🤍LAUGH & PEACE ! !🤍

Starter call!

perhaps a logical geno  with more insight to her abilities would have been able to understand her predicament. after all, he’s literally star power given form, not just a producer of magic, but living magic. however, said logical geno had long perished by the hand of a very distressed geno. this was even, in part, literal, as his own hand smacked into his cheek. ow?! how was she able to even do that?! the both of them are fighting for control now, and it’s super weird.

❝ agh—— quit that! ❞ his upper lip curled in a snarl. it was a wonder that he was even capable of doing that, but magic did the most wily things… which was why they got into this situation in the first place. she’s launching some ridiculous accusations for someone coming off as so suspect to begin with! her speech was so juvenile, too, yet she claimed she was a queen? he had to doubt that. she was a machine, one behaving erratically in ways that tipped him off to something wrong. none of this added up to anything good. he didn’t trust her word.

❝ listen, i don’t care if you think my cape is dumb or that my head is huge, ❞ he refuted. he was sure he looked a sight right now, looking as though he was yelling to himself while on his knees. ❝ your behavior is suspicious, you’re apparently some kind of machine —— and you’ve been stalking me? somehow, i’m the bad guy here? ❞

maybe… he was behaving recklessly? jumping to conclusions? no —— surely not. he was not taking chances anymore. he wasn’t going to allow another smithy to enter his life and ruin the system again. weapons and things couldn’t get in the way of his birthright! it never will again!

❝ trust me, the last thing i want is for you to be stuck inside of my spirit! this isn’t what i wanted! ❞ was the jab to the temple with the heel of his hand her doing, or… was it him? it was hard to decipher at this point. ❝ i’m protecting everyone! y-you… who do you work for? what do you want?! ❞

   To Vibri and Geno, this was incredibly serious business. But to anyone outside of the situation, to any potential onlookers? This was definitely two bratty little children having it out inside of a wooden get-along shirt. Either that, or an unhinged Geno finally having some sort of long-awaited internal meltdown. She wasn’t sure which one of them caused that jab to the head, but it was quickly met with another slap, causing the doll’s head to spin!

   “VIBRI DOES NOT WORK FOR ANYONE, MEANIE! VIBRI WORKS FOR VIBRI! QUEEN VIBRI!!” Her shrill voice belted out, still rather ruffled. ...And now a little dizzy. After a small pause, she managed to get a slightly better grasp on her volume. “Vibri is NOT a machine! YOU are more like a machine than Vibri! Vibri is...!” 

   ...Huh. She never really thought about that one. Was she magic? Some sort of magic-adjacent thing? Digital? No, digital wasn’t right. She’s been around longer than computers and the like have been. Some things about Vibri’s kind would always be a mystery, even to them. ...Wait, did he just say ‘spirit’? Now he had her attention.

   “...Vibri is like a ‘spirit’! Or maybe fairy! But Vibri is not hiding like you are!” Expert wording there. “Vibri is a traveler, I am here to make friends! But Vibri cannot travel in wood! Only energy! Music! Magic! Machine! So are you a spirit, or machine!?”

   “Ohayō gozaimasu!! Good morning to every-body!!!

“Is it just me or does the frog look different than usual.”

she… vanished?  geno’s brow grows taut. instantly, he is suspicious. where has she gone? she’d jumped right into his attack, so he’s willing to bet she had reason to do so. it’s easy logic! why would she leap into the face of certain harm unless she plans on using it to her advantage? the alternative would be the equivalent of shooting herself in the foot, and uh, hello, why is his arm cannon sinking back into his limb? did he do that? wait, are his hands moving on his own? is his body malfunctioning? what did she do?

that’s when her voice screeches painfully in his head. with a loud squeak, palms fly for his temples and clutch at them desperately. his breathing quickens, and he swears all of his warmth is being drained out of his feet. is… she inside of the doll?! no—— she’s inside of his spirit?! the feeling is incredibly violating, and from his fight-or-flight response, he’s switched right into flight.

❝ what did i do?! what did YOU do?! ❞ he wants to launch his spirit out of the doll posthaste, yet for some reason, he can’t. is it from her soul merging with his, or is it from his own fear throwing off his groove? whatever the case, he feels horribly trapped in his own body, both borrowed and born. he crumbles to his knees, eyes squeezing shut, as if the darkness of his eyelids would reveal her form once again.

is this one really with smithy or with some other evildoer? whatever the case may be, there’s no hiding the strange blend of anger and terror he’s feeling right now.

❝ — get out of me! get OUT! ❞

   ...WHY? HOW? SINCE WHEN???

