Shell Shock
Writers: Denny and Leila
Rating: PG-RG
Warnings: Ratchet/Azimuth. Violence.
Disclaimer: We value our lives too much to even dare think about claiming Ratchet and Alister as our own. We borrow them for an RP, so don't worry. [Put the Wargroks back into your cage!]
Summary: Everyone's nightmare is to wake up in a cold, dark place without a clue where one is. Sadly, that's what's happened to us. What's even better, we have monsters and weird encounters to endure as well. And then there's them…
Lucky, right? If I ever get out of here, I will need some therapy sessions.
Chapter 12
"I'm glad that I don't meet Lawrence that often. He can be such a pain in the ass." They were again in a maze of corridors. Embarrassment on Ratchet's side had mostly died down and the rest got smothered by annoyance.
"I believe that this once meeting was enough for my entire life." He still kept going ahead, one hand around Ratchet's wrist, one searching within his collar for the microchip Lawrence had given them. When he had found it, he inserted the object into a small slit in the armor core on his chest. Almost instantly the information was taken over, as his helmet materialized and now displayed a small map in the bottom left corner of his visor. There were blue and red corridors; but why they were colored like this did not quite come to the elder at the moment. Ejecting the microchip, he stretched his arm back without turning around. "Here, the microchip."
Ratchet downloaded the chip's content, too, before he stored the chip in his hyperspace, tugging on his 'captured' hand. "You can let go of me now, Lawrence is far behind us." Not that he minded; but he didn't want to be pulled at the wrist like a child.
The elder turned around halfway only to look at the wrist. "... Oh. Yes, yes of course." His fingers splayed and released Ratchet's hand while his limb was pulled back and his attention returned to the corridor before them. There was still that blue shimmer in the air, presumably since they were moving in a secure area.
But how secure could this place be if they were treading an enemy's territory?
"At least we have a map now. I think there's an emergency escape if we keep to the right of this place." The blue shimmer flickered, the source still invisible.
Great - did that mean they would get into another power outlet room where they finally would get crisped?
"Mhm. You might be right." Azimuth placed one of his hands against the wall as he walked, following the corridor. Unlike Ratchet he believed that this was a protection mechanism against the guards, or - how did Lawrence call them? - Shapeshifters, and this was more than welcome. Somehow he had his suspicions about the emergency escape, though. He had no real hint or evidence, just simple intuition.
"Then again, it could be just an elaborated sign to a broom closet," the younger elaborated on his thesis. Looking around, the corridor seemed to stretch endlessly despite what was shown on the map. Which hardened the possibility the part about the broom closet.
"Hah. As if we would find a broom closet in a facility with highly advanced technology. There would be no need for such a broom closet except-" Azimuth broke off. If he had been Nefarious, a short-circuit would have happened right now. Instead he froze, standing there with an expression enriched by an embarrassing epiphany.
"You okay?" Came the innocent question, the younger unaware of the elder's realization. "And what about the need for a broom closet 'except'?"
A hand was waved in front of the frozen Lombax. Several times actually and Ratchet even snipped his fingers while talking to the other. With a sigh, Ratchet pulled his arm back and crossed it with his other arm, tilting his head in annoyance. He began tapping his feet as it seemed Alister wouldn't come back so fast.
First only slowly, then quickly the elder blinked. Shaking his head frantically, he tried to get the images out of his head and lowered his gaze. Since he thought of the helmet as a hat, he slightly tugged the edge down as well. "Sorry. I...dozed off."
"I did notice that, you know." Ratchet raised his eyebrow while his gaze was heavy-lidded. "What did you think about actually? You seemed like on a different planet - no, farther away. Like, in Solana."
"...I can assure you, it wasn't of importance. Just insignificant thoughts." Azimuth scratched his cheek a little, evidently uncomfortable with the subject. "Either way. Perhaps, perhaps not it is an emergency exit. We don't know."
"Then we just have to find out. It's only our only hint after all." With a shrug he faced forward again and began walking. He noticed after a while the lack of another pair of feet following him.
"... Are you in deep of insignificant thoughts again? Though you look rather stricken at the moment."
"What? Me? No." Azimuth waved aside. "I'm all right. Just...That butler's words still ring in my mind. It's nothing."
That got him only a 'what please' expression for his efforts. "Lawrence? What has he got to do with this- Oh." Ratchet wanted to face palm but he didn't know for whom - because of himself or because of Alister. "Why the hell did you just think about this?"
"The question is whether I haven't been thinking about it all the time." Azimuth frowned almost stubbornly, arms crossed and finger tipping onto his upper arm.
"... You got the idea because of the broom closet, didn't ya."
"WHAT? No!" Ever-so shocked, Alister stepped back as if a vile creature had snapped after him. "How did you get this idea?"
Ratchet just 'looked' at him. "I actually meant this as a joke, but your reaction makes me wonder."
