#coranda

Rise and fall, spin and sway. The taylon's stunning form held Coranda in a trance as she watched her move gracefully to the rhythm pulsing through the room. Time had lost all meaning around the eighth glass and she was beginning to regret listening to her friends' encouragement. 

Where were they?

She had half a mind to peer around for them, but that would require tearing her eyes off the dancer, which most certainly wouldn't do. Not when it seemed she might be approaching, the space between them growing ever shorter as a mekron passed. Then another. And another. 

Coranda wished she would hurry up already, wondering if it would risk her own cover too much to ask for a name, once she came close enough. Did people even do that in places like this, or was everyone supposed to remain anonymous? Her hidden pair of arms twitched restlessly in their bindings, wishing to reach out and touch, though she knew that would instantly bring the whole night to a frustrating conclusion. 

The three akiron had snuck out on Vasilica's suggestion to take part in the nightlife on Akiridion-8's most far flung lunar settlements. The excitement and risk of being caught mingling with the common masses was giddying, and they weren't the only ones seeking such forbidden revelry. Nobles from all branches of major and minor houses alike ventured into these areas for a bit of merrymaking whenever it suited them. Any who recognised one usually knew better than to cause genuine trouble, though the danger of being noticed by the wrong people was never completely absent. Others were all too eager in handing them back over to their families, in exchange for a tidy sum of crestons to keep their mouths shut.

Back and forth the dancer went, as though intentionally taunting Coranda, ever so slowly creeping toward her.

Just a little more. Please. 

"Come on," she muttered before she could stop herself, then froze as four breathtaking eyes flickered down to meet hers. Oh no. 

"Eager are we?"

A broad face with glowing stripes filled her vision for several sectons and part of Coranda instinctively tried to flinch away. Another wondered how it would feel to- 

One massive hand encased her wrist - and half her forearm - halting the thought in its tracks. She hadn't meant to act on it. An apology bubbled up in her mind, but she was released before she could say it aloud. The taylon gave her a knowing smile, then called something to a server nearby. Coranda vaguely recognised the language, her tutor's lessons in other native Akridion tongues labouring through the mire of intoxication. 'No more' was in there somewhere, she was certain. The server's quick nod and aboutface practically confirmed it. Well that was rude. She was here to escape people making decisions on her behalf. How dare-

"So where are you coming from tonight?" 

The platform lifted a fraction beneath her hand as the dancer stepped off, landing much more lightly than Coranda had expected from a being so large, she still towered over the Royal even on equal ground. Coranda wasn't sure how to answer, thoroughly distracted by the way her new companion looked leaning casually against the stage. 

"What's your name?" she blurted, instantly hoping it had been drowned out by the environment. No such luck, of course; taylon audial slits could often pick up the smallest of things in the noisiest of soundscapes. 

"Veyla Varda," she said with a laugh, "You?"

Her strong voice carried easily to Coranda, who awkwardly tried to copy the relaxed pose and immediately missed the edge she'd aimed to put her weight on.  

"I'm Cor- ah!"

She was caught before she face-planted, though embarrassment warmed her cheeks all the same. Veyla's deceptively gentle grip made something equally warm creep through her lower region and she desperately prayed it wouldn't show.

"Cora, huh? You don't look like a Cora, though I suppose that's hardly my business. Are you here with company?" 

"Friends, somewhere," Coranda mumbled, most of her attention a little pre-occupied with how the light struck Veyla's muscular chest. She wanted to trace the creases in that flimsy shirt, perhaps even take a fistful and hope Varda let herself be drawn down for-

"Maybe buy me a drink first, eh?"

A playful chuckle accompanied Coranda's fingers being patiently extracted from the fabric and placed back at her own side. Seklos and Gaylen, she'd done it again! 

"Sorry," she managed this time, glaring at the offending appendage, "They keep doing that." 

"Tell you what: I promise I won't hold it against them, providing they do something for me." 

This was followed by an expectant tilt of her head and Coranda's knees almost buckled at the indescribably filthy implication, even as she mentally flopped in confusion. Veyla Varda had rejected her but was still flirting? Her mind tried and failed to decisively identify what it all meant together, giving up about three sectons in to simply nod instead. Things would be clarified soon enough and the longer she delayed, the more likely it was she'd be banished to the faceless crowd. 

