I've been writing a fanfiction on the MSPA forums, and I thought maybe you guys would want to read it. Warning: It's pretty long, and kind of choppy since I wrote it out in 7 chapters. I'm actually working on the second "book" now, called Homeworld. The third one will be them in the Fleet, and the fourth one... Well, that plot contains spoilers.
It fizzed.
The yolk like a moon over sickly green skies then they're gone. Slime poured forth, staining the ground a dark grey with moisture. Tiny legs, little more than thumbtacks, scratched insistantly at the paneled stone blocks. The soft squish of hatching eggs echoed wetly around the chamber.
The grub wriggled loose of the gelatinous ball of the egg. It breathed, for the first time, the dirty mix of Methane, Helium and Nitrogen that made up Alternia's atmosphere. Its lungs crackled, opening up to accept this newfound source of life. Muscles twitched in unison as the grub took its first breath.
But already there was a threat. Even with it's eyes closed, the grub sensed another, nearby, begin to thrash as a massive grub bit into its back. Something in its mind told the grub to flee, something else told it to fight, and in contrast to the others shouts and yells of instinctive alarm there was a third voice. A soft one. One that simply said, watch.
But the others drowned out the softer voice, and the grub leaped to the defense of the second grub, throwing its small form against the Massive One with all the strength it could muster. Blindly it bit and clawed, bringing sweet relief to the wounded grub nearby. The Massive One, surprised, retreated away, spraying the world with phermones that said "Danger! Fear! Fear!"
The Newborn Grub wriggled the couple inches to the Wounded Grub, and, acting on instinct once again, began to lick them clean. The blood had a odd tast to it. Instinctively the Newborn Grub knew that this would be a blue-blood, although he knew no name for the color, or even of any other colors. Everything was deeply subconscious, deeply intwined in the back of the Newborn's head. So too was the first noise it uttered, as it cleaned the Wounded ones bleeding side.
"Azla."
The Wounded One rolled over to let Azla at the scratches on its underbelly. It too uttered noise, but it had a more nasally ring to it, and a slight hissing sound underneath it all.
"Iksti"
And so the two grubs, Azla and Iksti, found in themselves friends in a land of enemies and emptyness. Amidst the darkness, the two found and knew eachother, despite their eyes still being closed.
And in the skin of the Massive purpleblood, embedded in the soft flesh of a newborn grub, Azla's eggtooth, shimmering yellow-white in the dim electric lights.
***********************
The room was smooth and tiled neatly with a large motif of a troll striking down a group of aliens. The floor tiles would occasionally change color, and the picture would change. The only constant was that it always showed trolls lording their superiority over other races.
Against the walls sat several large troughs, each low to the ground and stained with blood from grubs who got in the way too long. Streaks led out of the gristly trough, showing where the dying grubs had trailed off into the center of the room. The dead grubs were then promptly eaten by their bretheren. Why let the nutrients go to waste?
Azla and Iksti huddled in the middle of the room. Three days after hatching, they had finally opened their eyes to the world, subsiting off of light rather than scents and tastes. They had grown quickly as well, now almost two feet long and half a foot in circumference. They were still small, but they also were still the only ones with enough sense to ally with eachother. They kept threats off of the others back and were repayed in kind. They had a sort of friendship going on, but they still hadn't spoken.
A soft buzzer sounded and the larger grubs rished to the front where a sickly purple slime came out of a massive metal tubing. It would start to coagulate in the tube, then drop off from the reat of the slime and spatter the grubs with the gelatin. There was a frenzy, grub biting grub to feast on the slime. The bigger ones would far too often kill the smaller ones, not taking into consideration the size difference in their rush to ingest the incredible concoction.
A bit of the slime landed on Iksti, sticking to her thin skin in a single blob. Azla immediately spun to face the grubs already rushing in toward her back, newborns hardly a day old. They were smaller than he was, and he shrugged them off as Iksti took the ones on the other side. They fought like this for a few minutes, until the rest had given up on getting the slime off of Iksti's back.
Azla helped himself to the spoils; Iksti being unable to reach it herself did nothing to stop him. He was gentle enough to avoid the deeper cuts, although his mandibles nicked her slighlty. Iksti took it silently, looking again at the trough. Somewhere a actual thought began to stir.
