The Andromeda Initiative

The Andromeda Initiative

[Author's Note: This is just an old blurb I thought I'd leave here for the night. It was actually the beginning of a role play that never took off, and I couldn't bring myself to abandon the concept entirely. So here it is, submitted for your approval!]

A quiet exhale punctured the silence, released in a puff of steam as warm breath met frigid air. It was always so cold aboard infected vessels. Space was a cold place, and the diseased usually destroyed the controls monitoring the heating system. No one could say what purpose such an action served, but many of the hordes’ actions were inscrutable. The sub-humans had been known to rip circuitry from the ship’s innards, to dismantle any and all technology aboard. They were irrational, feral, sapped of all rationality. Once the nano-virus took hold they became like sewage rats, scurrying from one dark corner to the next, springing viciously at any perceived threat. Their frontal lobes had ceased function, along with all other regions of the brain that did not control basic drives. There was no code of morals among the polluted beings, though somehow they managed to maintain nests. When food was not readily available, however, the entire pack would turn on its weakest member and sacrifice it in an attempt to satiate its growing hunger. It was gut-wrenching to see for the first time.

Luckily this was not Marlene’s first time. She was a veteran as far as sanitation was concerned. That was the politically correct term for the cleansing and destroying of an affected ship: sanitation. It made the whole process seem blithely simple, clean, efficient. Any freelancing agent with experience in the field, however, knew that to be a gross embellishment. When one of them – an artificial life form – turned, it was the beginning of a grand debacle. The nanobots circulating through its bloodstream would suddenly become agitated, releasing adrenaline and a slew of other chemicals into its brain. After that… well, the politest way Marlene could think to put it was that the Synthesete, as the beings were called, completely lost its freaking mind. The nanobots would start eating it away from the inside out, opening wounds through which to seep out with the blood. The Synthesete itself would then launch itself at anything within striking distance and attempt to do as much damage as it possibly could, creating gashes in the victim through which the nanobots could enter a new host. Then chaos ensued. It wasn’t long before the entire ship became an empty shell filled with snarling beasts. Sometimes the entire process took a week, sometimes a single day. It all depended on the Synesthete. They had all been created for specific purposes, with different DNA, so she supposed it made sense. It mattered very little, though. Once the process began there was no way to stop it. Killing the afflicted Syn didn’t seem to help. In fact, it only exacerbated the condition, as the nanobots would flood out of their old host. One of the first actions of the afflicted was to destroy the communication equipment to isolate the ship. The only hope of survival was to eject from the ship or to somehow fend off the attackers until a Sanitation Officer arrived. Chances of success for either were slim.

At least the hordes left the oxygen systems intact. Apparently they had enough sense to know that without airflow into the ship they would suffocate. It allowed Marlene to work without a cumbersome facemask that might obscure her vision. The dark hood of her suit remained draped over her head, however, as it was lit from the inside and allowed her to observe her surroundings. She tried to ignore the sound of her boots as they struck the steel bridge arching over the ship’s dark engine room. The quietness was unnerving – the boots weren’t that heavy to begin with. The entire suit was light and snug fitting. But provided ample protection as an incredibly smooth metal mesh ran through the fabric. Technology really could work wonders, the Synesthete epidemic aside. She squinted with her one good eye in an attempt to detect movement along the path. The other eye, or rather eye socket, was covered by a sleek black patch, punctuated by five red lenses that formed a cross. The missing eye was hardly her only mark of wear and tear – her entire right side, from face to thigh, was covered in long scars, relics from the past. They didn’t usually carry much pain with them, so she really had no cause to mind them.

Just as she thought she could make it to the ship’s control room uninterrupted she saw a flash in front of her. It was a person, or a former person, barreling at her with such speed that it blew her smokey hair back. With a movement so deft and precise that it barely required her attention, her hand shot to the gun in her holster, pulled it out, and fired. A brief flash of light splattered eerie shadows on the darkened walls. Energy pistols – they were delightfully efficient. Their short barrels were designed to catch and concentrate energy into a form so dense it could rip through virtually anything, including the sagging flesh of a Synesthete’s victim.

All was quiet. It appeared the creature had strayed from its flock. She let the weapon fall back into its place on her belt. With her left foot she nudged the slumped form of her target and it toppled over. They were always a gruesome sight; their hair and nails had fallen out, the bones of their fingers had been pushed through the skin and sharpened to form claws, their flesh had faded to a dirty mix of brown and gray and hung limply from their muscles. As decrepit as they might have seemed, though, they were quick and they were strong. The nanobots helped with that. Marlene gave a disgusted grunt and weaved around the corpse. In her mind she ran through her checklist. She had already swept most of the ship, and now only the cockpit remained. Sometimes she wondered why they bothered infiltrating the ship at all. They were going to blow it up anyway. But the military wanted to sweep for survivors and it wanted to export any information off of the ship before destroying it. It wasn’t her job to question procedure; she was getting paid to carry it out.

