Lionface stared down at the red scrap of a tom in front of him, meeting small green eyes filled with fire. The little ginger cat was barely larger than a kit, and, with a pang of sympathy, the warrior could see a few ribs poking through thin red fur. If he hadn't known the tiny warden was a former kittypet, he would have assumed he was pure ShadowClan based on size alone. Behind him, though twice his size purely in fur alone, was the warden's charge, casually grooming a matted patch of fur with the air of one in their own camp, not trespassing on enemy ground.
"You have stolen prey, trespassed, have no names, and yet you demand sanctuary?" Lionface kept his tone even, letting just enough of a growl in his voice to make his position clear.
The red tom glanced back at the seer, apparently more concerned with her opinion than Lionface's. She only returned a stiff nod, shooting the golden warrior a cocky smirk. "My charge is sick and hungry-"
"And a rogue and disgusting," Lizardtail piped in. He withered back behind Lionface as his senior warrior glared at him to keep quiet.
"-And she communicates with StarClan. It is my duty to care for her. I wouldn't have stolen if it weren't necessary. And it was." He stuck out his lower jaw in a way that instantly reminded Lionface of the seer herself.
Brindleface tapped Lionface's shoulder with her tail as she stepped forward, allowing him a moment to recover from the kit's audacity. "ThunderClan does not take in rogues for nothing. In shedding your name you have shed your privileges." She sighed, giving the small- too small, really- tom a gentle look. He really couldn't be much older than kit age. "I daresay, though, that StarClan would not be proud if we turned away such a young cat without at least a small meal." Her gaze shifted to Lionface. He sighed through his teeth, the bridge of his nose wrinkling somewhat.
"The boy chased off a fox for you, too. Oughta repay him for that." The seer chuffed, meeting Lionface's gaze steadily.
Lizardtail sneered and wrinkled his nose. "What'd he do? Stand up wind of it?"
"Didn't," the warden snapped before either the seer or Lionface could say anything. Flaming green eyes challenged Lizardtail. "If anyone's smell scared it off, it was probably yours anyways."
Lizardtail's jaw dropped with shock and he stammered to find a retort while the nameless seer let out a loud guffaw. Lionface, however, only frowned and shook his large mane.
"That's enough," he said, partly through gritted teeth. "At the very least, Bluestar should hear about this. We can't leave you alone on our territory, though, so we'll take the nameless seer and warden-"
"Rusty."
Lionface had half turned to his patrol before the warden's voice caught his attention and made him turn back around. A glance at the seer told him nothing. "Pardon?"
"I only shed my apprentice name. You can call me Rusty. My kittypet name." Rusty calmly ignored the confused and shocked expressions of the ThunderClan patrol. "She already said it was alright." He jerked his chin towards his charge and she nodded stiffly.
"Indeed I did." She met Lionface's eyes steadily. "No harm in using a new name, is there? Not speaking the old one anytime soon, I'd think." Rusty nodded quickly in confirmation.
"I- Fine. We'll take the nameless and Rusty back with us to camp. Brindleface, can you run ahead and let Bluestar and Redtail know the situation?" Brindleface nodded- looking as if she was thinking of telling someone else as well- before taking off. StarClan above she doesn’t tell Goldenflower, Lionface prayed silently. They'd never get rid of the ShadowClan duo if she got her eyes on Rusty.
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Four years after the Not-End-Of-The-World, the angel Aziraphale, Heaven's Agent On Earth (retired), sits under a tree, in a garden. An apple tree, to be precise. An apple tree not all too dissimilar to the one he was guarding approximately six thousand years ago.
A companion piece for the final update of my fic, Snake Problems, which you can read from the beginning here! x
Was trying to get inspiration for the thing and ended up rereading your story twisted kelp and yellow eyes. i didnt remember the last part with mel and now my heart hurts.
does mel ever find beetle after that?
Yes, actually! They meet again 9 years later in a much different place, and are currently friends. Both were uhhhhh... anxious after the last encounter, to say the least, but they're still besties in the end.
Also, for those who haven't read, feel free to check out the 11k oc story I wrote a few months back, along with a short reunion epilogue (assuming this link works hhhhh)
Won't spoil anything specific, but your answer lies at the end of the dock.
“Blade, I can’t seem to figure out how this darn move works! Could you please show me?” Lyra scuffles up to him with a page of poorly drawn stick figure instructions on immobilizing a target. Blade looks over at figures. Of course Lyra was confused, he could barely figure out what was going on with those sticks himself.
“Yea sure, Come here.” The Ket replies, placing down the sheets of parchment he was looking over.
He motioned to her to come close then places his hands where they should be when executing this particular take down and restrain move.
“Hands here, lock, grab, leg, push, pin. if you lock their arms here like this, it wouldn’t harm them but they would also have trouble breaking free from you. Great to use especially when catching thieves. Understood?”
Lyra nods.
“Good your turn.” He braces himself to be downed.
Lyra executes the move flawlessly on Blade. In the end sitting on his front, her knees pinning his arms immobile.
“Very good! It’s almost as if you knew how to do it all along.” He comments and waits for her to get off him and when she doesn’t … he notices that glimmer in her eye. Oh!
Blade felt the brush of her hair on his cheek as Lyra leans closer with a secret smile.
Ah, a trap.
----------------------
Something short. I’m at work with no drawing tools so.. writing it is. All you writers are so inspiring ｡ﾟ(TヮT)ﾟ｡
Blade is from @shepherds-of-haven
Lyra is my MC from said game
“I didn’t mean to hurt him. I didn’t mean it. I’m sorry,” Jack muttered over and over again, mostly to himself.
He and Ethan were sitting outside the infirmary, watching as Kathryn and Amy helped Mark stand and look over his rapidly-healed injury. The cut had been deep, and it had left a nasty-looking scar down the center of Mark’s torso. Jack had been staying with them for the past few days while the medical pod did its work, but the machine could only heal so much.
Ethan hadn’t said a word to him since he had arrived. He didn’t say a thing to Jack or any of his crew mates. He simply made sure the pod stayed running, and sat quietly next to Jack. There was no emotion on his face but stubborn determination to save his friend, and confusion at Jack’s insistence that he didn’t mean it.
“He’ll be okay,” Ethan finally said to Jack. “Mark is fine.”
The spines on Jack’s arms rippled with unease. He knew Mark would be fine. The pod had healed him, and the only sign of Jack’s stupid mistake was scarred across his torso. It wasn’t Mark’s injuries he was worried about.
It was how much he was going to hate Jack now.
“I know,” Jack mumbled. He jumped as the infirmary door slid open behind them. Amy smiled sympathetically at Jack. She was supporting Mark, who was still half asleep from the med pod.
“Heeeey Jaaack,” Mark slurred. “You still heeeeere?”
Jack nodded and rubbed the back of his neck, not trusting his voice.
“Coooooool. I want to taaaalk with yooou about thaaaat…. Whateverrrr that thing waaaaas. Don’t go hoooome,” Mark insisted.
“You need to sleep first,” Amy said gently, saving Jack from having to respond. “C’mon, let’s get you to our room.”
Mark nodded and yawned, “You’re preeeeetty.” Amy smiled and rolled her eyes, guiding him slowly down the hall.
“See? He’s fine,” Ethan said, gently elbowing Jack in the arm.
Jack flinched and shuffled a few inches away from Ethan. The android frowned, but covered it up quickly.
“Do you want something to eat? I don’t think I’ve seen you eat anything since you got here. If you want, I can make something for you.”
“I’m fine,” Jack started to insist, but Kathryn came out of the infirmary, arms folded.
“We’re getting food,” she said. “You’re still healing, and you haven’t eaten anything in three days. Come on.”
Ethan smirked, sharing a what can you do? look with Jack, and got to his feet. He held out his hand, offering Jack help. Jack reached out, but when he caught sight of his own hands, he hesitated. He pulled back, getting to his feet without Ethan’s assistance.
“Okay,” Jack said, avoiding making eye contact with Ethan or Kathryn. “Hope you have meat.”
.
.
.
Jack stood in front of the crew of the Barrel. They sat before him on the couches, staring at him. It felt like he’d been standing there for years, all of them giving him their undivided attention. All of them. Staring at him. Waiting for him to talk. His throat felt dry, and he couldn’t decide if the room was too hot or too cold. He forced his tail to stay still instead of betraying how anxious he was, but they probably already knew.
“Take your time,” Mark said gently. Jack was taking his time. He’d been taking his time for the past fifteen minutes. Ethan’s leg was bouncing almost as fast as Jack’s heart rate.
