Where Ma'am meets Paparoach and things go absolutely scuttlingly.
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Psykgi did not find herself often in Busthind, and only then in the company of Leeroi, who did not usually leave the hive. So, it was when he was passed out from video games and various versions of food crashes that she took the opportunity to explore this strange mountain place... after, of course, ensuring that he was well situated and comfortable. Her first goal was to find groceries – preferably fresh. It wasn't that Psykgi couldn't live off of junk food and unhealthy crap, but she preferred not to, and Leeroi could sometimes get possessive over his junk food.
Produce procurement vendors were apparently difficult to come by in the mountains and the best she could manage was a small market built into a large overhang. It was an open air market, lit by the stars and by strings of lights and run by bulky trolls clearly used to mountain life. Psy, of course, was never intimidated by anything, and she figured these trolls would take her beetles same as any other.
So it was with plenty of confidence and, of course, a sizable swarm of cockroaches, that she entered the market and began poking around for delicious produce...
Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2015 10:51 am
Adamaz put on his sweatshirt. He'd been spending so much time walking lately, or running with Aerona, that he hadn't really been on a good ol' walk through Busthind. He reached out to Papa Roach, and he climbed aboard Adamaz's mohawk.
It was a warmer day for Busthind. The streets and grasses, usually dewy from the moisture in the night air, were dry. As he approached town, he saw more trolls milling about than usual, enjoying the good weather. The shadow of Busthind under the starlight stretched lazily, as though it too was enjoying the warmth and the respite it brought from the melting snow.
Papa Roach chittered, and reminded Adamaz that groceries were a must for this trip. Adamaz nodded slowly and tried to remember what needed getting... juice, probably? Some fruits if they have them, some cluckbeast eggs, maybe a few bagels? After trying to make a list, he shrugged. He'll just roll with what they got, like usual. Maybe there's a sale.
He approached the marketplace at an even pace. When it came within sight, he noticed something... odd. There seemed to be a kind of...pulsating mass of white scales walking up the road ahead of him. It seemed to be catching the eyes of other pedestrians as well, judging by the craned necks and paling faces. Adamaz was curious, and picked up the pace to get a closer look.
Without warning, Papa Roach hissed and shot out from Adamaz's hair in a white flash. He landed a few feet in front of him, and began skittering forward as fast as Adamaz had ever seen him move. Adamaz blinked. Papa Roach rarely came down from his perch unless there was a threat. Regretting the absence of his (t)rusty trash can lid, he kept an eye on Papa Roach.
Hissing intermittently as he got closer (his little legs couldn't move him much faster than a child's walking pace), he finally reached the mass of whatever it was. On closer inspection, Adamaz noticed that the scales looked like bigger versions of Papa Roach. No wonder his lusus was curious.
In a sudden burst of speed, Papa Roach spread his wings and jumped, rocketing into the mass with a tiny "eeeeeeee." He lunged into the mass of roaches.
Psykgi had found what appeared to be a fruit stall of some kind in the market, apparently the only one of its kind. It was a little dingy and certainly didn't have the wide selection that she could find in Civisect, but it was decent and do fine for her purposes and Psykgi wasn't that picky about what she ate – with a lusus like hers, go figure. ”Well, Ma, what do you think of...” she trailed off, surprised, because the swarm that was her mother was doing an awfully unusual thing.
It had suddenly begun to roil – more than usual – a white and anxiously chittering mass of cockroaches. Psykgi couldn't figure out one message amidst the chaos, and she crouched, reaching out towards her lusus. ”What is it?” she asked, unease – a rare emotion for the confident young troll – beginning to grow inside of her. She had never seen Ma'am act like this before. She knew that in serious danger, Ma'am would act erractically as she summoned more of the swarm to her troll's side, but Psykgi knew what that looked like. Though she did not pretend to know all of her Lusus's biological oddities, this was different. Had something interfered with Ma'am's pheromones? Was there anti-insect poison around? Normally her Lusus was fine with it, typically being just too much to be killed completely by it, but what if...
Ma'am shrieked and bustled and chittered and rattled like dry parchment, causing an awful ruckus as she formed a living ball of roaches over the newcomer, each individual roach of her swarm assessing and adding it's alarm or otherwise to the collective. Finally, the swarm reached a consensus. The chatter died down and the movements of the swarm became more unified and, eventually, the smaller roach was lifted onto the top of the now flattened swarm like a stick emerging from the sea.
