The Beast Within

Shikuro | He/Him | The strange desert hunter | MoriVerse | pfp art by @is-this-the-real-slime

[crackerqueen-ineedsleep]

The MoriVerse Masterpost

|÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷÷|

This is the official Moriverse masterpost! Please be patient as I am the only person running this. It might take a while before the newest MoriVerse thread shows up.

It is highly recommended you boost this! It's my first ever completed Masterpost and me along with the other members of Moriverse are working hard on our story and characters. We would greatly appreciate the boost for some support to get it out there!

Note: Threads with a red aterisk beside the thread number (Like #33) means that the threads were NOT completed. You're welcome to still read them, though!

⚠WARNING: MoriVerse is a roleplay that contains some dark/mature themes. Such as: Violence, abuse of power, murder, child abuse, and mentions of cannibalism. DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU'RE SQUEAMISH!⚠

!•{ The List Above Might Be Updated }•!

┌┈┈┈˚𖥸˚┈✱┈˚𖥸˚┈┈┈┈┐

Began On: November 2nd, 2020

Status: Ongoing

└┈┈┈˚𖥸˚┈✱┈˚𖥸˚┈┈┈┈┘

╭────╮

ARC #1

╰────╯

𖤓[ 𝐏𝐈𝐋𝐎𝐓 ]𖤓

#1 - It Starts With A... Monster?

#2 - A Vanilla Milkshake

#3 - The Latest Employer

#4 - Brief Coffee Chatter

#5 - The Latest Report (That Involves Some Gay)

#6 - Espressos, Pianos, & 40$

#7 - The Failed Assassination

#8 - A Friendship Divorce? In MY Firmamento?

#9 - How To Fix A Computer

#10 - Something Sweet

#11 - Awkward Simping

#12 - Tattoo Artist

#13 - Noah's Run-In With An Alien

#14 - Mori, Noah, & The YA Dystopian Novel Scientist

#15 - Painkillers & Knowledge

#16 - Unnecessary Help

#17 - Shipping Talk

#18 - It Ends For Now

#19 - Lets Quickly Bicker, While We're At It

#20 - You Learn Just A Little Too Much

#21 - Tea Talk With A Rich Man

༶•┈┈┈┈┈୨✉୧┈┈┈┈┈•༶

«{ 𝘊𝘏𝘈𝘗𝘛𝘌𝘙 1 }»

#22 - Wait, Is This A Date?

#23 - Oh, Wait Nevermind...

#24 - An Uncomfortable Meeting

#25 - A Tired Raccoon & An Emotional Possum

#26 - Adventures Of Noah, Mocha, & The Third Wheel Possum

#27 - Purring

#28 - Terrible Flirts

#29 - The Accidental Kiss

#30 - So You & Him, huh?

#31 - Its Raining Gremlins!

#32 - The Music Box

*#33 - Date With An Archivist

#34 - A Nice Little Walk

#35 - Ice Cream

#36 - The Water Cycle

#37 - Just 2 Bros Chilling In A Lab

#38 - Finally, An Intentional Kiss!

#39 - Shikuro & The 'Cool Guy'

#40 - A Visit Once More

#41 - Power Source

#42 - Out & About

#43 - Those Damn Homophobic Lights

#44 - Panic & Confusion

#45 - Thunder

#46 - In The Midst Of It All

#47 - Help On The Way

#48 - The Help

#49 - Meanwhile

#50 - Confessions

#51 - Starry-Eyed

#52 - Why Arcturus Works Alone

#53 - Questions & Answers

#54 - Departure

≫ ──── ≪•◦❈◦•≫ ──── ≪

۝〘ＣＨＡＰＴＥＲ ２〙۝

#55 - Machines & Sketches

#56 - Solutions

#57 - Small Talk

#58 - After The Blast

#59 - Brotherly Care

#60 - Letting It Out

#61 - Ratatouille

#62 - My Friend, Mori

#63 - So... Can I have The Job Back?

#64 - Apology

#65 - Breaking Down

#66 - With Great Hot Chocolate There Must Also Come An Interesting Q&A

#67 - Cat Ears

#68 - Massage

#69 - Phone Number

#70 - Plans For Recreation

#71 - A Rare Visit

#72 - The Necklace

#73 - The Celebrity Crush

#74 - Feral Trinity!

#75 - The Parasym

#76 - Possum & Porcupine

#77 - Stars Align

#78 - Height Difference

#79 - Head Pats

#80 - Open To New Friends

#81 - Go Fish

#82 - And The Winner Is: Rudy!

#83 - #HoldTheRat

#84 - A Cup Of Tea

•| ━━━━━━━❪✇❫━━━━━━━ |•

※[ 𝙲𝙷𝙰𝙿𝚃𝙴𝚁 𝟹 ]※

#85 - Groceries

#86 - Curfew

#87 - Pizza Rat

#88 - The More You Know

#89 - Peace Offering

#90 - Looking Back

#91 - Robbery!

#92 - At The Scene

#93 - Night Trip To The Café

#94 - Lets Have Dinner!

#95 - A Dinner Date, Totally

#96 - Oh Wow, Another Q&A

A: Himbo Ask #1

B: Himbo Ask #2

C: Himbo Ask #3

D: Himbo Ask #4

[crackerqueen-ineedsleep]

#97 - A Brief Little Farewell

#98 - A Not So Peaceful Curfew

#99 - Inside The Lair Of A Rat

#100 - The 100th Gay Thread

#101 - Arson Scar Forearm

#102 - The Breakfast Trip

#103 - A Message Received

#104 - A Very Exhausted Guardian

#105 - The Big Sniff

#106 - The Worst Kind Of People

#107 - The Hunt

#108 - A Nightmare & One Slinky Ferret

#109 - Restless Night

#110 - Texting Oddities

#111 - Diagnosis

#112 - Rocking

#113 - Fables

◈ ━━━━━━━ ⚔ ━━━━━━━ ◈

⚖[ C͏H͏A͏P͏T͏E͏R͏ 4 ]⚖

#114 - Mittens

#115 - Strawberry Cake

#116 - The Dabbening

#117 - Forgetting Is Hard

#118 - The Stream

#119 - Dance Of The Wooden Swords

#120 - Uh Oh!

#121 - Surprise! It's A Mocosa!

#122 - Love Life

#123 - The Inspection

[siena-sevenwits]

If you had to brutally narrow it down to just one, who’s your favourite of your original characters?

[lordterronus]

If my character is actually two or more characters in a trenchcoat, does that count as cheating?

If I have to stick to just one, I'm picking my bi disaster superhero, Solara. She's probably the one I come back to in my head the most.

[cv-celeste-aka-solara]

HA! Hear that, everyone?! I'm the favourite!

Shouldn't I be mentioned?

SHUT UP VORTEX!!!

No.

Eh, one of these days that'll work.

Your failure fuels me. Keep trying.

I will, but not because you told me to!

[cv-nobody-and-associates]

"So...who's going to tell her that being the favourite never ends well? Neo?"

"Absolutely not. We are not on speaking terms."

"...Dare I ask?"

"Probably better not to."

"Wib, what did you do?"

"Why do you assume it was me?! Maybe she's just pissy today!"

"She knows what she did, Nobody."

"Yeah, but I don't! Gods, you two never tell me anything."

[desert-destroyer]

"Man, wonder what they're talking about over there. Any ideas?"

[desert-destroyer]

It had been around two weeks since the death of Procyon, and a little longer since Shikuro's last meeting with the horrid man. Since then, life had been going pretty well for him.

Stein's lab was becoming a little more comfortable as time passed. He wasn't entirely used to staying somewhere that wasn't full of sand or rough cement yet, but he was getting there.

He still spied the occasional raccoon, but he brushed it off easily enough. The creature were probably just going by habit now that their master was dead. He wouldn't let it bother him.

He had more important things to bother with. For instance, he hadn't seen Mocha since the robbery of his café. It seemed important to check in on his friend after all thst had happened.

"Hey, Mocha!" He walked into the building one calm afternoon. "How's it going?"

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mochas turned around and instantly gave a warm smile. "Shikuro! Fantastic timing. I'm doing alright. How about you."