“I… I, er… I don’t…” Jack took a deep breath, forcing his voice to steady. “I don’t know how to start this. I haven’t told anyone about this… this thing… in years.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I- I didn’t think I’d have to. Meeting you guys… becoming so close to you guys… that was never the plan. I knew this would happen eventually, but I didn’t want to admit it to myself. I knew that I would end up hurting one of you. Of course it ended up being Mark, you fucking hero.”
“Hey!”
“I’m not safe,” Jack said, ignoring Mark’s protest. “I’m a ticking time bomb.”
“Why don’t you start from the beginning?” Tyler suggested, his usually stoic expression relaxed and gentle.
Jack swallowed hard and allowed his tail to twitch nervously behind him. “Okay. The beginning.” Thinking back on dumb, newly-off-of-Varellex Jack, he wanted to go back and shake him. Tell him not to throw himself into dumb situations. Tell him that he would be safer without an AI. Tell him that he was safe with friends. Too late now, though.
“I don’t really know when exactly I had the idea first, but it was some time after getting my eye replaced and probably after one of Chase’s breakdowns. I had heard about people getting AIs installed in cyborg parts, but Robin said that they usually ended up with something going wrong.” Jack flinched as he watched the Barrel crew slowly all realize where the story was going. “I thought I could do better. Dumb, right? The guy who can’t even program a fucking robot right thought he could make an AI.”
They didn’t say anything. Just let him talk. Jack didn’t know if that was better or worse than someone breaking his rambling.
“I stayed up for days programming him. I hardly took a single break.” Jack decided to refrain from telling them he hadn’t taken any break. “He had some base coding already, but I had to do a lot of work to make sure he would work like he was supposed to.”
Mark looked like he wanted to ask something. Jack wanted him to ask it, but Mark stayed quiet.
“I had to route the installation through Sam, but it worked,” Jack continued. “I had an AI installed in my eye. Everything was working. Everything was fine. I thought I didn’t have anything to worry about, and for a while, I didn’t. SEAN-I was perfect.”
“SEAN-I?” Ethan broke the silence, earning a shove from Kathryn.
“It’s what I called him. My AI. Safeguard Engaged by Automatic Neural Interface,” Jack explained. “He worked really well for a while. Whenever I was in danger and couldn’t get myself out of a sticky situation, I’d take a backseat and watch as SEAN-I got me and whoever else out of there safely. I really liked him. We- we all really liked him. Chase, JJ, Henrik, even Robin started to come around to him. One day, though, I don’t know what happened, but he snapped.”
Jack’s breathing stuttered. He felt like there was a weight on his chest, and the world was spinning. He hated remembering that day. The stench of blood and gore. The tearing, clawing, and killing he had woken up to. The fear in Chase’s eyes.
If Jack could forget, he would.
“Chase and I, we were cornered by a ton of GLE officers, and I let SEAN-I take over to help get us out. I- he- he usually let me see what was happening when he took over. I couldn’t see anything. I couldn’t do anything. It was like I’d been knocked out of my own body. I was stuck in some black void. The back of my own fucking mind while he rode front seat and destroyed everything. He killed all of them. He- he-” Jack froze as he forced himself to not cry.
Mark stood and walked over to Jack, pulling him into a hug. Jack didn’t move. He couldn’t. He was forcing every part of his being to not completely break down. Mark hugged him tighter.
“It’s okay, man,” Mark said. “We got you.”
The rest of the crew appeared around them, their own arms joining the tangle of hugs. Slowly, Jack’s breathing calmed down and his hands stopped shaking.
“It’s okay,” Ethan said.
“Just breathe,” Amy murmured and patted his back while Tyler patted his shoulder.
“Take your time,” Kathryn added.
Jack slowly pulled out of the group hug as his body stopped shuddering. He still felt like shit, but he was no longer on the edge of a panic attack. “Thanks,” he muttered.
“You’re our friend,” Mark said, smiling. “We’ll always be here for you, no matter how bad it gets.”
Jack twitched a smile and stared down at his feet. “I- he got worse after that,” he continued, trying to ignore the warm feeling in his heart. “He took over with almost no warning except for a splitting migraine, and ended up destroying Jackie’s original head and half of his internal pieces when he was still being built. Jackie ended up being ANTI’s counter.”
Ethan opened his mouth, but was shushed by Kathryn.
“Automatic Neural Terror Interface,” Jack explained. “Whenever he took over, Chase and JJ would go with Henrik into his office, and Jackie would fight off ANTI until he knocked m- knocked him out. Eventually I built the safe room and got ANTI mostly under control. I learned ANTI’s signals. Headaches, an itchy feeling in the back of my head, things like that. I learned how to slow him down. I had him under control. At least, as much as I could. Then I just had to go and fuck it up.”
“I’m fine,” Mark insisted, but Jack shook his head.
“I know ANTI. I should have known that he would attack you. This is all my fault.”
“Hey,” Mark started to say, but Amy cut him off.
“Jack,” she said. “We don’t hate you. None of us do. It was an accident, and all we can ask is that you learn from it. Mark is fine. We’re all fine. We just want to make sure that you’re fine now.”
“I mean, I guess I’m okay,” Jack said. “At least, I’m okay as I’ll ever be. It’s hard to be completely ‘okay’ when you’ve got a homicidal AI constantly trying to take control so that you’ll always be ‘safe.’”
“At least his sense of humor survived,” Ethan snorted.
Jack smiled back, letting himself relax slightly.
“Thank you for telling us,” Tyler said. “We’ll make sure to take more precautions in the future.”
Jack flinched internally. He didn’t need more people taking precautions around him. He already had to take precautions around his own crew, and that hurt. It just confirmed that he wasn’t safe. He was a stupid, terrible, dangerous monster.
None of them noticed. Mark patted Jack’s back, smiling as he passed by him on the way out. “We got that new game, if you’re interested in sticking around for a little while longer?”
“Maybe some other time,” Jack said apologetically. “I still need to fix Henrik and make sure Chase hasn’t broken down again. JJ’s probably going to freak out at me when I get back, and I don’t want him to break down too.” He hesitated for a minute. “I have a new project I want to get started on too. For you guys.”
“You don’t have to,” Mark tried to argue, but Jack waved his hand.
“I want to,” he insisted. “Just let me have this, okay?”
Mark nodded with understanding. “We’ll see you later, then.”
Jack nodded and watched the Barrel crew all leave the room. He sighed, letting all the tension in his body leave. For a moment, emotion started building up in his throat, but he pushed it down again. He left, walking quickly to his own ship. Mark meant well. They all did. They just didn’t understand.
Jack wondered if they ever would.
.
.
.
“Welcome back!”
“Long time no see!”
“We were starting to wonder if you’d ever come back.”
The Barrel crew all welcomed Dark back as he stepped onto the docking bay. He gave them all a tense smile and adjusted the pack on his shoulder. He looked just the same as usual, if not slightly healthier and more filled out. The red and blue stripes running down his face were more vibrant, and he walked with confidence and purpose.
“Good to know you’ll still have me,” Dark said smoothly. Mark winced. There was that ringing in his ears again. “I was afraid you wouldn’t need me anymore.”
“Don’t talk like that,” Mark scolded. “I told you before you left that you’re family, and that’s still true. We’d never turn away family.”
“You’re too kind.” Dark set his bag down on the docking bay floor, looking a little surprised all of a sudden. “I just remembered, I picked things up for you all. Mark, would you help me grab them? They’re in my kitchen.”
Without waiting for a response, Dark slipped back on board his ship. Mark hurried after him, giving Amy a thumbs up as he stepped inside. Dark’s ship was just as pristine and orderly as before. If anything, it had gotten cleaner. Mark followed Dark into the kitchen. A few bags were stacked on the counter next to a small septic tank holding a Velm eye. Something felt familiar about it, but Mark didn’t have much time to think on it before Dark handed him a couple of the bags.
“No peeking,” Dark said, his teasing words coming out completely monotone.
A chill ran down Mark’s spine, and the familiar ringing noise returned.
“Got it,” Mark said, taking another bag. “I’ll put these in the common room, then.”
Dark nodded and turned to face the rest of the bags. “I’ll join you in a moment.”
Mark got off of the ship as quickly as he could. He had missed Dark around the ship, but now that he was back, Mark remembered just how unsettling he was. It was probably just how his species were, but the emotionless words and the weird presence he brought with him everywhere made Mark’s skin crawl.
The rest of the crew had already dispersed back to their own rooms. Mark passed Tyler in the hall, taking the dogs to eat.
“Hey, Tyler,” Mark said, readjusting his grip on the bags. “Can you tell everyone to meet in the common room? Dark got us gifts.”
Tyler raised a rocky eyebrow and nodded. “What are they?”
“I didn’t look,” Mark answered, mocking looking offended. “They’re gifts.”
“Fine, fine. I’ll feed the dogs and send everyone down.”
.
.