”Um, Ma?”
Little, beady red eyes turned towards her, antennae waving. All is well, Ma'am reassured her charge. She was equal parts flattered, annoyed, and uncaring about Psykgi's concern. She proceeded to parade around, the larger cockroaches carrying the smaller roach on their backs,
”Okay, but what is happening?” she asked, poking at one of her roaches, ”Ma'am...”
All is well, the swarm reassured her again, the cockroach she poked at fluttering, almost teasingly, out of her reach, All matter of thing was well.
Psykgi stared at her Lusus, perplexed. ”Huh...”
Posted: Fri Jul 31, 2015 12:10 am
DraconicFeline
Papa Roach, the threat-slash-curiosity having been assessed, chittered and attempted to communicate with Ma'am. It's a pleasure to meet you! Do you like garbage? Does one of you like garbage? This is a lovely party. He didn't know if Ma'am could understand him, of course. But he finds so few fans of GARBAGE these days, and it'd be swell to have a chum, you know?
Adamaz crept closer as the swarm began to settle down. He looked perplexedly at Papa Roach. It was hard to understand his hisses right now...almost like he was trying different accents in an attempt to communicate with the other roaches. Whatever he was doing, things were fine. Cool.
Adamaz suddenly noticed a troll around his age standing across from him, also near the roach-pile, and also confused. Adamaz looked at the troll, then back to the pile. He wasn't the brightest, he'd be the first to say. But he could put two and two together.
Adamaz cleared his throat.
"Hi. Which one is your lusus? Mine is the one on top."
Papa Roach was surrounded by Ma'am's many excited voices.Yes, Ma'am liked garbage. She chittered assent from various mouths, oddly delighted and intrigued with just a dash of suspicious and annoyed – she especially liked fruit, slightly rotted... Not in her troll's hive of course. Of course. She'd never encountered another species of lusus-roach before, and she did, indeed, hope to make a 'chum'... or at least assess him for a threat.
Psykgi was finding watching the bustling white roach pile fascinating and a little bit dizzying, especially since Ma'am had opted not to explain things. She looked up, distracted, at the ornageblood, before his comment went through.
”Oh! That's your lusus?” how neat! How... tiny. And he only had one? Or did he? ”I... Well, all of the other ones are mine, ha ha!” she said, gesturing to the pool of large roaches, ”They're a hivemind – a swarm.” she stood up to face Adamaz, grinning, ”Is he the only one?” she had to make sure, because it was so strange to think of... ”Or do you have a bunch too?” Which would be amazing – Psy would be delighted to meet another Troll with a swarm lusus.
Posted: Sat Aug 08, 2015 2:17 pm
DraconicFeline
Adamaz stared, though he knew it was impolite. All... all of them? "Wow. How'd you get so many lusii? Do they all bring in their own garbage and stuff?" His mind raced. There were so many questions. So many, that he neglected to answer the other trolls question.
Feeling like he'd triumphed at the inter-subspecies communication, Papa Roach attempted to start up a conversation about their respective wards. What's your ward like? Mine is such a nice boy. Papa Roach twiddled his feelers with pride.
Had he even been listening? Oh well, Psy could explain to a fellow... what had Tamiya called her... Chitterlarvae? Skittergrub? Something like that. Ma'am was, after all, a complicated Lusus.
”Goodness, I don't know how I got her – she picked me out, same as any lusus!” she explained, ”Don't let all the many, many, bodies fool you! That's one lusus. Essentially. I don't know how it works, you see, but they act as one entity. One entity with many scuttering bodies and lots of eyes.” she grinned, proudly, ”Who can end up anywhere she pleases.” Which was one of the most fun parts about her lusus.
She was a little taken by surprise by his other comment, though. ”Garbage?” she blinked, ”Hmm. What do you mean?”
He certainly seemed like a nice boy... yes he did. A little slow... no, don't say that, he's likely just surprised. Just surprised. Well, we are very surprising. Yes. Yes. We meant no offense. None at all. None.
The swarm was communicating (and arguing) with itself as much as it was communicating with papa roach, a mess that somehow worked even though he, being a fellow roach (albieit of a brownish blood caste!) was comparatively privy to the internal affairs of the swarm. Moreso than Psykgi, anyway.
