#taalko

“It seems like we’re not the only ones trapped-- no one’s having any luck, from the sounds of it.”

Of all the places, of all the people to get trapped with... Lucretia wishes it had been anyone else. Not for her sake, but for Taako’s. There’s tension in the air, even as both of them are in crisis mode to try to escape-- but crisis mode won’t last forever, and who knows how long they’re going to be here.

“If we had access to more of our magic, we could at least have something to try.” Her hand presses against the crystalline surface-- honestly, this is all starting to remind her too much of Miller’s lab, and something tells her the similarities aren’t lost on Taako.

Kay’s been spending a lot of time at Barry’s house lately-- it’s kind of her go-to place when she’s in the city, especially since she has a room that’s basically hers. But despite everyone else’s sleep schedules, she tends to be more active at night, so it’s a surprise to see someone else awake. Mr. Barry and Ms. Lucretia are humans, they should be sleeping, unless...

“...Mr. Taako? --Mr. Taako!!” She’s still in her pjs, running at full speed and nearly crashing right into him.

“You’re OK!! I was so worried.” She wraps her arms around him in a tight hug, but pulls back quickly-- hopefully he’s OK with a hug, she realizes she’s never asked.

It’s been decades since Barry’s ever once mistaken one twin for the other. Even when they’re intentionally playing tricks, he’s quick to pick up on them. Today, though, when he sees someone on the street, even with that signature hat, he has to do a double take.

That’s not Lup.

He bolts down the sidewalk before any second thoughts can form, practically collides with Taako in a hug, and does a half spin before setting him back down.

“Is that so?” He doesn’t bother to hide the hint of skepticism in his voice. “That’s very interesting. In that case, how long has it been since you last meditated deeply?”

Sleep, rest, meditation-- whatever Taako’s equivalent of recharge is, it’s more than clear that he needs some of it as soon as possible. Rung’s learned a lot about organic life and physiology since his arrival in Spirale, but he’s pretty sure he would have recognized the clear signs of exhaustion the elf is exhibiting even when he knew next to nothing about non-mechanicals; it’s almost painfully obvious how tired Taako is.

It’s also obvious that he’s in no mood to be convinced to go rest.

Rung grudgingly allows the conversation to move on to a different topic-- he’s very, very excited to be meeting Taako, after all, and doesn’t want to interfere with that-- but he resolves to gently encourage a few hours of recharge later on. ...hopefully when his new acquaintance is more amenable to the idea.

“I’m not actually a robot, and no, I don’t think so. I expect I dream about more or less the same things you do, if you dream at all.”

“I’m Rung,” he says, carefully shaking the offered hand. “It’s very nice to meet you, Taako. I certainly haven’t heard of you through TV. You’re an actor, then? Or a television personality?”

Welcome to scenic Isola Radiale~!

You’ll be staying in TOWNHOUSE 242!

You’ll be able to use your Shapechanger ability for up to 30 minutes per day.

You’ll also be given a wooden sword.

Enjoy your stay~

      murderbot didn't like how casually and quickly the other was moving the knife, barely paying attention to how close it occasionally came to his fingers. it could count about fifty times where a human had accidentally severed a finger or limb from their carelessness. ( it was rarely ever life-threatening, just...messy. and gross. ) and while he most likely wasn't human, the fact that he wasn't a construct left murderbot doubting a lot.  weren't there automatic dicing machines he could use? or even pre-prepared meals. why did humans ( and those human-adjacent ) insist on making things difficult for it? regardless, the automatic motions of the knife made its anxiety spike, and it wasn't looking forward to searching for a severed finger today. 

      he was already hindered in his walking for some reason - murderbot noticed it out of the corner of its eye on multiple occasions while attempting to ignore the presence of other people in the shared living space. ( why did the stars find it necessary to force people together like that? oh, right - because they didn't care at all about their playthings and captives. ) the careless dismissal of murderbot's concern made it frown - thankfully, it had its helmet on to hide that from view. it decided to redirect the question as to whether it had ever watched someone cook before. ( it had, but not in the way he was preparing food. this seemed...primitive and dated to it. ) " that's - irrelevant. " it muttered, ignoring the 'tin man' comment altogether, since the reference was lost on it. " there's machines that can do that, and prepackaged food that's less dangerous for you to prepare." 

Kay’s sitting at a table at an outdoor cafe, blinking slowly as she stares down the street. Buncha new arrivals, but... huh.

She realizes she’s staring at this guy, and she really isn’t hiding it. In fact, she kinda wants him to notice her staring. Hopefully he’s suitably intimidated. When he’s close enough, she tugs on his sleeve to get his attention.