“Your stairway lies on the whisperin’ wind…”
Not much time to react here. The two stared at me, the Raccoon’s eyes filled with absolute terror, so strong I felt like I could reach out and grab it. The girl seemed shocked, but not scared. Actually, she looked kinda relieved. I could see Squiggles begin to calm down behind the window as the four of us glared at each other. Ashes growled fiercely at the Raccoon, who flinched and recoiled back, squinting as though he’d seen a bright light consume his vision.
The girl stopped right away, but the Raccoon snarled at me, reverting from fear to his previous, rage filled expression. He doubled back into a fighting stance, and I just stood there, arms at my sides like an idiot.
“Ack, it’s you! I’m going to tear you apart for what you did!” Following this statement was evidence that this Raccoon wasted no time in acting on his words. He lurched through the air at me, and began to claw at my face viciously. I grabbed his left arm and his neck, and began furiously thrashing as I lost my balance and fell head over heels into a desk. We were both on the floor. My face registered a deep, triple clawed cut directly down the right side of my face. In response, I grabbed the little shit, and with all my might, tore him off me and hurled him like a football at the girl’s head.
She flinched and threw her hands up, blocking the incoming rodent and sending him sprawling to the ground with a pained groan. I reached up, touched my cheek, and looked down at my fingertips, finding an all too familiar crimson fluid on then. The girl glanced up at me, and with a stroke of inspiration, charged, preparing to hook with her right hand at my jaw. Surviving in the jungle allowed me to be just a little quicker though, and I ducked under the fist, quickly rising back up, throwing her arm onto my shoulder and lifting with my back, vaulting the young woman right over me and into the ground.
“And she’s… buying a stairway to…. hea-vennn~…”
Welp. That was quick. The girl whined in pain, and I stepped over her, crouching down and looking at the Raccoon. He was alive, breathing. The two appeared to be… well, not critically injured, so, I guess I did something right. Suddenly, I stood up and looked at Squiggles through the window of the door to his room. If he was human, he would have burst into laughter at my face just then.
“….what…. THE FUCK!?”
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Squiggles tasked me with dragging them to the remains of the medical bay, where I laid them upon the beds and glared down at their unconscious bodies. Heh. They just got K.O’d by a nerd. He pressed a button on the side of the beds, and a force shield encompassed them. It was probably to keep them inside. As I stared them down, deep in thought, Squiggles called me out to the hall.
It was just as bleak, cold, and gray out here as ever. He seemed upset about something, but then again, I wasn’t very good at reading the emotions of space aliens.
“Jack, I didn’t trust you initially, but, having just saved my life, I’ve found a new respect for you. The translator in your head,” he stood on his tip-toes and tapped the side of my head. I darted my eyes to the right, for… Some reason.
“It’s not just a translator. It’s a weapon.”
“Oh, can I teleport or something?”
He curled back in disgust.
“What? No. God, no. It’s high end, installed with a specialized transmitter and reciever that interfaces directly with your–“
“Keep it snappy, please.”
“…you can mentally interface with technology.”
My eyes widened and I stepped back, a wide grin on my face.
“We installed you with that because we planned to use you as a guard. That didn’t turn out very successful, clearly.”
“So, you mean I can…”
He stopped me mid sentence.
“The translator is also modified to change its handshake code at your will, allowing you to reprogram civillian grade translators and shock specific nerves–“
“Short.”
“….Look, you can remotely contol anyone with a civillian grade translator.”
“AN-WHAT!? WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME–” there was a groan from the med bay. Someone just woke up. I paused him, and headed into the room. In their bed, I could see that Raccoon sitting up and staring at me. I walked over to his bed and he scooted back against the forcefield.
“How’s it going, jackass?” The Raccoon, I could only assume, looked confused. He froze, and stared at me, wide eyed.
“When are you going to kill me?” He asked, not even a hint of fear in his voice. What an odd contrast from his face. Hmph.
“Kill–dude, you’re a taking Raccoon! You might’ve scratched me up a little but you’re a damned talking Raccoon! How could I say ‘shoot this thing’? How?!”
He was taken aback, but found his ground. “What’s a Raccoon?”
I responded almost instantly. “First, what’s your name?”
“…Pronel’kep.”
“Too long. I’m calling you Rocket.” I stopped myself, and grinned. I loved that comic series.
“Wha–no! Just call me by my name!”
“No, no, it’s too long. Since you don’t like Rocket, I’ll call you… Claus. Get it, like, Claws?“
Suddenly, a feminine voice chimed from the next bed over. I flinched and turned to see the girl, sitting up, frowning.
“If we’re doing introductions, I’m Elisa.”