Without a beat Mocha reached into where he displayed all the warm food and fished out a fresh sandwich, placing it on the counter.

[desert-destroyer]

"Well..." Shikuro thought back to the rather brutal events of the past weeks. He knew he should probably tell Mocha about what happened regarding the thieves that stole from his store, but perhaps not now.

It could wait until after the sandwich his friend had so generously offered, after all. He walked up to the counter and tore into it viciously.

Bread was a lot softer and easier to eat than giant bug meat, but that afforded it no mercy.

"I've been...busy, let's say." He said, wiping his mouth and licking his fingers. Mocha made a damn good sandwich. "Dealing with some personal stuff. But it's been alright. This scientist dude, Stein, he's been letting me crash with him for a while."

"Nice to see this place up and running." He looked around the café. "I'd heard there was a break in a while ago, but I had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down." He grinned. Mocha didn't seem like the kind of person to be slowed down by such an incident. He was hardly a warrior, but Shikuro saw in him a different strength.

Still, he had to bring it up somehow. It was very much the Centimax in the room.

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

He listened intensely, smiling at the fact that Shikuro had somewhere secure to sleep and go back to now.

But then he cringed 'i had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down.' yikes if only he knew how many meals he skipped this week. Getting robbed was expensive.

Mocha coughed "aw thank you so much.. But honestly it truly has slowed me down a bit." he thought for a moment, he really wanted to talk to someone about how frustrating the whole ordeal has been to someone. Noah was of course of the list to do so with but he hadn't had the chance.

"the- the city police refuse to investigate the robbery. They won't even- even give me any options of what to do. I've called and asked so many times! And I don't have insurance so- I- I'm not getting anything back from this." mocha immediately regretting opening his mouth at all when he looked at shikuro.

"sorry- woah- I didn't mean to put you in the position to listen to all my worries and woes." he chuckled, trying to abort the subject as a whole.

"It's fantastic you're staying with Stein, I've met him once or twice now. They seem cool. I'm happy for you."

He smiled again. Swallowing down a lump of bottled emotions.

[desert-destroyer]

"Don't worry about it!" Shikuro reassured him. "You've had to bear me getting all emotional before, it's no big deal." He said, thinking in particular about their conversation on the blackout regarding Noah.

"Father used to say woes of another's heart weakened one's own resolve, but honestly? Starting to think he was full of shit." He laughed, presenting it as something of a joke. The sentiment was genuine though.

Mocha, Noah, Stein, Lysander. The people of the city slowly taught him the value of caring deeply. Perhaps that was the strength he saw in Mocha - a strength of heart.

"Listen, about the police thing..." He hesitated. How best to approach what had happened during his forced hunt? Probably better not to dwell on the grotesque details.

"I spoke to someone about it, and I managed to...persuade someone to handle it." He explained cautiously. "You won't have to worry about those people any more, I promise. And if anything else comes up, lemme know." He offered. Under better circumstances, beating up some assholes harassing his friends might actually be fun.

"I don't have much, but..." Shikuro pulled out a small amount of cash from his back pocket. "Here. It's not much, but it'll at least cover the sandwich hopefully."

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mocha held the cash in his hands, feeling pathetic for a moment. So many people who needed help themself had helped him so many times.

Mocosa, Noah, Arc, and now Shikuro.

He looked at the money again, thinking for a moment. Instead of pathetic he felt happy. Happy to have such a supportive circle of friends that are willing enough to help him when they know he needed it.

It never mattered how little help it was, he needed it nonetheless.

"Thank you so much Shikuro- you have no idea how much this all means to me." Mocha made quick work wiping a tear from his cheek.

"If you ever need anything from me let me know. I owe you a favor."

It felt like a huge weight lifted off his back.

[desert-destroyer]

"You serious?" Shikuro chuckled with warm amusement. "If anything, I owe you. You're always willing to put up with me. That means a lot."

"Don't worry about owing me anything." He said. "I don't really know what I'd do with any money aside from spendin' it here, and I don't really see the point in owning much stuff. Old habit, I guess. Gotta be able to travel light outside."

"If you want, I could show you sometime." He offered, the thought passing through his head. "It's a bit dangerous, but not so bad once you're used to it. Hell, maybe you could learn a trick or two the next time some assholes make the mistake of messing with you."

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mocha froze. Thinking back to when he was out past curfew and Noah had to come save him. But the thought of going outside was- insane if anything! His entire life, from childhood he had been told to stay away from the outside. To be honest he didn't exactly know what was out there though.

The adventure excited him a bit though. Whatever's out there can't be so scary right?

"Yeah-... Yeah! That sounds exciting. I could use a bit of defense practice. Thank you so much! I didn't even know there was a way out of Firmamento."

A chance to learn and live a little. Why not?

[desert-destroyer]

"Legally, most people don't." Shikuro explained. "This city wants to keep people in, so only a few people are ever let out. My people were mostly exiles from the city, or descendents of them. We'd salvage things out there in exchange for supplies and our silence." He couldn't help but let out a frustrated sigh at that.

This city gave his tribe barely anything and forced them to never be able to ask for more, whilst at the same time forcing its rejects onto them. It was a messed up system, one he felt only got worse the more he stayed here.

"The gates are usually shut, but I happen to know a few spots here and there where someone can squeeze through. Thought about trying to tell someone, maybe get some supplies for the tip, but I decided against it. Glad I did." He smirked. "I'll show y you sometime later." His expression turned serious suddenly.

"But be careful. The things outside that dome are really dangerous. Stay close to me and you'll probably be fine. If anything gets too much, yell. And be sure to bring some stuff. A knife or some kind of weapon and a first aid kit would be good."

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mocha was incredibly intrigued by everything he was saying, hanging off every word.

But he didn't take the fact that shikuro himself believed the said 'things' outside the dome were dangerous. In fact it made him a little nervous.

He spoke in a hushed tone "Oh I have a med kit at home! I can bring that. I uh- don't have any weapons though. Unless a kitchen knife counts" he laughed.

Maybe I can ask Noah if he has any?

"But yes! I absolutely would like to go with you."

[desert-destroyer]

"I think it depends on the kitchen knife." Shikuro said thoughtfully. Some of the exiles had been into kitchens before, and they'd told him those knives came in many different sizes and levels of sharpness.

He was never sure why. Surely you just needed something sharp and edgy to cut everything. What else would be needed?

Kitchens were strange, Shikuro maintained to this day.

"I'll see if I can't get you something you can use. It won't be as good as Zaiaku-Ori," He held out his spear, it still being in its collapsed state for ease of carrying. "But I'm sure we can make something work. If we're really lucky I can show you how to make a weapon like this yourself! Man, that'd be awesome." He said eagerly. It would be nice to show off some of his better memories of the tribe and its traditions.

"B-but, let's not get too carried away." He said, more to himself than to Mocha. "I should probably go, wouldn't wanna hold up your business or anything." He walked walked the door and opened it.

"See you around, Mocha. Thanks for the sandwich!" And with those final words delivered with a smile, he left and started on his way back to the lab.

.

..

...

And with his mood as it was, he was in no position to notice the small mammal often confused for a rodent following him from behind.

The raccoon watched him closely.

And he was seen through another's eyes.

[desert-destroyer]

It had been around two weeks since the death of Procyon, and a little longer since Shikuro's last meeting with the horrid man. Since then, life had been going pretty well for him.

Stein's lab was becoming a little more comfortable as time passed. He wasn't entirely used to staying somewhere that wasn't full of sand or rough cement yet, but he was getting there.

He still spied the occasional raccoon, but he brushed it off easily enough. The creature were probably just going by habit now that their master was dead. He wouldn't let it bother him.

He had more important things to bother with. For instance, he hadn't seen Mocha since the robbery of his café. It seemed important to check in on his friend after all thst had happened.

"Hey, Mocha!" He walked into the building one calm afternoon. "How's it going?"

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mochas turned around and instantly gave a warm smile. "Shikuro! Fantastic timing. I'm doing alright. How about you."

Without a beat Mocha reached into where he displayed all the warm food and fished out a fresh sandwich, placing it on the counter.

