1x1 with pudding

[shadow_claw]

((reference art of Mina: here))

 

Emergency. Primary engine failure. Secondary engine failure. Hull of ship breached.

 

Flashing lights and the dull noise of alarms made the creature groan. This...had been a bad idea. But she had no choice. Arms wrapped around her duty, her only purpose in life, she breathed heavily. She had taken most (if not all) the damage in the crash in order to protect her quarry. The chitinous armor that adorned her body had split open, revealing soft blue flesh beneath. A dark blue oozed from certain wounds, but she didn't seem to notice.

 

In fact, she had taken no notice to the fact that one of her six main limbs had been severed.

 

Stripped of its usual protection, the soft limb had been easily torn off during the crash. All that remained was a stump dripping blue liquid.

 

Main generator: intact. Airlocks: Intact. Scanning outside environment for potential hostilities...

 

Groaning softly, her grip tightened on the small boy in her arms. Never mind the fact her head swam, or how much blood she had lost. The child was safe.

"M...My lord...Xrykotsu..." She breathed, reaching slowly for the small child's head. Carefully did she stroke his hair-like tentacles, soft paws smoothing down each one. It was a terribly parental action, one that would have severe punishment if reported. She was no parental figure, after all. Intimacy between royalty and service staff was strictly forbidden. But sweet Xrykotsu was only a child...and this incident was one that had even the mighty Namina reeling. This...would be an exception.

 

---

 

 

"Multiple reports have come in of a Unidentified Flying Object breaching the Earth's atmosphere. The craft was reported to be on fire and descending rapidly. Where it landed experts are yet to discover. The hunt for the UFO, continued at seven. I'm Sandy Myers, and this is PLNN, your reliable source for local news."

 

A young man stared at his television screen in disbelief, his mouth agape. An Alien ship? Not likely. But the thought of an Aircraft carrying passengers crashing was still an unnerving thing to consider. Instinctively did his hands shoot to his cell phone, of which he began typing rapidly.

 

Izz-man, hear the news? They're gonna put us on call. Boss man's gonna want us looking for that plane.

[pudding]

Despite the protective safety measures of both the ship itself and his guard, the crash had still managed to injure the young alien. Not significantly, of course, but the initial jarring of the crash had still managed to knock him out for a few moments. However, the gentle touch of an arm on his face caused the young alien to stir. His eyes squeezed tightly together before opening slowly. Unfocused, black eyes stared up at the ceiling of the shuttle before closing again briefly. When they opened again, he glanced up at the hand petting his hair before following it back to its source. Looking at Mina, he blinked a few times then opened his mouth, trying to croak out a few words.

"Have we landed?" He rasped, not daring to sit up yet. His brain was still rattled from the landing but he could have sworn he heard the ship say that it was scanning the environment. Did that mean they had crashed into a planet? This far away from the kingdom, it could be anywhere.

They could be anywhere.

"Where have we landed?"

 

 

-----------

 

Isabella glanced at her phone as it buzzed loudly on her desk. Looking away from her laptop briefly, she landed at the message in obvious bewilderment, her expression only growing more and more confused as she read it. News? What? Sliding her finger across the screen and typing back a message very quickly before turning back to her laptop and typing in a few more words into the line of code she was working on.

What news? I haven't heard anything.

[shadow_claw]

"We...We have, my Lord." Namina replied hesitantly, as if not entirely sure herself. She fell silent, listening to the soft hum of the ship's core. Unlike Earth technology, all advanced technology had a host of some sort. A perfectly synthetic life form, able to move from body to body effortlessly. More often that not, their bodies were machines, of which they controlled with ease.

 

Theirs was young, but talented. Too young to be named, but too old to be incubated. Only the older, more experienced cores were named. For now, it was simply referred to as "Ship".

 

Environmental status: habitable. High concentration of organic life detected. 8.7 million species estimated. Dominant species: bipedial Hominids. Hostility: unknown. Intelligence: presumed high. Danger: plausibly high. Proceed with extreme caution.

 

Of her six eyes, four were focused on the images that appeared around the pair. Various pictures swirled around them as the fauna of this world was researched. Soft-skinned, mildly haired creatures appeared often. There was no doubt they were intelligent to some degree.

 

"What are your orders, my Lord?"

 

---

 

The man began to reply as soon as a response was messaged, typing furiously. As he was about to press "send", however, he was distracted. Most notably, by the crashing ship that roared past his home. The walls trembled within the building as something massive tore past it. Soon a grinding screech was heard as whatever had raced by ground into the dirt. Pennsylvania was a pretty rural place. At least, his house was. It was forty minutes from town, and surrounded by woods. There was even a cute little barn nearby.

