forum Out in Space (classic lit and sci fi!) (CLOSED, stalkers welcome)

Started August 14, 2020 by @ElderGod-Icefire

tune

(alright!)
(Also Alek isn't actually a psychopath, he's just severely traumatized and probably suffers from anger issues, along with depression)

Sherlock blinked, looking at Eden. "Oh– yes. I'm not quite sure what to make of it, though. I fear that I am as blindly groping for answers as the rest of you. I do know that we seem to all represent a rather wide skillset, which may mean that Moriarty doesn't quite know what exactly we will be facing, and wanted to plan for all likelihoods."

(That’s fair)

“That seems likely. The Clay Man is tricky, and his people are violent. I… worked with a few of them, unknowingly, during my… you would call them formative years. Whoever they are, they seek to sow seeds of chaos and destruction in order to gain more power over people. They’d be a person of influence, and of great interest to certain circles like Moriarty’s if I’m not mistaken.” they said. Sherlock had a nice voice, they thought, something they wouldn’t mind listening to ramble on for hours.

Lo, who was now sitting on the counter, watched the interaction with interest as she munched on what appeared to be a cookie. Her legs were crossed, bare feet angled to stay off of the counter. "Speaking of our skillsets, if you don't mind me interrupting…what are everyone's particular skills? Anything you think would have garnered interest, made Moriarty put you on this case. Like Eden said, the Clay Man isn't just a normal, run of the mill criminal. I did some asking, and reading, and he seems to be entirely too good at avoiding police to even be considered on the same level as a long running serial killer."

“Victor’s is science. He’s… a bit eccentric, but he knows his way around a textbook. I don’t know what Moriarty wanted me around for, I’m fairly useless unless it’s for bashing someone’s head in.” Eden said sadly. They were a pathetic lump of stolen flesh that didn’t deserve their life, but they continued on anyways.

Mina took to listening to them silently, content with getting to know the people she’d be staying with indefinitely. A cold feeling settled in her chest when the tall person mentioned the Clay Man’s “people.” She was curious about Eden’s story with them, but she knew it would be a little nosy of her.
She went to sit down next to Lo, Jonathan joining her with a cookie for each of them. Taking hers, she shrugged at the question, a little unsure.
“I have a good friend who taught me everything I know about vampires, which I know the Clay Man regularly works with. That’s all I can think of off the top of my head. Oh, Eden,” her eyes flicked to them. “Don’t worry, I have a feeling we might need to bash some people’s heads in.”

“It is decidedly not reassuring to hear that. I abhor violence.” Eden sighed. “Nonetheless, if it is necessary, I will do what needs to be done.” they sat down on the couch in the living room, their huge frame taking up most of the space on it. “Our homme d'argile will not get away with their crimes so easily.”

"If you don't want to, I don't mind doing it." Lo said, with all the casual tone in her voice of someone discussing dinner. She flashed a smile over at Mina, eyes sparkling curiously. "I've always wanted to learn more about them, but it seems to be a very highly guarded topic whenever anyone does know something. Anything you'd like to share might be useful if we end up having to interact with any." She pointed out, taking another bite of her cookie and checking her nails. Lo didn't fit the bill of someone who would be hired on for something like this. The only even slightly notable thing–until she opened her mouth, of course–would have been the confidence she carried herself with. Not the normal kind, that you could attribute to a simply confident person. More like she knew she was one of the scariest things around her.

“Thank goodness, as do I,” she replied, her voice level. “Apologies, I had assumed that you wanted to feel useful in that way.”
She quirked a smile. Eden was a gentle giant. How endearing.
She glanced at Lo. “Well, it’s not a topic that comes up in normal conversation, now does it? But I’m glad you’re curious. Truthfully, I know more about what it’s like to be bitten than how to recognize a vampire, but they have dry, papery skin, and pretty nocturnal. It would be wise to keep the doors and windows shut during the night, just in case. They can’t enter a space without ‘being invited,’ as my friend says.”
Beside her, Jonathan shuddered a little, and Mina put a hand on his shoulder in reassurance.

Sherlock had been silent, listening to the others, but finally spoke up. "I have worked with the police on several occasions in order to apprehend criminals. I…am slightly unsure how to describe what I can do, but I have a photographic memory and excel at making deductions." They decided not to mention that they did occasionally use drugs, as that didn't seem to be necessary information.

Alek spoke up from where he had been listening on the stairs. "And I'm…guess I'm just batshit insane, huh? But I can do the head-bashing for Eden, if they don't want to." He slipped down onto the main level, eyes flashing around the group.

“As I said, I will do what needs done. I have a past that makes it all the more difficult to do so, but I will do these things.” they said, cringing at the use of their name. Their name was special to them, privy only to those they trusted and cared about, for most of the people here they felt neither of those things.