[desert-destroyer]

"Well..." Shikuro thought back to the rather brutal events of the past weeks. He knew he should probably tell Mocha about what happened regarding the thieves that stole from his store, but perhaps not now.

It could wait until after the sandwich his friend had so generously offered, after all. He walked up to the counter and tore into it viciously.

Bread was a lot softer and easier to eat than giant bug meat, but that afforded it no mercy.

"I've been...busy, let's say." He said, wiping his mouth and licking his fingers. Mocha made a damn good sandwich. "Dealing with some personal stuff. But it's been alright. This scientist dude, Stein, he's been letting me crash with him for a while."

"Nice to see this place up and running." He looked around the café. "I'd heard there was a break in a while ago, but I had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down." He grinned. Mocha didn't seem like the kind of person to be slowed down by such an incident. He was hardly a warrior, but Shikuro saw in him a different strength.

Still, he had to bring it up somehow. It was very much the Centimax in the room.

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

He listened intensely, smiling at the fact that Shikuro had somewhere secure to sleep and go back to now.

But then he cringed 'i had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down.' yikes if only he knew how many meals he skipped this week. Getting robbed was expensive.

Mocha coughed "aw thank you so much.. But honestly it truly has slowed me down a bit." he thought for a moment, he really wanted to talk to someone about how frustrating the whole ordeal has been to someone. Noah was of course of the list to do so with but he hadn't had the chance.

"the- the city police refuse to investigate the robbery. They won't even- even give me any options of what to do. I've called and asked so many times! And I don't have insurance so- I- I'm not getting anything back from this." mocha immediately regretting opening his mouth at all when he looked at shikuro.

"sorry- woah- I didn't mean to put you in the position to listen to all my worries and woes." he chuckled, trying to abort the subject as a whole.

"It's fantastic you're staying with Stein, I've met him once or twice now. They seem cool. I'm happy for you."

He smiled again. Swallowing down a lump of bottled emotions.

[desert-destroyer]

"Don't worry about it!" Shikuro reassured him. "You've had to bear me getting all emotional before, it's no big deal." He said, thinking in particular about their conversation on the blackout regarding Noah.

"Father used to say woes of another's heart weakened one's own resolve, but honestly? Starting to think he was full of shit." He laughed, presenting it as something of a joke. The sentiment was genuine though.

Mocha, Noah, Stein, Lysander. The people of the city slowly taught him the value of caring deeply. Perhaps that was the strength he saw in Mocha - a strength of heart.

"Listen, about the police thing..." He hesitated. How best to approach what had happened during his forced hunt? Probably better not to dwell on the grotesque details.

"I spoke to someone about it, and I managed to...persuade someone to handle it." He explained cautiously. "You won't have to worry about those people any more, I promise. And if anything else comes up, lemme know." He offered. Under better circumstances, beating up some assholes harassing his friends might actually be fun.

"I don't have much, but..." Shikuro pulled out a small amount of cash from his back pocket. "Here. It's not much, but it'll at least cover the sandwich hopefully."

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mocha held the cash in his hands, feeling pathetic for a moment. So many people who needed help themself had helped him so many times.

Mocosa, Noah, Arc, and now Shikuro.

He looked at the money again, thinking for a moment. Instead of pathetic he felt happy. Happy to have such a supportive circle of friends that are willing enough to help him when they know he needed it.

It never mattered how little help it was, he needed it nonetheless.

"Thank you so much Shikuro- you have no idea how much this all means to me." Mocha made quick work wiping a tear from his cheek.

"If you ever need anything from me let me know. I owe you a favor."

It felt like a huge weight lifted off his back.

[desert-destroyer]

"You serious?" Shikuro chuckled with warm amusement. "If anything, I owe you. You're always willing to put up with me. That means a lot."

"Don't worry about owing me anything." He said. "I don't really know what I'd do with any money aside from spendin' it here, and I don't really see the point in owning much stuff. Old habit, I guess. Gotta be able to travel light outside."

"If you want, I could show you sometime." He offered, the thought passing through his head. "It's a bit dangerous, but not so bad once you're used to it. Hell, maybe you could learn a trick or two the next time some assholes make the mistake of messing with you."

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mocha froze. Thinking back to when he was out past curfew and Noah had to come save him. But the thought of going outside was- insane if anything! His entire life, from childhood he had been told to stay away from the outside. To be honest he didn't exactly know what was out there though.

The adventure excited him a bit though. Whatever's out there can't be so scary right?

"Yeah-... Yeah! That sounds exciting. I could use a bit of defense practice. Thank you so much! I didn't even know there was a way out of Firmamento."

A chance to learn and live a little. Why not?

[desert-destroyer]

"Legally, most people don't." Shikuro explained. "This city wants to keep people in, so only a few people are ever let out. My people were mostly exiles from the city, or descendents of them. We'd salvage things out there in exchange for supplies and our silence." He couldn't help but let out a frustrated sigh at that.

This city gave his tribe barely anything and forced them to never be able to ask for more, whilst at the same time forcing its rejects onto them. It was a messed up system, one he felt only got worse the more he stayed here.

"The gates are usually shut, but I happen to know a few spots here and there where someone can squeeze through. Thought about trying to tell someone, maybe get some supplies for the tip, but I decided against it. Glad I did." He smirked. "I'll show y you sometime later." His expression turned serious suddenly.

"But be careful. The things outside that dome are really dangerous. Stay close to me and you'll probably be fine. If anything gets too much, yell. And be sure to bring some stuff. A knife or some kind of weapon and a first aid kit would be good."

@mocha-mori

[desert-destroyer]

It had been around two weeks since the death of Procyon, and a little longer since Shikuro's last meeting with the horrid man. Since then, life had been going pretty well for him.

Stein's lab was becoming a little more comfortable as time passed. He wasn't entirely used to staying somewhere that wasn't full of sand or rough cement yet, but he was getting there.

He still spied the occasional raccoon, but he brushed it off easily enough. The creature were probably just going by habit now that their master was dead. He wouldn't let it bother him.

He had more important things to bother with. For instance, he hadn't seen Mocha since the robbery of his café. It seemed important to check in on his friend after all thst had happened.

"Hey, Mocha!" He walked into the building one calm afternoon. "How's it going?"

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mochas turned around and instantly gave a warm smile. "Shikuro! Fantastic timing. I'm doing alright. How about you."

Without a beat Mocha reached into where he displayed all the warm food and fished out a fresh sandwich, placing it on the counter.

[desert-destroyer]

"Well..." Shikuro thought back to the rather brutal events of the past weeks. He knew he should probably tell Mocha about what happened regarding the thieves that stole from his store, but perhaps not now.

It could wait until after the sandwich his friend had so generously offered, after all. He walked up to the counter and tore into it viciously.

Bread was a lot softer and easier to eat than giant bug meat, but that afforded it no mercy.

"I've been...busy, let's say." He said, wiping his mouth and licking his fingers. Mocha made a damn good sandwich. "Dealing with some personal stuff. But it's been alright. This scientist dude, Stein, he's been letting me crash with him for a while."

"Nice to see this place up and running." He looked around the café. "I'd heard there was a break in a while ago, but I had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down." He grinned. Mocha didn't seem like the kind of person to be slowed down by such an incident. He was hardly a warrior, but Shikuro saw in him a different strength.

Still, he had to bring it up somehow. It was very much the Centimax in the room.

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

He listened intensely, smiling at the fact that Shikuro had somewhere secure to sleep and go back to now.

But then he cringed 'i had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down.' yikes if only he knew how many meals he skipped this week. Getting robbed was expensive.

Mocha coughed "aw thank you so much.. But honestly it truly has slowed me down a bit." he thought for a moment, he really wanted to talk to someone about how frustrating the whole ordeal has been to someone. Noah was of course of the list to do so with but he hadn't had the chance.

"the- the city police refuse to investigate the robbery. They won't even- even give me any options of what to do. I've called and asked so many times! And I don't have insurance so- I- I'm not getting anything back from this." mocha immediately regretting opening his mouth at all when he looked at shikuro.