We have to get up there.
It was only vaguely recognizable as a thought, but it was certainly not a reaction. She didn't phrase it in words, but in the strange ways grubs think. She nipped her friend, her way of telling him to move with her. He understood and followed her, pushing through the throng to where their eggmates had pushed to. It wasn't anywhere near the trough, but it was closer, and residual schoolslime had stained the floor venom purple. More of it would spatter here, and there would be bigger enemies.
But they would be alone, and Iksti and Azla would be together. There is strength in numbers and they proved that fact, keeping away the hordes of grubs converging on them for a taste of the slime. And because of that, they ate well, they grew large, and smart, and fast.
That is why, only eight weeks later, they found themselves in a unmarked cave, fighting for their lives against horrible monsters. But for the both of them, it was fine.
They weren't alone.
***********************
Six weeks of schoolfeeding. Two weeks of appraisal by emotionless drones, checking for cripples, broken grubs who would be used to feed the mother grub with her weekly stew of proteins and vitamins. Eight weeks altogether, and they had made it out.
They could talk now, although it was grubspeak, and no adult troll could make the right noises for it. They understood eachother well enough, and that was all that mattered. But the advantage they had in teamwork was gone. The grubs had begun to realize what they were missing, and were joining together in tenative alliances. Betrayals were common, though, and so they held little advantage.
But it wasn't the others they had to be worried about. After they were forced out of the schoolfeeding chambers they had made their way into a network of caves and tunnels, filled with tiny, vicious spiders. Thus far they had managed to survive, but lately Iksti complained about feeling weak, or sick. Azla was concerned. He told himself that he was afraid for his own skin, afraid of losing Iksti because she protected him. He tried to tell himself he was just like everyone else.
But when he admitted to himself the truth, he genuinely just wanted Iksti alive so Iksti could be alive.
The duo rested on a rock, heads lying on thin spines of legs. They pressed close, enjoying the warmth in the always cool cave system, not speaking for a while, and then striking up small conversation. It was a good day, for both of them.
Until Iksti shuddered and groaned.
"What is it? Are you going to vomit again?"
"I hope not..."
Iksti pressed closer to Azla. He nuzzled her slightly before lifting up on four legs to get a good look at the surroundings. He stayed in that alert state, watching the dark corners and the entrances to their small cavern.
When he looked back down, Iksti seemed to be asleep. However, her hind end was moving rythmically, spinning silk back and forth over her body. The silk was a whitish-blue, the same hue as her blood, but lighter by far.
She was spinning a cocoon.
He breathed a deep breath. He was terrified. He would have no help anymore. Not until she was free. She couldn't fight in that state, she couldn't hold off any advancing spiders.
But he could.
He stood a little straighter, even more alert. I won't let her down. I can't let her die. Not here, not now. Not after what we've done for eachother. I've invested too much time already keeping her alive.
The darkness pressed in like a dismal blanket. The silence made it's own symphony, a orchestra of desolation and fear. The halls were empty, but they didn't feel that way.
"I'm alone. And for her, I can stay that way."
But not for long.
***********************
The world was made of little lines, crisscrossing across the sky and under her body. The world was just long enough for her to be there, to exist. To endure the changes she was going through.
Legs retracted and bones snapped as they shifted slowly into new, strange positions. There was a sickening snap as one of her legs just dropped off, and even though it didn't hurt at all, just the sound made her whimper.
But that was another thing. She couldn't open her mouth. She couldn't move. She could barely think, with all the changing. She felt as if she were paralyzed, she felt no pain, but the noises. The noises of her own joints breaking up, bones dissolving, of organs squelching into new positions, slowly, slowly, it felt like years listening to her own body get rearranged.
But then there was a day (or was it just a second?) when the noises stopped. There was real silence. She could move, she could make noises, she could wriggle these strange things that she knew were called fingers but couldn't know why.
Then the sky broke open, and the world died.
***********************
Azlas cocoon had stuck itself right next to hers. He had watched her until his own time to enter the cocoon had come, and judging by the nearby scratches, had fought even that. Iksti felt her feelings soar for her best friend. She knew how seductive the urge to spin a cocoon could be, and from the looks of things he had fought tooth and nail to stay awake and protect her, even though the shell was harder then steel!
