[ prp ] Pod People (Nash & Tzei)

[kuropeco]

Pod duty was boring.

Nash was half asleep, slumped over the desk, waiting for something to happen.

Spoiler: Nothing was happening. Except for somewhere, in the back of the room, a pod clicked open in a hiss of steam and a beep of buttons.

Pyrogoth

 

[PyroGoth]

xkuropeco

She doesn't wake up until the pod was fully open, not bothering to open her eyes until she's sure that the chance to drift back into sleep isn't an option. Is she alone?

"Mm. What happened to the others in that place--ah! Ahaha. Of course! They died ❤"

Well, probably died. It's too much effort trying to remember. This place should really consider their turnover rate. It's a pity - she isn't particularly averse to making new friends.

Tzei steps out (carefully!) and starts peering into the glass covers of yet-unopened pods. This second life of hers is off to a dimly-lit start.  

[kuropeco]

There was a voice that was disrupting his apparent, impromptu nap time. Nash's head jerked up; he pushed himself away from the desk and went to investigate, weaving through the rows of pods until he found the open one and it's previous inhabitant.

"Yo," he said, lifting a hand in greeting. "Did you fall out or some s**t? What's your name?"

PyroGoth

 

[PyroGoth]

kuropeco

using gaia mobile pray 4 me

"Huh? Who are you?"

She turns around and squints at him for a second before remembering to try and look friendly. There's too much of it in her grin and too little of it in her eyes, but hey, she tried.

"You must be a colleague. Or are you Human Resources? Or are you a shadow?"

Not that it matters either way. She mimes writes her name in the air, and then expectantly holds her hand palm-up.

"I'm Tzei. Give me some information."  

[kuropeco]

He squinted at her.

There was a long moment of silence that possibly could have been broken by a tumbleweed going through if the two of them were in a western somewhere. But since they were in a room with a bunch of space age pods, the tumbleweed was instead a piece of paper that drifted off the desk and floated serenely between them.

"Nash," he said, giving Tzei a friendly smile that was a little sharklike at the edges. He slapped his palm into hers to give it a shake. "You're on Deus Ex Machina, and now you're gonna be eaten by monsters."

Nash's grin widened.

"I hope you have good insurance."

PyroGoth

 

[PyroGoth]

kuropeco

"Ahah! Hahaha! Insurance! A joke, I get it."

She can appreciate levity. Her laugh is somewhat unnerving, but it's at least genuine. Not quite sure what she's supposed to do with the hand, she kind of patty-cakes it, her face falling a little when she realizes there's nothing in his explanation she hasn't already guessed.

"I guess that's all I really need to know. Thanks. Maybe I'll die sometime soon anyway, huh? Haha!"

With a last (friendly) pat on his hand, she turns away, ready to wander around until she finds something else of interest.  

[kuropeco]

He wasn't sure why she was slapping his palm the way she was, but to each their own, he guessed. Nash gave her a bright smile that turned into an exasperated one as he reached out and caught her by the collar of her shirt before she could walk away.

"Hold on there, you can't leave until I've actually told you s**t. Job requirement and all."

PyroGoth

 

[PyroGoth]

kuropeco

"Huhhh? What's left to tell? We fight shadows and maybe die. Right? Not so hard. Unless you mind dying. So..."

She carefully leans away...nope. Still holding on to the collar.

"Okay, okay. Again. Give me information."  

[kuropeco]

Nash was still holding her collar. His other hand rose to tick off the numbers as he spoke.

"One," he said. "You don't just fight shadows, you fight actual monster people things. Two, you need a weapon to do that, and you also get this badass shield that goes around you when you fight. Three, that weapon talks to you like, in your head. It's kinda weird."

PyroGoth

 

[PyroGoth]

xkuropeco

"Killing people. Okay. Use a weapon. Okay. Telepathic weapon. Okayyyy ♫"

She looks around. No weapons here. She cranes her head over.

"So where's the weapon stash? Hey, are we at war? Huh? Are we in some kind of holy war? Or are our employers just killing them for fun?"

The recruiter was a little vague -- not that it really mattered either way.  

[kuropeco]

Well, she was certainly taking it better than she could have been. Nash gave her a scrutinizing look.

"We're always at war," he deadpanned deliberately, then added, "There's like a cave and s**t you go to for your weapon. It talks to you in your head, and it chooses you, not the other way around. Also before you get it, you have to prove yourself by fighting a monster."

He was still holding onto her collar.

PyroGoth

 

[PyroGoth]

kuropeco

"Sentient weapon in the sentient weapon cave gets to choose. I'm not picky ❤"

There's still no cave in sight, so she takes her time and listens to him talk. The voice echoing in the hallway is rather soothing--

"--Well. Well, well, well."

She twists around, suddenly very close, their foreheads almost touching.

"Are you the monster?"  

[kuropeco]

She was too close.

Nash stared at her suspiciously.

"Aren't all of us monsters? I mean really, what makes up a monster?" he said, in conversational tones. "I' mean, I could be, it's debatable."

Pyrogoth