“I know gifts are usually wrapped, but I’ve never wrapped anything before, so I hope the bags are okay.” Dark looked nervous as he handed the crew each a bag.
“It’s fine, Dark,” Mark said. “We didn’t expect you to get us anything, so this is great.” He waited for Dark to sit down before opening the bag in his lap. It was a camera, similar in style and size to Jack’s robot, Sam. This one, however, was black, with a red-orange iris.
“What is it?” Mark asked, turning the ball around in his hands. It was heavier than he expected, feeling solid.
“A security camera,” Dark answered simply. “It should help keep an eye on things around here. If you rub the iris, it should turn on and register your face and finger prints.”
Mark followed the instructions and looked up in surprise as the camera floated slowly into the air. The pupil dilated and contracted a few times and then floated over to Mark’s shoulder. It remained there, humming quietly.
“Uh, does it have a name?” Mark asked, poking it. It moved slightly, but floated back to the same position.
“Why would it have a name?” Dark asked in return. “It’s a machine.”
Ethan winced, glancing over at Kathryn, then back at Dark. His hands tightened around something in his palm. His present. “I’m going to my room. Tha… thanks for the present, Dark.”
“Of course,” Dark said, apparently unaware of Ethan’s discomfort. Kathryn made a move to follow him, but Dark interrupted, “You haven’t opened your gift yet.”
She started to pull the gift out of its bag while Mark stared after Ethan. Dark had lived before the android revolution. Did he even consider Ethan alive? Or was he just a machine to him? A tool to be used and thrown away. Mark didn’t know where Ethan had come from, but he knew there were some heavy secrets in his past.
He should check up with Ethan afterwards. Make sure he was doing okay.
“Do you like it?” Dark asked, gesturing at the ball floating by Mark’s shoulder.
“Um, yeah,” Mark answered, pulled out of his thoughts. “It will be handy to have another thing to keep an eye out around here. I think I’ll call it Barry. Tiny Ball Barry.”
Dark looked puzzled and frustrated for a moment, then shook his head. “If you want,” he said. “It’s your camera.” He turned to the others still in the room. “Do you all like your gifts?”
Amy looked a lot less enthusiastic about the necklace she had received since Ethan left. The gold chain and blue gemstones shimmered in a way that looked almost artificial. Kathryn held up her own silver and green necklace, comparing it to Amy’s. Her nose wrinkled as she held the chain up to her neck. Tyler held a snow globe depicting his home planet. The snow drifted slowly, and didn’t need to be shaken.
“They’re great, Dark,” Amy said, smiling kindly. “It was very considerate of you to get us such nice gifts.” Tyler and Kathryn both nodded in half-feigned agreement. Dark looked satisfied.
“Excellent,” he said, clasping his hands. “Now, if you will excuse me, I have some business to attend to.”
Dark left the room without another word, leaving the rest of the crew in an uncomfortable silence.
Mark looked over at the others. “I’m going to go check on Ethan.”
Kathryn winced. “Are you sure you don’t want me to go?”
“If you want, but I want to make sure he’s okay myself. He’s my friend too.”
Kathryn nodded, and Mark left. Barry continued to hover at his shoulder, buzzing in his ear. It was going to take some getting used to. Mark walked down the hall until he reached Ethan’s room. Knocking, he slowly slid it open.
“Hey, you okay?” Mark asked.
Ethan was sitting on the floor, legs crossed. He tossed a little chip back and forth in his hands, staring blankly ahead as Mark stepped inside the room. “Do you know what Dark got me?”
“What?” Mark asked.
Ethan held up the chip. “A replacement chip for a personality core. He thinks I’m defective because I can feel things. He wants me gone.” Ethan sniffed, drawing his legs to his chest and hugging them. He stared at the chip, numb fear and sadness stirring in his eyes. “Just another machine. Just a mindless, useless tool.”
Mark sat down next to Ethan and took the chip from him. It looked expensive. Blue and yellow designs ran all over it. A proper replacement chip. Dark had gone to lengths to find something so expensive.
“You are not a robot,” Mark said quietly. “You are Ethan. You have emotions, and thoughts, and that’s okay. You’re a person, Ethan. I don’t think Dark understands that, but that just means we can teach him. I’m sure if you just talk to him, you could get something sorted out.”
Ethan snorted, “Right, like how we tried to teach those anti-android protestors on Kell? Or those brutes that tried to take me apart and sell me on Masyna? What about all those restaurants that kicked us out because I was with you? What about…” Ethan’s voice choked. He clenched his hands so tight, the metal caved slightly. “What about my creator, huh?”
Mark flinched. Ethan never talked about his creator. Never. Mark had attempted to bring it up several times, but stopped when Kathryn cornered him and threatened bodily harm if he ever made Ethan talk about his past. All Mark knew was that it wasn’t good.
“Dark’s not your creator, Ethan. He’s not those protestors, or those brutes, or any of those restaurants,” Mark said, placing his hand on Ethan’s. “He doesn’t know any different. This” — Mark held up the chip — “is all he’s ever known. Dark didn’t like me at first because my dad was Ir’al. He learned to accept me. I’m sure he’ll do the same with you.”
Ethan huffed, not saying anything.
“I’ll get rid of this,” Mark said, tucking the chip into his pocket. “And you don’t have to go on any missions with Dark, if you don’t want to. I’ll talk with him.”
“Thanks, Mark,” Ethan said softly, his voice muffled by his sweatshirt sleeve.
“Of course, buddy,” Mark reached around the android, pulling him into a tight hug. “Want me to send Kathryn in?”
Ethan hesitated, then shook his head. “I’m fine. It just… I didn’t expect someone on the crew to give me that.”
“Neither did I,” Mark said. “Don’t worry, I’ll work it out with Dark.”
He gave Ethan a pat on the back and then stood up to leave.
“Let me know if you need anything, okay?” Mark requested as he stood in the doorway. Ethan gave him a thumbs up, and Mark slipped out into the hall with Barry close behind.
.
.
It didn’t take long to find Dark. He was in his ship, sorting through papers at the table in his kitchen. He ripped one into pieces, tossed it into a trash can, and picked up another. Mark knocked on the door frame, but Dark didn’t look up. Instead, he just folded the paper in his hands neatly and set it aside.
Next to the papers was a turned off monitor, Dark’s jacket, and a few bottles of liquids that Mark really hoped were juice.
“What are those?” Mark asked, stepping behind Dark and leaning over his shoulder. Dark’s neat fold crumpled suddenly as he jumped in surprise.
“Ah, Mark,” Dark said, flipping the top paper over so it covered the rest of the stack. “Just some personal documents. I’m getting rid of the ones that are out of date. Being dead for over forty years has destroyed my documentation system.”
Mark reached towards one of the folded ones, but Dark grabbed his wrist before he could take the paper. “They’re private,” Dark said kindly, but there was a tense strain in his voice.
“Oh, right,” Mark said awkwardly. He took his hand back. “Sorry.”
“It’s alright. Did you need something?”
“Actually, yes,” Mark said, straightening up. “Why did you give Ethan that personality replacement chip?”
Dark raised an eyebrow. “Oh, I simply noticed a few malfunctions in his programming. He is quite attached to things he shouldn’t be, and I have noticed his programming is simulating emotions. His fear of fire, as well. He is a machine. He should follow orders, regardless of any ‘fears.’ Also his hyperactivity and forgetfulness are contradictory to how a machine should function. I hope the chip is the correct sizing. I only managed to see a few of his programming codes before leaving.”
“Ethan is an android,” Mark said. “He’s supposed to feel.”
“Androids are robots. They’re built as tools.”
“Maybe forty years ago, but now they have rights,” Mark explained. “They are recognized by the GAAP as citizens, and are given the same right to emotions, free will, and thought that we are. Giving Ethan that chip wasn’t okay. Insinuating that he needs to replace himself because of his personality was hurtful.”
Dark looked stunned. “I- I’m sorry,” he said, sounding genuinely regretful. “I didn’t realize. I assumed- I thought he was just broken. I see my mistake now. I shall apologize to him. Is there any way I can make it up to him?”
Mark hesitated. “Just give him space. Ethan has had a rough time with anti-android groups in the past.” Mark decided to forgo telling Dark about Ethan’s past. That was for Ethan to say. He handed Dark the chip. “And get rid of this.”
Dark frowned at the chip in his hand, and then with a sharp CRUNCH, shattered it with his bare hands. He brushed the shards into the trash bin. “Done.”
Mark blinked. How strong was this guy? Those chips were meant to be practically indestructible.
“I shall apologize tonight at our meal,” Dark said, turning back to his documents. “I do have to finish this, however.”
“Yeah, I’ll… I’ll see you later.” Mark left Dark to his papers. He was surprised to see Ethan in the docking bay when he stepped off Dark’s ship. The android looked anxious, and he was fidgeting with his hoodie strings.