"sorry- woah- I didn't mean to put you in the position to listen to all my worries and woes." he chuckled, trying to abort the subject as a whole.

"It's fantastic you're staying with Stein, I've met him once or twice now. They seem cool. I'm happy for you."

He smiled again. Swallowing down a lump of bottled emotions.

[desert-destroyer]

"Don't worry about it!" Shikuro reassured him. "You've had to bear me getting all emotional before, it's no big deal." He said, thinking in particular about their conversation on the blackout regarding Noah.

"Father used to say woes of another's heart weakened one's own resolve, but honestly? Starting to think he was full of shit." He laughed, presenting it as something of a joke. The sentiment was genuine though.

Mocha, Noah, Stein, Lysander. The people of the city slowly taught him the value of caring deeply. Perhaps that was the strength he saw in Mocha - a strength of heart.

"Listen, about the police thing..." He hesitated. How best to approach what had happened during his forced hunt? Probably better not to dwell on the grotesque details.

"I spoke to someone about it, and I managed to...persuade someone to handle it." He explained cautiously. "You won't have to worry about those people any more, I promise. And if anything else comes up, lemme know." He offered. Under better circumstances, beating up some assholes harassing his friends might actually be fun.

"I don't have much, but..." Shikuro pulled out a small amount of cash from his back pocket. "Here. It's not much, but it'll at least cover the sandwich hopefully."

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mocha held the cash in his hands, feeling pathetic for a moment. So many people who needed help themself had helped him so many times.

Mocosa, Noah, Arc, and now Shikuro.

He looked at the money again, thinking for a moment. Instead of pathetic he felt happy. Happy to have such a supportive circle of friends that are willing enough to help him when they know he needed it.

It never mattered how little help it was, he needed it nonetheless.

"Thank you so much Shikuro- you have no idea how much this all means to me." Mocha made quick work wiping a tear from his cheek.

"If you ever need anything from me let me know. I owe you a favor."

It felt like a huge weight lifted off his back.

[desert-destroyer]

"You serious?" Shikuro chuckled with warm amusement. "If anything, I owe you. You're always willing to put up with me. That means a lot."

"Don't worry about owing me anything." He said. "I don't really know what I'd do with any money aside from spendin' it here, and I don't really see the point in owning much stuff. Old habit, I guess. Gotta be able to travel light outside."

"If you want, I could show you sometime." He offered, the thought passing through his head. "It's a bit dangerous, but not so bad once you're used to it. Hell, maybe you could learn a trick or two the next time some assholes make the mistake of messing with you."

@mocha-mori

[desert-destroyer]

It had been around two weeks since the death of Procyon, and a little longer since Shikuro's last meeting with the horrid man. Since then, life had been going pretty well for him.

Stein's lab was becoming a little more comfortable as time passed. He wasn't entirely used to staying somewhere that wasn't full of sand or rough cement yet, but he was getting there.

He still spied the occasional raccoon, but he brushed it off easily enough. The creature were probably just going by habit now that their master was dead. He wouldn't let it bother him.

He had more important things to bother with. For instance, he hadn't seen Mocha since the robbery of his café. It seemed important to check in on his friend after all thst had happened.

"Hey, Mocha!" He walked into the building one calm afternoon. "How's it going?"

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mochas turned around and instantly gave a warm smile. "Shikuro! Fantastic timing. I'm doing alright. How about you."

Without a beat Mocha reached into where he displayed all the warm food and fished out a fresh sandwich, placing it on the counter.

[desert-destroyer]

"Well..." Shikuro thought back to the rather brutal events of the past weeks. He knew he should probably tell Mocha about what happened regarding the thieves that stole from his store, but perhaps not now.

It could wait until after the sandwich his friend had so generously offered, after all. He walked up to the counter and tore into it viciously.

Bread was a lot softer and easier to eat than giant bug meat, but that afforded it no mercy.

"I've been...busy, let's say." He said, wiping his mouth and licking his fingers. Mocha made a damn good sandwich. "Dealing with some personal stuff. But it's been alright. This scientist dude, Stein, he's been letting me crash with him for a while."

"Nice to see this place up and running." He looked around the café. "I'd heard there was a break in a while ago, but I had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down." He grinned. Mocha didn't seem like the kind of person to be slowed down by such an incident. He was hardly a warrior, but Shikuro saw in him a different strength.

Still, he had to bring it up somehow. It was very much the Centimax in the room.

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

He listened intensely, smiling at the fact that Shikuro had somewhere secure to sleep and go back to now.

But then he cringed 'i had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down.' yikes if only he knew how many meals he skipped this week. Getting robbed was expensive.

Mocha coughed "aw thank you so much.. But honestly it truly has slowed me down a bit." he thought for a moment, he really wanted to talk to someone about how frustrating the whole ordeal has been to someone. Noah was of course of the list to do so with but he hadn't had the chance.

"the- the city police refuse to investigate the robbery. They won't even- even give me any options of what to do. I've called and asked so many times! And I don't have insurance so- I- I'm not getting anything back from this." mocha immediately regretting opening his mouth at all when he looked at shikuro.

"sorry- woah- I didn't mean to put you in the position to listen to all my worries and woes." he chuckled, trying to abort the subject as a whole.

"It's fantastic you're staying with Stein, I've met him once or twice now. They seem cool. I'm happy for you."

He smiled again. Swallowing down a lump of bottled emotions.

[desert-destroyer]

"Don't worry about it!" Shikuro reassured him. "You've had to bear me getting all emotional before, it's no big deal." He said, thinking in particular about their conversation on the blackout regarding Noah.

"Father used to say woes of another's heart weakened one's own resolve, but honestly? Starting to think he was full of shit." He laughed, presenting it as something of a joke. The sentiment was genuine though.

Mocha, Noah, Stein, Lysander. The people of the city slowly taught him the value of caring deeply. Perhaps that was the strength he saw in Mocha - a strength of heart.

"Listen, about the police thing..." He hesitated. How best to approach what had happened during his forced hunt? Probably better not to dwell on the grotesque details.

"I spoke to someone about it, and I managed to...persuade someone to handle it." He explained cautiously. "You won't have to worry about those people any more, I promise. And if anything else comes up, lemme know." He offered. Under better circumstances, beating up some assholes harassing his friends might actually be fun.

"I don't have much, but..." Shikuro pulled out a small amount of cash from his back pocket. "Here. It's not much, but it'll at least cover the sandwich hopefully."

@mocha-mori

[desert-destroyer]

It had been around two weeks since the death of Procyon, and a little longer since Shikuro's last meeting with the horrid man. Since then, life had been going pretty well for him.

Stein's lab was becoming a little more comfortable as time passed. He wasn't entirely used to staying somewhere that wasn't full of sand or rough cement yet, but he was getting there.

He still spied the occasional raccoon, but he brushed it off easily enough. The creature were probably just going by habit now that their master was dead. He wouldn't let it bother him.

He had more important things to bother with. For instance, he hadn't seen Mocha since the robbery of his café. It seemed important to check in on his friend after all thst had happened.

"Hey, Mocha!" He walked into the building one calm afternoon. "How's it going?"

@mocha-mori

[mocha-mori]

Mochas turned around and instantly gave a warm smile. "Shikuro! Fantastic timing. I'm doing alright. How about you."

Without a beat Mocha reached into where he displayed all the warm food and fished out a fresh sandwich, placing it on the counter.

[desert-destroyer]

"Well..." Shikuro thought back to the rather brutal events of the past weeks. He knew he should probably tell Mocha about what happened regarding the thieves that stole from his store, but perhaps not now.

It could wait until after the sandwich his friend had so generously offered, after all. He walked up to the counter and tore into it viciously.

Bread was a lot softer and easier to eat than giant bug meat, but that afforded it no mercy.

"I've been...busy, let's say." He said, wiping his mouth and licking his fingers. Mocha made a damn good sandwich. "Dealing with some personal stuff. But it's been alright. This scientist dude, Stein, he's been letting me crash with him for a while."

"Nice to see this place up and running." He looked around the café. "I'd heard there was a break in a while ago, but I had a feeling it wouldn't slow you down." He grinned. Mocha didn't seem like the kind of person to be slowed down by such an incident. He was hardly a warrior, but Shikuro saw in him a different strength.

