First Blood (Do;)

[speakveryclearly]

[The camera for once shows neither a peering face nor an accidental other body part. Instead it's being held landscape-style, like a cinematic work - or perhaps a better term would be "security camera footage". There are two people, about six feet away from the camera; the shot isn't masterly, but at least steady. The first thing that's apparent is that it's an Initiative soldier and a young looking alien teenager, maybe 14 at most. Said teenager is pretty tall, but from the way his clothes hang too loosely and yet too short in several areas on his frame, he's obviously malnourished. Those transports familiar with trolls will be able to identify him as one from the long curling horns going up and up out of his shaggy rats' nest of too long hair and gray skin, but there's something off.

Namely, that the fully trained and adult soldier is looking downright intimidated by this kid encroaching on his personal space with only a pair of reasonably harmless looking juggling clubs in hand. Maybe it's the sloppily applied clown makeup. Or maybe it's the messy looking band of scar tissue peaking out from the sagging collar of the kid's worn Capricorn T-shirt and the almost-fresh indigo-blooded bite-mark on his throat. Actually, it's probably the way the kid is creepily sing-songing everything he says with sudden and unexpected changes in volume.]

Your words are up and spilling their secrets full out in here. THEY'RE BEING UP LIKE A DROPPED WINGBEAST EGG. Splat. SQUISH. Motherfucker. HUMAN.

They're telling at me that you're not getting your motherfucking listen on to me. GOT A WHISPER ON WHAT YOU'RE NOT KICKING WITH NO UNDERSTANDING.

Tell it all at you nice and slow. BEING AN UNDERSTANDING BROTHER WHAT OF YOUR HUMAN PAN NOT BEING DOWN WITH THE KNOWING. Ask at you this again all nice and gentle-like.

WHERE
did
THIS HEAD MOTHERFUCKING BITCH
what brought us here
WHAT IS LOCKING US ALL DOWN IN HERE
get her scamper off to?

[The camera at this point moves out of the cinematic landscape perspective to a portrait position: The cameraman aiming it on themselves now. Camerawoman? Cameratroll? The person who's been running it is in fact a young woman, likewise 14, likewise recognizable as of Alternia by her candy-corn horns, medium and curved, the one to the viewer's right bearing a sharp hook; but something's off about her as well. Sure, she has a snazzy black-and-white dress on with the Virgo symbol on the breast; but her gloved hands on the communicator, even though they're black, seem a little... jaded. Maybe her butch haircut is a little too out-of-fashion? The bright green makeup covering both her lips and her eyelashes also makes her look a little harsher. And of course, unlike all the other gray-skinned trolls, she glows bright white.]

I'm sorry to interrupt.

[In sharp contrast to the boy's chaotic singsong, though just as notably unusual, the girl speaks very clearly and carefully.]

My friend and I just got here a few days ago, taken out of a rather... stressful situation, and there's quite a bit of confusion. For one thing, a lot of people seem to be rather confused about... trolls, as are the other trolls about us - though, well, I am a rainbow drinker to be more accurate; but of course most of my audience doesn't even know what a rainbow proper is so why should you care. Anyway, if you'd like to address us by name, mine is Kanaya Maryam... [A return of cinematic view to the troll boy.] And my dear friend over there is Gamzee Makara, and possibly under the jurisdiction of whatever the humans here pretend to respect as laws at this point.

[Gamzee obviously heard her, and turns in the direction of the camera with a little bit of a snarl. Or is that a crooked smile? Hard to tell, and he probably doesn't even know.]

What are you up and motherfucking getting your snipe on about, bitchsis? You-- HEY MOTHERFUCKER WHO UP AND SAID YOU COULD GET YOUR RUN ON?!

[And that would be the increasingly unnerved soldier making a break for freedom and Gamzee disappearing out of sight. And that sound that just came from the side there? That was not a good sound. It was a very bad sound. Kanaya's gloved hand rises - reaching out to intervene, maybe? But after an ambivalent pause, the feed just ends.]

((OOC: Gamzee and Kanaya are both pleased to meet you, we... can't really promise, but! If you have a preference for one, the other, or both separately, please specify, but by default they will be threadjacking the stuffing out of each other. TYIA!)

Comments

[biwinning]

ye2 plea2e try two horriify the guy who had hii2 braiin bleed out hii2 ear2 already once before.
ii'm 2ure your attempt wiill be miildly amu2iing, kn.

[Filter]

[speakveryclearly]

[Of course, her filters are like paper bags, basically the standard initiative hand-down. If it weren't explicitly directed to Sollux already, he could probably literally crack this open in two seconds.]

The Guy With The Bogus Prophesy About Dying Twice
Versus The Girl Who Actually Did
And Then A Third Time For Good Measure
Who Will Win

[Filter - IMPROVED]

[biwinning]

[Because even though they're arguing, he still considers Kanaya a bro and does her the favor of improving the filter.]

iit'2 not fuckiing bogu2 and ju2t becau2e iit ha2n't happened yet doe2n't mean iit won't fuckface.