Another rustle of movement. Four more shots. Two went wide; the other two dropped two more bodies. They landed on either side of her as she pushed open the door to the Control Room. Hopefully there would be no unpleasant surprises. She was fairly certain she had taken out their main hive, which they had situated in the barracks. As long as they infected hadn’t separated into two factions only stragglers should remain. True to her expectations, nothing flew out at her through the open doors. Using the light from her hood as a guide she strode inside, breezing past empty chairs and destroyed monitors that spit angry bursts of electricity at her as she past. It took her a moment to differentiate the main control panel from the other mangled surfaces in the room. While one hand snagged another implement from her utility belt – a small, square device resembling a circuit board – the other brushed away severed cords and splayed metal casings until her nimble fingers found a slim rectangular insert. Good, the disk drive was still intact. Sometimes, if the panel was completely obliterated, she would have to spend nearly an hour rummaging through machinery to find the modern version of a little black box. Quickly she jammed her disk into the driver and waited, foot tapping anxiously. She really wanted to get out of dodge.

Then she heard it, a barely audible intake of breath, and she froze. “Dammit all!” She grabbed her pistol once more and stood poised, just waiting for a shot.

Her actions must have caused some surprise in the target, because there was a considerable din, though it was hard to locate its origin. Finally, something moved: a panel popped off the side of one of the stations. She might have fired if it were not for the terrified squeak, “Don’t shoot! Please!”

“What the hell?”

Not willing to relinquish her position of power, Marlene kept her gun trained on the spot. From the opening a hunched figure crawled out. As it straightened itself, Marlene’s brow furrowed. It was… a girl? A slip of a creature, several inches shorter than the Agent, with a short mess of inky black hair and big, pale eyes. She was quivering, pupils darting nervously around the room.

“Son of a…”  Marlene murmured, bemused. Still she kept her shot. “Who are you? What happened?”

“P-please! Don’t shoot! I didn’t do anything!” The girl replied in a frenzied rush of words. “I.. I.. They were….!” She seemed at a loss for words and her whole body shuddered.

“Christ. Calm down, kid!” Marlene grunted, lowering her weapon slightly. “Tell me what happened, and why you’re not out of your head like everyone else on this godforsaken wreck.”

Her words, though crass, seemed to comfort young woman. “Well… I… We were stationed here as a research facility. We were going about our data collecting just like always. And then… there was this other ship just kind of drifting towards us and we received an S.O.S… We tried to radio back but it seemed like… like whoever was on the ship had shut down their communication receivers. We couldn’t figure out why they would do that. So… so, the Captain sent a recovery pod with a few men in it to see what was going on. When they boarded the ship, though, we lost radio communication. A couple of minutes went by, and then the pod started coming back, but we still couldn’t get a response. So we opened the gates and then…” Her body trembled violently again and Marlene almost feared she was having some sort of spasm. “Those things they just came out! There was screaming and running and blood and it was all just a blur. I didn’t know what to do! I… One of my duties was to help with engineering on the ship and I suddenly remembered that there was a tiny compartment space in one of the stations that was used for storing logs so… so as they started coming in I just opened it and hid. There was so much noise and… and then nothing but I didn’t want to leave.” By the time her mouth had stopped moving tears were welling in her eyes. “I thought no one was going to come for me!” With that she broke down into full sobs.

“Well great Jehova.” Marlene responded simply. It had been a long time since she had found a survivor. “Just… Just stop crying, okay? I’ve finished my sweep and I’m going to get you out of here.” She reached out her hand to the other girl but, just as their fingers touched she drew back and pressed her pistol into her forehead. She had seen something, just a tiny trace of neon blue running under the ashen skin of her hand. “You’re one of them!” She spat accusingly, trigger finger itching. “You’re a Synthesete!”

“No!” The girl shrieked, collapsing to her knees. “No! I mean… yes! Yes I am! But they’re not in me, I swear! I’m not infected! Please! Please! Please…” Her words faded into a quiet whimper as she rocked back and forth, tears splashing from her eyes onto the cold metal floor.

Marlene was not inclined to believe the creature, but her instructions replayed in the back of her head. “If possible, bring any live subjects back to the base ship for inspection.”

Advancing rather menacingly, Marlene jammed her gun into the other woman’s forehead again. “You’re saying that you didn’t cause this. That the infection spread from another ship?!”

“YES!” Wept the girl, having lost all control of her emotions. She sat crouched there, arms between her knees keeping her from crumpling to the floor all together.

After a brief suspicious pause, filled with the sniffling of the Synthesete, Marlene retracted her arm. “Alright. Get up. We’re leaving.” Not willing to wait for her new charge to compose herself, Marlene yanked the smaller girl to her feet. “Walk.”

Wiping the sleeve of her suit under her eyes to dry her tears, the girl blathered, “Y-You believe…?”

“Yes. Now hurry up. We’ve got to hurry before any more of those freaks decide to investigate.” Producing yet another object from her belt, a small vial filled with glowing orange liquid. With a swift, forceful motion she dashed it against the corner of a station. A spindly crack formed at the site of the impact and the cylinder’s content began to ooze out. “Take this. Don’t touch the stuff leaking out, just stick it somewhere with lots of wires, --.” She paused, “What’s your name? The short version, not the entire serial number.

Rather reluctantly, the girl plucked up the vial between her thumb and forefinger. “Andromeda.” She responded shortly before scuttling off to insert the item in a deep gash in the control panel.

“Like the galaxy. Nice.” Marlene mused with a lopsided half-smile. As soon as Andromeda returned, however, the expression morphed into a stern one. She seized her by the wrist and hissed, “We’re going to want to run. Now!”

To her great relief, Andromeda didn’t question the order, merely kicked up her heels in a sprint as Marlene guided them back over the engine room, her free hand seeking out her pistol. Their feet pummeled the metallic paneling as they flew through the ship. If there were any of the grotesque humanoids lurking about them, neither of the women noticed. Andromeda failed to notice much else besides her human heart pumping in her chest cavity as they ran. That pulse and a lick of heat on the back of her neck. Against her better judgment, she swung her head around to look back, only to see the path behind them engulfed in an expanding inferno.