Varda's fingers enveloped her arm and drew her along, patrons parting before the Queen-in-waiting's enormous chaperone as she navigated toward the bar. Coranda could see glimpses of it through the bodies still ahead, though not much else. Her arm felt secure in the taylon's grasp and she took comfort from its reassuring presence. Her mind had just visited her with a tantalising image of that hand going far less appropriate places when they finally reached their destination.

A grizzled old voltarian pottered around behind the bar, pouring drinks and wiping up a particularly broad spill while scowling at the patron whose careless gesturing had caused the mess. Veyla caught his attention and spoke to him in the same language again, accepting the small vial he passed to her with an appreciative smile. Gaylen's Blade, how far did her lips spread? Coranda stared for over a mekron, before she realised those lips were moving in speech patterns she recognised better. 

"Cora? You with me?" 

"Ah, yes! Sorry! What were you saying?" 

Two eyes rolled so quickly she almost missed it, while the other pair dropped to the bottle, Veyla popping the lid with a flick and holding it out to her charge. Coranda blinked stupidly, unsure what to make of the situation. Was it safe to accept drinks from random strangers if they were employees? She had been told not to accept from just anyone, but this seemed different somehow. 

"Come on. You'll feel better. Here."

Veyla pressed the bottle into her hand and Coranda decided she didn't care, the barely concealed strength in that touch teasing her imagination until she haphazardly threw the drink back and chugged. The taste was… definitely like nothing she had ever imbibed before, and she made a vow on the spot never to repeat this mistake. 

"I can see how you got lost so fast. Slow down there," Veyla laughed, raising a browridge when she noticed the bottle was nearly empty, "Alright then. Why don't you sit tight while we wait for it to kick in." 

"Wait for what?" Coranda asked, surprised by how much easier her words were forming now. 

"That. Heh, lightweight." 

"What is this?" she asked as the room around her came into better focus. 

"Rapid-Grade Detox Formula. Good to have in a pinch, in case someone has clearly overestimated their resilience. You probably should have gone slower with it though." 

Coranda bristled, her steadily clearing head now capable of retrieving prior grudges. 

"I'll thank you not to decide what I should or should not be doing," she thumped the decanter onto the bartop, not bothering to catch it as its sideways position lent it the ability to roll off the edge. Unfortunately, it didn't smash, though the konk as it hit the floor was satisfying enough. "I get plenty of that at-" 

Her abdomen tensing sharply cut her off mid-rant and she groaned, clutching her waist. 

"I think you'll want to be heading for the purge-room now. But far be it from me to tell you what to do." 

Her self-appointed guardian was smirking and Coranda wanted nothing more than to punch her square in her unfairly solid jawline.

"Where?" she forced through gritted teeth, sliding off the stool and staggering toward the door the moment it was pointed out to her. 

It opened automatically and she silently praised the foresight of whoever had taken pity on the desperate when choosing that function, allowing her to make a beeline straight for the nearest purging pool unhindered. The fourth wave of nausea relieved her of her stomach's contents, her sides beginning to ache from the involuntary contractions. A clear fluid flowed through the pool, washing it all away down a drain hole hidden beneath the edging. She dunked her two free hands into the stream, scooping up enough to splash her face before swishing a mouthful around and spitting it out. 

Coranda didn't even notice anyone had followed her in, until a heavy warm touch she was quickly growing familiar with settled on her head. It took everything she had not to lean into it like an overly enthusiastic fugu-dog, reminding herself she was very annoyed right now and not remotely in the mood for-

Those huge fingers shifted her dangling hair over her neck, trailing briefly across the skin there and causing a delightful shiver and a soft sigh she immediately regretted. There was no way anyone looking directly at her could miss her darkening cheeks now. She wanted Veyla to do so much more, to take every thought away and make her forget what awaited upon her return tomorrow. She had arched upward without realising and was met with a deep rumble of amusement. 

"Feeling better then? Good. Maybe next time you'll pace yourself and not wander off on your own." 

Coranda groaned, her miffed tone somewhat dulled by a sudden wave of drowsiness.

"I didn't wander. I'm not a child, Varda, and for your information, I stayed exactly where we were supposed to be. They left." 

