If there's something that can characterize your last few weeks, it's 'exhausting' and 'frustrating'.
Status gained: TiredEvery night you come home you feel like you can barely stand up. You fall unconscious only to wake up in the afternoon with all your muscles aching. You've been forcing yourself to walk on two legs, something your body clearly is not happy about. But you have to learn how to do it if you want to be good at your job. And all the effort is starting to pay off. You've learnt how to balance well enough and in the last couple of days you've started to feel like your body is complaining a lot less. Maybe your muscles are getting stronger, maybe your body is adapting.
Even walking on two legs is not enough to solve all your problems. Your hands are not good at manipulating machines. You lack the necessary dexterity and your claws keep getting in the way. It would be so much easier if you could use your mouth, but you know Eiwhyl would get mad if you did that (not to mention there's a great many things that can't fit in your mouth). Ali suggested trimming your claws to make it easier to grab things, but you're reluctant to give them up. You'd feel disarmed without them.
And then there's Ali's parents. You're not sure what the problem is. Maybe they're getting suspicious of the changes in your behaviour. Maybe they just don't like you. You've been trying to make them like you and you think it's working, to an extent. But there's always something... off. And then there was that time they changed the lock-code for the door. You couldn't make it to Eiwhyl's on time and she was so angry the next day...
That's why you're now even more determined to practice flying. Eiwhyl's given you some suggestions based on other flying species. She's been letting you use her window to jump out and glide back down to Ali's Apartment. During your short decent, you've been practicing, circling the tower, trying to stay in the air for as long as possible.
The worst is Ali. You wake up late, you're always tired. There's too little time and energy left for you to play with her, at least not for very long. You try to make it up to her by talking to her about your day, the things you saw and the things you learned. She smiles and praises you, but you can somehow tell she misses you when you're away.
Despite all the hardships you've experienced during that time, there have been moments that have made you think that all the pain and stress might be worth it.
Like when you managed to fly all the way up to Eiwhyl's in one go, without having to pause for a rest. Granted, there was a favourable updraft helping you, but that does little to diminish the joy you received from this achievement.
Short Flight: You can glide in order to survive falls and quickly move great distances. You can even fly upwards for short distances. You can use favorable winds and updrafts to increase your glide time.
Or after receiving your first salary. 20 credits as a reward for your help. It's not a lot but you don't really need a lot. It feels great knowing you have earned these credits with your hard work. And there's a primal satisfaction in seeing your pile of colorful valuable things grow.
Item Gained: 60 credits (3 blue chips)Or that time Eiwhyl woke up and scrambled out of her room, thinking you'd failed to wake her up, only to find that you'd exchanged the healing vat's empty canister with a full one yourself. She didn't take your word for it of course, she made sure to double check your work, but you've come to expect that. You don't see it as an insult, as mistrust. She simply cares too much about her work and worries too much about the people under her care. She's not yet certain that you've learned everything you need to. And, if nothing else, it makes it all the more rewarding when she finally relents and admits you did a good job.
Basic Nursing: You know the basics of caring for patients and preparing and maintaining equipment used in their care. You can also administer certain simple treatments. However you still lack much of the knowledge necessary for you to be able to determine what said treatment should be.
Eiwhyl doesn't like talking about herself too much. You've tried talking to her during your shared meals, but she either avoids the questions or flat out refuses to answer. You don't learn much from watching her either. She never leaves her Clinic, at least not when you're around. Even the meals you share are delivered to her door. And the door is always closed when she's in her room. Ali also doesn't know much about her. All she could tell you was that her species of horned humanoids is called Iktotchi and that it's rumored they know the future. Given how many times you've managed to surprise her, you're pretty sure that's not true.
At least Eiwhyl was willing to talk about biology and about you. She did a good job giving you some basic knowledge of the inner workings of humans and some of the other most common species. However when it comes to you, she doesn't really know that much. She used her machines to examine you but whatever they told her, it didn't help, at least not beyond pointing out some already obvious organs. She tried searching using your blood and searching in her datapads, but she found nothing like you. Her theory is that you're a draconic species from some unknown world. She asked for more information about your hatching and where you came from, but you weren't certain if you should answer. She might get mad if she learns you killed and ate a human, even if that human did shoot first.
You've also been speaking to Eiwhyl's clients and patients. You've discovered that almost all species can understand at least the basics of the human language and can even read and write it, even if they can't speak it. Ali has taught you the 34 symbols used to represent the sounds used in human language, so if you can get them to write what they want to say, you can communicate with them (though figuring out the words from the symbols still takes a lot of time).