“You’re good to go outside without any protection, right?” Marlene’s breathless words jarred Andromeda’s attention from the horrifying crackle of the flames as they advanced towards them.

“Yes.”

“Good!” Shoving her pistol back in its holster to free a hand, Marlene’s gloved finger reached up and pressed the center lens on the patch over her eye. A blue screen appeared projected in front of them as they ran, the other four lenses starting to whir as they began rapidly circling the center. “Marlene! Ready for extraction! One guest!” By that time they had reached the gates that separated the ship’s interior from the cold void outside. Seemingly of its own volition, Marlene’s eye-patch began to squirm, its hems coming loose and its edges expanding over her face until the black mass covered her skin with a shell reminiscent of a gas-mask. She released her companion’s hand for a brief moment to pry open the doors before grabbing her once more. “Hold on, Andy!”

And then she leaped, and they were both suspended in the dark sky. But still too close to evade the explosion. Registering this fact, Andromeda began to panic, to squirm under Marlene’s grip. “We’re too close!” She screamed, writhing in an attempt to propel herself further from the vessel. “Stop it.” Marlene instructed calmly. The Synthesete reared her head in opposition to this instruction, but before she could continue her escape attempts a great gush of warm air overtook them and their surroundings were bathed in a cool blue light. They were floating upward, being drawn into an elephantine freighter that was stalled above them.