"Why are you so persistent about this anyway?" Azimuth snarled back, not in a hostile, but angry way. It certainly wasn't because of Ratchet, though. "Come on, let's just move on. There's no need to keep thinking about this." He rushed past the younger.
"Wait a second!" He reached after him as the elder ran past, breaking out in a run too. "Slow down, damn it! Sorry that I mentioned it, it's just that Lawrence's nagging still annoys me too!"
"Oh has it? I wonder if it nags you as much as it nags me!" Alister did not intend to slow down; on the contrary. His steps grew more ferocious as he was now rather stomping than walking. "I can't believe that he knows what happened. Oh, by Orvus, if he told anyone-!" He shook his head frantically as a shudder went through his tail.
"Tell whom? Why should he tell?" Of course Ratchet didn't know the robot well personally - and he hadn't the intention to change that necessarily - but he couldn't imagine that Lawrence would 'kiss and tell' anyone. He was into the subtle kind of insults and apparently only directed 'juicy' details in that form to the persons which were affected by it, not to third parties. The idea he could do otherwise was still within reason, making his stomach knot a bit.
"I don't know!" Azimuth replied, his free hand waving around agitatedly. "I don't know, but the possibility stands. And this... Oh Orvus, why did we do that anyway? That was so irrational." He growled and massaged his temples with his hand, walking farther still.
"You mean what I was doing was irrational. I remember now that my head was pretty messed up because of the guards and I pulled you into this. Given they apparently 'examined' you too, it's clear you probably also suffered from the effects." He didn't say what he and Alister had been doing was disgusting, though. Because it hadn't been, no matter how much out of it he had been at the moment.
"But still!" The elder seemed to get caught up in it even more. "I should have been just more thoughtful. Such irrationality is not fit for a general, former or not." He pulled his hand over his face. "Oh just... urgh."
"I know this is not the best moment for me to act mature, but can we think about this later, when we're safe and outside?" Slowly his patience was worn thin. Of course he was disturbed too, goddamn it he had thought he was into girls! That he was straight! Even when in a kind of drugged state, he would have never thought before about making out with a male, even if it was the only other Lombax left in this universe. Did he freak out, though?
Okay, internally he did. Still different from the General who rode himself deeper and deeper into his aggravation, he controlled it until he had time to properly assess it. Besides, did he think of himself as someone better than Ratchet when it was so much worse for Alister that he himself had been irrational too?
"That was my intention all a- either way. All right." The general massaged the bridge of his nose as he continued to walk. "Well, we should turn right now. The emergency exit seems to be there."
At least they were getting somewhere. Suppressing his huff and further comments, Ratchet turned his attention back to the corridor, not without looking back for a moment. The door to the monitor room was a tiny black rectangular in the blue light, more than double the distance away than before. In their huff and hurry, they hadn't noticed how fast they had been going. And past what.
A shiver crawled up Ratchet's back. So stupid - they were so stupid. Anyone could have sneaked up on them.
"It's good that there is this force field. It makes this part of the facility safe for the time being." Azimuth had decided to study the map in the bottom right corner more closely in order to distract himself. So his assumption that the blue shimmer was the active energy field had been right after all; and this relieved him at least a little. "We can move freely in this part, at least."
The words were meant to be reassuring. Alister had activated the force field himself and watched what effect it had on the Shapeshifters, though that one had had the bad luck of directly standing over the wall onlining, cutting right through it. That it didn't change back, with the reactions of the rest of the Shapeshifters, made it clear the field could hurt them severely in a way they didn't enjoy.
But Ratchet hadn't seen the force field activate. Even if conscious at the time, it was doubtful it would have lessened much his anxiety. He still heard their voices, the greed in their optics to devour him literally as Lawrence had confirmed - when even the robot butler, usually unfazed by anything terrible that made even his master's skin crawl, said openly he found them hard to control... So he only heard this out of Alister's words.
For the time being.
"Are you all right?" Azimuth stopped as he noticed a slight wince from the other. He turned around and waited for a reply.
"Uhhh-huh?" Green eyes blinked rapidly before a too wide grin split under them up. "Nothing! I'm just wondering what part that here is exactly and just remembered from my earlier adventures that nice-looking doesn't always mean nice-being-" Stars damn it, he was rushing out like an idiot.
"Uh... huh." Bit by bit one of Alister's eyebrows was raised as he silently listened to the end of Ratchet's babbling. "I don't know if you were conscious enough to notice it, but there is an energy force field in this part of the facility. I would assume that these are the personal quarters of Nefarious. I couldn't think of another reason for an energy force field around here."
"That would explain the washing machine. But really - the household room and the surveillance room together? Only Lawrence would think of that."
"If you think about it, it is quite logical." Azimuth waved aside. "It would be bothersome to run through half of the facility if you could place everything into one room. Then again, I would rather prefer them in separate rooms still." He paused. "...How did we end up talking about furnishing preferences?"