   Were it not for her newfound vessel, Vibri would be absolutely struggling to keep herself together, literally. Computers? Obviously. Electricity? Of course. Sound waves? Always. Magic? A little more complicated, but still easy. But traveling through someone’s very own being? Vibri had SO MANY QUESTIONS.

   This was SO WEIRD! She would try to make an attempt to see herself out, but she felt... glued to the other? Almost as though the doll could barely accommodate the two. Or perhaps it’s the unfamiliarity of her vessel? What’s more, she wasn’t exactly trusting to attempt to leave via another laser, because that would leave her wide open for this little wooden Terminator to attack her.

   “Vibri CAN’T get out, DUMMY!!” No pun intended. “I AM STUCK!!”

   Attempting to take control of an arm, she delivered a swift smack to the doll’s face. This only resulted in a squeak of surprise as, yes, she felt that.

   “THIS IS WHAT YOU WANTED, IS IT NOT!?!? YOU ARE EVIL! TERRIBLE! A DEMON! MAYBE A PERVERT! YOU ARE BEING RUDE TO A QUEEN!”

   Her high-pitched voice beeped and booped on and on incoherently. Yeah, she was pulling the royalty card in this situation. She was usually a kind bunny, but not immune to being bratty.

A queen? Reginn gasps at the revelation and clasps her hands in front of her mouth as she thinks it over. It’s not completely unheard of, as seiðjarn sprites tended to have colonies similar to bees. The queen, however, never usually ventured out from their hives however… meaning that Reginn must be very lucky indeed.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t realize you were royalty too!” Reginn hurriedly gives Vibri a little bow, nearly tripping over herself in the process. It’s always good to meet another friend so far out… especially one that seemed to understand and sympathize with her currently plight.

“I agree. It’s… been a little lonely out here,” she said, “I’ve made some other great friends, sure, but it’s not the same.”

Part of her feared that she’d never be able to return home after the war was over. Even if Niðavellir still stood afterwards, she’d most likely be considered a traitor to her kingdom and shunned by her people… even her brothers, if they still lived. That was a lot to dump onto Vibri at once, though, so she put it off… for now, at least.

“So you travel around a lot? That’s pretty exciting…” Reginn considered what to ask Vibri about. She must have had some amazing stories of exciting destinations, crazy adventures, the like! One question, however, had nagged on her mind above all else. Perhaps it was from her childhood curiosity about the seiðjarn sprites, maybe it was from her own homesickness. Nevertheless, that question won out.

“What’s your home like?”

   “Ah, there is no need to treat Vibri different! I am a queen, but I do not like to feel different from others!” Regardless, she still gave another curtsy, returning the gesture.

   Though she was never one to give her own title much importance, it was admittedly nice to see someone that shared a royal title as well! After all, it was often lonely at the top. Back home, it was all one big game of ‘follow the leader’ when she was around. Sometimes literally. It was nice to just be a random stranger, able to become anyone’s friend.

   She listened intently, nodding. It seemed like Reginn-chan was out of her element too! Vibri could definitely relate, even if she had more experience. Though Vibri had been to countless worlds, and seen many things, there was still no place like home. Her need to always be on the move, and her need for familiarity, were almost always at battle with each other.

   “My home, it is not like this world! It looks very different, like me! It is very far away, but Vibri can go there using things like magic and music, like roads! It is a world where we play, dance, and sing all day!” She felt giddy just remembering all the fun she had back home.

   “But... Vibri thinks it is important to see the rest of the world. It is not all happy, but there are many new friends for Vibri! Vibri’s home is always happy, so I would like to help friends that are not happy!”

she dares to call him dangerous?  he would argue the contrary, but in fact—— he would be a threat to someone on the wrong side of history, wouldn’t he? folk like smithy and his gang, even if not necessarily affiliated with him, are the type of people that don’t deserve safety by his arms. he would deem vibri to be the very thing she claims, the accused being accusatory. what she has to protect, he does not know, but what he fights for… no, he will not let her harm his friends! would a machine like her even know what friendship means, anyway?!

❝ you have no idea what you’re doing! ❞ what a shame. alas, unlike a star spirit (no matter how traditionalist and robotic his culture is), there is no changing her programming. some machines are made for good, but others are doomed from the start. it’s those that need to be destroyed.

❝ stop! ❞ the energy pulsing suddenly shrinks into his gun, retracting and then launching for her. he grips at the barrel of his laser, keeping himself steady. this is her warning shot. of all people to mess with, an emissary of the stars is the last one she should want to deal with. he’ll show her.