(alright! Just wanted to double-check because, uhm. Yeah)

Alek shrugged a little bit. He had taken some of the medication before he came downstairs, and he wasn't feeling quite right. Maybe the two weren't meant to be mixed? He rubbed the side of his head for a moment, a strange light in his eyes. "Of you say so."

"I wonder what we're supposed to do now, with this free time? Normally I would be working, but…" Lo mused, brows furrowing. She hadn't given up her own skills, mostly because the question was for the others. It wouldn't have made sense for her to answer her own question with them. "Plenty of time for baking. Speaking of! If everyone could, at some point, give me a list of ay allergies and foods they just won't eat, I would appreciate it. I cook a lot, and obviously it would now be for whoever wants to eat as well. Favorite foods are also very welcome!"

Sherlock hummed for a moment. "I don't have any known allergies, save for seasonal, but that shouldn't have any effect on the food." They replied. "I prefer not to eat meat, but I'll eat it on occasion if need be." They considered themselves rather half of a vegetarian, not eating meat if they had the choice not to, but they would eat it if they didn't have much of another choice.

Alek ran his hands through his hair. "I'll eat anything. No allergies, no preferences." He said, stretching and glancing around the group.

“Hmm, well, I’m not a big fan of anything spicy…” Mina mused, swallowing a bite of cookie. “Jonathan’s allergic to nuts. Oh! But we love a nice glass of champagne, don’t we dear?” She winked at her husband, who couldn’t help but snort with laughter.
“On occasion,” he winked back.

“Victor is mildly lactose intolerant. But I doubt that would affect things much,” Eden said. “As for me, I’ve swallowed poison before with no effect, I doubt you’ll find anything in the kitchen that could kill me. If you ever need help with the cooking, I find it incredibly relaxing and would enjoy assisting you if at all possible,” they offered, desperately hoping they’d be allowed to assist, clumsy as they were.

((it's so cute!!!))

"I would love help! Unfortunately, should green beans ever be a side, you'll have to deal with them for me. If you're alright with green bean duty on occasion, that is. I'm allergic enough that touching them starts to cause a flare up." Lo said, wrinkling her nose at the thought of the vegetable. "If I have gloves I can manage, but that's a risky endeavor. Not that I mind the allergy, I always hated the taste. Not to mention the part where they made my throat swell, but you know. Children don't tend to notice things like that."

Eden nodded. Of course they could handle green beans, it was something they'd grown used to handling. They had read somewhere that green vegetables were especially good for you, so they worked with them frequently. "I can, if you need me to." they nodded. It didn't have to be those, there were more interesting vegetables to work with.

(aahh i love it!!)

Sherlock moved to start looking around the rooms, examining everything. Everything seemed clean and new, and they found a paper with the passcode for the internet on it. "I found the wifi." they commented, then continued to look around. Nothing seemed too entirely out of the ordinary, thankfully.

Eden nodded in Sherlock’s direction. WiFi was good, yes. They looked around the room. Nobody seemed openly uncomfortable with their existence, which was nice, even if they were highly disturbing to the average eye. So that was good, and they’d let that be something they would settle with.

They wondered if anyone was even particularly curious about them, or if they all thought that they were some mutant human like those from Earth, that scavenged and scoured on the ruins of a dead world. That was a reasonable explanation, but they wouldn’t lie about their nature to those who asked. However, if anyone didn’t jump to safe conclusions, instead to that damned book that Walton fellow wrote…

Well, they could live with that, unfortunately. The book was unlikely to come up, it was well known in several academic circles but that was about it.

So they waited, for any questions about the hints of their past that had been brought up, for any questions of things that hadn’t been. And they decided to start something new.

“We’ll be living here together for a while, I say we get to know each other. Let’s all go around and ask each other questions, I think that would at least… what’s the phrase, kill time? No questions are off limits for me, but if there’s topics you’d like to avoid speak up now.”

Alek was the first to speak up. "I won't answer questions about family or my name." he said, knowing that if he breathed even a hint of his last name, there could be repercussions. The event where his mother, uncle, and Laertes had died was famous. Or infamous. Because he, Alek, had been the lone survivor. The last Monpezat still surviving. And he wouldn't talk about it.

"I'm okay answering almost any question. If you somehow touch a topic I want to avoid, then I'll mention it." Lo said, uncrossing her legs to swing them lightly. Her past was simply her past. There was nothing to avoid, not really. Beyond that, it would take an interesting level of specificity to even reach certain bits of her past, a level most wouldn't just casually ask. Now that her cookie was done, she moved to braiding her hair, creating small braids in it. She looked to Alek, smiling slightly. "Mysterious. I like it."