 

Scratch that. No more Barn. Deigo stumbled outside, moving too quickly for his mind to process it. His door was thrown open, only for him to nearly collapse. That was...that was no airplane...

 

"Mios dio..."

 

I...Fomd ut

get hert ASp

bring akk the med stuff yiu can.

 

His hands were shaking so badly, typos came a plenty. Stuffing the phone back into his pocket, Diego raced into the house. Quickly was he tearing through shelves, snatching up any sort of medical supplies he could find. Admittedly, there wasn't much. Arms full of household medical supplies, the young med student bolted towards the ship.

 

---

 

WARNING: bipedial hominid approaching. Maximum speed: 4 footlegenths a second. Internal weapons failure. All defenses offline. Approach with extreme caution.

Edited January 17, 2016 by shadow_claw

[pudding]

Hominids? The young alien closed his eyes, searching his brain for what that word meant. They weren't a species found on his own world, that was for sure. And they didn't seem to occupy any nearby territories. So, finding no immediate mental images to help him, the prince opened his eyes and slowly sat upright, looking around at the holographic images that surrounded them. While his upbringing had insisted that he not insult other creatures due to possibly ruining trade agreements and just generally avoiding rudeness, Xrykotsu was immediately struck with how strange and hairy these creatures looked. While they did look intelligent to some degree, they also looked strange and foreign. Had they achieved space flight yet? How would they respond to their unexpected presence here?

Hopefully they were not a violent group of creatures. The last thing they needed was to start a fight. Not when their ship was crashed and likely stuck on the planet for a while.

"We..." He started, looking around at the ship before noticing Mina. His eyes widened as he quickly sank back down to his knees, looking over his guard and her lack of a limb. Had that happened in the crash? How had he not noticed it before?

"You need to rest," He replied, looking around the ship. One of those hominids was already approaching? That hadn't taken them long at all. Looking flustered at this point, he carefully spun around in a circle before looking upwards again. "Ship, where are the medical supplies located? Can we do anything to prevent the hominid from entering?" This wasn't really his expertise but his guard was injured. He'd have to assume hostility from the locals.

 

[shadow_claw]

The guard tilted her head, as if confused. Although she was the same species of her younger master, they were incredibly different. Most notably, she was massive. All her limbs were prehensile to some degree and adapted to combat. Chitinous armor covered her weakest and most vital of areas, and her usual beak was equipped with retractable teeth within her mouth. Most notably, however, was her size. She stood much taller than average adult Tethide and was much more muscled.

 

With this in mind, she was built to be incredibly resilient. Pain receptors automatically shut off in times of possible violence, and this was no exception. She hadn't even noticed that her eight limbs had been reduced to seven. Although she was unhappy with this order, the guard relented. Her limbs released the small child to instead stand. Her definition of rest was not much different than working. 'Rest' simply meant she was forbidden to participate in combat.

 

"I...will be alright, my Lord." She insisted. Her actual condition argued otherwise. The plates on her chest were largely cracked, revealing a soft glow beneath her armor. Looking away, her main limbs hovered over a small, glowing ball in the center console. This was, of course, the Ship itself. It glowed brighter at the contact, welcoming the touch.

 

Entry is unlikely. Unless it is strong enough to pry the doors open, the air locks will remain intact.

 

Possible planet Languages detected. Shall I translate the being's speech?

[pudding]

"If you could," Xrykotus replied, grateful the ship was able to know to take some action on it's own. That was a good indication that it wasn't completely ruined by the crash. And whatever had knocked them down in the first place. The landing had not been intentional at all and very rough, but he wasn't sure who would attack them on a peaceful trip to a neighboring empire. Did his own kingdoms have enemies? They had tried so hard to stay out of the fightings. And sure, he did have a guard that needed to watch him constantly but that couldn't be related. It was just because he was a Prince.

That had to be it.

"Keep your attention on the outside, Ship," He requested. "I want to know if more natives start gathering. What other areas are damaged and how long will repairs take?" If there really were so many hominids on this planet, they needed to think about getting off planet as soon as possible. The two of them and their Ship with downed defensive and offensive capabilities wouldn't last very long at all. Turning to his guard, he moved back over to her and stared up at her, his eyes briefly lingering on the cracks in her armor. "Do you have any other injuries?"

[shadow_claw]

My pleasure. Translating now...

"Hello? Is anyone inside? I'm...oh gosh, this is so bad...I'm here to help!"

 

Namina bristled at these words, the thick plates along her back rising. It was her first thought to believe these words to be false. The creature outside must know of her injures and is just waiting to strike. No, she wouldn't let such a trick fool her. Her lips twisted into a snarl as the cameras outside created a live feed. What a horrible, disgusting creature! With its...hair... Hairy creatures weren't very common on their home planet, but neighboring solar systems seemed to have many. They were revolting and smelly.