[Filter maintained until further notice I guess]

[speakveryclearly]

Okay
Im Sorry
It Was Slanderous Of Me To Imply It Wouldnt
But
It Was Really Bad In The Asylum
We Were Subjected To Electroshock Therapy
And Other Torture Comparable To The Pupation Trials But Without The Rewards
And Repeated Kidnappings
And There Was This Human Maniac Who Was Also A Rapist
Which He Demonstrated On My Then-Auspisticee
Who Initiated No Less Than Three Rather Intimate Caliginous Liaisons During Her Time There Yet Broke Off Each One Insisting Her Species Was Incapable Of Kismesissitude
One Of Which Was In Fact With Me
Another Having Been With The Other Auspisticee

I Could Go On But I Dont Even Want To
Im So Happy To Be Anywhere But There And I Dont Want To Lose That
So If Your Experience Was Remotely As Bad As Any Of That
Then
Im Really Sorry

[Filter maintained until further notice I guess]

[biwinning]

...

[Well. Now he feels bad. Kanaya "The Guilt Police" Maryam strikes again.]

how long were you there?

[speakveryclearly]

Ten Earth Months
Undoubtedly The Worst Of My Life
Now That My Life Is Over I Can Stay That Literally With All Confidence

[biwinning]

...

and driinkiing my blood won't have any bad 2iide effect2 on me riight.
liike ii won't turn iintwo a zombiie or 2omethiing.
riight?

[speakveryclearly]

Of Course Not
That Wouldnt Be Very Evolutionarily Advantageous Would It

[biwinning]

...
fiine.
where are you.
you can driink from me ii gue22.

[speakveryclearly]

Do You Mean That
You Dont Have To
But If Youre Saying It You Should

[biwinning]

ii mean iit.

[speakveryclearly]

Ooh Mister Captor Ooh
She Said Jokingly

[If Exsilium's communicators have a coordinates-sending function, she employs it; if not, attached is a helpful photo of a nearby room number plaque.]

[biwinning]

ha ha.

[And being the unfunny guy that he is, he ends it there, and heads to her location. He's... never had his blood taken before or anything. He's kind of nervous, honestly.]

Tho hi.

[speakveryclearly]

Hi.

[Wave. Awkward one. She looks friendly, though, really.]

Would you believe you're the first troll besides Gamzee I've seen for... a sixth-sweep or so.

[biwinning]

No. It'th kind of hard to believe that for me, I've alwaysth been placesth with other trollsth... But I believe it with you. You're pretty bad a lying.

[speakveryclearly]

At least I wasn't entirely alone. It could have been...

[Worse. But she doesn't say it because, honestly?? ......... yeah.]

How many were there there. About half, like here? All of us?

[biwinning]

More than half. Motht of uth were there, at thome pointsth. But people would dithappear jutht ath quickly ath show up.

Here, it'th been kind of conthithtent at leatht. Mythelf, Eridan and Equiuth. Feferi'th here too. That'th it though, bethidesth you and Gamzee.

[speakveryclearly]

Eridan was in the asylum for a really long time, but disappeared halfway through. [She looks away... seems really, really sad when she says that, and it's pretty obvious she took it like he could have been dead and in some sense may still be now. And yet her body language is also... probably... something that might remind him of Aradia?????? Hmmmmmm.]

There were one or two others, but so transient as to be almost illusory.

[biwinning]

... It almotht feelsth like- well, no, it'th obviouth we're being fucked with, but it feelsth like thome conthtithtant thing where we have to keep dealing with thith thort of thing. Like who'th fucking grave did we collectively pith on to get thtuck with livesth like thith?

Whatever.

Do you ... do the neck?

[speakveryclearly]

This is what we get for antagonizing the humans, and I guess they gave the spatio-temporal instability to us by opening the Scratch.

[His next question makes her awkward again.] Ah... I can do the wrist; but the neck is actually much easier. There are evolutionary reasons that the pain is less acute and shorter-lasting there. [Sure.]

[biwinning]

Jutht do the neck. ... I don't have to take my shirt off or anything, right?

[MAKING IT MORE AWKWARD.]

[speakveryclearly]

No.

[On that awkward note, flickering awkwardly with anticipation, she just kind of puts her hands on his shoulders and leans in and does it. Gosh, it sure would be convenient if he were unconscious or something.]

[biwinning]

[... Yeah, it probably would be. But no, he's woefully conscious, and winces when she leans in and bites him. Otherwise he's (thankfully) quiet.]

[speakveryclearly]

[P a n s y.

Silence. She's keeping very quiet, though her foot pops.

Doesn't take that long, swear.]

[biwinning]

[Wow rude.

And now you're the one making it awkward with your foot popping. He doesn't know where to put his hands, so he kind of just keeps them in balled fists by his sides. And maybe feeling a little dizzy right now...]