There was a skitter from one of the corners. Iksti looked blearily around for the source, but there was nothing to be seen.
There it was again. From the other side of the room. Iksti forced herself awake. She was on guard duty now. It was time to repay Azla for his dedication.
Yellow eyes flashed in the halflight of the caverns, looking not for a flash of something moving, but the telltale trails of heat. Tiny pinpricks sparkled against the cool stone like far off stars.
The spider leapt.
Iksti immediately ducked blow the leap, spinning to face the spider as it sailed overhead. She thrust out a elbow into the spiders lower abdomen, connecting with a dull thud.
The spider skittered to face Iksti, but she rushed ahead, thrusting a siffened hand into the spiders eyes, but the beast snapped backwards, then bit forward, fangs leading. Iksti ducked and threw up a arm, deflecting the large teeth, but getting nipped by the relatively harmless mouth of the spider. IT twisted, trying to bring it's venom to bear, but she cut it short with three sharp jabs to the underside of the head, crinching carapace and drawing the lightish blue blood into a brillaint streak of color.
The spider skittered back, but Iksti let it have no space, she rushed forward, throwing several ineffectual jabs at the sides of it's face, then kicking it into the wall, where it smashed into the stone in a shower of dust and pebbles. It got upright before she could get over to it, and bit down hard. Without thinking, Iksti grabbed the fangs inches from her throat.
"Stay away from her you FUCKING BASTARD!"
Azla slammed into the spider, throwing his whole weight into the blow. They two smashed against the wall, thrashing. The spider, in it's dying throes, slashed a spindly leg out and caught Azla in the eye. A purple-blue spray of blood was accompanied by a cry of agony.
The spider curled up and died.
Iksti rushed over to tend to Azla. His eye was torn right down the middle, a wicked slash running over the usless orb. Iksti curled her arms around him and tried to wipe away the blood, and the tears.
At least they were alive.
***********************
"I can't keep going. I feel weak. Leave me. Save yourself."
"Come on you selfish bastard, keep walking. You aren't going to make me miss my first moonrise."
"Just... Leave me. Go!"
"I'm not leaving you. Get up, Azla." She started dragging him through the tunnel, straining to move him.
"Please..."
"Don't fucking die on me! Don't you dare fucking die on me! We're almost there."
"You're... Delusional..."
"I can feel the breeze!" She lifted him onto her arm. He leaned on her, secretly thankful for the help.
Then he felt it too. A soft movement of air, a faint light at the end of the trial caverns! It was almost over, they were almost there. The light was getting brighter, brighter, brighter!
Azla began to scuffle forward on his own power, lightening the load on Iksti. The duo hurried up toward the surface, elation and wonder filling them to the brim.
And then they were out. The stars broke out like diamonds against the midnight-blue velvet of the sky. The moons hovered endlessly over the planet, watching the tiny goings on below. Purple and green in an endless dance overhead, the stars sparkling. Soft, natural light fell upon their shoulders, spilling over and through them until they felt as though they could fly. Azla's broken eye stopped hurting. Iksti broke down entirely and plopped on the ground, sobbing and looking up at the sky in wonder.
The world was bright. Pink trees swayed in the distance, stretching out to pluck the stars from the sky. The grass blew in waves, as if the ocean itself could not bear to be away from this moment. A city sparkled on the horizon like a million gemstones, colored windows shining dimly across the night. Somewhere a hopbeast skittered away.
They were here. They were on the surface. They were alive!
Azla sat down next to Iksti and put his arm around her shoulder, and they watched the night go by in silence.
***********************
Out of the cave slithers something large. Dry scales rustle on grey stone, sliding past the burrs and pointed outcroppings. It leaves a trail in the dust, a darker line in the powder coated floor. It slips into the grass, hissing.
The bird perched on it's head chirps, and the snake turns to the left, towards a duo of large animals. The things are looking at it, but the snake can't see. The bird does, however, and it chirps out a small warning to the snake.
The snake listens to something deeper, though. It feels itself being dragged mentally towards the strange creatures. It isn't psychic, it's instinct. The bird too feels the instinct, and so the pair of animals approach with caution.
The lusii are recived gratefully by Azla and Iksti, and together they set off to find someplace to live.