“What’d he say?” Ethan asked, looking behind Mark.
“He said he was sorry,” Mark answered, placing his hand on Ethan’s shoulder. “He didn’t realize his mistake, and he promised to give you some space and apologize personally to you later. He destroyed the chip, too.”
Ethan didn’t look convinced, but his shoulders relaxed slightly. “Okay. Thanks, Mark.”
“Of course. Do you want to go blow off some steam? We can go play some video games, and I think Jack is free.”
“That sounds great,” Ethan said.
.
.
.
Jack wasn’t free, but that didn’t stop Ethan and Mark from playing Galaga for a few hours. They only stopped when their communicator began to beep loudly at them, signalling an incoming distress call.
“What is it, Tyler?” Mark asked his comms as he and Ethan rushed to the docking bay.
“Ship near us. I can’t quite make out what they’re saying through all the static.” Tyler said back. “Something about pain and hurry.”
“We’re on our way,” Mark said. “Send the location to our ship.”
“Right,” Tyler said.
As Ethan and Mark reached the docking bay, Dark stepped out of his ship. “What is going on?”
“Distress call,” Mark answered quickly. “They’re near us, and they need help.”
“Do you need me to come along?” Dark asked, looking concerned.
Mark looked over at Ethan, who started to shake his head, but then stopped halfway and nodded with a frown. “Uh, sure,” Mark said, looking back at Dark. “Hurry, though.”
Dark pulled on his jacket and followed Ethan and Mark onto the pod. “Just let me know what you need me to do.”
“Just strap in for now,” Mark said, climbing into the pilot seat and flicking it on. “Ethan, get the med packs ready.”
“Roger,” Ethan said, climbing into the back of the ship as Dark sat behind Mark.
.
.
.
The ship was badly damaged. Large pieces of metal floated around it as they approached. Docking was impossible as the port was mostly missing. Dark and Mark got into space suits, leaving Ethan to navigate the pod nearby.
“Stay in contact,” Ethan said, giving the damaged ship a nervous look. “Whatever destroyed that might still be around.”
“Will do,” Mark said as he and Dark leapt out of the airlock, speeding towards the damaged ship with the boosters attached to their suits. Barry floated a short distance behind.
Reaching it, Dark managed to pry a piece of ship, making a big enough hole for the two of them to slip inside. It was dark in the ship. Not even red backup generator lights glowed to give a little bit of visibility. Just dark and silent.
The artificial gravity and oxygen had both been damaged, so Dark and Mark floated down the halls in heavy silence with flashlights on as they tried to find the source of the distress call.
“Ethan, scan the ship for heat signatures,” Mark said.
Dark peered into another room, shaking his head when he found nobody.
“There is a heat signature ahead and on your left,” Ethan replied after a few moments. “Just keep flying straight for a bit.”
Mark grabbed a wall and pulled himself forwards, propelling himself down the hall. Reaching the last doorway, he looked inside. It was empty.
“Ethan, are you certain there’s a heat signature here?” Mark asked, floating into the room.
“I swear, there are three heat signatures in that room, including you.” There was a sound in the background as Ethan typed something out. “Maybe it’s just not coming through correctly? Are there any running engines in that room?”
Barry zoomed around the room, beeping when he stopped above a desk.
Mark leaned over the desk. He jumped as he saw two aliens huddled underneath, holding each other. Their spacesuits were dirty, and they both looked terrified.
“I found them,” Mark said to Ethan. “Get ready to open the airlock when we get back.” Ethan made a noise of confirmation. “It’s alright,” he added to the aliens. “We’re here because of your distress call. That was you, right?”
The one on the left nodded. The feathers on her face were matted, and as she started to stand, Mark noticed blood staining her suit in a few different places. Tape was crudely stuck over several places on their suits where blood seemed the most intense.
“That was us,” she said, voice like a chirp. She was holding onto her companion tightly. “We’re the only ones left here. We were left behind when there wasn’t enough room on the escape pods.”
“What happened?” Dark asked, appearing behind Mark.
“They got left behind,” Mark replied, gently guiding the pair towards Dark. “They’re both hurt badly too, so we need to move carefully. And quickly; I don’t think there’s much air left in those tanks of theirs.”
Dark nodded and started leading the pair towards the exit. Barry zoomed past Dark, leading the way out with his glowing eye.
“What are your names?” Dark asked, sounding a little unsure of himself.
“Sae, and they’re Gispi,” Sae replied. “Thank you for rescuing us. We thought we were goners. What are your names?”
“Dark,” the Xanhull replied, “and he’s Mark.” Dark gestured to Mark as he appeared beside them.
“Are you brothers?” Gispi asked quietly, wincing when they spoke.
“No,” Mark said quickly. “Well… no. We aren’t. He just… it’s complicated.”
Sae nodded and squeezed Gispi’s shoulders. They reached the exit, and Dark managed to pry it open just a little farther for the injured pair to go through. Dark placed his hands on the backs of the couple, pushing them slowly towards the pod.
Mark moved to follow. Staying a little ways behind them, he watched Dark and the two rescued aliens move towards the ship. As they moved, Dark kicked off of a piece of debris. It moved faster than Mark had expected and slammed into him before he could get out of the way.
The air flew from his lungs as he was shoved backwards. The debris pushed them both back against the damaged ship, pinning him there as several rods embedded themselves into the metal.
“I’m stuck!” Mark gasped as he sucked in a desperate breath.
“What? How?” Ethan asked anxiously over the comms. The voice fritzed slightly. Damn, his comms had gotten damaged.
“A piece of the ship got pushed into me,” Mark said, attempting to get out. He was seriously stuck. “It had some rods in it that got stuck in the ship, so I can’t get it off.”
Mark thought he heard some static from Dark’s comm, but it was impossible to tell. Barry whizzed up to his face, staring at him before floating to his shoulder. What a load of help this thing was.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Dark said, sounding very much not panicked about the situation. The apathetic calm was making Mark feel more distressed than calm himself. “I have to secure Sae and Gispi first.”
“I’m not telling you to hurry, but I am also telling you to hurry the fuck up,” Mark said.
“You should go back for him,” Sae said, sounding frantic. “It’s probably still out there.”
“What is? What is out here?” Mark asked, looking around in a panic. He hated being stranded in space almost as much as he hated the ocean. He loved space, but not when there were potentially dangerous monsters that could rip the wings off of a ship.
“We’ve never seen anything like it,” Gispi coughed. “It just tore through the ship.”
“Ethan, scan the area,” Mark ordered. He continued to push against the metal pinning him down. No use.
“For what?”
“Everything!”
“Don’t yell at me!” Ethan shouted as typing sounds filled the comms. “Faint heat signature… faint light signature... uh, there is a huge radiation signature nearby. It’s moving a lot.”
“Radiation?” Mark managed to pry one of the rods free. One down, too many more to go.
“Yeah, and it’s strong radiation too,” Ethan said quickly, clearly trying not to panic. “It could kill you just to touch this thing.”
“You need to go back for him!” Sae begged Dark. “He’ll die!”
“We’re almost to the pod,” Dark insisted. “He’ll be fine a moment longer.”
“But—” Sae started to say.
Mark interrupted, “You two are the highest priority. Just fucking hurry up already.”
“KREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYAAAAAAAAAAH!”
Everyone froze.
“What… what was that?” Ethan asked.
“Look out!” Sae screamed.
Mark turned and ducked as much as he could just as a claw tore through the metal right where his head had been only moments before. Gaping at the giant creature, Mark felt his heart drop. Its giant mouth was open, revealing a dark void. Two solid fins protruded from its head. Several glowing yellow eyes searched the area and locked onto Mark’s wiggling body. The entire beast glowed an ethereal blue and white, with a trail of luminescent white trailing behind it.
“What is that?” Dark asked, sounding more curious than afraid. More than was appropriate for the current situation.
“Who cares? Just get back and help me!” Mark yelled.
Mark could see Dark help Sae and Gepsi into the pod, Ethan guiding them on board. He could have sworn Dark hesitated before turning around and flying towards Mark.
“Feel like helping?” Mark asked Barry.
Barry only hummed.
“Uh huh, great,” Mark said, managing to wiggle out another rod. “Can’t you move any faster, Dark?”
“I don’t want this thing to notice me, too,” Dark said flatly. “Unless you want to draw its attention some more with your flailing.”
“Not really,” Mark grunted, shoving against the debris one more time before going still as the beast wove its way around the damaged ship.
“Then don’t whine.” Dark said, carefully maneuvering around the debris. “I’m doing my best.”