And the Earth Shook

       Her silhouette emerged from the flat tan background that was the outside world. It might have been day or night, it was impossible to tell. All that was visible through the cave’s yawning maw was the wind dragging sand through the air.        She looked more ragged than the last time he had seen her. She was disheveled. She seemed tired. There was a poorly-healed cut over her left eye, and her arms were spotted sickly yellow with healing bruises. The cargo pants she wore were too big for her and had to be rolled up at the ankles, and her green t-shirt was several sizes too large. There was a battered black sweatshirt tied around her waist, and it too appeared to be meant for someone much larger than her. She pulled the black bandana down from over her face and squinted into cave, eyes still adjusting to the darkness.        Samuel raised his head from its bed on his paws to acknowledge her, and the movement caught her attention. “Creature,” He greeted in a deep, permeating voice. “It’s been a long time.”        “Not so very long, when you think about it.” Creature returned, venturing deeper into the sanctuary to find where he lay against the cave’s far wall. Without invitation she slumped down next to him and fixed her eyes on the tiny holes in the ceiling that allowed small pinpricks of light and grains of sand to sprinkle down onto the dusty floor.        “I suppose you’re right.” Samuel chuckled, reflecting. “When you come to be as old as I am a few years hardly matter.” He smiled, to the extent that the contortion of his canine face could be called a smile. “You look well.”        “That’s a lie,” Creature said, laughing humorlessly. “I look like shit.”        Samuel grunted his assent. “You’re right.” He agreed placidly. His large yellow eyes scoured her face as they lapsed into silence.         “What news do you bring from the outside?” He inquired finally.        Creature grunted noncommittally, her expression blank. Somehow that was more telling than any words could have been. “I see,” He muttered quietly.        Creature ignored his words and shrugged a large leather satchel off of her shoulder. “Do you mind if I eat?” She asked evasively.        “Of course not.”        Without a second thought she began rummaging through her bag, eventually retrieving a hunk of bread with mold clinging to the heel. She tested it with her teeth and, upon finding it too stale to gnaw on with any measure of success, withdrew a second item: a knife. The blade was not sleek and smooth, as it should have been; it was jagged, craggy, and hooked. A dull white in color, it did not as much as gleam in the light that filtered in. It was a decidedly inefficient tool, but with some difficulty Creature used it to saw off a slice of her bread. She did not think to offer Samuel a piece. She had never seen him eat anything.        Samuel regarded the knife incredulously as his companion tore off the first chunk of her meal. “Is that bone?”        “Horn, actually,” She replied with her mouth still full.        “I thought humanity had developed past the use of such primitive weaponry.” He mused.        Creature snorted in affirmation. “We have. I keep this for sentimental purposes. It… belonged to a friend.” She paused to regard the dagger almost sadly before quickly stowing it back in her sack. Another voracious bite obscured any emotions she may have felt.        “Sentiments can be a powerful motivator,” Samuel agreed, eying her carefully. “But your behavior tells me that it is not what led you here today. You’ve been thinking about it, haven’t you?”        Creature did not respond immediately, but he could hear her chewing stop suddenly. Her eyes glided over to the rocky protrusion jutting out from the center of the cave at an angle. A circle around it, several feet in diameter, was completely clear of dust. Irregular grooves on the ground indicated that there had once been something etched into the stone, but the characters had long faded into nothing more than faint scratch marks. It was an innocuous looking device. Were Samuel not there to explain the contraption there would be no indication of its function, or if it even had a function. But Samuel was always there, to greet each new human that happened upon the mechanism. He had been there the first time Creature had stumbled into the cave, dehydrated and exhausted, looking for a respite from the miles and miles of desert in every direction, and he had been there every time she had returned. The subterranean lair had been his abode since the beginning of time.        “How did you know?” She asked.        This elicited a throaty laugh. “I am older than you could ever possibly comprehend. I have met many humans before you and I have learned much.” He smirked. “Besides, you are not as mysterious as you would like to be.”        Silence blanketed them once more, and both contemplated the protruding lever with due solemnity. It was the most important object that either one of them would ever encounter. All it would take was one little push and it could bring humanity to a screeching halt. It was the device that would bring about the end of the world.        “Tell me what it is that weighs so heavy on you.” Samuel requested after a while.        Creature sighed and waved her hand in the air as if grasping at answers that floated around her head. “The world has changed.” She admitted. “There’s so much war….”        “There has always been war,” Samuel pointed out.        A wry, haggard smile cracked her face. “Well maybe that’s the point, isn’t it? I mean, we’ve been on this earth thousands and thousands of years and we still can’t get it right. We just keep killing each other… over stupid things!”        A deep “hmmm” rose from Samuel as he considered this, but he made no other comment. This seemed to agitate Creature a bit. She shifted her weight in the sand, drew up her knees, and clenched and unclenched her fists.        “I don’t know. It doesn’t seem like the other wars. At first it was kind of exciting, having something to fight for, but now it just seems senseless. What the hell does it even matter anymore? Half of, well, everything is gone. There’s nothing to eat; we razed all of the crops. Even if the war’s moved out of your district you have to deal with starvation. The water’s soured, too. Not many buildings left standing. But we just keep fighting. It used to seem as if for every bad act that was committed there were hundreds of good people ready to prove that this wasn’t what we stood for. But now there’s so much hate…”        Samuel replaced his muzzle on his paws, though his ears remained erect. “When we first met you weren’t exactly a shining example of anger management yourself.” He interjected.        “This is different!” Creature snapped. She pushed herself to her feet and began pacing. “There’s a difference… between anger and hate. Anger is directed at something, it’s caused by something. And you can stop anger. There’s nothing that stops hate. It’s directionless. You can focus it for a while, but once you’ve destroyed your target it just goes somewhere else. It’s deep and it’s dark and it doesn’t let go unless you make it. But nobody wants to let go of it, because without the hate, what does that say for the things we’ve done? If we stop, all of the horrible things that have happened look meaningless. And they are. But we don’t want to have to face up to that.” She quivered visibly and stopped moving in favor of staring blankly at the tiny rays of sun-or-moonlight that filtered in. “And underneath all of that hate, there’s fear. Everyone’s scared. All anyone sees all day long is death and destruction and disease and it scares the shit out of us. It doesn’t matter if you’re a fighter or a civilian; you’re scared to death all the time. It’s… it’s no way to live. But we just can’t stop….”  Suddenly resigned, she returned to Samuel’s side and slid back into a sitting position against the wall. For all the times he had seen her cocky and headstrong, angry and confident, when she looked at him she seemed helpless. “I don’t know what to do.”        The look he offered her was sympathetic. “Unfortunately, I can’t tell you what you should do. I have no voice in the decision. Pull the lever, don’t pull the lever. It’s all up to you. You’re the only one that can make the choice.”        “That just sucks.” Creature intoned, a hitch entering her voice. “Why should it be my choice? I can’t speak for all of humanity. What right do I have to decide everyone else’s fate? I’m just one person. And not even a good person. Just a person. A regular person who ended up here entirely by accident.”        