   And there it was! It was a bit of a risky guess, but one that paid off well. Instead of dodging out of the way or attempting to deflect the attack, Vibri deftly flung herself directly into it, her form completely spiraling around the beam before vanishing. Though magic was still a confusing concept to most, magical energy was still energy.

   Naturally, it wouldn’t be that simple. She immediately found herself running through a fast and harsh obstacle course of varying shapes! Though it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary to her, she still had to keep her focus and momentum to avoid taking any damage. All that was left now was to pop out of the other end of this beam, and tackle this fiend—

   ...This fiend that seems to have completely disappeared. Okay, what?

   She gave a panicked look around the ‘battlefield’, wondering if she was the one about to suffer a sneak attack instead. Maybe the dolly ran away? Serves that awful, evil little thing right!! After what seemed like a reasonable amount of time, she instinctively folded her arm cannon back into its usual form, and adjusted her cape—

   Okay, what??? Last she checked, she didn’t have either of those. Nor did she have hands made of wood, or a slightly taller stature. Come to think of it, did she actually make that movement herself? Though she couldn’t discern what it was in her confused state, it felt like there was still something, or someone, nearby.

   Chotto matte. Cannon, cape, wooden body...

            “F-friend…?” Vibri-Ghost friend? Not bad spooky? At least that eased some of the UFO’s worries. Just a little bit. “Vibri-Ghost… p-promise.”

UFO wishes for no more bad scary things at all, so with a deep breath to calm themselves down, they’ll get to making those pancakes now. The flying saucer may not look like it, but they have learned a bit from a certain restaurant’s Master Chef, so they’ve been able to prepare some whenever they’ve felt like it.

 Donning a little saucer-shaped chef suit and chef hat, they began to prepare that fluffy pancake batter. Why fluffy ones? Because those are UFO’s favorite, and they were certain that those would be the perfect kind to please the vibration.

With a bit of time, patience, and adding some delicious finishing touches…

…The pancakes were complete and set on the small table.

             “…Pancakes ready. Hope Vibri-Ghost… happy.”

   Nodding to the other, she had settled at least a little. She plopped herself down in front of the table in the center of the apartment, laying on her side. She figured now would be the best time for a powerful power nap, shortening the time between Pancake-less Time and Pancake Time. 

   In reality, she had a lot of questions for her new friend! But she knew it was probably best to start things a little more slowly, even if that’s not quite this bunny’s style. She seemed to be having quite the pleasant dream, of taxes and bad boys on motorcycles. All was going well, until the house cat in her dreams suddenly jumped on her paperwork with a blank stare, and spoke those magic words: ‘Pancakes ready.’

   She slowly pulled herself back upright, shaking her head groggily to shake off that odd talking cat. She eyed the stack of pancakes excitedly, clasping her paws together with awe!

   “Thank you, new friend!! Itadakimasu!”

   Producing what seemed to be a fork from her vector lines, she had to hold back the extreme urge to just nom the entire plate of pancakes, plate included, with one big chomp. After all, she had to be polite about her new friend’s impressive efforts! Regardless, she still managed to pick up an entire pancake with her makeshift utensil, a loud chiptune-y ‘bloop’ sound as it seemingly vanished into her mouth.

the bully, big meanie, terrible, awful meaniebutt  was vibri in the eyes of this paranoid star savior. everything was screaming stranger danger here, or more fittingly… axem ranger danger? it’s the only smithy gang member (er, a group of members?) that rhymes. whatever the case, the alarm bells were sounding, and it’s like he could practically taste the stale air of smithy’s dimension all over again.

he jerked backward with her motion and immediately brought his star shot to attention, pointing at her threateningly. it was as if he dared her to make another step, lest he open fire at the apparent, suspicious machine. 

❝ no. how do i know that i can trust you watching? the last time something like you kept such a close eye on me… ❞ he glowered. ❝ if you think you’re slick, think again. i have a suspicion about who you belong to, so don’t think about pulling any fast ones. i have more to protect than just this planet and the star road this time! ❞

magic pulsed at the tip of his gun, another signal of warning. uh oh…

  “Trust? Vibri does not need your trust. You are dangerous!”

   Staring onward, her lines seemed to stabilize in a manner that would be unsettling, had Geno known her true nature. This puppet knows about her? Did it know about her home? This one seemed more and more dangerous by the moment. Though the doll briefly spoke of ‘protecting’ something, this menace still stood before her, now brandishing a weapon. ...And what’s more, preparing to attack?