"I see," Veyla's voice had grown colder and Coranda instinctively drew into herself. A moment later however, she relaxed again, soothed by the deliciously rhythmic movements of the hand on her neck and primary shoulder set as they were gently massaged. "Do these 'friends' have names? I could send someone to collect them." 

"Oh no no, I wouldn't want to be a bother." 

"To us or to them?" she thought she heard Varda mutter, but it was lost under the door sliding open and the muted sounds of the club suddenly increasing in volume.

"There you are! We could-oof!" 

Patrizia stopped dead in her tracks and stumbled forward as someone ran into her.

"What in Gaylen's name- Move!" She was shoved aside, leaving Vasilica standing in her place. The taller akiron righted her own clothing with an aggravated expression, until she also noticed Coranda's unexpected companion and paused. "Who is this? Should I be calling Security?" 

Coranda winced at the pompous tone, thanking her fortune she wasn't in any actual danger while simultaneously cursing her friend's idiocy. If the taylon were a real threat, she was well and truly close enough to snap Coranda's neck with a flick, and it would take even less effort to crush her core within the next secton. 

"And how would I be assisting you today?" Veyla stood slowly, reminding Coranda again just how much bigger she was than the three Royals in the room as she reached her full imposing height. Patrizia gulped and edged a little closer to the exit. Vasilica's face had turned a delightfully paler shade of blue, tilting upward to follow Varda's rising eyes with increasing dismay. "Have you lost someone, perhaps?"

"It's fine. They're here now. I'll be alright." Coranda tried getting to her own feet as she spoke, only to find her legs refused to work. Her fall was arrested once more as Varda's hand whipped out to catch her arm, then gently lowered her to the ground. Seklos, she had extremely good reflexes, even by normal taylon standards.

"Sit down before you hurt yourself."

"What did you do to her?" Patrizia asked, the concern in her words almost sounding genuine. She hid herself behind her sister when Veyla gave them both a withering look, stepping toward the two and driving them ahead of her as they backed away.

"Let me make myself perfectly clear. We all need a break sometimes. But there are responsibilities we do not shirk, at any point, under any circumstances. One of those is not leaving a first timer alone in a loud enclosed space, completely incapacitated and barely aware of what's happening. Considering you've clearly been to places like this before, I'd have thought you'd know that."

The door sensor activated, allowing them an escape into the crowd if they wished. Yet Vasilica stopped, likely regaining confidence with a room full of witnesses at her disposal. "How dare you?" she said angrily, her voice even more shrill and grating than usual. Patrizia was tugging her arm, but she shook her off. "Do you have any idea who we are?"

"I do not," the taylon replied, and while Coranda could no longer see her expression, something about her air seemed to shift. A jovially challenging tone accompanied her next words as her head performed that delightful little tilt again, though in a considerably less friendly manner than earlier, and Coranda felt a flash of excitement imagining what having that directed at her might be like. "Would you care to enlighten me?"

Vasilica's mouth hung open, staring helplessly. Coranda couldn't recall a time she'd ever seen the bossy noble actually struck speechless. There was nothing to be said, unless they were ready to meet with an unpleasant end to their fun little jaunt. 

She knows we're not supposed to be here. Don't take the bait, you fool. Walk away. Please. 

Loud screaming and the shatter of multiple glass objects breaking at once cut through the moment, Vasilica falling to the floor as Veyla immediately barged past her toward the source. The patrons near the bar were scrambling to vacate the area, leaving Coranda a clear view of what they were fleeing from. 

A large family of foo-foo, two voltarians, one kaygon and possibly a dozen or more gaalahni had stolen the attention of the entire club, poised in a threatening formation around the bar. On the other side, the old voltarion barkeep stood braced for further violence. Behind him, a particularly lanky akiron pushed himself away from the destruction his body had made, glass tinkling to the floor as he staggered upright, clothing drenched in a variety of imbibements. 

Veyla Varda halted, clearly noticing the numerous blasters now trained on her companion, who calmly raised his hands. The newcomers hadn't spotted her yet, too focused on the target of their ire, but she couldn't just attack outright without putting her friend at risk. To Coranda's surprise, the dancer suddenly pressed a finger to her temple, activating an ionic earpiece and speaking in a disapproving murmur. 

