy no doubt signifies this is ancient technology. How cruel, to be continually parading about, essentially using their own severed limb as a stilt. Drawing nearer to the ship, They send a message to whomever lives within the vessel.

ɸI mean no ill will. Who is the captain of this vessel? I wish to commune with such.ɸ

“Oh.” She nods a bit at that answer. She supposes it is good to know about that sort of thing, whether or not she’d ever end up encountering them. She was pretty far from Pop Star, and if that was in said other half, she couldn’t just avoid it… 

Apparently, she’s too concentrated on that line of thought to so much as flinch at them leaning in and taking a look through her mind. Mora quickly shakes her head to refocus as they ‘speak’ once more.

“Bweh- I don’t know what you’re talking about. But I guess I’m glad you’re not mad at us-” Her ears flatten down as it clicks in her mind that wait, she never told them that. As silly as the wall comment was, it didn’t stop a glint of fear from showing in her eyes.

“How much… How much do you know about dad?”

ɸ Unfortunately, I currently only know what a skim of your mind has provided. Though I suppose, if you would allow me, I could probe deeper to understand more of him. ɸ

They leaned down, resting their legs in a sort of squat. ɸIf I know more about him, such as motives and last known location, perhaps I could assist in your search... But I would like something in return, captain.ɸ They adjust to sit cross-legged, gently pressing their fingertips together, drumming them along eachother.

ɸI would like to learn more of this ship. That is, I would like to access it’s memory; I’m currently searching for someone as well, a former captain of this very vessel. Something of mine was taken, and while I am aware I can’t get it back, I’m far more interested in...ɸ They think for a moment. They can’t tell this child what they’re after, that runs the risk of her rejecting this offer.

It had been so long since they had the vast expanse of space to roam freely. They had spent so long, stuck in that lab discovera, a plaything for those... people. A lab rat no more, Elfilis freely soars across the vast cosmos, taking in the changes to the world around them. No more were there pests dabbling the vastness of the galaxies with their outposts, native life has once again set solid roots in this world.

Of course, the wonders of the native galactic life are put on hold once a familiar... feeling, reaches Elfilis. Searching around, The shilouette of a ship catches their eye, and the energy no doubt signifies this is ancient technology. How cruel, to be continually parading about, essentially using their own severed limb as a stilt. Drawing nearer to the ship, They send a message to whomever lives within the vessel.

ɸI mean no ill will. Who is the captain of this vessel? I wish to commune with such.ɸ

Morastrum huffs. She probably should have figured that it was too good to be true, but still. At least the not-pizza man didn’t seem to have any ill intent…

“Um… Neither of those…?” Her tone is a little more uncertain than it should be. “I’m not an adult, and I’m alone, but I don’t think it’s a hustle?” Truth be told, she didn’t know quite what they meant by that, but there sure wasn’t a group of bandits involved.

There’s a brief moment of hesitation before she begins approaching them. “…Does that second thing happen a lot?”

ɸI suppose it depends on which area of the galaxy you are in. There is a notorious band of rodent thieves towards the other side of the galaxy. My... sibling... has been thoroughly educated on the basics of a ‘hustle’, and rallied the information to myself.ɸ

Gently adjusting their perch to relax, Elfilis leans closer to the captain, taking in her appearance. Drawing in close- maybe a tad too close, they reach into her mind for a quick, cursory glance. A missing father, an unending search. More information on him shows a prior tendency to aimlessly wander into walls from exhaustion. Withdrawing, they step back, gently relaxing on the far edge of the deck.

ɸYou, nor your ancestry, seem to be the thieves I am looking for. While the ship was stolen from its resting place, I garner no anger towards him. After all, it seems what was once mine has now a mind of its own, it would be cruel to keep... her... locked away.ɸ

It had been so long since they had the vast expanse of space to roam freely. They had spent so long, stuck in that lab discovera, a plaything for those... people. A lab rat no more, Elfilis freely soars across the vast cosmos, taking in the changes to the world around them. No more were there pests dabbling the vastness of the galaxies with their outposts, native life has once again set solid roots in this world.