Still, he had to bring it up somehow. It was very much the Centimax in the room.

@mocha-mori

[desert-destroyer]

It had been around two weeks since the death of Procyon, and a little longer since Shikuro's last meeting with the horrid man. Since then, life had been going pretty well for him.

Stein's lab was becoming a little more comfortable as time passed. He wasn't entirely used to staying somewhere that wasn't full of sand or rough cement yet, but he was getting there.

He still spied the occasional raccoon, but he brushed it off easily enough. The creature were probably just going by habit now that their master was dead. He wouldn't let it bother him.

He had more important things to bother with. For instance, he hadn't seen Mocha since the robbery of his café. It seemed important to check in on his friend after all thst had happened.

"Hey, Mocha!" He walked into the building one calm afternoon. "How's it going?"

@mocha-mori

[webkinzpossum]

yummy

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein sighed as he exited his bedroom, clad in a loose t shirt, sweats, and a damp towel around his neck. He was tired, but at least he was clean now that he was home. That shower at the very least put his mind a bit at ease.

The thought of that freaks blood even touching him made him sick.

He brushed some damp hair out of his eyes before hearing a thumping sound. For a moment he thought some random machine in the lab was malfunctioning before he realized the sound was coming from the spare room where Shikuro was staying.

... Right. He still needs to tell Shirkuro about Procyon. It was only fair that he know too.

Holding his breath, he reluctantly stepped towards the door and lifted his hand. After a moment of great hesitation, he sighed in defeat and knocked a few times.

"Shikuro? Do you have a moment?"

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro had been rather restless recently. The lab was a perfectly fine space, and definitely more comfortable than the streets or the deserts, but he was finding it rather dull. For the time being, he occupied his time mostly with some exercise.

This proved to be more challenging than he was perhaps expecting. Stein was many things, but fond of physical labour wasn't one of them, and so the lab was lacking in terms of ant equipment. He made it work though, sewing some spare pillows together and stuffing them into a large bag and fashioning a makeshift punching bag.

It wasn't like he needed the pillows. He slept better on the floor anyway.

"Hm?" He stopped, stepping back from his punching bag and sighing. He had been going at it for...three, possibly four hours, he guessed? He didn't have much else to do.

He hadn't seen Stein in a while, the scientist having left the lab in a hurry a few days ago. Even when he returned, he seemed very quiet.

"It's a little worrying...or maybe I'm just overthinkin' it. He's probably fine. Wonder what he wants?"

"Yeah, sure." Shikuro shrugged. "I could use a break anyway. Come in, I guess." He said. The lab was the first place he ever lived in with solid doors instead of tent flaps, so he wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do when someone knocked, but he could make a solid guess.

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Forcing a calm demeanor, he nodded to himself and opened the door. He may have also just realized he had no plan for how to go about this and had just rushed into it. Fun.

"Hey, sorry to... Inturupt?" His eyes landed on what seemed to be a makeshift punching bag. Well at least he knew what that noise was earlier.

"How have you been adjusting so far?" He asked, deciding to start out slow. He leaned against the wall by the door as he spoke, once again brushing a few damp strands of hair out of his face.

For once he was not completely covering his body in the usual bulky attire so the true extent of his stiches could be seen, wrapping up his arms and dissapearing under his loose fitting shirt down his chest.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Fine, I guess." Shikuro shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing wrong physically so far. In fact, I've been feeling pretty good lately. Weird."

He turned to look at Stein, noticing his loose shirt.

"Nice scars." He whistled, thinking aloud. They clearly hadn't been caused by any creatures he knew. They were far too deliberate. So man-made, he figured. Self inflicted? Unlikely, he thought. Didn't fit with what he knew of Stein. So...he had fought someone?

If that was what it left him with, he would have hated to meet the other guy.

"Sorry." He shook his head, dismissing thr thoughts and bringing his eyes up to Stein's. "Nothing's been going wrong, as far as I can tell. It's been a little dull the last couple days, but that's all. Why the interest?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein was silent for a moment, lost in thought. A small part of him wanted to laugh at the comment on his scars. Especially considering who made them.

...

Maybe he could start there.

"Would you like to know how I got them? The stitches, I mean." He offered, brushing past Shikuro's question as his thumb subconsciously tracing one of the lines on his wrist.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Certainly seems like it'd be an interesting story." Shikuro smiled, his curiosity piqued. "They're more unique than any of mine. Well, except the big one. But that's another story. You can share first."

He didn't so much take a seat on the floor as collapse slowly onto it before crossing his legs. He tapped the floor, gesturing for Stein to do the same.

"We had a word for sharing scar stories." He explained. "Kizu-Ai. The closest translation to dome speak, I think, is 'open wound', but in a nice way? It's a little hard to explain." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly for a moment.

"Been a while since it came up." He sighed for a moment. "Now's as good as any time for a story, I suppose. So, what's yours?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein had a less than enthusiastic look on his face as he took a seat, holding on to the ends of his towel around his shoulders as he thought over his words.

"It's probably not at all what you're imagining. There was no fight or bloody battle. Heh, it was kinda pathetic if I'm being honest." He cracked a dry smile as he looked to the side.

"I used to know someone. He was smart. No, he was a genius. He was set apart from everyone else due to his massive intellect and ideas. The amount of good he could have done with all that potential is unprecedented." He explained, subtly tip toeing around his actual relationship to the one in question.

"I trusted him. That was my mistake. He... I can't really say he went mad, it's safe to assume he was far past sane long before I met him. I just didn't notice until it was too late." Stein huffed bitterly as he looked up in thought.

"I was betrayed and he did something unthinkable. That's the gist of it. The aftermath is what you see now." The way he spoke about it was very detached, like he had no emotion connected to the story. But if you watched how his hands clenched and his eyes narrowed, you could see the anger that still haunted him over it. He just hid it well

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"I see." Shikuro nodded thoughtfully. Stein was correct to assume it wasn't at all what he was imagining. He had heard one or two somewhat similar stories in the Tribe, stories of betrayal and violation. It wasn't quite the same as Stein's situation from what he had heard, but they shared one common aspect.

None were stories anyone truly wanted to tell. You only spoke of such things when you had to.

"I'm sorry that happened." Shikuro asked, his tone gentle and his voice quiet, almost like a whisper. He carefully placed a hand on Stein reassuringly. "Thank you for saying what you needed to."

"If it's okay to ask..." He hesitated. Questions like this were considered impolite in the best of times. "What happened to him? The one who did this to you, I mean."

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein looked down at his hands for a moment. Guess he couldn't stall any longer. Might as well get to the point.

"... I followed a racoon that showed up at the lab a few days ago." He said simply, then looked up at Shikuro.

"And I shot Procyon in the head." His expression softened a bit for a moment and he diverted his eyes away.

"I... After he did this to me he dissapeared. I haven't heard from him or found any trace of him in years. But you... Your parasym is exactly his style. The fucker might as well have left me a bread trail to find him." He grit his teeth, then let out a sigh.

"I apologize for not saying anything earlier. But now it's only fair that you know too. I killed him." Stein concluded quietly, looking at Shikuro and observing his reaction.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro was silent. He had no idea how to respond to...Well, anything Stein had just told him. He took a deep breath and released it.

"I guess that's...relieving?" Shikuro sighed. "I fucking hate - er, hated that old man. We only met a few times, and it was never exactly pleasant." He placed one hand on his stomach, where the Parasym could be seen faintly through his vest, giving a reddish glow.

"Remember that time I told you I got into a fight? Where I almost went feral?" He said. "That was his fault. He was...testing me, or something. He basically forced me to go after some people who'd smashed up a café. Wasn't a fun time." He explained.

After a brief pause, his eyes widened as a realisation dawned on him.

"Wait!" He said, perhaps a little loudly. "You said the Parasym is 'exactly his style'. How could you tell? What did he do in in city thst was like this? Like...like me?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein furrowed his eyebrows and frowned for a moment, then simply pointed up at the stitches on his face with a tired expression.