 

The hostile scowl on her face softened as her small quarry spoke. All eyes shifted downwards to Xrykotsu for just a few moments. She hesitated, but patted one of his thin shoulders with an uninjured limb. "For you, my prince, I will outlast my injures. I shall keep you safe."

 

[pudding]

Xrykotsu hesitated as the voice managed to echo throughout the ship despite the fact the hominid was still on the outside of the crashed shuttle. Staring up at the camera that showed the creature, his small hands curled into tight fists. It was intelligent at least, but that could be dangerous. On one hand, it could honestly be attempting to help them. But on the other hand, it could very easily be trying to fool them into opening up their ship. Intelligence could easily be dangerous.

 

Looking over at his guard, he frowned as his lip trembled slightly. It was just the two of them. A large crew wasn't needed when the ship flew itself. Defensive capabilities were down. His guard was injured and it didn't seem like they would be able to get back up off the ground without help. But, finally, amongst his confusion, a single thought managed to rise to the surface. "We need to remain civil," He replied, looking up at Mina. "I won't be responsible for starting a war by taking the first strike." He paused before looking towards the ship's core. "Ship, can you open one of the doors? I want to talk with the native."

[shadow_claw]

The doors the strange being stood closest to was not the main entrance. It was a side entrance, one that connected directly to the bedrooms within. Knowing it would be a poor choice to open it, the Ship instead opened its main hatch. With a hiss, the wide-mouth entrance unlocked. It slowly lowered, settling to the ground gently.

 

Welcome, hominid. You have been summoned for diplomatic conversation.

 

Stunned, Diego stared in silence for quite some time. He was a curious sort, yes, but this was all incredibly new. Once the initial shock settled down, however, he inched forward. Each step picked up the pace, until he was running into the console room.

 

What an odd sight such a creature was! Although hairy, it was almost entirely bald as well! Nor did its skin have a healthy seen of moisture. It had no form of an exoskeleton, no beak, and it's soft skin was dry and unhealthy! To think she had been wary of such a creature! Watching the thing drop its armful of supplies and tremble proved how much they were at an advantage. Namina straightened up and bared her teeth, her functional limbs hovering over the small prince.

 

Hello, native. I am Ship. I will be your translator for this discussion between species.

"I-I...I'm not a political leader! I-I'm in grad school f-for goodness sake!" Clearly frazzled, Diego stammered through most of his words. "B-but...I came to...t-to see if everyone on board was alright..."

[pudding]

Xrykotsu was clearly nervous as the hominid entered the ship. Had he made the right choice? He was too young to ever seriously make any decisions on his own and his parents usually were the ones who managed affairs. He didn't want to see anyone hurt but what if he had just welcomed in a dangerous creature? This planet was uncharted and it's inhabitants unknown. What if they could spit acid or had some other secret weapon they didn't know about?

 

Trembling slightly, he pushed back against Mina slightly, leaning back against her as the human entered the room, dropping the items it had been holding in it's arms. What were those? Glancing cautiously at the supplies then back up at the human, Xrykotsu swallowed what felt like a knot in his throat before trying to find his words. Calm. Collected. Cool. He had to keep his training in mind. This wasn't the right time to act nervous and skittish. But that didn't mean he knew what to say. Looking up at Mina, he shook slightly then gently touched one of her functional limbs to get her attention.

"What should we say to it? I have never had diplomatic discussions before."

[shadow_claw]

Although most of her eyes remained on the strange being, one set drifted to stare at the small prince. Although the Ship had translated for them instantly, it decided not to do the same for the two-eyed beast before them. So the creature stood there anxiously, scooping up all the items it had dropped.

"Start...start of simply. Ask for its name and intention. Give it your request, be it simple or grrand, and see if it will comply or deny." Namina paused to look the squishy thing up and down once more, before speaking again. "It isn't very likely to atta-" She bristled once more as the hairy, yet hairless thing whipped out a small device and began to tap it frantically.

 

WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT SQUIDS.

 

Eyes narrowing, she released a small hiss of frustration.

 

"Ask what it just did."

Edited January 23, 2016 by shadow_claw

[pudding]

The young alien nodded before turning back to the person. Taking a small step forward, he clasped his hands together behind his back, his beak clicking together just barely as he spoke. "What is your name?" He asked, expecting Ship to translated this one. However, at the sudden tapping motions on the small box the creature was holding and the hiss from Mina, he nearly lost his nerve right then and there.

 

ONLY AS MUCH AS SPONGEBOB TAUGHT ME

 

WHY?

 

"What is that? What are you doing?" Retreating back the few inches he had moved closer, he eyed the human with obvious distrust. Was that a weapon? Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe they should have just left it outside.