Samuel’s smile was sad. “That’s exactly why it is your choice. You’re just a human; both incredibly unique and incredibly unremarkable. You have the same emotions, the same basic instincts and sensibilities of every other of your kind. This alone qualifies you. Accident or not, you found your way here and now this burden is yours and yours alone, until you die. Then someone else will stumble upon this cavern and the responsibility will become theirs.”        There was a pause. “Unless I do it.”        “Unless you do it.” Samuel confirmed.        To his surprise, she began to laugh, though the strange contractions of her diaphragm could easily have been confused for sobs. “Shit.” She muttered. “What business do I have with this sort of thing? What am I even doing?”        Samuel didn’t answer. There was no answer.        It was several minutes before Creature recovered enough to speak again. “You know, I was a soldier when this war started. I wanted the exhilaration of fighting for something you believe in. But when I look back… nothing was worth the things we did. It doesn’t matter who’s right and who’s wrong. It doesn’t even matter who wins. All that matters are the friends that died, the families that were broken, the kids who are starving. So… One day I just packed up my stuff and left. I wasn’t the first to do it; I didn’t set any kind of example. I just left. For a while I tried to help out in the towns that were still standing but… what do you do? You can’t just make everything better. You can’t even make a dent in all the pain. So then-“        “You came here.” Samuel finished for her.        “Yeah.” She grunted. “I just… I don’t know. I need you to know I’m not some sort of freakin’ saint. I’m not someone who deserves to have the lives of other people in her hands.”        Samuel nosed her hand, which had been lying limply in the sand next to him. The fur around his mouth and nose had receded as he aged, leaving flaking red scales in their wake. “You are a human Creature. If you were a saint, you would not be half so human as to speak on behalf of your kind. Saints can set examples, but they cannot know the true nature of humanity.”        This seemed to amuse Creature and she reached out a hand to scratch behind his ears. He enjoyed this, and his tail began thumping against the ground, kicking up small clouds of sand. “You’re pretty smart for a talking wolf, you know that?”        “I have explained this to you,” Samuel growled, “I am not a wolf. This is merely a form that you feel comfortable with. In my true state I have the body of a man, the wings of a vulture, and four heads: a lion, a bull, a serpent, and a human. My feet are talons. I am much too fearsome to greet wayward travelers.”        She guffawed a bit. “I know, I know. The whole ‘four heads’ thing is kind of a difficult detail to forget. I just like getting a rise out of you. You’d think after all of these years you’d have mastered sarcasm.”        At this barb Samuel barked to show his displeasure. Creature just giggled and continued to scratch his ears. This placated him and for a while the two merely sat together, staring at the raging sandstorm outside and listening to the wind shrieking. Were it not for the steady motion of Creature’s hand he might have thought she had fallen asleep. But whenever he glanced up he found her eyes wide open, though her mind was far away. He had almost started to drift off himself when she next spoke.        “What do you think it would be like? If I pulled the lever that is? I mean, is it going to be all fiery explosions and fissures opening up in the earth? You know, all screaming and blood? Because we’ve kind of got enough of that already.”        “I don’t know,” Samuel replied honestly. “I wouldn’t imagine so. If I had to guess, it would just be like turning off the lights. Turn the lever and everything just resets, goes back to the beginning.”        Creature seemed to consider this. Her brows furrowed as she sank into thought. “Wouldn’t everything just happen again, then?”        “I doubt it. The world as it is now is the result of an infinite amount of arbitrary coincidences. For the universe to reproduce itself in the exact same way a second time seems quite improbable.”        This seemed to make sense to her, and she nodded. Once again words ceased to pass between them. Samuel watched the cave’s unwavering shadows and Creature stared up at the ceiling, at the tiny streams of sand that trickled in like stardust. He did not know how long they sat there in the quiet. It must have been a while, but a handful of hours were nothing to a creature like Samuel. Creature seemed too lost in her own mind to notice the passage of time.        “Samuel,” She asked suddenly. “Is there a God? I mean, not necessarily one god from one religion, but something that kind of oversees the universe?”        Once again, Samuel replied truthfully. “I don’t know. I might have known once, but it was a long time ago. If I did, I seem to have forgotten. It is a comfort to think so, isn’t it?”        “Someone had to put you here. And the lever.” Creature pointed out.        “Perhaps,” Samuel said pensively. “Or perhaps we too are one of the universe’s many coincidences. As I said, I cannot recall far enough back to know.”        Creature chewed the inside of her lip visibly. “Well, do you think there’s an afterlife, then?”        “I could not even speculate,” He told her. “I have never died, and perhaps never will. Is that not the only way to gain such knowledge?”        “I guess you’re right,” Creature exhaled heavily. “I guess it would be nice if there was but… I think I’d be okay if this was it. Not that I’d be around to complain, I suppose. But I got some time to be the person that I am, and that’s an awful lot to begin with. Not as much as you have, maybe, but what more could you ask for?”        Samuel shrugged his shoulders.        Creature didn’t seem to require his feedback, and continued. “Even if it ended up like this… We humans have had a pretty good run of it, haven’t we? There’s been a lot of pain, a lot of sorrow. But there’ve been some good things too. Maybe not as many, but enough to make it worth it in the long run. I think that now we’ve lost track of all of the good things, all of the little things that make being alive so enjoyable… We can’t see those things anymore.”        And then she stood, with more decisiveness than Samuel had witnessed in her since she entered. “What are you doing?” He asked, voice a bit edgy.        Creature was already half-way across the cavern. She turned and smiled back at him. “We’ve had a good run,” She repeated, “But we took it too far. It’s time to give someone else a shot. Maybe they can learn to hold on to all those tiny nuances of life, the ones that justify the whole damn experience. Maybe they can do better.” Her hand was on the lever.        “I see.” Samuel said, and he lifted his head to watch.        The lever was old, maybe older than Samuel, and was somewhat resistant to movement, having been stationary for eons. But Creature pushed her shoulder against it and, after a considerable amount of grunting and groaning on the part of both parties, managed to push it, rotating the circular slab of stone on which it sat.        Nothing happened immediately, but a certain tension had been lifted from the air. “It’s done.” Creature said, and returned to the wall where Samuel was, resituating herself into her previous position. A hand reached over to resume scratching Samuel’s head. “It’s been nice knowing you, buddy.”        “It’s been a pleasure,” Samuel agreed.        And the earth shook. [Author's Note: So, this is another little short drabble I wrote a while ago. The fact that this is a drabble for me is kind of sad. That fact aside, this is a rather interesting concept that I came across while reading something called "The World's Longest Joke", which I would highly recommend. It's (really) not funny but it's worth a read anyways. The notion kind of festered in my brain for a while and eventually this story was born. On another note, I'm well aware that there are a lot of people won't agree with the decision made in this piece. To be honest, I don't. But the goal is to really think about it. Would you do it? What would the circumstances have to be? Anyways, I hope you folks enjoyed! Comments and critiques are always welcome!]