The creature screamed again. Another piece of the ship sheared off as the beast passed through it with ease. The white trail followed it and enveloped Mark. Immediately, all of his systems started failing. Air, comms, boosters, everything that kept him alive.
“Oh, fuck,” Mark muttered. Barry gave a little “wheee” before his lights blinked and his eye went dim. He started to float away, but Mark grabbed him, holding the little robot close to his chest. He had enough air to last him a few minutes before things got deadly. “Okay, calm down,” he mumbled to himself. “Panicking will only use the air up faster. Just even breathing. Even… breathing…”
His heart, beating faster and faster, was beyond his control. Where was Dark? The white residue was covering most of his vision. It was like a cloud of light, obscuring everything from view. All he could hear was the occasional screams of the beast as it flew overhead.
Suddenly, there was a hand reaching through the light. It grabbed the metal, and began prying it away slowly. At first, Mark thought it was Dark, but the suit was too dirty and damaged. As the light faded, Sae’s face appeared.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Mark asked, even though Sae couldn’t hear him. She pulled at the metal, getting yet another rod free. It was almost loose enough for him to get out. Just one more.
With their energy combined, Mark and Sae managed to pull the metal piece free. Mark squirmed out, grabbing Sae’s hand and pushing off the ship just as the beast crashed through it again. They spun out into space, hurtling towards the pod. Only a few more moments of air. They had to make it.
Suddenly, Sae started spasming next to him. Mark looked over to see her clutching at her throat. Her tank was out of air, and she was dying. Mark frantically looked around for the next chunk of debris to push off of. They were so close. Just a few more pushes. Mark’s head was going light at his own lack of oxygen. They had to make it, but it was so… far… away…
Suddenly, Dark was in front of him, attaching one of his air pipes to Sae’s. He nodded to Mark and began to pull Sae forward. Mark desperately grabbed onto her, and the three of them rushed towards the pod. The moment they reached it, Sae grabbed Mark and shoved him through the airlock.
The door slammed shut behind them, the one in front opening and air rushing into the room. Mark yanked his helmet off, gasping and coughing as his lungs filled with full air.
“Get us out of here,” Dark yelled at Ethan. The pod rumbled as it took off, away from the beast that continued to tear at the damaged ship.
“Where,” Mark rasped, his throat dying. “Where the fuck were you?” He stood up straight, glaring at Dark. The Xanhull frowned, opening his arms diplomatically.
“I was coming. I lost sight of you after the creature swooped so near to you.”
“Then how did Sae find me, and not you?” Mark was furious. “She almost fucking died because you didn’t come find me. Where were you, Dark?”
“I don’t know how,” Dark said, his tone still flat. Mark’s ears were ringing with fury. “I only know that I tried my best to find you. You should be glad I met you halfway. If I hadn’t, you’d both be dead.”
Mark wanted to shove Dark against the wall to yell at him more, but Sae began coughing, blood spattering into her hand. Mark shot Dark one more angry look before helping Sae to her feet and into the back of the pod for medical attention. Ethan followed him a moment later.
Mark let Ethan take over helping Sae and Gispi, and leaned up against the wall. He was absolutely livid, and the ringing in his ears had come back even louder, which only irritated him further. He wanted to throw something. If he saw Dark again, he probably would. He was half tempted to go back to the front of the ship and toss Dark out of the airlock. See how he fared with limited air and his stupid weak lungs.
Instead, Mark pulled up his personal comm and called the Barrel. Amy’s face appeared, looking worried.
“Are you alright? Did it go okay?”
“It’s fine,” Mark said, finally allowing himself to collapse into a chair. “Everything is fine. We saved them, and everyone is okay.”
“Everything doesn’t sound fine,” Amy said, frowning as she looked Mark over. “You’re sure you’re okay? You sound terrible.”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Mark huffed. “No thanks to someone.”
“Wh-”
“He almost let us die!” Mark snapped, trying to keep his voice low. He slammed Barry onto the desk, the dead robot rolling around. “I was stuck, asking for help, and he didn’t come.”
Amy was quiet as Mark summarized the mission, angrily spitting out Dark’s name as he explained how he had left him pinned to a collapsing ship being attacked by a giant space… whatever that thing was. As he finished, Amy sighed.
“That’s really shitty.”
“Yeah, it is.”
“But,” Amy started, and Mark glared. “Just hear me out, okay? I’m not the biggest fan of Dark. You know that. But remember when Jack hurt you? You knew that it was an accident. It wasn’t his fault. I don’t know if this is the same, but maybe give him the benefit of the doubt? Just this once.”
Mark sighed, “You’re right.”
“Of course I am.” Amy smiled. “Although…” She hesitated, biting her lip. “I’ve been noticing Dark has been more… intense since he got back. I don’t know if that has something to do with it, but keep an eye on him, alright?”
“Oh, don’t worry,” Mark huffed, glaring at the door to the front of the pod. “I’m not letting him out of my sight.”
.
.
.
“Did I do something wrong?”
Mark looked up from running his hands through Chica’s goop and pulling out a few loose bits of metal she’d picked up in Amy’s workshop. Dark was standing in the doorway of the common room, hands deep in his pockets.
“Did you what?” Mark asked, tossing a scrap of metal into a bucket.
“Did I do something wrong?” Dark repeated.
Mark hesitated. “Why do you ask?”
“You’ve been… distant,” Dark said slowly. “Ever since we got back from rescuing Sae and Gispi.”
It had been roughly a week since they’d gotten back to the Barrel. Dark had fixed Barry, but Mark now realized he’d never thanked him for that. He was still a little irritated with Dark for almost letting him and Sae die. It wasn’t like Dark had done anything to help Mark’s irritation. His apathetic and logical approach to everything was setting Mark’s nerves on edge.
“Oh, have I? I didn’t notice,” Mark said, sarcasm dripping from his words. “Kind of like how you didn’t notice me dying.”
Dark sighed, “Are you still upset about that?”
“Of course I’m not,” Mark huffed, flinging a piece of metal towards the bucket and missing by a lot. “Why would I be mad about that? It’s not like the person we went to fucking save almost died because you couldn’t find me. Which, by the way, is what we do when we save people. We find them, and we save them.”
Dark flinched. “I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I did try my best. I didn’t even see Sae leave the pod.”
Mark didn’t respond, just flung another piece of metal. He kept missing, and it was only making him angrier.
“You’re so emotional,” Dark muttered under his breath. Louder, he said, “Is there any way I can restore your faith in me?”
“Don’t let me almost die like that ever again,” Mark snapped. “Have my back, like you promised.”
“Of course,” Dark said, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards.
“Good. Now go bug someone else,” Mark said, turning his back completely on Dark. He listened to him walk away, footsteps fading down the hall towards Amy’s workshop.
.
.
Dark avoided Mark almost entirely for the next couple days. He spent most of his time on his own ship, and only came out for dinner. He apologized to Ethan, but Ethan still avoided the docking bay as much as he could. Kathryn had grown colder towards Dark as well, sitting between him and Ethan whenever Dark came to meals.
Mark felt awful. He had been mad, but now Dark was avoiding them, and no one seemed to care that he was drifting away. Mark wanted to help. That’s what he did. Dark was with them because of Mark, so it was his responsibility to make sure Dark was comfortable with them. They were the only family Dark had, and now they were just pushing him away.
Amy and Mark were in her sculpting room. Mark handed her pieces of wire as she twisted them together. Henry slept on the floor in the corner, curled up into a little peanut with his metal legs sticking out. Barry floated lazily over Mark’s left shoulder.
“Do you think Dark hates us?” Mark asked absentmindedly, not really thinking as he spoke.
Amy paused wrapping the wire and shrugged. “I don’t think so,” she said, giving the sculpture a once over. “You were a little hard on him. Maybe he’s just afraid he’ll make you mad again.”
Mark sighed, twisting a wire around his fingers, “Yeah. I just couldn’t shake this feeling that he was going to leave me. I don’t know, maybe it was just the adrenaline.”
Amy opened her mouth to respond, but at that moment a knock was heard at the door. Looking up, they saw Dark’s face through the windowpane. Mark got up and let him in.
“Sorry to intrude,” Dark said, avoiding eye contact with Mark, “but considering how badly I feel that I have failed you, I prepared a sort of apology meal. It’s been a while since I’ve cooked, but I think it turned out alright. I understand if you reject the offer, but I feel I must try and mend my mistakes.”
Mark smiled, reaching out and grabbing Dark’s shoulder. He looked up and met Mark’s eyes. “Of course we’ll accept,” Mark said softly. “I’m sorry too, man. I was angry and probably a bit too harsh.”
Dark brightened visibly, the lines running down his face creasing upwards as he smiled. “Perfect. I have the meal ready if you wish to gather your friends.”
He turned on his heel and hurried away. Mark looked back at Amy, who was smiling proudly.