[shadow_claw]

Now sweating profusely, the student swallowed several times before he was able to speak. His mouth was dry, and licking his lips did nothing to alleviate the discomfort. Inhaling sharply, he managed a weak response. "Diego...Florencia." Although it was a distinctly Spanish name, he was born within the States. His knowledge of his grandparents' language was learned simply by speaking around the house.

 

Diego blanched as his cell phone was mentioned, his free hand clutching it tighter. What was he supposed to say? Did they really not know what it was? Slowly, he extended his trembling hand to the small child. "It's...my cell phone. I-I was afraid you might have been hurt, so I-"

"You contacted another of you kind, didn't you?" Although the Ship took a moment to translate what Namina had accused, the hostility rang clear in any language. Reflexively did he flinch, his grip around his supplies tightening.

"She...She knows more about medicine than I do! I-I...I won't tell anyone else, I promise!"

[pudding]

Dia-go? That was an odd name. It didn't fit any of the cultures he knew and the accent it was pronounced with didn't fare well when he tried to work his tongue around the word. Did all hominids have frustrating names? If so, it was going to be very annoying trying to address them. He'd have to try, at least. It would be rude not to as addressing sentient species in general always went slightly better when they were referred to by name.

Glancing back at Mina when she suddenly snarled at the hominid, he took a small step back towards her, identifying the aggression as naturally meaning he needed to be protected. Looking towards the human, he slipped around his larger companion so he was sheltered behind her back. This was a bad idea. He had called for backup.

"Ship, tell him to leave and close the doors. We're going to stay isolated until we can negotiate with some kind of leader."

[shadow_claw]

This conversation is now over. Please exit immediately.

 

"W-wait!" Mina's eyes narrowed at the creature protested. He took a trembling step forward, shuffling through all his assorted items to extend a roll of bandages. "You...you're hurt. I can help. I'm in grad school for my MD." He began carefully. Slowly did he set down all his belongings, his eyes never leaving the large alien in fear of being attacked.

 

I have researched the term 'MD'. It is a commonly-coined term for Medical Degree. Perhaps it is wise to allow for minor treatment. Left untreated, the loss of a limb could lead to significant blood loss and eventually death.

 

Scowling, one of Namina's limbs shot out to grab a roll of gauze. She inspected it carefully, unrolling the soft fabric and giving it a hard pull. It tore easily, so it was a poor weapon or restraint. What of the other objects? One after another, she inspected every single object the man had brought her.

"I will take the supplies. Tell him to leave."

 

[pudding]

Outside of Diego's house, a small white car suddenly screeched to a stop. Opening up the door quickly, the short woman grabbed the bag of medical supplies she had managed to pick up before quickly closing the door. Thankfully her own home was reasonably close to Diego's for the area they lived in, meaning she had managed to make her way over fairly quickly. And it was a good thing too based on what she saw laying in his car. The smoldering wreck really didn't look all that good and Diego was nowhere in sight. Knowing him, that meant he already had gone over to the crash.

Feeling her heart rate increase in excitement, she quickly walked closer to the ship, ignoring the rubble comprised mostly of wood that seemed to surround the area. Why had he asked her to bring medical supplies anyway? Was the ship inhabited? Were the inhabitants injured?

 

--

 

"There's another one," Kotsu suddenly said, his eyes staring at one of the many screens that showed the surroundings of the ship. While some were damaged, the one he was looking at clearly showed a hominid approaching. It was just one more but that one more made the numbers equal, not counting Ship. And with him not being trained to fight, that meant Mina would be fighting against two lifeforms if they proved hostile. "Ship just close the door now!" He barked. They couldn't let the other hominid in and make the numbers unfair. Even if it meant locking them inside with 'Dia-go', it would be better than letting him stall for time and let the other hominid also enter their ship.

[shadow_claw]

As the order was given, the doors slammed shut. Unfortunately for Diego, he was exiting at this exact same time. The rapid slam of the door was quickly followed by a scream and a sickening crunch. Although he hadn't been killed, the young man's legs had been crushed beneath the door. Quickly ameliorating their mistake, the ship opened the main door as soon as they realized what had happened.

 

I am terribly sorry. It was a mere reflex.

 

Elsewhere in the ship, Namina was carefully unwinding the bandages she had taken. A set of eyes darted to the fallen creature, but she otherwise didn't react. After all, it had been too slow to leave in time. Snorting, she slowly wrapped the gauze around her bleeding stump.

 

"Ship, take care not to make such a mistake again." She decided, tucking the final strand of gauze into its folds. She strode away from the control panel, cornering the panicked man. Lifting him was effortless; she only needed a single limb to do so. A short trip, and he was soon tossed unceremoniously into the lodging hall. As soon as she had done so, the doors slammed shut, leaving him locked within.

"There. That should keep us safe for now."