***********************
The dark ocean waters lap at the gritty shore, dissolving the land away, leeching the dry beach and making it it's own. In the ocean swells white beings dwell, thinking black thoughts, like a squids ink clouding their minds. They struggle for survival on the seashore, ekeing out existance by cold-hearted ruthlessness.
Something staggers out of a nearby cavern. It's coated in indigo blood, and it steams with angry heat. It stomps down the shore, clutching at a gash in it's arm, and snatches up a blind fish. It looks in the fishes face, and then bites down on its spine, killing the fish. The thing devours the meal whole and quickly.
Something large rose out of the waves, water pouring off it in waves. Thick grit was plastered onto it from the polluted ocean, making it's normally white shell a dismal grey color. The thing covered in indigo cracked it's neck.
The beast came down in a downward strike, throwing it's considerable bulk into the fight. The indigo creature leapt to the side, grabbing onto the scales and running up the round side of the massive snakelike being. It gripped the thing behind the eyes, in the two small holes that allowed it to see. It thrashed for a few seconds, and then was still.
The third lusus was obtained.
***********************
They don't let blue-bloods and Teals live together. Even though she's not much of a teal, and he's almost royal, they won't let them live together. It's simply not done. They cannot do it. They have to take their leave.
They resolve to find eachother again. They swear to themselves, over and over and over, that they will not - cannot - be separated for long. In the half-twilight of Nightbreak Iksti plants a kiss on Azlas cheek and blushes. He wraps her in a hug, and they head their separate ways, waving their goodbyes. They're nervous and lonely without eachother there, but they handle it. They're trolls, after all, they are meant to be alone.
It takes weeks for Azla to reach where his hive is supposed to be. Construction drones litter the lawnring, lying dormant in wait of someone who will reactivate them and add onto the exsisting hive, or drag them off to build a new one.
He makes it hang over a neaby cliff, overlooking the long, thick strip of gritty sand that is the beach. The soft sound of ocean waves can be heard throughout the building, giving off a calming sense of security. A deadly paradox, Azla realizes one day as he watches the monsters surface near the shore. A massive shark, as wide as Azlas house and twice as long, thrashes as a swarm of tiny leeches burrows in to lay their eggs. The shore is stained purple with blood, and Azla make himself a promise to never try to go swimming.
It takes a perigree for the hive to be completed and furnished. The construction drones head off to the west, for a new assignment, buzzing along on their small propellers, blinking in the setting sun. Azla is completely and utterly alone.
Well, not quite. Aezzi is there, his lusus, but she speaks nothing, only a hiss when she is hungry. She doesn't seem to understand anything he says, and makes for bad company without her seeing eye bird.
Azla is so very, very, very nearly alone.
***************************
They part on good terms, both understanding why it needs to be done. She figures he can handle himself, but she is still afraid for him. He's the only troll that ever showed her mercy, the only one who ever took a spiders leg in his eye in her defense. On an impulse she kisses his cheek, but regrets it almost immediately, until Azla hugs her back and tells her she's going to be fine.
It's another week walking through the pink, vibrant forests, passing other teal hives. The shirt she was given soon after she emerged marked her as a highblood, and so she was resented in the lower teal-blood communities. She would get evil looks, but she only hunched over and sped up slightly. This wasn't home.
Home was always over the next hill, for a week, two weeks. How many teals could there be? How many variations? Had they all gone through this hazing process of bad looks, gnashing teeth, bared weapons? She was filled with relief when she began to see trolls with almost her exact color blood.
She settled in a hivestem, rare amongst higher blood castes like teals, but not entirely uncommon. She planned out a far-reaching loft, pointed towards the ocean, where she knew Azla would go. She wished he was with her, but she resented herself almost immediately. How selfish, to put him through this for only a sense of security. Worse, possibly, since his caste would be resented and hated around here, even in her own hivstem.
It only took a week, with the construction drones only having to dig out the grassy material the hivestem was made out of and then build a lift. Another few weeks made a perigree, and her hive was completely finished and furnished, richly decorated in soft blues and purples. She made sure to hang a flag of teal out of her window, a attempt to show that she harbored no ill will against those lower than her on the totem pole. Alas, it didn't seem to work. She remained somewhat of an outcast.
She was, surrounded by people as she was, completely and utterly alone.
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Topic: MSPA Homestuck (Read 5223116 times)