Of course, the wonders of the native galactic life are put on hold once a familiar... feeling, reaches Elfilis. Searching around, The shilouette of a ship catches their eye, and the energy no doubt signifies this is ancient technology. How cruel, to be continually parading about, essentially using their own severed limb as a stilt. Drawing nearer to the ship, They send a message to whomever lives within the vessel.

ɸI mean no ill will. Who is the captain of this vessel? I wish to commune with such.ɸ

The… Pizza Man… -> If it was possible for the starship to squint suspiciously, she would have. OK. Please wait while I inform the captain. ->

~

“What’s going on? What did you find?” Morastrum chirps, excitedly floating before the ship’s main console. While the Lor Starcutter hadn’t made the conversation visible to her one passenger, the fact she was processing something was rather clear, with the shifts in light and the humming of electronics not frequently-used.

“I have received communications from ‘The Pizza Man’,” her synthesized voice rings out, “and they wish to commune with you.”

Morastrum goes silent for a moment, one of her ears tilting upward. The pizza man…

“I wanna talk to ‘em.” Aaand she’s already making her way towards the upper deck, before the Lor could voice her skepticism.

“Please do be careful,” she calls, but Mora was already too focused on the task at hand.

What a nice little treat she’s about to have! She drums the fingers on one hand against the star button on her scarf, using the other to open the occasional door, before she finally made it up onto the deck. Morastrum looks around eagerly for this visitor, until her eyes fall upon Elfilis. She scans them quickly, and her ears tilt downward.

“… You are not the pizza man.”

ɸAstute observation. I do not believe the mystical ‘Pizza Man’, nor his whimsical glutenous discs could survive the expanses of space.ɸ

Gently perching upon the furthest edge of the Lor’s deck, ears relax and neatly rest behind their back.

ɸYou appear to be far younger than the standard age to captain a ship, much less ancient technology. Does your kind reach a societal adulthood that precedes Physical adulthood?ɸ

They tilt their head, hands behind their back, an attempt to look somewhat less threatening to a child.

It had been so long since they had the vast expanse of space to roam freely. They had spent so long, stuck in that lab discovera, a plaything for those... people. A lab rat no more, Elfilis freely soars across the vast cosmos, taking in the changes to the world around them. No more were there pests dabbling the vastness of the galaxies with their outposts, native life has once again set solid roots in this world.

Of course, the wonders of the native galactic life are put on hold once a familiar... feeling, reaches Elfilis. Searching around, The shilouette of a ship catches their eye, and the energy no doubt signifies this is ancient technology. How cruel, to be continually parading about, essentially using their own severed limb as a stilt. Drawing nearer to the ship, They send a message to whomever lives within the vessel.

ɸI mean no ill will. Who is the captain of this vessel? I wish to commune with such.ɸ

approaching-the-roche-limit​:

It was another quiet day on the Lor Starcutter, searching for signs of someone that the ship was sure would never be found- but if that was what the new admin wanted, that was what she would do.

Of course, in this search, the Lor hadn’t expected to pick up such a message, and such a curiously-formatted one, too. No data attached, no signs of whatever could have sent it, purely the message.

Greetings. -> She sends back to the best of her ability. It’s hard for her to tell if it was being properly received without the necessary data. Regardless, something about the connection felt… correct. This ship is currently under the administration of Captain Morastrum. ->

Please identify yourself. ->

Oh, how cruel, the missing leg has a mind of its own. Would that make it family, in some twisted manner? What is it that one does with family, as a greeting? Their mind wanders back to Kirby, and witnessing him interact with his own ‘family’. At present, the most they can recall as anything helpful are humorous greetings, said with an air of sorts to insinuate the disingenuous manner of the statement.

ɸ...The Pizza Man.ɸ