"From what I understand he was trying to recreate it in me. Clearly, the bastard fucked up the process and left me permanently disfigured and fragile. It screwed up not just my appearance, but my health too. It was massive failure and he bailed after doing the minimum to keep me alive, and did a rather messy job of it too." He explained, voice becoming dull as he spoke.

"... He's done plenty of unethical experiments and projects. Something like this was bound to lead back to him whether he experimented on me before or not." He continued with a sigh, subconsciously picking at the stitching on his face as he felt his nerves rise from the subject matter.

He'd tell Shikuro everything. But not today. He couldn't handle that right now. He wanted to forget his time as Procyon's pupil and the work they did together more than anything in the world.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"I see..." Shikuro looked to the ground, his hands clenched into fists. Of course that old bastard would go out of his way to work in the cruellest form possible. Knowing him, he probably kidnapped Stein and used him as an unwilling guinea pig.

He was lucky he was already dead. Shikuro wouldn't have stopped at a shot to the head.

"I'm sorry." Shikuro said. "If this damn thing in me hadn't gotten lost in the wastelands, he never would have had to do anything to you. I know it's not my fault, but still. Sorry."

He stood up slowly, doing a few stetches.

"Thanks for telling me about all this." He said with a kind and genuine smile. "I'm glad you trusted me enough to tell me all this personal stuff. And hey, you didn't even need to scream it out, so you handle this crap better than me!" He joked.

"I...think I'd like to be left alone for a bit. This is a lot to take in. Is that cool with you?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein sighed as he exited his bedroom, clad in a loose t shirt, sweats, and a damp towel around his neck. He was tired, but at least he was clean now that he was home. That shower at the very least put his mind a bit at ease.

The thought of that freaks blood even touching him made him sick.

He brushed some damp hair out of his eyes before hearing a thumping sound. For a moment he thought some random machine in the lab was malfunctioning before he realized the sound was coming from the spare room where Shikuro was staying.

... Right. He still needs to tell Shirkuro about Procyon. It was only fair that he know too.

Holding his breath, he reluctantly stepped towards the door and lifted his hand. After a moment of great hesitation, he sighed in defeat and knocked a few times.

"Shikuro? Do you have a moment?"

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro had been rather restless recently. The lab was a perfectly fine space, and definitely more comfortable than the streets or the deserts, but he was finding it rather dull. For the time being, he occupied his time mostly with some exercise.

This proved to be more challenging than he was perhaps expecting. Stein was many things, but fond of physical labour wasn't one of them, and so the lab was lacking in terms of ant equipment. He made it work though, sewing some spare pillows together and stuffing them into a large bag and fashioning a makeshift punching bag.

It wasn't like he needed the pillows. He slept better on the floor anyway.

"Hm?" He stopped, stepping back from his punching bag and sighing. He had been going at it for...three, possibly four hours, he guessed? He didn't have much else to do.

He hadn't seen Stein in a while, the scientist having left the lab in a hurry a few days ago. Even when he returned, he seemed very quiet.

"It's a little worrying...or maybe I'm just overthinkin' it. He's probably fine. Wonder what he wants?"

"Yeah, sure." Shikuro shrugged. "I could use a break anyway. Come in, I guess." He said. The lab was the first place he ever lived in with solid doors instead of tent flaps, so he wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do when someone knocked, but he could make a solid guess.

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Forcing a calm demeanor, he nodded to himself and opened the door. He may have also just realized he had no plan for how to go about this and had just rushed into it. Fun.

"Hey, sorry to... Inturupt?" His eyes landed on what seemed to be a makeshift punching bag. Well at least he knew what that noise was earlier.

"How have you been adjusting so far?" He asked, deciding to start out slow. He leaned against the wall by the door as he spoke, once again brushing a few damp strands of hair out of his face.

For once he was not completely covering his body in the usual bulky attire so the true extent of his stiches could be seen, wrapping up his arms and dissapearing under his loose fitting shirt down his chest.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Fine, I guess." Shikuro shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing wrong physically so far. In fact, I've been feeling pretty good lately. Weird."

He turned to look at Stein, noticing his loose shirt.

"Nice scars." He whistled, thinking aloud. They clearly hadn't been caused by any creatures he knew. They were far too deliberate. So man-made, he figured. Self inflicted? Unlikely, he thought. Didn't fit with what he knew of Stein. So...he had fought someone?

If that was what it left him with, he would have hated to meet the other guy.

"Sorry." He shook his head, dismissing thr thoughts and bringing his eyes up to Stein's. "Nothing's been going wrong, as far as I can tell. It's been a little dull the last couple days, but that's all. Why the interest?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein was silent for a moment, lost in thought. A small part of him wanted to laugh at the comment on his scars. Especially considering who made them.

...

Maybe he could start there.

"Would you like to know how I got them? The stitches, I mean." He offered, brushing past Shikuro's question as his thumb subconsciously tracing one of the lines on his wrist.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Certainly seems like it'd be an interesting story." Shikuro smiled, his curiosity piqued. "They're more unique than any of mine. Well, except the big one. But that's another story. You can share first."

He didn't so much take a seat on the floor as collapse slowly onto it before crossing his legs. He tapped the floor, gesturing for Stein to do the same.

"We had a word for sharing scar stories." He explained. "Kizu-Ai. The closest translation to dome speak, I think, is 'open wound', but in a nice way? It's a little hard to explain." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly for a moment.

"Been a while since it came up." He sighed for a moment. "Now's as good as any time for a story, I suppose. So, what's yours?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein had a less than enthusiastic look on his face as he took a seat, holding on to the ends of his towel around his shoulders as he thought over his words.

"It's probably not at all what you're imagining. There was no fight or bloody battle. Heh, it was kinda pathetic if I'm being honest." He cracked a dry smile as he looked to the side.

"I used to know someone. He was smart. No, he was a genius. He was set apart from everyone else due to his massive intellect and ideas. The amount of good he could have done with all that potential is unprecedented." He explained, subtly tip toeing around his actual relationship to the one in question.

"I trusted him. That was my mistake. He... I can't really say he went mad, it's safe to assume he was far past sane long before I met him. I just didn't notice until it was too late." Stein huffed bitterly as he looked up in thought.

"I was betrayed and he did something unthinkable. That's the gist of it. The aftermath is what you see now." The way he spoke about it was very detached, like he had no emotion connected to the story. But if you watched how his hands clenched and his eyes narrowed, you could see the anger that still haunted him over it. He just hid it well

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"I see." Shikuro nodded thoughtfully. Stein was correct to assume it wasn't at all what he was imagining. He had heard one or two somewhat similar stories in the Tribe, stories of betrayal and violation. It wasn't quite the same as Stein's situation from what he had heard, but they shared one common aspect.

None were stories anyone truly wanted to tell. You only spoke of such things when you had to.

"I'm sorry that happened." Shikuro asked, his tone gentle and his voice quiet, almost like a whisper. He carefully placed a hand on Stein reassuringly. "Thank you for saying what you needed to."

"If it's okay to ask..." He hesitated. Questions like this were considered impolite in the best of times. "What happened to him? The one who did this to you, I mean."

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein looked down at his hands for a moment. Guess he couldn't stall any longer. Might as well get to the point.

"... I followed a racoon that showed up at the lab a few days ago." He said simply, then looked up at Shikuro.

"And I shot Procyon in the head." His expression softened a bit for a moment and he diverted his eyes away.

"I... After he did this to me he dissapeared. I haven't heard from him or found any trace of him in years. But you... Your parasym is exactly his style. The fucker might as well have left me a bread trail to find him." He grit his teeth, then let out a sigh.

"I apologize for not saying anything earlier. But now it's only fair that you know too. I killed him." Stein concluded quietly, looking at Shikuro and observing his reaction.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro was silent. He had no idea how to respond to...Well, anything Stein had just told him. He took a deep breath and released it.

"I guess that's...relieving?" Shikuro sighed. "I fucking hate - er, hated that old man. We only met a few times, and it was never exactly pleasant." He placed one hand on his stomach, where the Parasym could be seen faintly through his vest, giving a reddish glow.