“See?” she said, coming next to him and knocking her hand against his. “He just felt bad.”
.
.
Dark took his seat after pouring everyone’s drinks. Each drink was a different color, specifically mixed for each person. The food spread out across the table smelled amazing, each plate appearing perfectly prepared. Kathryn gave her plate a suspicious sniff before taking a bite.
“This is delicious, Dark,” she said, looking surprised. “I didn’t know you could cook.”
“You find things to do when you’ve lived for so long,” Dark said, smiling pleasantly. “I’ve learned to cook many things in my different bodies.”
Mark took a bite of his own meal. It melted in his mouth, coating his tongue in a perfect variety of different flavors. It tasted like all of his favorite foods at once, all mixing harmoniously. Chicken and dumplings, sushi, several different cheeses, and a few other foods all mixed in what appeared to be a plate of stuffed pasta.
“I don’t know what you were worried about,” Mark said through a mouthful of food. “This is amazing!” Feeling something cold, Mark looked under the table to see Chica nudging at his leg. She whined, and Mark pointed towards her bed. “Go lie down, Beeka.”
Tyler grabbed his own food, digging in. The only one missing was Ethan, who refused to join them. Henry had decided to join him, while Chica laid under the table.
“Aren’t you going to eat anything?” Amy asked, glancing at Dark’s full plate.
He shook his head. “I’ll eat later,” he said. “I don’t need to eat as often as you do, and digestion slows me down.”
Chica continued to nudge at his leg. Mark groaned, “Come on, Beeka. Go lie down. Down, girl.” He got up, grabbing her collar and guiding her to the bed. Chica whined, staring up at him with big sad eyes. “You can’t eat with us, girl.”
Mark took his seat again and gave Dark an apologetic glance. “What are the drinks?” Mark asked, glancing at the multicolored liquids swirling in the champagne glasses in front of them.
“A home blend,” Dark said eagerly. “It’s different every time, but always ends up absolutely delicious. It’s a perfect palate cleanser.”
Mark lifted his drink towards the center of the table.
“I’d like to propose a toast,” he said, glancing around at his friends. “We’re all family here, and I think we should be grateful to have Dark as one of us.” He paused as the others nodded their agreement. “To Dark!”
“To Dark!”
They all lifted their glasses towards the center and clinked them. Just as Mark was about to down his drink, his chair shuddered and then toppled, taking Mark and his drink down with it. He yelped, his fall only slightly cushioned by Chica underneath him. The drink still spilled all over both of them. The glass hit the floor and shattered, sending shards flying across the kitchen.
“Don’t move!” Amy leaped up, running for a vacuum. Tyler moved slowly away, careful to not step on anything. Kathryn hopped up on her chair, while Dark watched with a strangely blank face.
“What happened?” Tyler asked.
“Chica pushed me!” Mark huffed, looking down at the green Dulcosi, who panted happily while glass stuck out of her goop. “Chica, what the fuck?”
Amy rushed over, starting to clean up the smaller pieces while Tyler gathered some of the larger shards.
Ethan appeared in the doorway. “What happened?” he asked, looking around at the chaos. “Is anyone hurt?”
“We’re fine,” Mark said. “Chica just pushed my chair over and a glass got broken.”
Ethan squatted down and looked over the drink that had managed to reach the floor. At first he started picking up glass, but then he touched some of the liquid. “Good thing she did,” he said, dipping his finger into the drink with one finger, then sticking it into his mouth. “She probably saved your life.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Mark asked, glancing between Chica and Ethan.
“This drink had alcohol in it,” Ethan said shortly, glancing up at Dark. “A lot of alcohol.”
“Is that a problem?” Dark asked innocently. “You have alcohol on board. I have seen several of you drinking.”
“Mark can’t have alcohol,” Tyler said, helping Mark stand. “It’s super toxic. Shouldn’t you know that? You have his DNA.”
“I cannot get an entire read on the species’ DNA that I have obtained,” Dark said, sounding regretful. “The minute details of it often escape me. I have never had Ir’al DNA before.”
“It’s fine. It was an accident,” Mark said grumpily, staring at the stain running down his shirt. “This stain is never going to come out, is it?”
Ethan grabbed Mark’s arm and dragged him out of the room while still staring at Dark with a frown. “Come on,” the android huffed. “I know some tricks to get that clean.”
Mark let Ethan take him out, but called out behind him, “Thanks for the meal anyway! It tasted great!”
Dark nodded, flashing Mark a tense smile right as he left.
.
.
The next few missions the Barrel took on all seemed to end with cuts and bruises. Mostly on Mark, who threw himself in front of anything coming to hurt his teammates. However, it was getting harder going on mission after mission. Each one seemed to end in near scrapes with death. After Amy’s cyborg arm got severely damaged stopping an avalanche of rocks from killing Mark, he was starting to reconsider his career choice.
“Are we cursed?” Ethan groaned, picking some leaves out of his hair. “I don’t remember almost dying this much before.”
Mark slapped another nano-bandage onto a cut running up his arm. “Maybe I’m just bad luck,” he suggested, passing the container of bandages to Dark, who placed a couple on his face and collarbone.
“We’ve just hit a rough patch, is all,” Amy said, attempting to stay optimistic. Everyone could still hear the strain in her voice. “Things will get better. They always do.”
Tyler grunted, lying on the ground with an arm thrown over his eyes. “Can we take a break? Go on vacation? I don’t care, I would just love to have one day where I’m not carrying someone out of a fire, or out of an earthquake, or off a collapsing ship, or…”
“Okay, we get it,” Mark snapped and tapped Tyler in the side with his boot. It didn’t seem to bother the Graeldur, who continued to grumble under his breath. “I think we all need a break.”
Kathryn hissed, ears going flat against her head as she cleaned a cut on her tail. “Somewhere warm, please. I’m sick of all these cold planets.”
“Agreed,” Amy said. “Maybe Jack knows about some warm place to go…”
“He is a Velm,” Dark said, standing and offering Mark a hand. “Coldblooded. Probably knows of a few desert planets.”
Mark took his hand, getting to his feet and helping the others. “Let’s call him. See if there is anywhere we can take a few days off.”
.
.
“You realize I’m probably the worst person you could have asked, right?”
Jack voice came from off camera as he tinkered with something he wouldn’t show the Barrel crew. Chase shrugged apologetically at the screen, handing Jack parts as his hand appeared. JJ sat nearby, sitting cross-legged in a chair and reading a holo-book. Dark leaned forward, hands clasped behind his back as he watched parts disappear off-screen.
“What are you building?” Dark asked. “Those parts seem…”
“Shut your yap!” Jack snapped as his head appeared in the bottom left corner of the screen, glaring at Dark. “It’s a gift, and it’s supposed to be a surprise. Keep your weirdly specific knowledge out of it.”
“My apologies,” Dark said quietly, backing away but keeping an eye on the screen.
Jack huffed, then ducked back under. “You could always try Wustir, but they’re having their rainy season. Also, it’s a safe haven for bounty hunters. Maybe Ju’edairl? Just avoid the western markets and you should be fine. Yurdinia is always nice, but- no. If they find out you know me, you’ll be shot on sight. Naineo is nice but- well, not unless…”
“Do you know any place where we won’t die while we try and have a good vacation?” Amy asked, stifling a yawn.
“Well, if you don’t mind rain and bounty hunters, I think Wustir might be your best bet,” Jack said, cursing loudly as something hit the floor and, presumably, his foot. JJ’s head snapped up, and he glared at Jack for a moment before going back to his book.
“Well, thanks, I guess,” Mark said.
A hand appeared again, waving. “No problem. Oh, this, er… this thing will be done soon. I can come drop it off within two-ish weeks, right?”
“Of course,” Tyler said. “We’re excited to see what you’ve been working on.”
“We’ll see if it works,” Jack muttered, mostly to himself. Louder, he said, “Alright, catch you later, dudes!”
Chase waved as the screen flickered and turned off. The crew glanced at each other with uncertainty.
“Well, how does Wustir sound?” Mark asked, spinning his chair around to face them all. The others stared back blankly, covered in scratches and bandages.
“Fine,” Amy sighed. “Let’s go.”
.
.
“I hope you’re waterproof,” Mark said, looking over at Barry, who only hummed in response, hovering diligently next to Mark’s head. Mark shoved a couple more pairs of pants into his suitcase.
The plan was to park the Barrel on one of the outer moons and take a pod down to Wustir’s surface. They’d stay at a hotel in one of Wustir’s largest cities and spend a week just touring the streets and relaxing. Hopefully the downpours wouldn’t stop them from enjoying their time off.
“You ready?” Amy yelled from the bathroom.
“Just about,” Mark called back.