Hello there! Sorry I had to contact you through a reblog but I couldn't figure out any other way to ask you about this! I actually found out about your give-away through my good friend Kozz (According to her you're also the one that made my Magikarp plushie, which is an absolute cutie-patutie! =3) In any case I saw this and thought I would throw my hat in the ring, if you're still accepting. Obviously you're under no pressure to do anything with it. If you do happen to be interested, though, I thought I would request a picture of two of my characters, Creature and Luka together. They're quite the dynamic duo (though not romantically connected). They communicate mostly through sarcasm and derogatory comments, but stick together nonetheless. Our mutual friend has done some lovely commissions for me of both of them. Creature: http://komical.deviantart.com/art/Cats-and-Dogs-p2-342244103 (The one that isn't Nox) http://creature-of-twilight.deviantart.com/art/Commision-New-Challenger-327491774

Luka: http://24.media.tumblr.com/e0f442f9de2a7d689bfd663142830ea8/tumblr_mpai6hZJdG1qks47bo1_r1_1280.jpg

Creature is kind of a hot-head and a wild child, always swearing and fighting and bantering (though she's quite small). She is what's called a yee naaldlooshii, the navajo word for shapeshifter. She can transform into any animal, but she must have a piece of its pelt on-hand. The usual form she takes is that of a large black direwolf. Not really elegant looking, but a big mass of hair, teeth, and drool. Luka, on the other hand, is quiet, thoughtful, and pretty sweet. He tends to come across as brooding because he's shy and a little awkward, but he's mostly a nice guy. He puts up with Creature and thinks of her like a little, annoying, but wise sister. Sorry those are kind of suck-y descriptions, but I'm running short on time before the deadline. If you'd like to know more about them feel free to ask and I'll type something real up. Or you can take a gander at a little drabble I did that features the two of them here: http://creature-of-twilight.deviantart.com/art/Living-High-Chapter-1-Strays-383518081

Anyways, thanks for reading! I hope you have fun drawings, even if you decide against doing this request. --Auggie

LIGHTENING DRAWING REQUEST

I WANT TO DRAW PEOPLE THINGS

GIVE ME A REQUEST AND I’LL DRAW IT

FREE, NO CHARGE

ONLY AVAILABLE TILL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT (Eastern Standard Time)

PLEASE NOTE I WILL DRAW YOU A MINI COMIC IF YOU ASK. JUST GIVE ME A PROMPT AND I’LL DRAW IT.

So,, to celebrate my five-day weekend, I've decided to open some RvB themed fic requests! Some quick guidelines: I don't to NSFW requests. I don't personally do a lot of shipping (Yorkalina being my Achilles' heel), so any otps may end up looking a little more like brotps. Sorry in advance! I'll do my best! Requests will probably be a couple of paragraphs to a page or so long. I will do as many as I can, but I may not get to all of them! If you're really invested in your request and it doesn't get done this weekend, contact me and I might try to get it out in the next couple of weeks. Other than that, go nuts! AUs, canon, anything that you like! Just make sure to give me more than two characters names! If you're interested in something longer than a few chapters, with fewer restrictions, I am open for Art/Craft trades that can even cover multi-chapter fics! (The art trade I'm working on right now is going to be eight chapters long). I also take commissions! Anyways, I can't wait to get to your guys' requests! Have at it!

Bah Humbug

as they plummeted. Their brethren already frosted the boughs of the surrounding trees and padded the hard ground. One adventurous crystal alighted squarely on Manglev’s snout and the feline had to cross his luminescent blue eyes to watch it enact its tragically short lifespan. Theological implications abound. Had he been in a philosophical mood he could have spent hours contemplating the lessons in life and passion encompassed within that single, melting snowflake. But, at present, he felt that his thoughts would only muddle the serenity of the evening. As it was, the portrait nature had painted around him was utterly pristine. The new-fallen snow was yet unmarred by the contact of sentient beasts and it seemed to cast the scene in a spectral blue light. A chilled breeze tickled his heavy winter coat, leaving him feeling clean and refreshed. There was perfection in the crispness, the solitude.

