12-16-2015, 06:39 PM
"MISTER OOAKKIEEEE!!" Rebecca shrieked as the mean lady with the skeleton face hit Okor's face so that it broke a lot. The young girl grasped the sandstone railing of the arena wall and jumped up and down in frustration, muttering incoherent words and denials of what had just happened. Okor had done incredibly well in the tournament; somewhere in her fractured, occluded mind, Rebecca knew that. But seeing her idol and current guardian figure get brutally slain was just a bit too much for Rebecca to handle. This sentiment of despair was expressed through gratuitous tears, so much so that her pained wailing pierced through even the ravenous roar of the bloodthirsty crowd. Several patrons of the tournament looked over from their nearby seats to see the Little Sister sinking to her knees and burying her face in her clammy hands.
Who had allowed such a young girl into the tournament in the first place? The onlookers were shooed away as Rebecca was gently picked up with a telekinetic hand and floated along through the air by Klee and Shen, who flanked her on either side. So far, Nealaphh's plan was going quite well indeed. It was a pity that the master was currently indisposed so as to be unable to be updated of the good news. After some time to cool down, Rebecca eventually was able to support her own weight, and walked taciturn through the halls of the Colosseum's lobby, guided by the Aspects. It was of paramount importance that they get her bonded to a new guardian figure right away, or the young girls' mind threatened to suffer a complete collapse. Powerful though they were, the geometric forms of the Aspects were simply not a suitable replacement for a warm, humanoid body.
Klee and Shen debated possibilities amongst themselves. Who was around who had a decent enough relationship with the Master that would also be wiling to look after a liability such as Rebecca? A quick scan of the Dataverse revealed their solution. Both Ruby Rose and Jade Harley were still in the area, and what was more, a third Prime was with them. If there was any place they could ensure Rebecca's safety, it would be somewhere among these grouped individuals. The bustling alleyways and promenades of the Colosseum's carnival district were as frenzied and confused as ever. Myriad secondaries of various races and even more varietal means of dress shuffled past in hurried fashion, their ecstatic faces drawing a stark comparison with Rebecca's own, downcast features. If the Aspect had been capable of feeling pity, they may have made an attempt to console her themselves. The psychic figments were well aware of their own capabilities, however, and soothing the mind of a depressed human child subjected to intense brain washing was not within their usual purview of duties.
After a short period of wandering, Klee's attention was drawn to the a repeated sharp snapping sound. Concerned that there might be a fight taking place, the Rational Aspect, left the care of Rebecca up to her other half and proceeded to hover up over the tops of the endless sea of tents. About fifty yards away there appeared to be a sideshow game of sorts, involving firing underpowered weaponry at easy targets. Resisting the urge to pass judgement on the pointless pastimes of humans and their ilk, Klee instead reported to Shen that the area was clear. Not only that, but based on context stated within PesterOmni, there was over an %80 chance the Prime with the weapon was Jade Harley.
...
It was probably rather poor timing that the Aspects and Rebecca showed up right as Jade was having a minor breakdown due to the recent demise of one of her chosen spectators, but the Aspects had neither the context nor emotional investment to consider such social niceties. As such, when Bec began to signal his signature growl as the two psychic constructs and mutant child approached, Jade's eyes flicked up with a look of, perhaps, slightly more panic than was called for. Her concerns were alleviated only slightly when she saw that the source of the alert was the approach of some of Nealaphh's Institute friends. She tried to gently shush the Guardian as the two black, rotating polygons spoke with chiming, resonant voices.
"You are the Prime known as Jade Harley?"
"Hi Jade!"
Bec released a few counterarguments to the presence of the Aspects in the form of a series of harsh, bellowing barks. The other denizens present simply stared on, unsure of what exactly was taking place. The Witch continued to try and sooth Bec, though the nature of his aggravation had her concerned.
"Uhmm. Hello! Um! Sorry about Bec, he's really very-"
Jade was cut off as Bec made a cursory lunge at the hovering pair of shapes, though he balked at the last moment. The little girl though, she looked awful sad. Bec's barking didn't seem to bother her at all.
"-normally really very sweet!"