Suddenly, Barry began beeping quietly by Mark’s ear. He’d never done that before. Mark took the camera in his hands and looked him over. His iris was flashing blue with each beep, and they seemed to be getting faster.
“Uh, Amy?” Mark called out. “Did you do anything to Barry?”
“No?” Amy leaned out of the doorway. “Is something wrong with him?”
“He’s beeping and flashing blue,” Mark said curiously. “It almost sounds like—” Mark froze. It sounded like a bomb. Barry only beeped faster.
“GET DOWN!” Mark yelled, tossing Barry into the corner as the beeping reached extreme speeds. He dove at Amy, causing them both to tumble into the bathroom.
For a second the beeping stopped, and Mark wondered if he was overreacting. Then a flash of light and heat exploded from the room, accompanied by a loud BOOM.
They laid there for a second, staring at each other with shock. Mark’s ears were ringing, and his vision swam as he stood up. Their bedroom had been blown into disarray. The bed had tears and burn marks running across it and was flat up against the opposite wall. The area where Barry had been thrown was a giant scorch mark, and pieces of shrapnel stuck out of the walls.
“The fuck…” Amy muttered, carefully moving towards where Barry had been thrown. Red residue was left over, staining the floor and walls. There was nothing left of the camera. “What happened to him?”
“He just started beeping. Do you think he malfunctioned?” Mark walked up behind her as she looked over the room, knocking the back of his hand against hers.
The door crashed open, slamming into the wall and staying there. Tyler, Ethan, Kathryn, and Dark all forced themselves into the room at once. Ethan yelped and toppled over, jumping back to his feet instantly.
“What happened? Are you guys okay?” Tyler rushed over to Mark and Amy, looking Mark over for injuries, while Kathryn did the same to Amy.
“We’re fine,” Amy assured them. “Mark recognized the warning signs just in time. We’re both alright.”
Dark approached the corner, kneeling and carefully picking up a piece of shrapnel. “How did you escape the blast radius?”
“I was in the bathroom,” Amy answered. “Mark just jumped and pushed us down. It’s lucky he’s so fast.”
“We are cursed,” Ethan said, throwing his hands in the air. “Everything is trying to kill us! Even Barry tried to kill you!”
“I’m sure it was just a malfunction,” Mark said. He glanced over at the destroyed bedroom covered in scorched marks. “Not like we’ll ever find out, though.”
“How much did Barry cost?” Kathryn asked Dark, eyeing him suspiciously.
He didn’t meet their gazes, continuing to look around the destroyed room. “I unfortunately was unable to get the model I was going after. This one must have been shoddily made. You are lucky.” Dark looked up at Mark. His eyes were cold, and for a moment they flashed blue and red.
“Usually am,” Mark joked.
Dark stood up suddenly, a piece of shrapnel held tight in one hand. Dark’s breathing was heavy, and the shard cracked.
“Yes,” Dark said through his teeth. “Lucky.”
Tyler stepped between them, ushering Mark and Amy out of the room. “We still have reservations down on the planet. We should get going. We can clean this later.”
“What about our things?” Mark asked, trying to duck under Tyler’s arm to get to his broken suitcase.
“We can buy stuff on the surface,” Kathryn argued, following them out of the room. “We were planning on going shopping anyway.”
They walked out. As Mark looked back, he saw Dark still staring at him with a tight smile. The shrapnel he’d been holding was in shattered pieces on the ground.
Dark had weird ways of showing concern.
They all grabbed some things along their way to the pods, the others’ suitcases packed and ready to go. Amy’s things had survived, since they were in the bathroom at the time of the explosion. Henry, still shaken by the loud noise, stayed close to Amy.
“Mom Amy safe. Mom Amy safe,” Henry muttered repeatedly, growling when Dark walked past. “Dumb Mark stay near Mom Amy. Mom Amy safe.”
“It’s okay, Henry,” Mark murmured soothingly. He knelt down next to Henry and scratched behind his ears. It calmed him slightly, but the moment Mark stood again he began muttering again.
“Is everyone ready?” Tyler asked, looking over their belongings.
A general mutter of agreement rose from the crew.
“Watch something else explode,” Ethan said. His mouth dropped open in horror. “What if I explode?”
“You’ll be fine,” Mark said, grinning as he grabbed Amy’s backpack. “Besides, we've got luck on our side.”
Henry barked suddenly, making Mark turn around just in time to see Dark charging towards him, two long knives in his hands. For the first time, Dark’s entire face was twisted with anger and hate. Mark was frozen in shock, pulled out of the way just in time by Amy. The knife slid past his cheek, barely grazing his skin.
“What the fuck, Dark?!” Mark stumbled away.
“You…” Dark turned around, his breathing fast and shaky. His eyes were alive with hate. Mark winced, clapping his hands over his ears as the ringing grew louder.
“Mark!” Tyler tried to move between them, but Mark motioned for them to move away. His crew backed off, keeping a watchful eye on Dark, who snarled at them.
“How long do you really think you could protect them? And from me? If I wanted you all dead, you would be. You. Just.” Dark swung again, punctuating each word with a stab as Mark dodged. “Keep. Surviving. Through. Luck. Fucking luck! You miserable gret. Why can’t you just give up and die, already?!”
“What are you doing?” Mark yelled, jumping back as Dark charged him again. “What’s gotten into you?”
“I’ve been waiting patiently,” Dark hissed. “You just always get lucky, don’t you? Lucky to be born, lucky to survive, lucky I haven’t killed you yet. You know how long I have wanted to kill you? How long I have wanted to tear your throat out? How long I have wanted to tear the life from your pathetic body? You believe you’re so kind-hearted, but you’re just a mistake. You are a disgrace to who you are!”
“What are you talking about?!” Mark asked desperately, crying out as one of Dark’s knives connected with his arm. Tyler made a motion to step forwards again, but Mark waved him off. Better to keep Dark’s attention on him. “I’m a half-breed! I thought we were past that! I don’t get your problem.”
Dark stood before them, his back to the ships as the crew watched him snarl at them. “You know nothing, gret.”
Mark felt something welling up inside him. Something vicious and angry. Mark’s hands clenched, feeling hot with fury as he let the anger spill out.
“I’ve given you nothing but kindness ever since you got here!” he snapped, pointing at Dark with a shaking finger. “You would have died if I hadn’t let you in. Ethan gave you medical attention when you were falling apart. Tyler watched over you. Kathryn fixed your ship. Amy protected you. We gave you a fucking home! I gave you every single chance. I thought you had changed. I thought you were actually warming up to us! But no. You just wanted to get close to us so you could kill me for no fucking reason!”
For a moment it was just Mark and Dark staring at each other. Then Dark laughed. He slipped his knives back into their sheaths. “Oh, so attached, aren’t you? Attached to your pets. Your ship. Your so-called ‘family’. That girl. You have so many feelings, and you care so much. That’s your problem, Mark. You feel too much. You care. Pathetic.”
Mark stared, watching Dark laugh and laugh. He felt the anger slipping away, turning to cold resolve.
“Why do you hate me?” Mark finally asked, his voice low and dangerous.
“Because you shouldn’t exist,” Dark snapped, his laugh ending abruptly. He walked slowly towards Mark, gesturing with hands that could crush him. Mark pushed the others behind him, staring Dark down resolutely. “You’re a mistake.”
“I am not a mistake,” Mark growled. “I have just as much right to exist as anyone else in this fucking universe.”
Dark was only a few feet away, still walking towards him with intent. His hands flexed, as if itching to wrapping them around Mark’s throat.
Mark took a step forward. “Now get off my ship.” Just to prove his point, Mark shoved Dark with both hands.
Searing pain shot through his palms. It engulfed his hands, and Mark screamed as everything burned. The scent of burning flesh flashed between them. Dark was burning hot, his chest scorching Mark’s hands. Dark blinked in surprise, stumbling back from the force of the push as Mark reeled back in pain.
Mark looked down at his hands through tears that had begun forming in his eyes. The skin on his palms was red and bubbling. The pain and shock were too much, and he collapsed onto the floor of the docking bay. Looking up, Dark smirked at him.
The pain was overwhelming.
Mark gasped through the pain as Dark made a move to finish him off, but then he looked up and frowned. “Your family seems to care about you, gret,” Dark said.
The last thing Mark saw before his vision went black was Dark running away, Kathryn and Tyler chasing after him, and then Amy’s worried face, her hands coming to cup his face a everything faded into nothing.
.
.
“They’re going to have scars,” Ethan said apologetically, holding Mark’s hands and showing them to him. “I’m sorry, the burns were too deep. I can’t fix this.”
“It’s fine,” Mark said, looking down at the bandages on his hands. He looked up and smiled sadly at Ethan. “You did all you could.”
