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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 4, 2008 3:12:30 GMT -5
"No," Chaser said simply. She sure as hell wasn't going to trust an unknown android that she'd stumbled upon just earlier to do anything that might cause problems in the space-going vessel, whether or not the thing meant to. She might as well put a loaded gun in the thing's hands.
Nyx paused, decided the ship was ready, and stood. "Stay here, I'll be back in a moment."
Without another word, she left the ship and headed back for her lockbox. She wasn't going to give it to the android, nor even mention it to her... but that pistol of hers could prove useful. After all, outlaws were prone to violence.
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 4, 2008 1:34:14 GMT -5
"Amazing? You clearly haven't seen many ships. C'mon." Chaser headed on board, stowing the suitcase and heading for the cockpit to get the ship ready.
Nevorsh... It was a shady planet in both literal and metaphorical sence. The Order of Deo could do little there, the place having been targeted by numerous outlaws and so-called heretics as a hideout and a sort of haven. The black market ran perhaps most actively on that planet, so Chaser - the Black Orchid - could always count on a decent profit. But that planet... She had gone so many times, and every time there had been at least a moment when she wondered if she should pay a visit to a particular town, in which there was a particular stone that bore her surname.
Why did that blasted machine want so much to call her "mother"?
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 4, 2008 0:10:48 GMT -5
((I keep thinking of it being about the size of a microwave.))
"Fine, call me mistress. Just not mother." Chaser grabbed the suitcase and started for a door, different from the one they'd come in by, but also with a touchpad to get through. "Just as well, you can't call me Chaser while on this trip anyway. Follow me."
Again she kept her body between Dorothy and the touchpad as she hit the buttons, only aware afterward that it might well have been a wasted effort. Why did that android have to exist? At least it seemed rather attached to her.
Beyond the door was a starship. It wasn't particularly large, designed for carrying only a few people. It certainly served its purpose, though.
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 3, 2008 23:36:45 GMT -5
Nyx wasn't sure what to make of what she'd just been told, but it wasn't anything she was particularly concerned with just then. Mentally she counted back through what she'd packed and nodded to herself. She had all the nessisary supplies, she already had food on her ship, as always...
"Well, hopefully it doesn't mind that it'll be coming with us. Shouldn't, it was designed to be portable after all," Chaser said, then looked at Dorothy. "Think you could carry it for me?"
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 3, 2008 21:41:21 GMT -5
Just what kinda of technology did this android have in it? She hadn't even touched the blasted thing. Nyx left it for the time being, though, and continued packing the last few things. As she did so, just for the sake of... conversation? Whatever it was for, she went ahead and asked, "And what reason does it have to be angry at me?"
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 3, 2008 21:11:18 GMT -5
"Planet called Nevorsh," Chaser said, not really even paying attention to the "mother" slip. "It's where I do most of my buisness, and a good place for less common information."
She went over to a cupboard and pulled out a smallish box, set it on the counter, and looked though it briefly. A few hours wouldn't really make any noticable difference in potency, she knew, and so the box also hen into the suitcase.
"I know about the fungus, I already read -" she paused and looked up at the android. "How did you pick that up from over there?"
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 2, 2008 23:08:31 GMT -5
((I skimmed the description is all, think I've heard of it, vaguely... Not really something I'm very interested in, though.))
"That's alright, you look busy enough with your little friend there."
Nyx relaxed back into the chair, waiting for the blood test to finish. It confused her a little when she heard three short beeps. She sat up and glanced around, not figuring out that it was from the testing machine until it let out another three beeps - even stranger. Normally the thing only gave one beep upon finishing. Had it found something?
When she looked at the readout, sure enough, something turned up. It was just a tiny amount, whatever it was, but for some reason it hadn't been identified beyond "unknown fungus."
"That can't be right..." she muttered to herself, and hit a few buttons to have the machine isolate whatever it was. How could she be missing something, especially on this planet? Well then, she was just going to have to make that trip a little sooner than planned - just in case.
"Hey Dorothy," she said, pulling a case out from under her cot and starting to pack. Much as she didn't like the idea of bringing the strange android along, she was more bothered by the idea of leaving it alone in her home. "Want to acompany me on a little trip?"
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 2, 2008 22:37:49 GMT -5
To Nyx, that just made Dorothy seem all the more childlike - a kid with an imaginary friend. She supposed there was some possibility the the android was able to pick some sort of signal up from the radio, but she couldn't fathom there being anything actually intelligent in the radio.
She waved her hand dismissively at the life saving thing. "Don't mention it. Really."
A glance over toward the machine testing her blood showed it to be nearing completion. Nyx doubted there was anything wrong; even if there was, it wasn't likely to but anything or enough to actually cause any harm. Good thing, too, she had to go on another market run soon, likely the next day.
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 2, 2008 22:17:31 GMT -5
"Well, for one, you're talking to a one-way radio that's turned off," Chaser said, a slight smirk on her face. Vaguely she heard one of automated sprinklers start up for a section of plants, but that was something she had long since ceased to pay much attention to; only something to bother about if they didn't start up. "Second, your behavior reminds me more of a child than of any sort of robot-type."