"With Nefarious, villainy and furniture don't mutually exclude each other." Garnering a very raised eyebrow which threatened to vanish in the fur on Alister's head, Ratchet deadpanned. "Okay, the furniture part comes in due to Lawrence but Nefarious is air headed enough he could have gotten this idea on his own."
A chuckle escaped the elder which he hid behind his hand. "Well, you may be right. But either way..." He pointed behind his back. "Let's better get going, shall we?"
A nod. "Alright." While they strode to and through the side-path, Ratchet stayed behind the General. No need to get Alister suspicious when Ratchet would keep looking around, his ears perked to their highest point while his hand rhythmically clenched and unclenched around his wrench.
The general kept looking ahead for a sign. According to the map, they were already close to the exit...
Oh, there it was.
"We're here." Azimuth stopped and looked at the door. Unlike the others in the facility it was an old-fashioned one with a door handle. Perhaps that was because of its function, or simply out of spite. Not that the elder care; he just wanted to leave that place.
Only that some odd sensation suggested finding another road...
Alister shook his head. He could at least try and open the door. Thinking that, he reached out for the handle and pressed it down, pulling the door open.
When yellow eyes shoved themselves into his perception, he shrieked back.
Deafening cackling filled the corridor all of a sudden as the eyes multiplied. First only two, then four, then ten. Glowing teeth became visible as the devious grin split their lips. Suddenly a hand attempted to rush forward and grab the Lombax, almost touching him -
Blue sparks concentrated in between and catapulted the Shapeshifter back into the emergency exit, a cry of frustration leaving them.
"FUCK!" Even as the guard was catapulted back, Ratchet tugged and pulled on Alister's upper arm who slipped with his boots on the ground's tiles. They both stared through the door into the dimly illuminated path they saw. It was similarly built like this one, everywhere tiled and each second meter lamps embedded into the ground to light the way.
"Close the door, close the door!" Azimuth urged, eyes wide and his balance not quite restored. He stumbled backwards against the wall, panting heavily. "Close it already!"
And close the door he did - gripping the door's side he flung it back into the frame, the angles jumping in protest at the violence. "Goddamn it, Lawrence!" His voice broke as he punched the opposite wall, going after the dent with another punch of his fist for good measure. He panted like his comrade, sliding to his knees under tremors.
"That... That was certainly not what I wanted to see. Oh lords." Azimuth pulled his hand over his face, sliding down the wall as he did so. "Just... That was too close."
There was no answer. For a good while, only the pair's panting filled the corridor. Ratchet still sat faced to the wall with his head leaning against it, palm lying flatly over his wrench's handle but he instantly tensed up at to the second noise joining their heavy breaths.
These sounded like scratching.
Scratching on metal behind them.
"... I think they can't get in." Azimuth took a deep breath, composing himself once more. "I think... hope. Urgh." He tensed up slightly. "Why the hell were they in the emergency exit?"
"... Do you hear that scratching too?" Ratchet didn't disregard the other's words; he just hadn't registered them. Slowly pushing away from the wall with some effort by his trembling arms, he looked down the corridor in both directions. His ears moved back and forth, twitching like his fingers.
"... Yes. I do." Shutting his eyes firmly, he kept whispering to himself. His fingers splayed and curled as he repeated one sentence over and over again.
"They cannot get in."
After some moments his body relaxed as his breath calmed down. He just sat there, the continuous scratching not disquieting him any longer.
It was the opposite for Ratchet. He was still too, but where Alister relaxed in meditation, he was locked on his knees with his ears flitting madly and both irises so wide they showed his quiet terror.
A hand was placed on Ratchet's shoulders. Although Azimuth didn't look at him, he tried to comfort him at least a little through this. "Calm down, Ratchet. They can't get in."
"It's hard." He bowed his head, the motion making his chest feel even tighter against his heart that wanted to burst out of his ribcage.
"There are harder things. You've been through some, too."
This was hilarious. 'Harder things than that.' It helped really much that the elder was so vague on what he meant - the 'examination' or his panic fit because the guards were close by - so the golden Lombax's imagination had enough room to run wild. His forehead fell against the wall, feeling so tired and sick and anxious that he was torn between screaming and just collapsing.
The elder hesitated. He felt the urge to pull Ratchet closer, but was unsure if he should. Some reassurance would be nice for both of them, too, but...
His hand moved slightly towards himself, indicating what he wanted to do. Now he only had to wait for the younger's reaction.
Too tired to keep alerted to his environment, the touch on his shoulder almost triggered him into real panic. The sensation raced to his unguarded brain which felt like exploding in adrenaline as it screamed at him 'flight or fight'. Luckily it lasted merely a second and he didn't react on the outside except for slowly turning to face the General.