"Remember that time I told you I got into a fight? Where I almost went feral?" He said. "That was his fault. He was...testing me, or something. He basically forced me to go after some people who'd smashed up a café. Wasn't a fun time." He explained.

After a brief pause, his eyes widened as a realisation dawned on him.

"Wait!" He said, perhaps a little loudly. "You said the Parasym is 'exactly his style'. How could you tell? What did he do in in city thst was like this? Like...like me?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein sighed as he exited his bedroom, clad in a loose t shirt, sweats, and a damp towel around his neck. He was tired, but at least he was clean now that he was home. That shower at the very least put his mind a bit at ease.

The thought of that freaks blood even touching him made him sick.

He brushed some damp hair out of his eyes before hearing a thumping sound. For a moment he thought some random machine in the lab was malfunctioning before he realized the sound was coming from the spare room where Shikuro was staying.

... Right. He still needs to tell Shirkuro about Procyon. It was only fair that he know too.

Holding his breath, he reluctantly stepped towards the door and lifted his hand. After a moment of great hesitation, he sighed in defeat and knocked a few times.

"Shikuro? Do you have a moment?"

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro had been rather restless recently. The lab was a perfectly fine space, and definitely more comfortable than the streets or the deserts, but he was finding it rather dull. For the time being, he occupied his time mostly with some exercise.

This proved to be more challenging than he was perhaps expecting. Stein was many things, but fond of physical labour wasn't one of them, and so the lab was lacking in terms of ant equipment. He made it work though, sewing some spare pillows together and stuffing them into a large bag and fashioning a makeshift punching bag.

It wasn't like he needed the pillows. He slept better on the floor anyway.

"Hm?" He stopped, stepping back from his punching bag and sighing. He had been going at it for...three, possibly four hours, he guessed? He didn't have much else to do.

He hadn't seen Stein in a while, the scientist having left the lab in a hurry a few days ago. Even when he returned, he seemed very quiet.

"It's a little worrying...or maybe I'm just overthinkin' it. He's probably fine. Wonder what he wants?"

"Yeah, sure." Shikuro shrugged. "I could use a break anyway. Come in, I guess." He said. The lab was the first place he ever lived in with solid doors instead of tent flaps, so he wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do when someone knocked, but he could make a solid guess.

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Forcing a calm demeanor, he nodded to himself and opened the door. He may have also just realized he had no plan for how to go about this and had just rushed into it. Fun.

"Hey, sorry to... Inturupt?" His eyes landed on what seemed to be a makeshift punching bag. Well at least he knew what that noise was earlier.

"How have you been adjusting so far?" He asked, deciding to start out slow. He leaned against the wall by the door as he spoke, once again brushing a few damp strands of hair out of his face.

For once he was not completely covering his body in the usual bulky attire so the true extent of his stiches could be seen, wrapping up his arms and dissapearing under his loose fitting shirt down his chest.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Fine, I guess." Shikuro shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing wrong physically so far. In fact, I've been feeling pretty good lately. Weird."

He turned to look at Stein, noticing his loose shirt.

"Nice scars." He whistled, thinking aloud. They clearly hadn't been caused by any creatures he knew. They were far too deliberate. So man-made, he figured. Self inflicted? Unlikely, he thought. Didn't fit with what he knew of Stein. So...he had fought someone?

If that was what it left him with, he would have hated to meet the other guy.

"Sorry." He shook his head, dismissing thr thoughts and bringing his eyes up to Stein's. "Nothing's been going wrong, as far as I can tell. It's been a little dull the last couple days, but that's all. Why the interest?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein was silent for a moment, lost in thought. A small part of him wanted to laugh at the comment on his scars. Especially considering who made them.

...

Maybe he could start there.

"Would you like to know how I got them? The stitches, I mean." He offered, brushing past Shikuro's question as his thumb subconsciously tracing one of the lines on his wrist.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Certainly seems like it'd be an interesting story." Shikuro smiled, his curiosity piqued. "They're more unique than any of mine. Well, except the big one. But that's another story. You can share first."

He didn't so much take a seat on the floor as collapse slowly onto it before crossing his legs. He tapped the floor, gesturing for Stein to do the same.

"We had a word for sharing scar stories." He explained. "Kizu-Ai. The closest translation to dome speak, I think, is 'open wound', but in a nice way? It's a little hard to explain." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly for a moment.

"Been a while since it came up." He sighed for a moment. "Now's as good as any time for a story, I suppose. So, what's yours?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein had a less than enthusiastic look on his face as he took a seat, holding on to the ends of his towel around his shoulders as he thought over his words.

"It's probably not at all what you're imagining. There was no fight or bloody battle. Heh, it was kinda pathetic if I'm being honest." He cracked a dry smile as he looked to the side.

"I used to know someone. He was smart. No, he was a genius. He was set apart from everyone else due to his massive intellect and ideas. The amount of good he could have done with all that potential is unprecedented." He explained, subtly tip toeing around his actual relationship to the one in question.

"I trusted him. That was my mistake. He... I can't really say he went mad, it's safe to assume he was far past sane long before I met him. I just didn't notice until it was too late." Stein huffed bitterly as he looked up in thought.

"I was betrayed and he did something unthinkable. That's the gist of it. The aftermath is what you see now." The way he spoke about it was very detached, like he had no emotion connected to the story. But if you watched how his hands clenched and his eyes narrowed, you could see the anger that still haunted him over it. He just hid it well

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"I see." Shikuro nodded thoughtfully. Stein was correct to assume it wasn't at all what he was imagining. He had heard one or two somewhat similar stories in the Tribe, stories of betrayal and violation. It wasn't quite the same as Stein's situation from what he had heard, but they shared one common aspect.

None were stories anyone truly wanted to tell. You only spoke of such things when you had to.

"I'm sorry that happened." Shikuro asked, his tone gentle and his voice quiet, almost like a whisper. He carefully placed a hand on Stein reassuringly. "Thank you for saying what you needed to."

"If it's okay to ask..." He hesitated. Questions like this were considered impolite in the best of times. "What happened to him? The one who did this to you, I mean."

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein sighed as he exited his bedroom, clad in a loose t shirt, sweats, and a damp towel around his neck. He was tired, but at least he was clean now that he was home. That shower at the very least put his mind a bit at ease.

The thought of that freaks blood even touching him made him sick.

He brushed some damp hair out of his eyes before hearing a thumping sound. For a moment he thought some random machine in the lab was malfunctioning before he realized the sound was coming from the spare room where Shikuro was staying.

... Right. He still needs to tell Shirkuro about Procyon. It was only fair that he know too.

Holding his breath, he reluctantly stepped towards the door and lifted his hand. After a moment of great hesitation, he sighed in defeat and knocked a few times.

"Shikuro? Do you have a moment?"

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro had been rather restless recently. The lab was a perfectly fine space, and definitely more comfortable than the streets or the deserts, but he was finding it rather dull. For the time being, he occupied his time mostly with some exercise.

This proved to be more challenging than he was perhaps expecting. Stein was many things, but fond of physical labour wasn't one of them, and so the lab was lacking in terms of ant equipment. He made it work though, sewing some spare pillows together and stuffing them into a large bag and fashioning a makeshift punching bag.

It wasn't like he needed the pillows. He slept better on the floor anyway.

"Hm?" He stopped, stepping back from his punching bag and sighing. He had been going at it for...three, possibly four hours, he guessed? He didn't have much else to do.

He hadn't seen Stein in a while, the scientist having left the lab in a hurry a few days ago. Even when he returned, he seemed very quiet.

"It's a little worrying...or maybe I'm just overthinkin' it. He's probably fine. Wonder what he wants?"

"Yeah, sure." Shikuro shrugged. "I could use a break anyway. Come in, I guess." He said. The lab was the first place he ever lived in with solid doors instead of tent flaps, so he wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do when someone knocked, but he could make a solid guess.

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Forcing a calm demeanor, he nodded to himself and opened the door. He may have also just realized he had no plan for how to go about this and had just rushed into it. Fun.

"Hey, sorry to... Inturupt?" His eyes landed on what seemed to be a makeshift punching bag. Well at least he knew what that noise was earlier.