Ethan smiled tensely back. “Hey… are you okay? Mentally, I mean. Dark said some pretty fucked up stuff to you.”
Mark shook his head, confused. “I just… I wish I knew what he meant. I don’t get it. I mean, I do get it. Purists are horrible, fucked up people who can’t see past their biases, but still… I really thought he’d changed.”
Ethan turned off one of his machines. “Yeah, so did I, for a while. Those kinds of people don’t change easily. Hate is hard to get rid of.”
Mark looked back down at his hands. Something still felt wrong. What Dark had said… It didn’t just feel like a purist attitude. There was something else. Something obvious that was just out of reach.
“Don’t worry too much about it,” Ethan said comfortingly. “He’s gone now. You don’t have to worry about it right now. Just go hug Amy or something.”
“Good idea,” Mark said, pushing himself off the examination table. He winced, the flesh still sensitive on his palms. “Thanks, man.”
“No problem,” Ethan said, continuing to pack up the rest of his medical equipment.
Mark wandered through the halls until he reached the common room. Amy was pacing back and forth, the dogs anxiously watching her from their beds. The moment Chica saw Mark, she rushed over, jumping up and covering his face in licks.
“Hey, Beeka,” Mark laughed, hugging her. Standing, Amy rushed into his chest. She pulled him close.
“It’s okay,” Mark said, hugging her back and running his hands through her hair. “I’m okay.”
She laughed, the sound tinged with choked tears. For a moment, they just stood there. Just holding each other, knowing that the other was safe. They were alive. They would be there when their eyes opened again.
“Next time there is a racist on board, I’m kicking them off into the nearest star,” Amy muttered into his chest.
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(Another VT fanfic. This time for my foster AU, in which Spencer is a Smol and Ghost+Toast are his foster parents.)
Words: 972
Triggers: Cursing; ask to tag anything else
It was a chilly autumn day, as a young boy inside of Briarville’s main foster care building was ushered by his caseworker into one of the several interview rooms.
The boy was only about 12, with pale skin and ginger hair, dyed yellow at the tips. He held himself timidly, slouched over and doing his best to stay far from touching anyone. He clutched an old GameBoy in his hands, sitting in one of the chairs inside the room with a small frown.
He’d been through this routine many times before; he’d learn that somebody got matched with him, they’d have their dumb interview, and the family would decide he wasn’t what they wanted. Or, worse, they’d take him, but they’d turn out to be major assholes. He still had horrid memories of his last home.
His caseworker left the room, leaving the young boy to play his game quietly, trying to stave off the dread he could feel creeping over him.
Out in the lobby-type area, two men sat; the older, a tall, black-haired, proper-looking man, seemed ecstatic, while the younger - a shorter, brown-haired man - seemed nervous. The two were obviously together, given their attitudes.
The caseworker gave the two a warm smile, letting them know that she was ready to take them back, leading them to the interview room that the young boy was sat in.
He didn’t say much as they entered, not at all seeming to notice that they’d entered at all.
Finally, the shorter man broke the silence.
“Uh.. hello..?” He spoke softly, a faint Southern accent over his words.
The boy took a moment to respond, pausing his game to look up at them, giving them a bit of a cold stare. “Hi.” He spoke bluntly, setting his console down and crossing his arms. He fell quiet, simply looking over the two as he waited for a response.
Eventually, the man spoke again. “Ah.. what’s your name, again? My name’s Johnny Ghost, and.. this,” he pauses, gesturing towards the tallerman, who waved slightly, “is my, uh, husband, Johnny.. Toast.”
The boy frowned, holding back a small scoff. “Wait, wait, wait. Both your nameth are Johnny?” He shook his head, a harsh lisp making itself evident as he spoke. “That’th weird ath fuck.”
He flinched a bit when the woman scolded him, leaning back in his chair. “...My name’th Thpencer,” he grumbled softly, looking down at his hands.
“It’s... nice to meet you, Spencer,” Ghost smiled at him weakly. “Uh.. how old are you?”
“Aren’t they thuppothed to give you a file???” Spencer huffed. “Doethn’t that thay how old I am?”
Now, it was Ghost’s turn to flinch, shrugging. “Well.. yeah, but, I mean.. wouldn’t you rather tell us yourself, kid?”
“Why would I do that?” Spencer frowns at them. “What’th the point? You’re jutht going to end up not wanting me! No point.. telling you anything!” He ranted lightly, only stopping when Toast spoke up.
“Er.. Spencer, would you mind if I sat next to you?” He tilted his head, gesturing at the empty seat next to the boy.
He stopped, looking a little surprised at the question before he nodded. “..Y—.. Yeah, thure..”
Toast smiled, standing and nudging past Ghost, giving Spencer a tender look as he sat next to him. “Do.. you want to tell us about you?” He spoke softly, his tone meant to indicate that Spencer didn’t have to.
Nonetheless, he nodded again. “I.. gueth tho..?” He shrugs, pausing. “...I’m twelve.”
“And.. how long have you been here, if you’re.. okay with telling us?”
Spencer fell quiet for a moment. “....Thince.. I wath five monthth old..” His voice went soft; obviously upset at this.
Toast looked up at his partner, giving Ghost a look of surprise. “What happened to put you..?” He looked back at Spencer, who was now fixated on fidgeting with his jacket strings.
“My parentth.. jutht abandoned me.. That’th all. They didn’t want me.” He scowled lightly, holding back a small sniffle. “Tho I’m thtuck here.”
Ghost frowned lightly himself, quietly upset as well as he leaned forward, tapping the GameBoy carefully. “Hey, uh.. what game you got in here, kid?”
Spencer lifted his head quickly, his eyes lighting up a bit. “Pokémon!! It’th Yellow!” He grinned brightly, sitting up a little straighter.
“Oh? How far are you?” Ghost smiled faintly, resting his arms on the table.
“I-I’m at Celadon City! I’m jutht having trouble with the gym..” He huffs, more a curiously frustrated noise than genuinely upset.
Ghost nods, scratching his arm lightly. “That’s Erika’s, right?” He smiled when Spencer gave a small agreement. “Well, she uses the grass-types. So you should get Fire, or Flying.. maybe Psychic. I used Charmeleon, uhh.. Venonat, Nidorino, Vulpix.. Abra and Slowpoke.” He pauses. “What do you have?”
Spencer leans forward, grabbing the handheld off the desk to look at his team. “Um.. Pikachu.. Weepinbell.. Poliwhirl.. and Meowth..” He looks up, smiling sheepishly as Ghost laughed softly.
“Aw, dude, that prolly isn’t gonna get you very far! C’mere, lemme see.”
—————————
After the three talked for about an hour, Ghost and Toast stepped outside of the room, the caseworker going with them. Spencer kept himself still in his chair, a little anxious.
Though, the anxiety didn’t last long before the two came back in, both trying to hide smiles as Toast spoke.
“So, ah… Spencer?” He rubs the back of his neck. “How would you, uh, like to—“
He didn’t get to finish his sentence before Spencer shot up, grinning widely and nodding. “Yeth!!!!” He waved his hands excitedly, bouncing on his toes as he looked up at the two, both cracking up in laughter as they smiled back, Spencer wasting no time in darting to his room to gather his things.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the
Organization for Transformative Works
Summary: Aziraphale’s eyes darted back and forth as he wandered down the road lined with houses, looking for the one he had been directed towards. The angel had stopped in the town on his way back out of the country, as there was a little place tucked away here that made, in his humble opinion, the best flan in Spain. There, he heard rumours of a man who lived in town that hadn’t been seen in a while, who’s description sounded very familiar.
Added tags/content warnings: heavy drinking
i updated this today! it may be like. three and a half years later, and a shorter update but an update nonetheless!
Here's a short drabble I wrote on a plane about the kelpie's first memory :)
I nearly died right at the start.
Honestly, it's amazing that I didn't.
Whoever my original parents were, they don't mean anything to me. They left me alone in the ocean before I could even remember their faces.
A half blind toddler swimming by itself for who-knows-how long before, by some tiny stroke of luck, came upon an island.
I found myself on a beach of gray sand, with nothing but ragged clothes and aching lungs. I knew it was a gamble, one last coin flip for my life, that one way or another I would probably die on that sand.
I knew all that, but I didn't care. I was tired.
So I laid there on solid ground, taking deep breaths, the waves still brushing my tail, and I looked up at the sky. I let my good eye drift in slow patterns across the scattered expanse of stars, taking in the way they seemed to float and flicker in place. It was not an inky void like I'd thought, but full of subtle blues and violets stretching between space. The stars blinked in many colors too.
At some point, my eyes drifted shut, but I kept thinking of the colors. I thought they'd be the last thing I saw.
As I faded into sleep, I barely heard soft footsteps in the sand.