Basic Human Language: You are able to understand many of the most common words of the human language, including some that express more abstract things, though there are still a great many words and expressions that you have yet to learn. You can also read, though it takes you some time to understand the words. You can also speak, though it's sometimes hard for others to understand you.
That goes for the human body-language as well: nods and hand gestures are also universal, at least for many species that have such appendages (and even some that don't). And many of the species that don't use human body language tend to use displays very similar to yours, which makes them easy to understand. That, along with a smattering of words of other languages has helped you take care of patients and fulfill their needs. You've been trying to convince Eiwhyl to let you man the shop while she sleeps as well.
Communication: You have a knack for understanding other beings, even those whose language you don't know.
All in all, life is difficult and uncertain, but improving. You're feeling optimistic about your future.
...
You and Eiwhyl have just finished your meal. It's one of those rare occasions where you've seen her smile. You just told her a joke Ali told you ("Why did the man hurt all over? He had a broken finger.") and she responded with one of her own ("What did one eye say to the other? 'Something between us smells!'"). You don't really get this 'joke' thing, but it makes them smile, so you participate.
That's when the doorbell rings. Eiwhyl's mood goes sour the moment she hears the voice coming from the intercom. She goes to open the door and the moment she does so a blue-skinned biped rushes in. You recognize her. You saw her arguing with Eiwhyl on your first day at work. Her name is Iseng'ela. She used to work with Eiwhyl but "run off to do something dumb because she's dumb" some time ago.
That's all Eiwhyl told you. She's still mad at her. But this time there's something different. Instead of the mutual anger and frustration you saw last time, this time there's fear and desperation. You can't understand the specifics since they're not using the human language, but you can tell Iseng'ela is scared and asking for help. You see the shock and fear spread to Eiwhyl's body language before it is masked by anger. Eiwhyl is demanding that she leaves.
Age: a few months (hatchling)
Size: about the size of a large dog
Status: tired, satiated
Health: fine
Weapons: claws and teeth
Armor: soft scales
Abilities:
- Short Flight: You can glide in order to survive falls and quickly move great distances. You can even fly upwards for short distances. You can use favorable winds and updrafts to increase your glide time.
- Basic Human Language: You are able to understand many of the most common words of the human language, including some that express more abstract things, though there are still a great many words and expressions that you have yet to learn. You can also read, though it takes you some time to understand the words. You can also speak, though it's sometimes hard for others to understand you.
- Communication: You have a knack for understanding other beings, even those whose language you don't know.
- Basic Nursing: You know the basics of caring for patients and preparing and maintaining equipment used in their care. You can also administer certain simple treatments. However you still lack much of the knowledge necessary for you to be able to determine what said treatment should be.
- Large Sonic Rifle covered by old torn clothes (in Maintenance Tunnels, behind a pipe)
- Pack with plastoid tape modifications (equipped on left side)
- Half-used medpac
- 290 credits (1 yellow, 4 blue, 1 red)
- half-used roll of plastoid tape
- flashlight
- small can of droid oil
- small metal toolbox
- Ali's Apartment (Lair): A tiny 2 bedroom apartment. The little human Ali lives there with Dad/Jobal and Mom/Ania. Room 327.
- Ali's Apartment Tower: Apartments arranged in a circle. Clean, bright, mostly locked doors, few hiding places. Little traffic during the night.
- Eiwhyl's Clinic: Sells medpacs and other healing items and provides treatment. Warning: stabby. Room 509.
- Streets: Dirty streets, parked hovercars, shops, building entrances, street vendors, little traffic during the night.
- Maintenance Tunnels: Interconnected tunnels, small and large, going low and high. Connect various streets and buildings. Wires and pipes. Dark, dirty, with old machines constantly rumbling. Scavenger-vermin and hunters-of-vermin.
- Garbage Pit: A large room with mountains of garbage half-submerged in a sea of sludge. More garbage frequently arrives from holes in the ceiling. A monster lurks here, may pull prey underwater.
- Hydroponic Pool: A room with a large pool filled with plants. A ceiling full of bright lamps. A spherical gardener-droid takes care of the plants. Patrolled by hostile gunmen. A corridor leads to other rooms. Storage room. Processing room. Other rooms are unexplored.
- Iyran Grower Shop: A store located deeper into the tower's streets. Operated by a cephalopoid. The grower sells cheap synthetic meat, amongst other things.
Poll
1 (6.7%)
Author
Topic: Surviving in an Alien World [Suggestion Game] (Read 107022 times)