The two hovering black shapes didn't seem to be particularly impressed or intimidated, and continued to speak in their overlapping tones.
"Indeed. We were wondering if we might ask a favor of you."
"S'alright! Hey uh, can we axe ya somethin?"
Meanwhile, Rebecca wriggled free of the Aspects' telekinetic grasp and wandered towards Bec. This was initially distressing for the Witch of Space and everyone present, given Bec's currently semi-aggressive behavior. As the young girl stumbled towards him, she kicked the dirt and offered a glance at Jade out from under her heavy bangs.
"Is he your dog?" she asked in her small voice, distorted in a slightly disconcerting way. Jade's eyes shot up to the hovering Aspects and back to Rebecca. Everyone watched as the Guardian dog slunk close to the Little Sister and offered her a few sniffs. Though his hackles were still noticeably raised, he didn't seem to mind the presence of this strange little girl. It appeared as though it was the talking boxes themselves that were the source of his concern. Rebecca suddenly skipped forwards and threw her arms fully around Bec's shaggy neck, burying her face in his iridescent mane.
"He's warmmm~" she hummed, snuggling her face into his coat. Bec dutifully sat back on his haunches, making no aggressive moves, though he still occasionally uttered low, rumbling growls when he glanced at Klee and Shen.
"Don't tell me you actually know these spooky fucks-" Karkat started, but Jade held up a resolute hand, demanding his silence. Such assertiveness was not commonly seen from the usually sunny Harley girl, so when Karkat saw this, he shut his mouth more out of shock rather than obedience.
"You're with Nealaphh, right? What's going on?" Jade asked in a concerned tone. Last she heard, Nealaphh had been going to help Demetri, who was in the Nippur, which was in the Endless Dunes, which was where David was, which was where so many very terrible things were happening. The fact that some of Nealaphh's followers would seek her out like this was more than slightly worrying. Klee and Shen began speaking again.
"The Guardian that Nealaphh had entrusted Rebecca to was recently slain in the tournament. She has no one to look after her, and we are not suitable replacements. Would you consider watching her for a while until we find another Institute member able to do so?"
"Hey, so, uh, baby gurl here is mad upset because her fatass plague daddy just got his head busted open over in the tournament. Couldja maybe hang with her till we get another babysitter?"
Who had allowed such a young girl into the tournament in the first place? The onlookers were shooed away as Rebecca was gently picked up with a telekinetic hand and floated along through the air by Klee and Shen, who flanked her on either side. So far, Nealaphh's plan was going quite well indeed. It was a pity that the master was currently indisposed so as to be unable to be updated of the good news. After some time to cool down, Rebecca eventually was able to support her own weight, and walked taciturn through the halls of the Colosseum's lobby, guided by the Aspects. It was of paramount importance that they get her bonded to a new guardian figure right away, or the young girls' mind threatened to suffer a complete collapse. Powerful though they were, the geometric forms of the Aspects were simply not a suitable replacement for a warm, humanoid body.
Klee and Shen debated possibilities amongst themselves. Who was around who had a decent enough relationship with the Master that would also be wiling to look after a liability such as Rebecca? A quick scan of the Dataverse revealed their solution. Both Ruby Rose and Jade Harley were still in the area, and what was more, a third Prime was with them. If there was any place they could ensure Rebecca's safety, it would be somewhere among these grouped individuals. The bustling alleyways and promenades of the Colosseum's carnival district were as frenzied and confused as ever. Myriad secondaries of various races and even more varietal means of dress shuffled past in hurried fashion, their ecstatic faces drawing a stark comparison with Rebecca's own, downcast features. If the Aspect had been capable of feeling pity, they may have made an attempt to console her themselves. The psychic figments were well aware of their own capabilities, however, and soothing the mind of a depressed human child subjected to intense brain washing was not within their usual purview of duties.
