Re: The Phenomenal Fracas! (GBS2G6): [Round One: Afterparty]
09-28-2010, 02:37 AM
Originally posted on MSPA by Not The Author.
Miq was pleased. So much excitement! But now everyone was leaving. She probably ought to get going, too. There didn’t seem to be much going on here, and she’d been knocked around some earlier which was never fun. Sticking around seemed like a poor plan. On the other hand, those that had knocked her about seemed to have scampered off as well, and she didn’t really know where to go from here.
Come to think of it, she didn’t really know where “here” was.
One of the benefits of having sonic sight and the ability to reproduce neigh on any frequency of noise was something akin to X-ray vision. By projecting a certain wavelength of sound, depending on the material, the sound would travel through that substance as though it were (mostly) nonexistent. While it was marginally disconcerting for the wall to appear to disappear, Miq had done this several times before and wasn’t terribly concerned. Nor was she bothered when she couldn’t hear the ground, as she’d been on airships before and hadn't been able to then, either. She just supposed the tower was tall. Really, very tall.
No, Miq was worried by something else entirely. Several somethings, in fact.
__________
Finch sat down on a toppled pillar, flexing her spine. She wasn’t hurt that badly, but she was pretty sore. She was tired and cranky and really didn’t want to deal with anything right now. Fortunately, everyone seemed to have run off to do their own thing and maybe get themselves killed or something. She wasn’t really sure anymore.
Syvex alone had stayed behind, probably out of some thick-headed desire to protect her. Or maybe because he was exhausted. Either way, he was curled up by the shattered doorframe, apparently sleeping. She knew he was keeping guard, though really, what would there be to guard against? They were up at the top of a tower in the middle of nowhere. Still, it was the thought that counted… even if the thought was merely paranoid delusion.
“Hey, Sy?”
“Mm?”
“I, uh… Thanks for saving my ass, I guess.”
“Least I could do, eh? ‘S what friends are for.”
“W-we’re not friends! We’re barely even allies, what with you running off and nearly dying all the time.”
"Hey."
“Well we could be friends, if you were less…”
“Less what?”
“…No, sorry, never mind.”
“Hey. Heeey.”
“No, I’m curious now. Explain it to me. Please.”
The serpent lifted his head. “I think Miq is trying to tell you something.”
“Don’t dodge the-“
“Heyheyhey.”
“Uh.” Finch wondered how exactly she’d managed to miss the waste receptacle up to now. It was aluminum against black and white, not terribly small, and actually a bit loud hopping up and down like that. She might've given more thought to it's a walking, talking trash can, but she was tired and cranky and honestly had stopped caring somewhere several thousand feet per second above the ground. “Hey.”
“Hey, hey. You were there, right? With the thing?”
“Um. What thing?”
Miq frowned. Somehow. “That thing. The, um, um, cat thing! Like a cat but a lizard but not. Kinda big?”
“I think she means the giant six-legged monster we fought a while ago. The one that lady electrocuted. 'S when Miq started following us.”
The wastebin interrupted before Finch could comment. “Yeah, yeah! Big scary monster. That thing. Yeah…”
Miq nodded to herself and trailed off. Finch found that the pattern held even for a trash can: people were much easier to like before they started talking to you. “What about it?”
“Oh yeah! Uh, uh… Well, uh…”
“C’mon, spit it out already.”
“Um… Y’know bats?”
The snake’s head suddenly snapped to attention, staring straight out the door to the sky. Finch did not like where this was going at all. “You mean, like, the flying rat things?”
“Yeah! Flying rats. But more like lizards than rats.”
Eureka locked eyes with Syvex. Or as close as she could manage with a creature without eyes. He nodded sadly.
Miq’s jagged smile matched that of the shadow serpent. “But more like spiders than lizards!”
Miq was pleased. So much excitement! But now everyone was leaving. She probably ought to get going, too. There didn’t seem to be much going on here, and she’d been knocked around some earlier which was never fun. Sticking around seemed like a poor plan. On the other hand, those that had knocked her about seemed to have scampered off as well, and she didn’t really know where to go from here.
Come to think of it, she didn’t really know where “here” was.
One of the benefits of having sonic sight and the ability to reproduce neigh on any frequency of noise was something akin to X-ray vision. By projecting a certain wavelength of sound, depending on the material, the sound would travel through that substance as though it were (mostly) nonexistent. While it was marginally disconcerting for the wall to appear to disappear, Miq had done this several times before and wasn’t terribly concerned. Nor was she bothered when she couldn’t hear the ground, as she’d been on airships before and hadn't been able to then, either. She just supposed the tower was tall. Really, very tall.
No, Miq was worried by something else entirely. Several somethings, in fact.
__________
Finch sat down on a toppled pillar, flexing her spine. She wasn’t hurt that badly, but she was pretty sore. She was tired and cranky and really didn’t want to deal with anything right now. Fortunately, everyone seemed to have run off to do their own thing and maybe get themselves killed or something. She wasn’t really sure anymore.
Syvex alone had stayed behind, probably out of some thick-headed desire to protect her. Or maybe because he was exhausted. Either way, he was curled up by the shattered doorframe, apparently sleeping. She knew he was keeping guard, though really, what would there be to guard against? They were up at the top of a tower in the middle of nowhere. Still, it was the thought that counted… even if the thought was merely paranoid delusion.
“Hey, Sy?”
“Mm?”
“I, uh… Thanks for saving my ass, I guess.”
“Least I could do, eh? ‘S what friends are for.”
“W-we’re not friends! We’re barely even allies, what with you running off and nearly dying all the time.”
"Hey."
“Well we could be friends, if you were less…”
“Less what?”
“…No, sorry, never mind.”
“Hey. Heeey.”
“No, I’m curious now. Explain it to me. Please.”
The serpent lifted his head. “I think Miq is trying to tell you something.”
“Don’t dodge the-“
“Heyheyhey.”
“Uh.” Finch wondered how exactly she’d managed to miss the waste receptacle up to now. It was aluminum against black and white, not terribly small, and actually a bit loud hopping up and down like that. She might've given more thought to it's a walking, talking trash can, but she was tired and cranky and honestly had stopped caring somewhere several thousand feet per second above the ground. “Hey.”
“Hey, hey. You were there, right? With the thing?”
“Um. What thing?”
Miq frowned. Somehow. “That thing. The, um, um, cat thing! Like a cat but a lizard but not. Kinda big?”
“I think she means the giant six-legged monster we fought a while ago. The one that lady electrocuted. 'S when Miq started following us.”
The wastebin interrupted before Finch could comment. “Yeah, yeah! Big scary monster. That thing. Yeah…”
Miq nodded to herself and trailed off. Finch found that the pattern held even for a trash can: people were much easier to like before they started talking to you. “What about it?”
“Oh yeah! Uh, uh… Well, uh…”
“C’mon, spit it out already.”
“Um… Y’know bats?”
The snake’s head suddenly snapped to attention, staring straight out the door to the sky. Finch did not like where this was going at all. “You mean, like, the flying rat things?”
“Yeah! Flying rats. But more like lizards than rats.”
Eureka locked eyes with Syvex. Or as close as she could manage with a creature without eyes. He nodded sadly.
Miq’s jagged smile matched that of the shadow serpent. “But more like spiders than lizards!”