“Mernos. We talked about this.” 

“You disappeared. And Ceylen insulted my hredni mix. The young these days have no respect for their elders. He was practically begging for a toss,” the barkeep replied to the air, tail waving lazily at his dripping victim, who drew his own gun with a look of barely contained fury.

“You crazy- All you needed to do… the one thing he asked from you…” the akiron caught himself and inhaled slowly, releasing it on a mirthless chuckle, his blaster making an ominous whine as he clicked its settings to fatal, “‘Accept the payment and get out.’ That was it. One simple little task, and you could've been gone, free to roam and richer than some lower Houses! Everyone else knew what was good for them. But the soolian here? Noooo. He just had to be difficult.”

Coranda had been glancing at the dancing platform throughout the altercation, a glimmer of a definitely terrible, but potentially necessary idea forming in her mind. Veyla and Mernos were both unarmed, out-numbered and outgunned. The odds now were surely far worse than any half-baked plan to tip them could be. She made up her mind and began creeping toward her goal the moment she heard Ceylen’s blaster escalate its intent, screaming at herself the entire way, yet determined to see it through. They may be mere acquaintances, but they’d taken care of a complete stranger in her time of need. It was only right to return the favour.

“The Councillor has no say here and your behaviour is disrupting the peace. Do yourself a favour and lower those weapons. Now. I will not warn you again.”

Varda's carefully even tone and more than significant body mass stepping forward would have made a sharper group think twice about their next decision. Unfortunately, this did not appear to be an altogether bright collection of individuals. They turned to regard her, their initial fearful reaction quickly replaced by a ripple of laughter once they realised she was alone.

Meanwhile, Coranda had managed to use a nearby chair to reach the dance platform, hauling herself up and creeping to the end nearest the bar. The height was a little dizzying and she planted her feet to steady herself, shakily reaching around to begin unclipping the bindings hiding her true identity.

“And who might you be? The floor sweep?” Ceylen snorted, his blaster’s muzzle dropping as his focus switched from Mernos to Veyla.

“Something like that.” The joviality from earlier had entered her voice again, this time with a much deadlier edge, and Coranda couldn't help the thrill it sent through her upon hearing it. Varda took another slow step, then another, every eye riveted on her gradual approach, her stripes seeming to pulse brighter in the dim lighting. “Though it looks like you've done most of my work for me. All the space trash neatly gathered in one corner.”

Ceylen squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head as though to clear it, natural akiron resistance breaking Veyla's hypnotic hold far more quickly than his less fortunate followers, his blaster raising to point at her head. 

Time for a new distraction. 

"By order of the Fifth Akiridion Throne," Coranda called as she wrenched the final clip away, tossing her bindings to the side and finally allowing her secondary arms to stretch happily into their newfound freedom, "Drop your weapons and kneel!"

It had the desired effect, every eye in the room turning to look straight at the Royal in full view on stage, Veyla’s exasperated mutter the only sound cutting through the stunned silence.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me." 

Laughter broke out among the gang and the kaygon started toward Coranda, the leer on his face as he spoke making her hand itch for a weapon of her own.

“Looks like our payment’s about to get a whole lot fatter. Why don't you come down here so we can get acquainted, princ-!”

Veyla moved, her form a blur as she launched the kaygon horizontally, kindly acquainting him with the solid base of the dance platform instead. The goon closest to him found himself locked to her front as a gaalahnian shield before anyone else could react, Varda sending another flying into a nearby table with a kick when he hesitated to shoot. The rest opened fire on her, forcing her to take cover behind the overturned table and the unfortunate gaalahni. Mernos took advantage of their surprise to repeat his earlier action, seizing Ceylen and hurling him back over the bartop. Then he bent to retrieve something from beneath the counter, throwing two objects to his ally.

"Zi- Veyla!"

She prioritised the catching of one, allowing the other to clatter to the ground beside her. The next secton, Coranda understood why, as Veyla Varda slapped the item in her hand to her chest and activated an armour module. Its articulated flexi-plate enveloped her massive form, swiftly rendering both the table and dead gaalahni unnecessary. She let him slip from her grasp, ignoring the petering blasts absorbed by her new plating as she picked up the serrator from the floor and faced her surprised opponents. 