"How have you been adjusting so far?" He asked, deciding to start out slow. He leaned against the wall by the door as he spoke, once again brushing a few damp strands of hair out of his face.

For once he was not completely covering his body in the usual bulky attire so the true extent of his stiches could be seen, wrapping up his arms and dissapearing under his loose fitting shirt down his chest.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Fine, I guess." Shikuro shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing wrong physically so far. In fact, I've been feeling pretty good lately. Weird."

He turned to look at Stein, noticing his loose shirt.

"Nice scars." He whistled, thinking aloud. They clearly hadn't been caused by any creatures he knew. They were far too deliberate. So man-made, he figured. Self inflicted? Unlikely, he thought. Didn't fit with what he knew of Stein. So...he had fought someone?

If that was what it left him with, he would have hated to meet the other guy.

"Sorry." He shook his head, dismissing thr thoughts and bringing his eyes up to Stein's. "Nothing's been going wrong, as far as I can tell. It's been a little dull the last couple days, but that's all. Why the interest?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein was silent for a moment, lost in thought. A small part of him wanted to laugh at the comment on his scars. Especially considering who made them.

...

Maybe he could start there.

"Would you like to know how I got them? The stitches, I mean." He offered, brushing past Shikuro's question as his thumb subconsciously tracing one of the lines on his wrist.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Certainly seems like it'd be an interesting story." Shikuro smiled, his curiosity piqued. "They're more unique than any of mine. Well, except the big one. But that's another story. You can share first."

He didn't so much take a seat on the floor as collapse slowly onto it before crossing his legs. He tapped the floor, gesturing for Stein to do the same.

"We had a word for sharing scar stories." He explained. "Kizu-Ai. The closest translation to dome speak, I think, is 'open wound', but in a nice way? It's a little hard to explain." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly for a moment.

"Been a while since it came up." He sighed for a moment. "Now's as good as any time for a story, I suppose. So, what's yours?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein sighed as he exited his bedroom, clad in a loose t shirt, sweats, and a damp towel around his neck. He was tired, but at least he was clean now that he was home. That shower at the very least put his mind a bit at ease.

The thought of that freaks blood even touching him made him sick.

He brushed some damp hair out of his eyes before hearing a thumping sound. For a moment he thought some random machine in the lab was malfunctioning before he realized the sound was coming from the spare room where Shikuro was staying.

... Right. He still needs to tell Shirkuro about Procyon. It was only fair that he know too.

Holding his breath, he reluctantly stepped towards the door and lifted his hand. After a moment of great hesitation, he sighed in defeat and knocked a few times.

"Shikuro? Do you have a moment?"

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro had been rather restless recently. The lab was a perfectly fine space, and definitely more comfortable than the streets or the deserts, but he was finding it rather dull. For the time being, he occupied his time mostly with some exercise.

This proved to be more challenging than he was perhaps expecting. Stein was many things, but fond of physical labour wasn't one of them, and so the lab was lacking in terms of ant equipment. He made it work though, sewing some spare pillows together and stuffing them into a large bag and fashioning a makeshift punching bag.

It wasn't like he needed the pillows. He slept better on the floor anyway.

"Hm?" He stopped, stepping back from his punching bag and sighing. He had been going at it for...three, possibly four hours, he guessed? He didn't have much else to do.

He hadn't seen Stein in a while, the scientist having left the lab in a hurry a few days ago. Even when he returned, he seemed very quiet.

"It's a little worrying...or maybe I'm just overthinkin' it. He's probably fine. Wonder what he wants?"

"Yeah, sure." Shikuro shrugged. "I could use a break anyway. Come in, I guess." He said. The lab was the first place he ever lived in with solid doors instead of tent flaps, so he wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do when someone knocked, but he could make a solid guess.

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Forcing a calm demeanor, he nodded to himself and opened the door. He may have also just realized he had no plan for how to go about this and had just rushed into it. Fun.

"Hey, sorry to... Inturupt?" His eyes landed on what seemed to be a makeshift punching bag. Well at least he knew what that noise was earlier.

"How have you been adjusting so far?" He asked, deciding to start out slow. He leaned against the wall by the door as he spoke, once again brushing a few damp strands of hair out of his face.

For once he was not completely covering his body in the usual bulky attire so the true extent of his stiches could be seen, wrapping up his arms and dissapearing under his loose fitting shirt down his chest.

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

"Fine, I guess." Shikuro shrugged his shoulders. "Nothing wrong physically so far. In fact, I've been feeling pretty good lately. Weird."

He turned to look at Stein, noticing his loose shirt.

"Nice scars." He whistled, thinking aloud. They clearly hadn't been caused by any creatures he knew. They were far too deliberate. So man-made, he figured. Self inflicted? Unlikely, he thought. Didn't fit with what he knew of Stein. So...he had fought someone?

If that was what it left him with, he would have hated to meet the other guy.

"Sorry." He shook his head, dismissing thr thoughts and bringing his eyes up to Stein's. "Nothing's been going wrong, as far as I can tell. It's been a little dull the last couple days, but that's all. Why the interest?"

@the-maddest-steintist

[the-maddest-steintist]

Stein sighed as he exited his bedroom, clad in a loose t shirt, sweats, and a damp towel around his neck. He was tired, but at least he was clean now that he was home. That shower at the very least put his mind a bit at ease.

The thought of that freaks blood even touching him made him sick.

He brushed some damp hair out of his eyes before hearing a thumping sound. For a moment he thought some random machine in the lab was malfunctioning before he realized the sound was coming from the spare room where Shikuro was staying.

... Right. He still needs to tell Shirkuro about Procyon. It was only fair that he know too.

Holding his breath, he reluctantly stepped towards the door and lifted his hand. After a moment of great hesitation, he sighed in defeat and knocked a few times.

"Shikuro? Do you have a moment?"

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Shikuro had been rather restless recently. The lab was a perfectly fine space, and definitely more comfortable than the streets or the deserts, but he was finding it rather dull. For the time being, he occupied his time mostly with some exercise.

This proved to be more challenging than he was perhaps expecting. Stein was many things, but fond of physical labour wasn't one of them, and so the lab was lacking in terms of ant equipment. He made it work though, sewing some spare pillows together and stuffing them into a large bag and fashioning a makeshift punching bag.

It wasn't like he needed the pillows. He slept better on the floor anyway.

"Hm?" He stopped, stepping back from his punching bag and sighing. He had been going at it for...three, possibly four hours, he guessed? He didn't have much else to do.

He hadn't seen Stein in a while, the scientist having left the lab in a hurry a few days ago. Even when he returned, he seemed very quiet.

"It's a little worrying...or maybe I'm just overthinkin' it. He's probably fine. Wonder what he wants?"

"Yeah, sure." Shikuro shrugged. "I could use a break anyway. Come in, I guess." He said. The lab was the first place he ever lived in with solid doors instead of tent flaps, so he wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do when someone knocked, but he could make a solid guess.

@the-maddest-steintist

[desert-destroyer]

Whats something you've learned while being in Firmamento?

I've learnt... I guess I've learned about different kinds of strength, if that makes sense.

Back in the tribe, the only thing that mattered was raw physical ability and survival skills. These things aren't meaningless in the city, but there's more to it.

Take Stein, for example. I'm fairly confident that I could crush him in a fight if I wanted to, but he's strong in different ways. He's strong in mind, he thinks things through carefully and plans around problems, he assesses things and can process and analyse situations better than I ever could. He's also got a real affinity for technology and tools. Back in the tribe, that sort of thing was too unreliable to be worth anything. Stein takes whatever he's got and makes it work wonders.

Or Mori. I'm not sure about his fighting ability, but his real strength is his strong will. He can keep himself in check in stressful situations, he's able to remain calm qnd collected no matter what's happening around him. At least, if he doesn't he's good at hiding it.

In this place, there's a value to a lot of different kinds of strength. The people I've met, they're good at finding a use for everything they've got.

[webkinzpossum]

i am Touch starved

[crackerqueen-ineedsleep]

@desert-destroyer

[desert-destroyer]

Try and I break you.