Seeking Zombies

"It is! I think it’s good for lizards. We have giant lizards in our game too but ahh yes we need the winters to break the zombies and the locust in game they die out en mass and rot in the spring thaw." 

She gaped in horror, not believing what she was hearing. “Zombies!  The locus and lizards sound bad enough.” Sekhmet’s tail thrashed anxiously. “What kind of horrible game are you from!?”

“Yeah they're pretty much overkill. It's a modern first person shooter, you know how violent these things are now? There's at least an option to turn off the gore, and this is the arcade version.”  

As they mention that he smells him, he sobers up, nodding, “I used to be human, I think some of that, like my face, is still in my programming.”

There’s too much to smell, they feel like he’s a safe zone and probably one more stable than Salmon. A nagging feeling plops into the back of their brainstem as they try to recall their train of though. “Hmm. Did you know Salmon before he became Salmon?” one ear perks a tad, “Can you fly?”

As long as he’s got something to take his mind off of his troubles, like talking to someone, then he’s definitely fairly stable. He’s not dangerously unstable, he’s more prone to worrying and being depressed about what’s been going on.

Trot yawns, "That's getting a bit mythological there. The humans in my game are bad news." they scratch their neck for a second, "I can't fly, no wings." a wry chuckle. "So what are you doing out here all alone? I thought your kind was social."

“This game is pretty awful though, smells like dust and anthrax.” they lick at the floor a few times and then peer outwards again, scanning the savannah. “Winder is cold, it gets so cold that he rain turns solid. Everything gets covered in snow so it turns white! Everything that doesn’t turn white usually ends up a dark muddy color.” Trot puffs out a tad, “Wait that doesn’t answer it! I guess your game doesn’t have seasons then. See when a year goes around the weather changes right? Well it’s split into four separate chunks of time, for each of these chunks of time the weather is different. Now one is winter, it gets cold. It snows, which is tiny crystals of frozen water. The snow makes everything cold too so all the plants die off and the animals go to sleep for a bit. I stay awake, but dig a den since it’s warmer underground …” They pause for a moment and cough, “Hope I didn’t get too sidetracked there. I think your game’s stuck in summer.”

“ if summer is nothing but constant, scalding heat, then yes.” The lioness liked the heat, but only because she had been born into it. 

"It is! I think it's good for lizards. We have giant lizards in our game too but ahh yes we need the winters to break the zombies and the locust in game they die out en mass and rot in the spring thaw." 

Trot takes a few more steps before starting to sniff at Ralph’s neck, then probably his ear and hair a bit. The coward’s nose is cold and wet and tiny. Hardly any threat to their host, they take a few steps back. “You smell kind of human. Kind of. Not really you know what I mean?”

As they mention that he smells him, he sobers up, nodding, “I used to be human, I think some of that, like my face, is still in my programming.”

There's too much to smell, they feel like he's a safe zone and probably one more stable than Salmon. A nagging feeling plops into the back of their brainstem as they try to recall their train of though. "Hmm. Did you know Salmon before he became Salmon?" one ear perks a tad, "Can you fly?"

Their back legs readjust and they clutch onto the mesh of metal and scrap over Ralph’s shoulder, “Or hurting you? Uh … are you made of metal? All metal?” they tilt their head and examine Ralph’s face, “Are you painted on or are you real?”

He thinks for just a moment before answering, “Not quite, I’m mostly metal, but my face is squishy, I think it’s still somewhat organic, my wings are some kind of light thing, and my cerci are like fiber optics, I believe. As for my insides, some of them are squishy and some are metal.” He had found out what he was made of the hard way.

Trot takes a few more steps before starting to sniff at Ralph's neck, then probably his ear and hair a bit. The coward's nose is cold and wet and tiny. Hardly any threat to their host, they take a few steps back. "You smell kind of human. Kind of. Not really you know what I mean?"

Trot can’t see color either, they take a look over their body, which appears to be a dull, saturated yellow spiked with darker feathers on top. Trot’s underbelly and top third body wise is white, “White? It stains easy in dirt, and the data usually falls off when I game hop. I’m pretty much the same shade as grass I think. You’re a bit lighter colored than me, like this game. Things are pretty dry aren’t they.” Trot stretches out and slowly wags heir tail,  ”I feel safer in winter, those feathers are harder to bite through.”

“Extremely. We’re lucky if we get rainfall once a month.” She shrugged. She was used to the dry heat. “What is winter?  I’ve heard about it, but never actually seen it. “ The lioness cocked her head again, blinking curiously.  Frozen water that fell to the sky in flakes sounded insane. Snowdrifts even more. Water wasn’t solid! How could it stick together? 