The only interruption in the quietude was the gaudy, colorful tent situated behind him. It broke the peace with its boastful existence. Over the course of the past hour the raucous festivities barely contained within had died to a muffled murmur of yuletide clichés. Inside, the Christmas celebration was continuing its decrescendo. Hyson had already passed out, inebriated, in a large bowl of punch, his limbs dangling over the edge and a dark stain slowly creeping up the seat of his flamboyant purple suit-pants. The festive medley that had previously risen from the hand-crafted mandolins and flutes of Brune and Myriot had died to a series of dulcet twangs as the duo attempted to teach Eureka how to coax out a melody. All the while the glowing young lass glanced furtively over her shoulder at the mop of pink hair that was Brynn. The youth had managed to both amuse and befuddle himself by using strings of vibrant lights to transform into a human Christmas tree. Meanwhile, Nox had reduced himself to wowing Creature and a crowd of exhausted and punch-drunk stage griffins with elementary card tricks, unaware that someone had draped an intricate array of tinsel over his curling horns. Even Besclin was in attendance. Someone had taken the time to wheel her tank into the tent and dump a bucket of green food-dye into the water so that she could join in the merriment. With the night drawing to a close, she floated under a piece of mistletoe that had been tacked to the outside of the aquarium, her sharp teeth glinting between the lips that twisted to form her devious smile.           It was only the sound of crunching footsteps, however, that broke through Manglev’s absorption and into his conscious mind. When he looked up he found that he was no longer unaccompanied. Standing beside him, hands in the pockets of a lavish red and white coat, was Marlene. She was dressed for the season with thick, fur-lined boots, slim black tights with sleigh bells sewed up the side, and a Santa Clause hat sitting atop her dark hair. Her ensemble was completed by a signature half-grin that dimpled her scarred cheek.           “What are you doing sitting out here like a furry green bump on a log?” She questioned with a raspy chuckle.           His own chest cavity rumbled with a quiet laughter. “It may look like I’m just sitting here,” He replied cheekily, “But on a cellular level I’m actually quite busy.”          Marlene fixed him with a disapproving stare for a long moment, just long enough for him to run through the sentence in his head to make sure nothing offensive had spilled past his lips, before breaking out into a smile. “Alright, I’ll give you that one.” She shrugged. “That’s not what I meant, though. Weren’t you having fun inside?”                                                                                    It was Manglev’s turn to shrug his hunched shoulders, though the awkward motion looked more like a shudder. “I was inside for a while. I just needed some air,” He defended.             Before he had finished his last syllable he felt the toe of her boot nudging his hind leg “Don’t sound so grumpy!” She instructed.                                                                                            “I’m always grumpy.             “It’s Christmas!”             “So?”             At this Marlene appeared generally concerned. Her thick lower lip protruded in a pout and she crossed both arms over her chest. Her feet spread apart slightly in a stubborn stance. “Don’t tell me you don’t like Christmas?!”             Manglev just shook his head and grunted noncommittally. Marlene continued to fix him with an intrusive stare, as if meaning to drag an answer out of him with her penetrating eyes. After several seconds he realized that he was not going to escape her line of indignant inquiry. “It’s not that I don’t like Christmas. I just don’t really see the point.”             “It’s a reason to celebrate!” Marlene suggested.             “But that’s all it is.” Manglev explained with a sigh. “I mean, doesn’t it seem a little silly? Why are we even celebrating? Because of convention? Everyone gets drunk and decorates because they’re used to it. I guess because I didn’t grow up with Christmas every year it all just kind of escapes me. I don’t really see why everyone gets so fussed about it.”             Marlene, ever obstinate, was quick with her rebuttal. “That’s not all Christmas is about.”             “Then what is it about? Religion? Jesus was probably born in the Spring, you know. The Christian church just adopted the Pagan celebration of the winter solstice to help convert new members. So, really, there’s no religious significance. Besides, there are plenty of people out there that don’t even believe in Jesus.”             Marlene just smiled amusedly and shook her head. “I don’t think you really understand what Christmas is about, Manglev,” She mused, glancing fondly down at her friend. “Christmas isn’t about the tinsel or the carols or the eggnog. Sure, that’s all part of it, but not the real meaning behind it. Hell, Christmas isn’t really even about Jesus, in my opinion. The real Christmas has to do with what all of those things stand for: love, generosity, good will. Maybe it’s not something that everybody celebrates, but those are qualities that everyone values, in their own way. Christmas is just an excuse to bring out those traits in people. It’s a chance to break away from the humdrum of everyday life to spend time with friends and family and generally be in good cheer. So cheer up, fuzz-butt!”             Manglev’s ears swiveled in her direction as he listened intently to her speech. The words themselves didn’t strike much of a chord with him, but the sheer conviction with which she spoke them was enough to melt his harried expression into a soft smile. From the whimsy in her tone to the warm embers glowing behind her eyes, her sincerity was evident. She truly believed in the inherent joy of Christmas. The characteristically wry and cynical woman had opened her heart, at least for a night, to the possibility of an innate kindness in her fellow creatures. Even if he couldn’t reconcile himself to be in complete agreement, Manglev couldn’t ruin that for her.             “All right, all right, I suppose you’re right.” He purred, craning his neck to nuzzle her hand expectantly. Marlene in response and began to scratch the skin of his scalp.”             “Good! So no more gloominess for the night!” The gaze she fixed him with was a knowing one. She was well aware that he had changed his approach for her alone, and she was willing to accept that. It would never be that simple to convince him of anything. After all, he was quite capable of being just as shrewd and stubborn as she. But an attempt at cheer from him was all that she required for the evening. Coming from him, she knew, that was a great gift.             “So....” Manglev began after a short stretch of silence, “Should we go back inside?”             Marlene gave his head an appreciative pat. “Nah, the party’s almost over, anyways. I don’t particularly want to be there when they try to fish Hyson out of the punch bowl. Let’s just go.”             The hulking green male snorted with laughter rat the mental image. “Whatever you say,” he agreed amicably. With a grunt he heaved himself to his feet. He could almost hear his bones creak as he did so and it made him feel like an un-oiled piece of machinery. While Marlene scuffed her boots against the ground, making a jingling sound as each leg moved, Manglev did his best to shake the thin dusting of snow from his thick, mossy coat. Once he was satisfied his friend replaced her slender hand atop his head and the two tromped away from the clearing, girl and beast.             As they walked, Marlene prodded at him good naturedly. “So I guess Mr. Scrooge doesn’t like Christmas presents either.” She teased.             Manglev chortled. “Why do we even give gifts on Christmas? Do we really need to buy each other’s affection?” He questioned, more for sport than any real inclination against the tradition of gift-giving.             “Fine! I won’t give you yours!”             “I didn’t say I didn’t want it!” Manglev protested, looking upwards at her with sudden disheartenment.             “I don’t know,” Marlene pondered with hyperbolized hesitation. “Have you been good? Only good girls, boys, and kitties get gifts.”             He screwed up his face into a wrinkled expression of distaste. “Define ‘good’.”             Marlene scrutinized him for a second as if taking an inventory of his past deeds. As quickly as the expression had appeared, however, it was replaced by an impish grin. A soft accented hiss reverberated between the back of her palate and her tongue. “You’re lucky I’ve got a soft spot for you.” She said, tilting her head affectionately towards him.            For once in his life, Manglev did feel very lucky.

