Debut

[jannikarr_mahliah]

Mahliah's ship had spun out of control through the jump, but all safety features fired off properly and she was cushioned in a sphere of anti-grav until the crash. The smooth, sharp edge of the craft had bitten deep into the ground. In the cabin, every surface was crackling with spidery runs of electricity. She looked all around in the chaos, but every sensor was reading nonsense. The ship was done for. Mahliah grabbed her disruptor--half laser rifle, half glaive--and picked her way back down the slanted corridor only to find the landing hatch crumpled and useless. She picked her way skyward and pounded, kicked, and shot at the escape pod hatch until it gave way.

The sweat she had worked up turned bitter cold on her skin when she climbed out into the lazy autumn sunshine. She gripped her 'ruptor closer. What was this frigid, alien landscape? The buildings as far as she could see looked antique. The river that coursed beside her crash site smelled of trash and chemicals.

(new player, new character. Mahliah It's nice to meet you all!)

Comments

[callmevod]

He hurried her the rest of the way, up into the flat that Hex was letting him use. "C'mon, it's right this way." The place, however, was a freaking mess. Vod had no idea what to do with the bottles of booze he had left over, so he just let them clutter up tables that he wasn't using. Clothes were scattered across the floor, strewn about, and empty containers of microwave meals were sticking out of overstuffed trash cans about the place.

"Well, it's not much, but it's more or less home," he said, somewhat proudly.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"Oh, your highness," she said with deep pity. She held her 'ruptor awkwardly, no idea where to put it in this mess. "I'm ashamed that you've had to live so lowly. If only I'd found you sooner."

[callmevod]

"What? This is the fuckin' high life, as far as I'm concerned," Vod said, unashamed. "This place is fuckin' great. It's got a fridge. A bath. A shower. In one, which is weird. It's like, pick one, right?" he rolled his eyes.

"It's also got this fancy dishes rack that has a door on it. It's kinda space-savey," he said, moving over to the dishwasher. "I think it's supposed to clean the things, but they just come out wet. And sometimes way more gross than they used to be." He shrugged.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"Maybe Terrans like to eat off of wet plates," she ventured. The apartment was an assault on all her senses, especially her nose. "Who knows what disgusting things they do."

[callmevod]

"I don't think so. Maybe it's a culture thing? Or personal preference?" he shrugged. "I mean, it looks like it's supposed to clean it, but it doesn't have any light elements."

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"For anything, it looks like." She let her gaze linger on the piles of dirty clothing.

[callmevod]

"I think there's a couple of boxes for cleaning clothes. But I got no idea how the hell they work. I've been washing things in the tub." Vod shrugged.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"I guess that's just like old times," she said. Recruits on assignment in training sometimes used primitive fixes like washing laundry in water.

[callmevod]

"Old is right," he said. "Seriously, can you believe that these people are getting excited at the prospect of the first manned mission to Mars?" he asked, shaking his head.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"Why? Is there something exciting on Mars that I wasn't aware of?"

[callmevod]

"Uh, no, in fact, nothing, to my knowledge, is happening on Mars. They've got some robots up there or something. But that's it. They haven't even started really building a serious space station, yet. It can only dock like, one or two shuttles, I think, at a time. They haven't even been to their own moon much." It made no sense to him.

"I mean, they have the technology. Why the hell aren't they using it?" Too busy shooting each other, which he thought was a waste. The Kathaari went to space to find newer and exciting opponents.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"Terrans have always been myopic and prideful. They're probably just not in a hurry to go to a planet where there's no one to brag to."

[callmevod]

"Eh, maybe. But the UTS was already formed by the time we got to them." Then again. "I mean, it was only like, what, the centennial or whatever they called it?" Vod shrugged.

"Anyway, it's not important. Here," he said, opening a cabinet and pulling from it a bottle, seemingly at random, filled with dark amber fluid. "Here," he said, offering the bottle to her. "Try this. It's no Kaga'ri'ka, but it's strong enough." Vod was going to ignore the fact that he'd just accidentally said the name of his own favorite drink, a high-alcohol content drink nevertheless made from a sweet, magenta fruit known as the Kaga'ri. It was largely regarded, with much derision, as the drink of a wimp.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

Mahliah's assumption was that he considered she would prefer Kaga'ri'ka because she was a female. "I don't mind, but maybe I should stay sharp, your majesty. I have to be make sure that no one harms you."

[callmevod]

"Nobody's coming to harm me," Vod griped. "Nobody knows my family. And I want it kept that way, okay?" he asked, pointing a finger from the one holding the bottle. "Drink. Seriously. It'll take your mind off the fact that you're trapped here, on ancient-as-fuck Terra, where you can't even get your dishes clean without figuring out how to work some complicated-ass machine that doesn't even do what it's supposed to."

Damn, after that, he needed a drink, himself.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

She didn't want to refuse a second time, so she took the bottle and tilted back a long drink from it. "It's even more important that you be kept safe with us stranded here...your royal blood is precious." Oh dear...this Terran liquor was a bit stronger than she'd assumed it would be. She blinked hard a few times.

[callmevod]

"What's really so precious about it?" he asked. "I got sterilized, remember? There's no passing the blood on. Nothing to do here but work, drink, fuck and sleep."

He sighed, and flopped down on the couch. "It's a shit-show. And now you're caught up in it, too." Another life fucked up because of him.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"My mission was to find you. I'll have to be satisfied even if I can't bring you home." That warranted another drink.

[callmevod]

"Guess so. But hey, here you are. Shackin' up with a renegade prince. Maybe you'll finally let your hair down a bit, Jannikarr," he teased, grinning just a bit.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

She looked around the trashed apartment, hoping she would feel used to it this time. “I've never considered what I would do if I couldn't be a Jannikarr anymore.“ Apparently the answer was 'become the prince's maid,' because after one last long drink she began to try and gather garbage together.

[callmevod]

Vod noticed her doing so. "I got no idea where the garbage goes. There's not an incinerator in the building. No compactor, either, and even then, I dunno where they'd eject it." He shrugged.

"If you look down alleys and stuff, there's big-ass bins that hold garbage. But a lot of them say we're not supposed to use 'em. Not that I care much."

[jannikarr_mahliah]

Mahliah considered for a moment, and then went to the window. She opened it and began throwing things out.

[callmevod]

"Yeah, that'll probably work, too," Vod said, shrugging. Ignoring a startled yelp and a curse that came up from the alley she was dumping things into, as well.

[jannikarr_mahliah]

"I think that Terran just made a rude gesture at me,“ she said, one that job was done. She showed him, holding up two fingers. "Do you know that one?"

[callmevod]

"Hm?" Vod glanced over at her. "Oh. Yeah. That one."

He shrugged. "I think it means to go fuck yourself, or something. I dunno."