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 2, 2008 17:39:23 GMT -5
Nyx watched Dorothy and raised an eyebrow. She could understand the android mistaking the radio as talking to her if she had actually turned it on, but she hadn't. After watching for a moment though, the woman shrugged it off and wandered over to a chair to lounge for a bit. She didn't completely ignore the android, of course; she still didn't fully trust it to be harmless, and she was also wary of troubles it might cause even unintentionally.
It was strange, having another human-like thing in her cave. Stranger still to think about how the machine seemed to much to want to call her mother, insisted Nyx had given it life, even risked its life for her. Huh, a machine with a life... Now there's a concept, she thought to herself. I've never heard of an AI saying such things.
"You're one weird little machine, you now that, Dorothy?"
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 2, 2008 0:18:57 GMT -5
"I don't know how reliable that might be - no offence." She didn't bother correcting Dorothy about the debt; whereas Nyx had only accidently activated Dorothy, the android had purposely made very effective efforts at keeping the woman out of harm's way. But hey, if the thing wanted to think it owed her, Chaser didn't mind getting a free favor.
"If you want, you can listen to the radio," she said, gesturing over to a small radio with an oversized antenna attatched to it. "The plants react well to soft music."
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 2, 2008 0:01:38 GMT -5
"No need," Chaser said, not even bothering to look back. "It was that machine, but at least it seems to have done a decent job of cauterizing. I heal pretty quick, anyway, just a little sensitive. All I need is a little blood test, and I'd rather run than myself."
She continued on to the living area, first stowing the pistol away in a safe and then taking a device that looked something like a gun from a nearby counter. She loaded it with a tiny empty glass cartridge, held it to her arm, and squeezed the trigger. It made a small noise like a pressurized clicking, and a moment later Chaser pulled the now filled cartirdge back out and pushed it into a computer for analisys.
"It'll take a little while now... thing's going to check my blood for anything that could possibly cause me harm." She stuck a small bandage over the tiny hole that had been left in her flesh, then reached into the pouch at her hip, pulled out one her special chews, and stuck it in her mouth. Just in case.
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 1, 2008 23:39:09 GMT -5
"Careful what you touch. Some plants don't respond well, and some can cause problems," Chaser said, eyeing the android's hand. At least it looked like she was gentle about it, and that particular plant was both sturdy and harmless. Just a few rows down, though, were a number of poisonous plants, placed in part as a bit of a small trap if anyone without such knowledge were to somehow make it into her sanctum.
Just as she'd pushed her goggles up, Nyx now moved the mask over her mouth and nose down, a slight smile on her face and the pleasant scents of numerous plants filled her nostrils. She reached out to touch a bit of hanging vine, raising it slightly as she did so. "Plants are what I know," she said softly, displaying a side of herself that no person had seen in years. "There are many wonderful things about plants... There have been studies that even suggest plants are as alive and aware as any other creature, despite the lack of neural tissue." It was something she had often thought about, living by herself. She lived alone, but she didn't often feel lonely; not with her plants.
She pushed that aside and continued on through the plants, though. She still had things to do, like put away Dorothy's weapon and test her blood for any sort of toxins.
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Post by Novalyyn on Apr 1, 2008 14:23:50 GMT -5
Chaser said nothing in responce, but dialed in the code to open the second door, making sure only she could see the touchpad as she did so. Unlike many, it made no beeping; she never could understand why that was so commonplace, she'd always thought it was rather annoying. All othe functions proved to be running properly when the second door slid open, at last revealing Nyx's lab and home.
The light was brighter, though none shined toward the door. Instead, all of the lights in use hung above a number of rows of plants. To actually walk into the area was almost like walking into a jungle rather than a cave; the place was much larger and more open than the tunnels, held up by numerous pillars. Plants were everywhere, all sorts, many of them separated into smaller groups, even sectioned off by thin plastic tents, and tubing ran through the entire place for watering. The place was also very noticably warmer and more humid than the tunnels, thanks to the many lights immitating sunlight and all the plants.
Beyond the plants, but presently blocked by them, was an area set off from the plants. It served as her bedroom, kitchen, lab, and bathroom; everything needed and a few extra things, although some things weren't designed like normal, whether she'd found it in the black market or figured it out on her own.
"Well," she said, "this is where I live." Chaser turned to Dorothy. "Now would be a good time to erase your memory of how to get here."
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Post by Novalyyn on Mar 31, 2008 23:06:07 GMT -5
I have a different title, Nyx thought to herself, but out loud she only said, "It's my name."
Pitch black tunnels weren't much for scenery, but soon enough they had reached the very outer door of Chaser's lab and home. There wasn't really anything visible except more tunnel, but the woman stopped anyway to run her hands over the rocky wall. She found the spot, pushed aside a bit of rock, and pressed her thumb to a smooth plate that had been hidden. There were muffled mechanical noises, and Chaser stood calmly and pushed her goggles up as the stone began to move.
"We're about to have light," she warned, and sure enough a beam appeared from beneath the rising stone. It was actually a pretty dim light, but even after having been wearing the goggles, it was plenty illumination to see by. However, once the stone door had stopped moving, all that was revealed was a hall, only little less roughly hewn than the tunnel and noticeably smaller. Another, more visible door was at the end, along with a small numbered touchpad. Without a word, Chaser headed for it.
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