   Aha! There’s your true nature, you devilish dolly! You cantankerous clockwork! You fiending figure! You perilous puppet! Vibri would do her best to stop your horrible schemes, whatever they might be! Though she was filled with an unfamiliar anxiety at encountering such a being, a manic grin formed on the bunny’s face to push back those feelings.

   “Vibri will stop you!”

   Not missing a beat, our questionably-heroic bunny darted directly toward Geno, ignoring the warning signs. She wasn’t much of a fighter, but she felt she could at least subdue this villain long enough for help to arrive! She already knew what her newfound antagonist’s next move would most likely be, and she could react to it accordingly to get the upper hand!

Everything Dexter had seen before this point, from countless experiments gone wrong to catastrophic malfunctions, should have at least made him a little more prepared for this situation – enough that he wouldn’t have reacted in such an embarrassing manner, anyways – but seeing something apparently entirely unbound to the laws of common sense and basic mechanical understanding come out of his computer system was frightening at best.

And the thought hadn’t even occurred to him before: how much damage has this virus done already? What had it done before it decided to make itself known? How many of his indispensable blueprints and documents were already corrupted with malicious code, reduced to tools used as a means to spread? Would his computer even detect that anything was wrong? How would he ever know that his laboratory was safe again?

– He has to steel himself in the face of the malicious entity as it spoke, hands still tightly gripped around the handle of his weapon – though their trembling had lessened considerably. Believe it or not, he could recognize when he was catastrophizing – sometimes.

The way it used its words and constructed its sentences (as well as just about everything else) still has him on edge, however – maybe it’s just haphazardly throwing sentences in its speech in an attempt to convince him – and he raises his weapon to follow as it gets up from the floor. His finger twitches over the trigger, both anxious and hesitant to press down and give him an easy way out of the whole situation, but the final statement the being makes sparks something else within him, inciting his fear to switch to anger.

Dexter removes one of his hands from his blaster, using it as a support to lift himself back up to his feet. He briefly assumes a defensive pose – before he steps forward, glancing between the monitor and the entity with his fingers curled tightly at his sides – though they didn’t remain there long.

“You think – You think I would be STUPID enough to –” his voice cracks, but he pauses only momentarily, “– let you back in? To BELIEVE that you’ll just LEAVE my laboratory and leave it unharmed after you have already TRESPASSED and seen –”

Yet another realization strikes him in that moment; a grave realization that nearly floored him with how serious the consequences would be.

This thing knows about his laboratory.

His shock is immediately apparent: he abruptly stops speaking, freezes in the middle of gesturing, and nearly drops his weapon again.

If he didn’t get rid of this thing in time, his secret would be out. Everything he created would be open to the world, and the knowledge of his laboratory would spread relentlessly like wildfire with no water to put it out.

…

Dexter raises his blaster again, aims it point-blank at the virus, and fires.

   Ah, here we were again. That ugly sound. That killing intent. Were humans always going to be this way?

   Though Vibri was always the cheery individual, she never truly ignored how quick to violence other species seemed to be. She was beginning to lose track of how many times a weapon had been pointed at her. Some were more effective than others, but the outcome was usually the same. Normally she’d just see herself out, as this one didn’t seem to be a dangerous entity, but she was currently locked in, so to speak. A power line would be out of the question, when it could be easily cut off.

   One long step was all it took, one quick and fluid movement as her legs stretched to a completely abnormal length to step over the projectile in an impressively blink-and-you-miss-it display. Another step, and she was already behind him.

   She knew that if she just stood there, in perfect point-blank position, he’d easily just turn and fire at her again. Not that it’d be anywhere near deadly to something like her, but this was getting nowhere fast. Instead, she quickly shot herself towards what seemed to be a large... thing. She didn’t quite know what exactly it was, but it sure was an important-looking box that had a lot of blinking lights.

   She wasn’t interested in holding the boy’s own machines hostage, but it seemed to be her best option to make him hesitate long enough. At this point she was less concerned about her own wellbeing, and more confused as to why this child was so willing to hurt another being. She was trespassing, sure, but this seemed to escalate a lot faster than a simple intrusion.

   “Be careful, small human. If Vibri was not strong, you would have done a bad thing. Vibri does not know what you do here, but is it worth that?” Though her voice always had an upbeat tone to it, something about her words this time seemed stern, even motherly.

   Still here! I’ve been a lot busier with studying than I expected, because ya boi is working on a highschool equivalency test. 

   Looks like I took an unexpected break! I’ll be active in a few days, I’ve just been super busy studying and being asleep.