Coranda couldn't believe her eyes. Apparently she wasn't the only one here under false pretences. 

A fully armoured officer of the Talyon Phalanx stood before them, rolling her powerful shoulders and neck in readiness to dish out their inevitable demise. There was no question now who possessed the upper hand as terrifying reality began to dawn on the gang members.

"Those of you who wish to leave in one piece, kindly exit in an orderly fashion. Anyone who craves death…" Veyla grinned and manifested a broad-sabre, its ionic edge humming a deadly drone beneath her words, "Feel free to linger. I've been suffering the lack of a good dance partner." 

The extra-curious patrons still observing regained their senses then, fleeing in a decidedly less than orderly fashion and stumbling over each other in their bid to escape. Coranda looked around for her companions, spotting them still huddled against the wall where she'd left them. She slipped down off the platform again, gesturing to them from the shadows to follow her. If they could move fast enough, they might be able to- 

Patrizia shook her head, face contorted with fear. She wasn't moving any time soon. Vasilica was in no better shape, clutching tight to her sister, wide eyes staring at the stand-off barely a stone's throw away.

Kleb!

She glanced back at the unfolding scene behind her. Would it escalate into a full on battle? One stray blaster beam could spell the end for any of them. Luckily, the group of extortionists didn't seem all that eager to take a trained soldier up on her challenge, self-preservation finally making an appearance.

Albeit far too late. 

“It's one guard and an ancient lizard! Just kill them!” Ceylen barked, firing on Mernos and forcing the voltarion to create a shield with his own serrator. 

Chaos descended quickly, Varda trusting her friend to take care of himself while she charged the thugs. They parted before her, some barely avoiding her swings, others who weren't so lucky shredded to flexel and staining the club grounds with a gory rainbow of diverse innards. Those who survived her opening attack spread out, desperately trying to stay clear of her range and develop a strategy against her on the fly. The voltarion pair ignored the panicked yells of their team, launching a series of ruthless electrical attacks, then phasing out and retreating into the energy grids before she could counter. Veyla stumbled and slowed, emboldening the rest to try a united assault, half-burying her under a writhing pile-on of foo-foo and the remaining few gaalahni. The voltarions reformed and raced to join in, but Mernos zapped himself between them and the struggling taylon, wrapping his tail around the neck of one and seizing the other in a headlock. All three vanished, leaving Veyla to finish the fight alone.

Without the damage the voltarions had provided, that proved a lot easier. Caught mid-reckless attack at close range and faltering, her assailants had even less leeway than before to elude her. Many more fell to her vicious blows as she bucked them off and struck, crushing and slicing her way to freedom and an ever nearing victory.

A handful of the wilier foo-foo had hung back, noticing Patrizia and Vasilica and breaking off from the main pack to bound toward them with desperation in their eyes. Coranda dove for the nearest corpse, snatching up a weapon. Unwilling to risk hitting her friends, she fired at the ground ahead of the threat to get their attention. It worked a little too well, reminding them of her higher hostage value the moment they saw her. She had just started for the door in the hope of drawing them away enough to aim properly, when an enormous mass of gleaming phalanx armour cut off her view of the oncoming foo-foo, scattering them as they abruptly changed direction. The one foolish enough to try again for their initial plan was swiftly decapitated, while the rest leapt for the stage to gain the high ground.

"Get down before you get hurt, your highness," Veyla snarled, snatching Coranda by the wrist to haul her swiftly across the space and smack into Patrizia, the taylon warrior using her body and serrator both to shield the three akiron nobles in the nick of time as the foo-foo turned their weapons on them. Her glowing face offset the blinding light of the beams pelting ionic barrier and exposed form alike, double sets of eyes glaring directly at Coranda while she steeled herself against the onslaught with a grimace. Armour or no, those blasters were nothing to scoff at and the Queen-In-Waiting felt a twinge of sympathy for each grunt punched from Veyla's throat.

It seemed like an eternity went by before the blasterfire abruptly ended, a powerful electric current frying the foo-foos where they stood as Mernos returned in a flash of crackling energy. Their blackened corpses slumped around him and he dropped gracefully to the floor without so much as another glance toward his handiwork. He seemed more concerned about Varda's, scowling at the gore coating nearly every surface of his club.

