Snippet #2546686

He was quiet. Before now, Kaliska hadn't spoken of an other in such a fashion. It was disdainful, understandably. So he had been the one to start the fire, but... then killed his team? It didn't make sense. Perhaps Kaliska had heard wrong from a witness, or misunderstood the situation. And then he had.. wandered off. She wouldn't have just let him go, not with all that he'd done. Ambassador had to wonder if the Misu was keeping the true facts of the situation private. She didn't seem to be coated in blood... but he wouldn't put it past her to draw it. He was reminded of the first time he saw her. Hunched and intimidated, yet just as prepared to end his life. That had been just over half of a week ago. In fact... what had ever happened to Cole? His memories were spotty, offering recalls of a scuffle where he thought he had been assaulted by Cole. He'd hit an assailant with a rather heavy and jagged object. Had he.. had he killed Cole? A wave of cold fear swept over him. He'd completely forgotten about them. About what happened. The little coincidences and events that had brought him here in the first place.
Still, he didn't know what to tell the Misu. He could understand her hostilities to the others. But... he was still one. Despite what she said, and how she acted, he was not a native. And would never be, not truly. The best he could do was continue to offer support. Something he knew he couldn't offer nearly enough of to fend off the invading forces. The only good news apparent was that - as far as he was aware - only one of them had made an outright show of aggression. And that was the Federation.
They were passing by smoldering buildings, some of which had fire scars spanning almost their entirety. It was very fortunate that the majority of the homes were primarily clay and stone-based; while the walls were charred, they still stood. Thatched roofs and blinds were gone, as were plants around them. It was not a total loss. But... it was one that could have been avoided altogether. Uncomfortable, Ambassador chose to try and spark another topic. "Well... at least we have the Eagox pups and Isottina to look forward to." He forced a half-awkward smile. "Josephus should be able to help." Or was it Jeremiah...



La'vida kept a step behind the two. She wandered closest to the Follower, casting sidelong glances at the creature and rider. She had been hearing what before she thought was thunder; now that she stood alongside the beast, she realized there were soft low-vibration sounds rolling off of it. Communication. Ambassador hadn't seemed to notice, nor had the Misu. Perhaps they were just ignoring it. La'vida had also begun to notice that the rider didn't quite... examine. The armor he wore was at least flexible enough to allow his head to move, but he didn't. Neither out of curiosity or reflex at the sounds of the jungle-creatures. Finally, she spoke. "What are you?"
Follower Four kept a slow pace to stay with the three biped Archive-Kin-Misu. They were small things, but large-headed. Unusual proportions. It didn't understand how they kept their balance. They sort of... alternated legs that they would fall forward onto in order to walk. Sure, Follower had seen bipeds before. But not in such proximity.
It took the Brakori a moment to realize it was being addressed. When the realization was made, it tried to remember which the voice belonged to. They were all the same. Slowing until all three were in view, it waited for the question to be asked again and identified the source. "This Follower is a fourth-rank Follower of the Autonomous Collective of Accepted Civilizations."
"That's not what I meant." She clarified. The Autonomous Collective.... now she understood. It was a Brakori. They had occupied Stravin Twelve long ago, seeking something called a Wanderer. Old memories surfaced. The ones she knew had been serpentine and aquatic. Banded and white, with a black cabochon on their back. She remembered visiting one of their underwater cities as a child. It was a living thing. "I met you, once. On-" she cut herself off. "It was another water planet. Your people..." La'vida trailed, thinking back. There had not been riders. Only white aquatics with green eyes. They had called themselves something else. She couldn't remember. "Well, I met one of your people there anyway."