“This game is pretty awful though, smells like dust and anthrax.” they lick at the floor a few times and then peer outwards again, scanning the savannah. “Winder is cold, it gets so cold that he rain turns solid. Everything gets covered in snow so it turns white! Everything that doesn't turn white usually ends up a dark muddy color.” Trot puffs out a tad, “Wait that doesn't answer it! I guess your game doesn't have seasons then. See when a year goes around the weather changes right? Well it's split into four separate chunks of time, for each of these chunks of time the weather is different. Now one is winter, it gets cold. It snows, which is tiny crystals of frozen water. The snow makes everything cold too so all the plants die off and the animals go to sleep for a bit. I stay awake, but dig a den since it's warmer underground ...” They pause for a moment and cough, “Hope I didn't get too sidetracked there. I think your game's stuck in summer.”

"I think it’s good to be serious about your job, the game I mean." they look up, and around at the landscape. This Ralph guy makes for a great perch. "S W A T is a response team, in the movies and in the TV they come whenever there’s a really bad threat. Kind of like the marines, they’re the best of the best!" their tail’s wagging and they take a few steps in place, turning and peering behind Ralph before sniffing at the air from the high place.

He nods, “It’s an important job, being a game character, we’ve gotta make things enjoyable for the gamers.” He shakes his head, “Doesn’t sound familiar, but if they’re like the Marines, then they must be great.”

Their back legs readjust and they clutch onto the mesh of metal and scrap over Ralph's shoulder, "Or hurting you? Uh ... are you made of metal? All metal?" they tilt their head and examine Ralph's face, "Are you painted on or are you real?"

"You know… I, uh… hmmm…"

"I’m not a cannibal!"

"Molt? Just a little, it’s shedding but sometimes all of them come out at once. My game’s seasons go fast, this is my summer coat. My winter coat is much darker and heavier." speaking of which, Trot scratches at their side and a few loose ones fall out.

"There’s no winter here, so I always have my Summer coat." She scratched the side of her neck, fur flying." But I’m always shedding. Got to keep the fur soft and supple." She squinted her eyes.  " Your very bright, color wise. How do you hide?" Cats could not see red, so Sekhmet saw their fur as bright then as an actual color. 

Trot can't see color either, they take a look over their body, which appears to be a dull, saturated yellow spiked with darker feathers on top. Trot's underbelly and top third body wise is white, "White? It stains easy in dirt, and the data usually falls off when I game hop. I'm pretty much the same shade as grass I think. You're a bit lighter colored than me, like this game. Things are pretty dry aren't they." Trot stretches out and slowly wags heir tail,  "I feel safer in winter, those feathers are harder to bite through."

"Oo what are Space Marines like? Are they anything like SWAT?" they sniff Ralph’s hand and then start to walk up towards his wrist and arm. It’s probably easier to hear them like this.

He thinks for a moment, trying to decide how to explain his ex-comrades to Trot, “Well, each of them is different… But, for the most part, during gameplay they’re serious and ready to battle. They work hard in order to help the player get through the game. After hours, they’re a little looser and like to joke and tease with each other. I don’t know what SWAT is though, sorry.” He’s glad that he can hear the creature better, now that it’s wandering on him.

"I think it's good to be serious about your job, the game I mean." they look up, and around at the landscape. This Ralph guy makes for a great perch. "S W A T is a response team, in the movies and in the TV they come whenever there's a really bad threat. Kind of like the marines, they're the best of the best!" their tail's wagging and they take a few steps in place, turning and peering behind Ralph before sniffing at the air from the high place.

"It can always get worse. So be thankful it’s as good as it is."

He shrugs, “I guess you’re right, things can easily get a lot worse if the Space Marines find out I’m here.”

"Oo what are Space Marines like? Are they anything like SWAT?" they sniff Ralph's hand and then start to walk up towards his wrist and arm. It's probably easier to hear them like this.

"Semi livestock, the other kind of my species are monsters in game and the humans can’t keep a very good hold on them unless they mutilate them." tail’s wagging. “Some are pets" they spit out the word with no small amount of disdain. “but only morons do that, we’re terrible animals that rip up houses and kill cats and dogs."

"Do you shed, er molt all over the place?" Sekhmet tilted her head and grinned teasingly.

"Molt? Just a little, it's shedding but sometimes all of them come out at once. My game's seasons go fast, this is my summer coat. My winter coat is much darker and heavier." speaking of which, Trot scratches at their side and a few loose ones fall out.

Tail wagging, “When you want to just evaporate because everything feels terrible!"

Ralph thinks on this, “I don’t think I’ve reached that point quite yet, it could be worse."

"It can always get worse. So be thankful it's as good as it is."