"What a mess."

“Apologies. In future I'll do my best to massacre your enemies with more focus on preserving the upholstery,” she retorted, though there was a distinct note of genuine humour underpinning her tone. Rising from her protective position, she deactivated her serrator, magnetising the circular hilt and releasing it to rest in its proper position on her hip.

Mernos let out a dry chuckle, stretching his neck and shaking off some extra sparks as he approached a long groaning lump sprawled in front of the bar. Ceylen struggled weakly, the sudden firm grip on his collar allowing him no room for escape. Mernos hauled him into a sitting position, examining the burns over the akiron's arms and chest with a cold expression.

“Someone really should teach these pests not to bring a blaster to a lightning-fight.” 

“You left him alive? Generous of you,” Veyla commented, detatching a set of cuffs from her other side and tossing them to the barkeep. "Watch him. I'll be back to clean things up. I have an unexpected wrinkle to deal with first."

Coranda did her best to glare at Veyla when she returned to them, having noticed her secondary shoulderblade was aching from how roughly the guard had manoeuvred her.

"I do not appreciate being dragged around."

"I don't appreciate Royals interfering with my job,” Varda snapped, the disdain and authority colouring her words surprising Coranda into subdued silence. There was no trace left of the exasperated but kind employee who’d been caring for her not fifteen mekrons earlier. “Who brought you here? Call them."

"He's already coming. I pinged him when that awful gang showed up." Patrizia sounded thoroughly rattled and Coranda could hardly blame her.

"Whatever for? It's fine now! I need a drink." Vasilica, on the other hand, seemed ready to pretend nothing had happened. She made toward an intact table, ignoring the morbid tableau surrounding them, but stopped as a huge armoured limb barred her way.

"With all due respect, my lady, you are fully aware it's illegal for this establishment to knowingly host people of your status." 

"Your families would have our heads, and I've had enough excitement for one night," Mernos chimed in, grabbing a surviving bottle of something bright purple and pouring himself a glass. 

"I strongly suggest you return to whichever palace you reside in. I will escort you to your vehicle," Veyla said firmly, and began herding them toward the door, giving them no room to argue or try to move past her. 

Vasilica put on her best outraged face but did as she was told, Patrizia following with her arms folded around her and shoulders hunched. Coranda silently walked ahead of them, scanning the docking bay for their driver. He was just pulling in when they arrived and looked highly concerned, rushing to open the doors and usher them inside. He bowed to the nobles, then dipped his head to their unsolicited protector. She gave a curt nod and turned, leaving without another word or a single glance back at them as they departed.

“I cannot believe the nerve of those waitstaff!” Vasilica started mere sectons after the door was closed on them, “First they try to cut us off, then that taylon dragged you into a purge room to do who knows what to you! We should report them. Have them shut down and exiled, servers decommissioned, the whole procedure! I'll need your statements of course and-” 

Patrizia just put her slitbuds in and curled up under her travel blanket, pulling the edge over her head. The glow of her sound-ball generated a soft light to banish a little of the darkness, though its reflection against Coranda’s window was too weak to challenge the star clusters outside their pod. She tuned out both the orb and the rest of Vasilica’s whining prattle, a single thought sticking in her mind. 

‘Who knew what’ indeed? What incredible delights might she have experienced, had they not been so rudely interrupted? Had she not been required to reveal the truth. Would Veyla have reacted the same way once the binding came off while undressing her, without the presence of danger? Perhaps those hands would have stroked further down her back, hopefully pausing only long enough to recognize she was touching royalty, before deciding to take her chances regardless and venture lower…

The lunar settlements of Akiridion-8 dropped quickly away in their wake, leaving only the vast reaches of space, and the yearning ache filled by her increasingly depraved fantasies.

---------------------------

So I was writing a Vexando fic because my brain was going brrrrrrrr on them, and I wanted to flesh out and play around more with the Taylon and two-armed/four-armed Akiridions (which I gave the separate species name 'akiron' for) as two different but similar species, because why not? Which led to thinking about reproductive processes for them to understand smutt options better.