Our ward is smart. Very smart. She will be very smart. IS smart. Smart and nice. She will be famous someday. Not famous – she doesn't need to be famous. She can be famous if she wants to. She will go far, get a good job, find herself a good matespirit and kismesis. And maybe a better moirail than that one. That one isn't so bad. Not too bad. Horrible. At least she has one. His lusus is nice.
Finally, though, the swarm got its act together long enough to ask a single question and make a single, unified statement. Please, the collective that called itself Ma'am said to the powerful roach in their midst, tell them more about their troll.
Posted: Mon Aug 10, 2015 6:27 pm
DraconicFeline
Adamaz had never thought that one lusus could be more than one creature. It was kind of baffling to think about. Instead, he replied:
"Papa Roach likes collecting stuff. Garbage, mostly. From the dump up the mountain." He gestured with his thumb in the direction of the scrapyard, and his hive. "What I meant was, do your - does your lusus do that? Do all of them do it, one by one, or just... all of them? The one?" Usually, Adamaz knew what to say when he said it. His confusion was making him flustered. He wasn't used to being embarrased. He wiped his nose on his sleeve. "Sorry, I'm not makin' much sense," he mumbled. "My scuttlebeast likes garbage." He needed to work on his small talk. Not many friends to practice with, though.
===
Oh HO, my fair Ma'am(s), I'd LOVE to talk about little Addy. Where can I start? He's so... focused. Straightforward. Thinks to do something, and does. An old soul! He likes to take long walks through Chittentown, and through Busthind. Oh, and he is also a FANTASTIC harmonica player.
My, he's a hardy boy. Hardy, like me! I bet he could be run over by a car and be fine! Er, not that I'd, er, LET that happen of course. No no. Papa Roach flicked his whiskers nervously. But. You know. Sweet boy, and all that.
”Um.” Psykgi thought for a moment. ”Well, gosh!” she said, ”I don't actually know! There's a lot I don't know about Ma.There's an entire area underneath my hive that I'm not allowed into! Maybe she's collecting garbage and putting it there! Who knows!” she smiled affectionately at the swarm, ”She's a real enigma.”
Said enigma was intrigued by the other Lusus's bragging.
Harmonica, did he say? Yes, instruments were good for young trolls. Ma'am had heard that they improved the mind. Improved it. Or expressed it? Either way, very good. She'd tried to get Psykgi to learn one, but it was not to be. It sounded like a train wreck. It sounded fine. Her troll cannot play an instrument. But that is fine.
Focused. Focused was good. She was focused too. She had to be. Focused. Her troll was intense. She might not seem like it, but yes. Intense. Too intense for her own good? No, always just the right amount of intense. But there was...
The swarm rearranged itself.
Her troll was not straightforward. For her troll, the twisting path was the way to victory. Her troll observed. Her troll watched. Her troll was smart – yes she had said that already.
Walks were good. Straightforward was good. If their children got along, perhaps they could get along more often. Playdates. Yes – always good. No, she was being hasty.
The swarm rearranged itself again, and wondered, aloud, in many voices, whether his troll lived around here, or was – like her own troll – a traveller?
Completely incidentally, Psykgi and her Ma were thinking along the same track.
”So, I'm Psykgi!” she contemplated not offering her hand, but in the end she was a child of cockroaches: she might be decently clean, but she was not afraid of a little garbage. ”I'm visiting from Civisect city – do you live around here?”
Posted: Sun Aug 16, 2015 8:02 pm
DraconicFeline
Secret room, huh? Sounded pretty cool. Also, mysterious, and not something to press. Adamaz stood and listened to the redblood's introduction. Adamaz smiled. He stepped around the scuttlebeast pile and took the handshake - after wiping his hand on his sweatshirt first.
"I'm Adamaz. I live up the mountain," he said, thumbing the slope behind him. "Never been to Civisect. I usually go here or to Chittentown if I want to go for a walk. Sounds like a cool place though." He glanced down at the pile of scuttlebeasts. "They seem to have hit it off."
