Story Time

Scourge wrote:

Umino nodded, before looking down at himself in a slightly scared way. It was if he was waiting for something bad to happen.

"No need to be scared, Umino" Alex commented reassuringly. "It's to allow you to speak, much like I'm doing myself"

Umino nodded. There was no trust, it was obvious that Umino simply couldn't trust Alex - in fact, he seemed to have trouble trusting himself.

"But if you don't feel like doing so right now" Alex commented, noticing the look on Umino's face, "That's alright- you don't have to do so right now if you don't want to. Can I get you anything? A drink or something?"

Umino's eyes widened and he shook his head rapidly. He took the pad and pen and wrote the word "poison" - though his writing was barely legible due to him shaking so hard.

---

Suzaku had managed to locate a piece of faded and shredded black cloth that appeared to have once been a backless top. It was stained and crysted with a strange, gold, bloood-like substance, which must've been at least 2000 years old. He also located an old steel whip. Such curiosities told great horrors to Suzaku, who felt the need to tell Alex what he'd found. He rushed off into the ship to look for his friend.

Vlad turns a corner as Suzaku rushes past. Confused, he follows.

'Got any idea where he could be?' Suzaku asked Vladimir, 'I have a feeling that something bad could happen.'

"Last I saw him he was headed to the engine room," Vlad says as he glances into the room adjacent to the room Alex and Umino are in.

'Thanks,' Suzaku headed off to the Engine Room. He held the whip in his hand. His sense of urgency was increasing as he searched for Alex.

I hope he's alright...

Vlad runs in another direction to search, having sensed Suzaku's urgency.

Scourge wrote:

Umino's eyes widened and he shook his head rapidly. He took the pad and pen and wrote the word "poison" - though his writing was barely legible due to him shaking so hard.

"Poison?" Alex asked, wondering what Umino meant by the statement.

Hearing Alex's voice, Suzaku burst into the room they were in.

'Alex,' he said firmly, 'Get away from that man. He's dangerous.'

Umino looked at the whip crushed up in Suzaku's fist and backed away, eyes wide.

"Suzaku" Alex commented, standing up. "This chap here? I found him injured in the engine room, so I took him up here. Do you know him?"

Suzaku showed Alex the whip.

'I found this outside,' he said, 'It's about 2000 years old and is made of the same material as this ship.'

Umino shook his head, his eyes wide. He kept warbling the same note over and over in a panicky way.

Alex glanced at the whip, and then back at the panicking Umino.
"Indeed...it seems to also be having an effect on Umino here. I've no idea why, though- do you think you know why, Suzaku?"

Very shakily, Umino shifted his hair and showed Alex and Suzaku his heavily scarred back, before pointing to the whip.

"Oh...so I notice he must have been slashed by it- judging by the looks of the wounds, they seem to have been inflicted over time. Almost like he had been punished for something"

Suzaku looked down at the whip, then back up at Umino. In a sudden movement, He snapped the cord of the whip, not damaging the metal, and threw it in the nearby bin.

'I'm sorry,' he said to Umino, 'I got it the wrong way around.'

Umino placed his hair back where it should be and nodded, his eyes forgiving but still not trusting.

'By the way,' Suzaku added, 'How on Earth do you cope with your hair being that long? Surely you trip over it?'

"OK then" Alex commented, looking on. "Do you know him, Suzaku?"

'No,' Suzaku replied, 'But I know who - or, more to the point, what - he is.'

"Really? Please do explain"
With that, Alex sat back down on the offer, and offered Suzaku to sit down on the adjacent sofa as well as he spoke.

'He's the ship,' Suzaku explained, 'It sounds hard to believe, but it's pretty definite that he is.

I can even prove it, though you probably wouldn't want me to.'

"How do you mean?" Alex wondered, pondering Suzaku's statement. "I do recall him appearing when I tested the engines of the ship not too long ago, but that's all I really know at the moment"

'The metal this ship is built with is known as Lucridite,' Suzaku explained, 'It seems that the metal we collected and is hardwired to the Engines and the AI that we located here. Lucridite is known to be a sentient element that can manifest a form if fed enough Life Force. The primary engine seems to generate Life Force at a powerful magnitude, giving enough Life Force for this guy to create a body.'

He walked over to Umino and looked at a particularly nasty scar on the man's shoulder.

'I apologise for what I'm about to do,' Suzaku said, looking Umino in the eyes, before slashing through Umino's scar a bit with one of his nails, making the man wince slightly, watching as small beads of golden liquid seeped from the wound.

'Look at this,' Suzaku explained to Alex, 'That's Life Force in its liquid form - a golden liquid with the consistency of blood.'

"Right" Alex commented, listening curiously. "It's certainly quite an interesting occurance- it must explain why Umino suddenly appeared as I switched on the power"

Umino nodded.

'And it'll also explain to you why he can't speak,' Suzaku replied, 'Kzixan is a difficult language to learn out of, as it sounds like song. It is, however, very easier to write out of, as they only have to switch down a letter to write what they wish to say.'

Umino nodded once again. He still stayed in the corner of the room, however, just in case either of the other two were to consider him good for target practice.