Then I remembered the Steve-preg situation in that awful Rise of the Titans movie hinted at Akiridions being like seahorses which, on its own has some cool potential, but I decided to do away with the kiss thing and human m-preg (human m-preg people are valid there are just perfectly good unexplored alien species right there in this universe and I'd rather do it with them) and play around with alien reproduction systems more.

And that also led to an interest in trying out writing a matriarchal society and how that might look and be experienced by and effect the interactions of the characters.

Which led to my best friends asking me "ok but how would two female akiridions do things together/how would you write that?" which of course required actual characters to pair together. So we had a light-hearted, mostly joking (at first) chat about Coranda in her stupid college-age-equivalent years sneaking out to a bar, getting drunk and hitting on a dancer there.

"Ok so who is the dancer?"

"Ooh you know what? Fuck it. Let's grab that random female taylon OC from my Vexando wip and make her also a dancer in a club."

"Ok, why is she there? Does she just enjoy dancing? Does she need it as a night job?"

"Ooh how about she's under cover doing a personal favour for the bar owner who has had a local gang harassing him for money" and then because I've watched a lot of shows with corporate bullshittery redevelopment projects as plot points on Netflix recently, that turned into "rich powerful bastard wants to own the moon these clubs are on/monopolize them himself so he's paying people off to get them to leave, but the OC's friend is an old stubborn voltarion who refuses to sell his club" etc etc and then my brain gave me words for an actual start to the opening scene and uh...

Now I'm writing a story about Queen Coranda and her bodyguard back in her earlier years when things were easy and she didn't have an entire planetry system under her leadership to fuck up. XD

I was also curious about how they had two houses of Akiridion warring and then coming together to form the Royals from the show. Also it's called Akiridion-5, hinting at other planets also part of a wider Akiridion empire type thing and the concept of four-armed Royal Akiridions seemed like something to be fleshed out more so I thought "ok why not have multiple major and minor Houses, not just Ventis and Akraohm" and "what if there were minor Houses marrying into major Houses and different families greasing up to more powerful ones seeking political marriages and deals etc etc."

You get the point. Basically it rabbit-holed really fast like all these things do when my brain latches onto them. XD

>Anytime Aja is excited about anything is a win for me.  I love her enthusiasm so freaking much.

>Also Krel doing trial runs with his worm hole generator.  Man, do I love these two as protagonists, as well as the dynamic they have with each other.

>Spaghettification is one of my fav words too, now

>You guys are just gonna go outside in your Akiridion forms huh?  In broad daylight where the neighbors can see.  Do you guys even have neighbors I wonder?

>My dudes, you have no idea how long I waited for the Arrrgh!!! in summer school thing to pay off after seeing a promo image for it, and the scene did not disappoint 😆 

>Coach Lawrence, I’m just curious how you think getting a massive stone troll on a high school wrestling team is going to go over with your school’s rivals, or anyone.

Although, that should definitely be the way the rest of the world learns about trolls.  Not some big plot thing.  Coach Lawrence convincing Arrrgh!!! to wrestle for him.

gonna give more bonus points to Arrrgh!!! for being AWESOME SAUCE!!!

>Kubritz, you should really listen to Costas.  I mean, you really should.  Did I mention how this show is slowly convincing me to like Costas, because this show is slowly convincing me to like Costas.

>The return of Jim Lake disease warrants points for continuity

(I don’t actually have a points system I’m using in these liveblogs and I don’t really know why I keep awarding points, but it’s fun)

>Yay for Vex and Zadra working together!  And Luug too!

>Luug and Buster friendship FOR THE WIN!

>I really like Mary’s interrogation.  Especially how she points out that “Teddy” (the guy in the orange jumpsuit with Costas interrogating her) is weird.  Like, yes, way to point out that the Area 49B guys are weird, especially how they just barged into the school.  You go, Mary, for pointing out they’re kind of hypocrites about the whole ‘weird’ thing.

This is an episode I enjoy a lot because it shows how the high schoolers aren’t only willing to protect trolls (Arrrgh!!! is literally walking by the door as the interrogation happens, but Mary doesn’t point that out), but later the Akiridions too.  Like, I don’t feel like there’s much to analyze too deeply here because it’s a well put-together episode making a point that I think really belongs in a children’s show, especially considering the current climate in the US.

>I like how Toby does question Aja and Krel’s plan (his ‘they’re here for you’ line), but can’t act on it because Aja jumps out from their hiding spot and prevents him.