===
Oh indeed! Indeed. So wonderful to hear. Your ward seems lovely! Nice girl. Hrmm. Yes. Papa Roach stroked his feelers like a mustache. A playdate! Well of course! Just up the road. Next to the dump! Not in the dump, but the last hive before! Send a...messenger, I suppose. Or phone! That's nice too. M'boy rarely gets guests. Papa Roach fluttered his wings. Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get back to my ward. We have shopping to do!
”Oo, you live in Busthind? Goodness! That's very convenient! See, I've been coming up here a lot to visit a good friend of mine, and I think it would be just fantastic to have a bunch of other friends up here to visit too!” chattered Psykgi. ”His name's Leeroi Furore – a blueblood! Do you know him?” Wouldn't that be excellent? ”Also, you wouldn't happen to like video games too, would you?” and that would just be perfect.
Ahh! She was a little overexcited, sure, but why should she not be? She rarely got to talk to fellow lowbloods, and this boy – in a very literal lusus-related way – spoke her language. Not that they were chittering now, and they certainly weren't talking about her interests, but sometimes other things needed to be talked about, and she knew it was, academically, healthy. And right now, it was just plain great.
”Oh it is cool! It's a great place to live. Of course, if you're lower blooded...” she said matter-of-factly, ”You do have to be careful, but ohhh, the lights! The action! It's a gorgeous city!” And she wouldn't leave it for the world.
Ma'am was pleased with how this conversation was going. Yes – Good – this lusus was amenable to her plans.
Though, she felt that contact by phone would be best for such things. Single messengers had a tendency to forget complicated messages, and a relay of messages between the swarm here and the main swarm back in Civisect would take far too long. Yes. The phone would be best.
Interestingly, the swarm remarked, retracting their many legs to give him room to take off, she and her troll were also shopping! Perhaps they could shop together before they went on their way! Wouldn't that be nice?
”Wow! They certainly have!” she gave Papa roach a wave as he flew over. ”So, what are you here for? I'm getting a few groceries, here and there. Leeroi's hive – Oh, right, I stay there when I'm in Busthind, by the way – needs some fresh food and snacks.”
Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 3:51 pm
The stream of information from his new friend reminded him of Aerona a little. Not a bad thing at all.
Adamaz scratched his face. “Don’t know too many people in the neighborhood. Don’t play any video games, either. Never tried them, really.” He neglected to say why: it was impossible to find a working video grub at the dump, much less a working console. If they weren’t damaged before they were thrown away, they certainly were after they were tossed into the dump. Buying new stuff always seemed like a hassle. He’d always managed to entertain himself… but trying new things was fun. New friends were good, too.
Papa Roach scuttled up his pant-leg and onto his shoulder. The familiar tickle made him chuckle. “But uh. Yeah. I was thinkin’ of getting some groceries too. And trying some video games sometime soon sounds like fun.”
”Well goodness!” Psykgi said. Her lusus re-formed around her, scuttling rather happily about and on her person. ”I should totally introduce you! Leeroi has so many video games- all kinds - and he's a lot of fun!” she said animatedly.
She continued to chat happily as the two bought their groceries from the stern-faced Busthinders. Of course, Psykgi couldn't buy too much – she'd have to carry it up the unpleasant mountain paths after all. With a basket full of melons and other fruits, she turned to the other wiggler. ”You know, it was really great to meet you!” she said honestly, smiling, ”I have to get back to Lee's hive, but gosh! I'd love to talk to you again! Adamaz... what was your other name?” she asked, ”I'll look you up in the big ol' Imperial Phone Pagelog when I get home – its not hard to get to, honestly – and I'll give you a call. Oh! My last name's Mentha, by the way!” she laughed again.
She really had had a great time!
Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2015 12:10 am
DraconicFeline
Sure! This one, if you'd like. Feels like a good point for them to say goodbye.
Adamaz bought himself a basket-full of fruit. Some of it wasn't very fresh, but it'd do. If he let it go bad, it would always be good roach food.
It was great meeting Psykgi too. Adamaz didn't have too many friends or acquaintances. He knew an opportunity to have some when he saw one, though. "My other name's Karoth." he said, grinning brightly.
He wondered if he would be any good at video games. He wondered if Psykgi's friends would mind if he wasn't. Above all, he hoped she really would call. That'd be nice.
"It was great meeting you too, Psykgi. Guess I'll let you be off, then." He turned, put his free hand in his pocket, and started up the mountain towards his hive.