           They spent the rest of the walk in silence, the only sound the crunching of their feet as they marched in harmonious time with one another. It was not long before they drew upon another tent, this one minimalistic compared to the vibrantly tacky enclosure they had just abandoned. It had thick burlap flaps protecting its innards from the winter chill, and smoke was billowing out a hole that had been cut into the roof. The makeshift shelter glowed and pulsed from within, lending it almost the appearance of a living being. The nearer they drew the more inviting the simple tent became to Manglev. By the time Marlene lifted one of the heavy flaps back for him he was craving the warmth and comfort of the indoors. Instantly he was bathed in the heat from the fire they had left crackling upon their departure. Extending his paws he stretched himself out in the typical feline manner, his abdomen extending like a spring uncoiling. A yawn rippled across his face and he opened his maw wide, exposing his yellowed teeth and insect-like mandibles. Marlene chuckled as she watched him, moving to stoke the fire with an iron rod.             When he had settled himself into a comfortable sitting position he cleared his throat. “So, what’s this about a present I was hearing?” He poked curiously.             “That’s what you’re after now, is it? Alright, close your eyes!” Manglev did as he was told, squeezing his eyelids tightly together. Of course, the sense of sight was no great loss for one as acutely gifted as he. He could hear her rummaging through some of her old satchels, which had been tossed casually in the corner. Her footsteps approached him once more and one of her knees touched the ground. He was a bit surprised to feel her hands around his thick neck, but he didn’t allow himself to sneak a glance until he heard, “Alright, go ahead!”             His immediate instinct was to peer down at where her delicate hands had been fidgeting. There he noticed a simple black leather band fastened, with only a decorative bronze ring for ornamentation. “A... collar?” He asked curiously.             “Don’t think of it as a collar!” Marlene proclaimed enthusiastically. “Think of it as a fashion statement!” Evidently she caught the skepticism that fluttered through his eyes, for she was quick to add, “And don’t think that I got it because I just think of you as some sort of pet or anything like that. That’s not what I meant by it. Well, I did think it would be cute, but that’s beside the point. I mean, people usually don’t put collars on animals to claim ownership or anything. They do it so that if the animal gets lost people know that that animal belongs somewhere, that it has a home, and so that people can find a way to take it back to its home. People like you and me... well, we have a hard time finding places we belong. So I just thought... you know... it would be nice to let you know that I think you belong somewhere. Right here, with me. We’re friends, even family. So, I thought that it was something that, if you ever felt lost or alone, you could look at to remember that you’ve got a home.”             Though the words came in a flurry, Manglev smiled in understanding. He gave her a light, tender head-butt as means of informing her that she didn’t need to defend her decision to him. “Thank you, Marlene. I really do appreciate the sentiment. And, for the record, I think this is where you belong too.”             There was relief in Marlene’s laughter as she drew to her feet, dusting herself off. “I’m glad. Will you at least wear it once in a while?”             “Of course,” Manglev rumbled. As he spoke he rose as well, dragging himself in front of the fire and flopping on his side there. “Though, now I feel guilty that I didn’t bring you anything.”             “That’s odd,” His companion muttered thoughtfully. “I could have sworn you got me a big, fluffy, feline pillow!”             “A wha-?! Oomph!” He was interrupted mid-syllable as Marlene dropped herself nearly on top of him, causing him to emit a sound like a deflating hot-air balloon. Before he could protest she had cuddled next to him, her figure lying along his, head resting on one of his shoulders. He chuckled in resignation and situated himself to be more accommodating. Once again, the pair was blanketed in silence. The silence that passed between Marlene and Manglev, however, was never an awkward one. There was no grappling for some new topic, no striving to fill the void. Rather, their silence was one that suggested nothing needed be said between them. They were in complete harmony, at peace with one another. The soothing silence that passed between them was one that said more than petty chatter ever could. There was something to be said for the bond of those that could be comfortable together when the novelty of speech was stripped away. For a long while they simply watched the flames from their fire curl about the air in a frantic dance. Their attentiveness was such that one might have imagined they could see whole other worlds painted by the small blaze. Every so often one of them would shift to enhance their comfort, but otherwise all was still. As was wont to happen, soon sleepiness enveloped the two. Manglev felt his eyelids grow heavy and his muscles uncoil. Soon dreams would hold him as their captive.              “Hey Marlene?” He muttered through the haze of his own exhaustion.             “Yes Manglev?” She answered with equal fatigue in her raspy voice.             “Merry Christmas.”             Her lips curled upwards and he felt her nuzzle deeper into his pelt. “Oh, Bah Humbug.”

For any of you that follow me and are actually real people, not spam blogs, I'm sorry I haven't been posting much content lately! Between final exams and work and Christmas stuff I've been pretty busy. Also I'm a lazy ass but that's a story for another time, Anyways I just wanted to let you know that there is more stuff coming! What you can expect to see sometime in the near future:

The second chapter of Toppling Towers, my art trade with Kozz

A fic requested by donutbitches

A fic requested by lunavakarian

Sorry it's been such a long wait guys! I'm bad people! Other stuff coming soon

An actual page with commission information

Ditto for Art Trade Info

Maybe one for requests

A queue page where I'll make a list of people I owe fics or other assorted things so everyone can be assured that I did get their message(s) and can see where they are on the waiting/priority list.

Thanks for tuning in! You can now return to your regularly scheduled tumbling.