>It just occurred to me that Tronos attacking Aja and Krel at the school parallels how Angor Rot attacked Jim at the school in Trollhunters.

Just I feel like there’s a lot of narrative parallels between Tronos and Angor Rot that I need to explore more at some point.

>Steve and Eli hanging out is cute.  I do like ‘cheese slice’ as a nickname.

>Why couldn’t they have left the Toby fat jokes in the past, just ghsijghfsjghefsji I don’t like those.

>The fact they implied that Kubritz did something to Krel here ups the intensity quite a lot.  This is the beginning of 3Below Part 2 not being afraid to throw down.

>Also, the beginning of Tronos’s backstory.  It doesn’t make much sense because last episode he said Aja was worth billions/the bounty was his because he had the royals (which shows he does care about the money).

However, I do this backstory for him (so I don’t mind the sudden switch all too much).  I think ‘avenging his homeworld’s destruction’ has more depth to it than ‘I want to be rich’.  I also like the implications that Fialkov and Coranda may not have been as honorable as their children think.  Between this and the fact Fialkov would not let Vex avenge his family, it shows they may have not been perfect monarchs.

On the one hand, I do want to say that this development was never really acted on in the show so it was wasted potential.  On the other, I’m willing to give the writers a chance.

For instance, they introduced the Deep in S2 of Trollhunters and then dropped it for the rest of that show, only to return to it later in S2 of 3Below.  Given what the Deep was, they could not have expanded on it in TH without spoiling plot points for 3B.  I’m not saying we will see more to Fialkov and Coranda’s characters in Wizards (because yeah maybe it was just wasted potential).

What I am saying is that I’m willing to give the writers a chance.  What might feel like a plot hole in one series may be an intentional withholding of information as to not spoil the next series.

Essentially, I’m not too keen on saying the writers wasted the potential of Aja and Krel’s parents (or Morando for that matter), because they may have plans to return to them and expand on them when tying all three shows together.  In this particular instance, I’m going to withhold my full judgment until Wizards is out and I can see the entire narrative laid out in completion.

>The Vex and Zadra vs. the Foo Foos fight gives some much needed levity to this episode.

>I really really like the scene where Eli confronts Steve about shoving people in lockers.  It shows that a) they did have a conversation about Steve’s past bullying and Steve listened to Eli and b) Steve maintains his personality, but he’s also changing for the better.  Just, all I’ve ever wanted if the writers are going to continue to have Steve be a recurring character is improvement from him.

>The last confrontation between Kubritz and the kids and Coach Lawrence was so immensely good.  One thing I absolutely love about 3Below is how it addresses issues like immigration and how it shows how kids can stand up against people like Kubritz.  idk I think that’s something really important to have in a children’s cartoon.

>Mary and Darci’s little hand gesture is cute.

>Aja deciding she needs to know the truth about Voltar is great character development for her.  It strikes me as the beginning of her heading to queenship.  Aja, personally, may not like the idea of being a royal, but she is resolute about standing up for what’s right and is willing to use her royal status for that cause.  This harkens back to Part 1, in the Arcadian Job, where she decides to help Stuart help free Buster.  She believed it was the right thing to do, so she did it.  To me, that plus her determination to know what happened to Voltar, is the beginning of setting her up to be a good queen.

Also, Aja’s been shown to be extremely sympathetic to grotesque/unusual creatures.  Again, with Buster in season 1.  When we’re introduced to them, Luug seems to be more her pet than Krel’s.  Arrrgh!!! is strange to her, yet she finds him magnificent.  

Aja, I think, is capable of great empathy and care (and these interactions are the evidence of that).  She does not fear someone because of the way they look, or considers them a monster.  I really love that about her.

Thinking about it, I also believe it is these things that set her up to return to Akiridion-5 to rule (rather than Krel, who’s motivated more by scientific research and discovery and has less of the diplomatic/charismatic characteristics required of a monarch).  A huge driving force behind a lot of the actions Aja does is connecting with others, which is something she is shown to do easily.  As a ruler, she would have more power to reach out to those in need and, as herself, would have an easier time empathizing and connecting with them.

Aja doesn’t have to stop being herself to be a queen.