#hxperspeed

     The teenaged Ventrexian stood in front of the large, almost ice-like barrier that somehow separated whatever was behind it from the rest of Final Space. He’d left everyone behind without saying goodbye or why he’d left - hell, he’d practically betrayed them by omission. There was no sign of the Crimson Light, & therefore no sign of any of its crew or the Titan that’d been guiding them. There was no sign of life there period. As he stood in front of that barrier, he was standing completely alone.

     In his hand, he held onto a device - completely one of his own making - & he looked at it. He didn’t know if this would even work. For all he knew, this could fail completely, & he’d risk putting everything in danger only to receive nothing in return.

     But he had to do this. For Gary. He couldn’t go on without him.

     He took the device & quite literally stabbed at the barrier with a grunt, making sure it was lodged in there before pushing in the pump handle. He took some steps back right as the barrier slowly began to crack - first small, then growing larger & louder as it went up along the barrier. Not too long after the cracks had spread to the edges of it, pieces of it began to dislodge, the barrier eventually coming down in an avalanche of ice & debris.

     Once he was sure everything had settled & nothing was at risk of falling on top of him, he began walking forwards, walking on top of the uneven chunks until he’d entered the area. Oddly enough, the area actually seemed safe to breathe in despite the open space not being too far, & once he’d entered far enough, he decided to remove his helmet.

     It was around that time where the chances of anyone being awake would have been slim to none. In this case, it was none - all of the lights were shut off, leaving only what little light streamed through the windows that led to the graveyard that was Final Space to illuminate the inside of the ship. If one were to look around, they’d almost feel as if the Crimson Light seemed unnaturally empty. There wasn’t even any sign of a presence of a Titan outside as there typically would have been.

     But there was certainly a presence of something else. Along the metal floors of the halls, there was a tar-like substance that at first slithered across the floor as a single tendril before seeming to spread more & more into a puddle as it progressed. As well, there was ambiance that seemed to follow it - whispers, growls, rumbles - but at first it was at such a low volume that it could barely be heard by anyone at all.

     The location in question was behind a door. GARY’S door. & the ‘tar’ slipped right under the door, despite it being completely sealed shut. & then, as it entered, the ambiance began to quickly grow louder, as a figure slowly began to rise from it. Clawed - & non-clawed - hands pushed through with ease, & proceeded to push the rest of itself up, slowly rising until its horns were just brushing the ceiling, bright yellow rapidly lighting the small room. By now, the ambiance had raised to a roar, & through it pierced that ever cruel voice;

     “Hey, uh - dad?” Little Cato said into his communicator. “So - I got the rig in, so that’s good to go whenever, but, uhhh, I tried to use the vents to leave like I’m supposed to, & I know I’m already a couple minutes behind, but, uh-”

     Lil Cee had asked Little Cato to keep an eye out for a poster of some sort. Cee hadn’t really said much about it other than it was a ‘motivator’ & something to ‘help him talk to his Overseer easier’. Which Little Cato had found reasonable enough, he supposed - the kid seemed nothing less than anxious, so if he found some confidence in a poster, then he was willing to do the kid a favour by looking for it.

     He was walking through the hall in which Cee had gotten lost since that was where the kid had assumed he’d lost the poster as well. Surely enough, he’d found something, & picked it up. Now, the other boy had stated that it’d be folded up, & Little Cato certainly had no intention of taking a peek, but it happened to be partially unfolded, &- 

     His chest tightened when he saw the all too familiar image of the Lord Commander, & without even thinking, unfolded it all the way. It was a propaganda poster. For the Lord Commander. Encouraging people to join the Lord Commander. Encouraging KIDS to join the Lord Commander.

     “Gaaaryyy,” it said, a slight sing-song to its voice. Naturally, it was nowhere actually near the ship at this current moment - that would be too risky now that BOLO had decided to make himself some self-proclaimed guardian of the nuisances that resided in the Crimson Light - however, it sounded incredibly clear. (Benefits of having telepathy, one supposed.)

     Honestly, it probably had been the scent of juice that’d drawn the Ventrexian to that part of the ship, curious up until yellow eyes fell upon his guardian his dad Gary the human. & as soon as they did, his lips had curled over those over-sized fangs into a snarl.

     The teen found a chill going down his spine at the sight of those all too familiar eyes, & - despite alarms going off on his head telling him it’s not him! It’s not Gary! - felt like he’d had a knife driven through his heart. The statement hit a little too close for comfort, & it took genuine effort to force himself not to dwell on it. It’s not him. It’s not him. That is NOT him. His ears pressed against the back of his skull as he took a frightened cautious slow step back.

@hxperspeed