After a short period of wandering, Klee's attention was drawn to the a repeated sharp snapping sound. Concerned that there might be a fight taking place, the Rational Aspect, left the care of Rebecca up to her other half and proceeded to hover up over the tops of the endless sea of tents. About fifty yards away there appeared to be a sideshow game of sorts, involving firing underpowered weaponry at easy targets. Resisting the urge to pass judgement on the pointless pastimes of humans and their ilk, Klee instead reported to Shen that the area was clear. Not only that, but based on context stated within PesterOmni, there was over an %80 chance the Prime with the weapon was Jade Harley.
...
It was probably rather poor timing that the Aspects and Rebecca showed up right as Jade was having a minor breakdown due to the recent demise of one of her chosen spectators, but the Aspects had neither the context nor emotional investment to consider such social niceties. As such, when Bec began to signal his signature growl as the two psychic constructs and mutant child approached, Jade's eyes flicked up with a look of, perhaps, slightly more panic than was called for. Her concerns were alleviated only slightly when she saw that the source of the alert was the approach of some of Nealaphh's Institute friends. She tried to gently shush the Guardian as the two black, rotating polygons spoke with chiming, resonant voices.
"You are the Prime known as Jade Harley?"
"Hi Jade!"
Bec released a few counterarguments to the presence of the Aspects in the form of a series of harsh, bellowing barks. The other denizens present simply stared on, unsure of what exactly was taking place. The Witch continued to try and sooth Bec, though the nature of his aggravation had her concerned.
"Uhmm. Hello! Um! Sorry about Bec, he's really very-"
Jade was cut off as Bec made a cursory lunge at the hovering pair of shapes, though he balked at the last moment. The little girl though, she looked awful sad. Bec's barking didn't seem to bother her at all.
"-normally really very sweet!"
The two hovering black shapes didn't seem to be particularly impressed or intimidated, and continued to speak in their overlapping tones.
"Indeed. We were wondering if we might ask a favor of you."
"S'alright! Hey uh, can we axe ya somethin?"
Meanwhile, Rebecca wriggled free of the Aspects' telekinetic grasp and wandered towards Bec. This was initially distressing for the Witch of Space and everyone present, given Bec's currently semi-aggressive behavior. As the young girl stumbled towards him, she kicked the dirt and offered a glance at Jade out from under her heavy bangs.
"Is he your dog?" she asked in her small voice, distorted in a slightly disconcerting way. Jade's eyes shot up to the hovering Aspects and back to Rebecca. Everyone watched as the Guardian dog slunk close to the Little Sister and offered her a few sniffs. Though his hackles were still noticeably raised, he didn't seem to mind the presence of this strange little girl. It appeared as though it was the talking boxes themselves that were the source of his concern. Rebecca suddenly skipped forwards and threw her arms fully around Bec's shaggy neck, burying her face in his iridescent mane.
"He's warmmm~" she hummed, snuggling her face into his coat. Bec dutifully sat back on his haunches, making no aggressive moves, though he still occasionally uttered low, rumbling growls when he glanced at Klee and Shen.
"Don't tell me you actually know these spooky fucks-" Karkat started, but Jade held up a resolute hand, demanding his silence. Such assertiveness was not commonly seen from the usually sunny Harley girl, so when Karkat saw this, he shut his mouth more out of shock rather than obedience.
"You're with Nealaphh, right? What's going on?" Jade asked in a concerned tone. Last she heard, Nealaphh had been going to help Demetri, who was in the Nippur, which was in the Endless Dunes, which was where David was, which was where so many very terrible things were happening. The fact that some of Nealaphh's followers would seek her out like this was more than slightly worrying. Klee and Shen began speaking again.
"The Guardian that Nealaphh had entrusted Rebecca to was recently slain in the tournament. She has no one to look after her, and we are not suitable replacements. Would you consider watching her for a while until we find another Institute member able to do so?"
"Hey, so, uh, baby gurl here is mad upset because her fatass plague daddy just got his head busted open over in the tournament. Couldja maybe hang with her till we get another babysitter?"
And, we dream of home I dream of life out of here Their dreams are small My dreams don't know fear I got my heart full of hope I will change everything No matter what I'm told How impossible it seems We did it before And we'll do it again We're indestructible Even when we're tired And we've been here before Just you and I
Don't try to rescue me I don't need to be rescued
Don't try to rescue me I don't need to be rescued