Azimuth glanced to Ratchet for a brief second before he pulled a little more so that Ratchet could rest his head on his shoulder. This was as much of a compromise he could make right now between comfort and respecting the distance Ratchet had indicated in the computer room, and he hoped that he was all right with it.
There was neither resistance, nor a sound from the younger. He turned his head so his cheek rested on the shoulder pad and closed his eyes, trying to get his breathing and hammering heart under control. He bent his side in an awkward angle that would become uncomfortable in a few minutes but he didn't care about this in the moment.
Azimuth's hand slid off Ratchet's shoulder and found its way to the other one. Bending it a little, the fingers stroked over the younger's head, slowly, calmly as soon as he had disengaged Ratchet's helmet. There was no need to utter another word.
The massage felt heavenly. Tilting his head drove Alister's fingers better against and over his head, before they lowered to knead the back of his neck. Vibrations started in his throat while the scratching faded behind the bliss he found himself sinking in.
A faint chuckle escaped the elder as he watched Ratchet. It was good that he relaxed, for both him and the general. Somehow their current position even had something calming to it.
When Ratchet's knees began to ache, with the physical annoyance the anxiety stepped back in. Shifting brought only so much release when he didn't want to abandon his current position, but it would simply not do.
"May I?"
The words weren't louder than a hush, and certainly not very descriptive. Azimuth believed, however, that Ratchet would catch their meaning.
"Mmmh?" He blinked at the elder, half from fatigue, half from confusion as the others' words had pulled him out of his thoughts. "Sorry, what you say?"
Perhaps he had assumed too much. "Shift you into a more comfortable position."
"... Oh. Okay." Sounded like a sensible idea. Ratchet didn't feel like moving at all on his own, anxiety forgotten, and just moved that much to help Alister pull him with his back against his chest. He could lean his head back, enjoying once more Azimuth's fingers massaging him.
The elder smiled faintly as he continued his prior action. Slowly, cautiously yet with a certain confidence he stroked over Ratchet's head. As he did so, his own body relaxed against the wall, sliding down slightly while his free arm was wrapped loosely around Ratchet's waist. It certainly was comfortable like this, and despite the danger right behind the door, Azimuth could not be bothered by it anymore. Together with the knowledge of safety their situation seemed to him like a far too precious moment to waste.
The vibrations started again in his throat as the finger stroked over the top of his head; just the right pressure to relax muscles and yet be comfortable. He squirmed a bit so he sank lower that Alister could get even access to his head. Once he found again a good position, he relaxed again, a hand on Alister's which was lying on his waist.
The elder bore his enjoyment with silence, only a satisfied smirk revealing his contentment. Closing his eyes, he pulled Ratchet a little up and rested his head on the other's, fingers still stroking slowly.
"Hey, I just moved down." Ratchet grumbled with no real heat, instead choosing to bother the other a bit by lightly shaking his head.
"Hey, I've just placed my head on yours so comfortably," was the just as heatless retort; instead a chuckle accompanied his remark. He decided to tease the other by changing the form of the head massage by just a tad, digging his fingers ever so slightly into the skin around the base of Ratchet's ear.
"That's cheating..." The groan escaped him unwanted as his body felt like melting into a warm puddle. He flexed his hand against Alister's, eyes fluttering in bliss. That was so unfair! The General knew probably most of the sensitive places a Lombax had - okay, the ears were quite obvious and he had touched him there before. But still: unfair.
"Not at all." The elder chuckled lowly. "I only use the knowledge on hand." His fingers dug a little more into the skin, moving back and forth just slightly. It was certainly enough, though, to provoke more purring; something that delighted him in secret.
"You know much more about Lombaxes." Ratchet brought up his internal argument, intending to glare up to the elder, the effect pretty much non-existent with his purring. "I've barely learnt the basic culture and stuff."
"Too bad. But that doesn't make my advantage unfair, now does it?" Azimuth chuckled. Finally he let his hand slide down and around Ratchet's torso, slightly pressing him against himself. "Also, this advantage is only temporary. As soon as we find the Lombaxes, you will have just as much knowledge about them as I do."
"But then is then, now is now. And I hear you totally enjoying this." He crossed his arms though mostly for show, too content to be really annoyed. "But if we are on this topic - is there a zone where you are supposed to never touch a Lombax? Not a lethal pressure point or so, but because it would appear rude."
"Hm... Let me think." Azimuth looked up as he reflected. "I can only think of zones which you are not supposed to touch unless you are very intimate with the Lombax right now."
"Which are these zones? No touching, only showing and explaining."
"I wonder if I should tell you." Alister grinned faintly. "Because if I did, I would receive a punch right against my chin."
"Pff, not that I would know the significance even if you told me in detail. I've been raised in a different culture so even if I know what it is, it won't offend me."
"Is that the case?" A mischievous smirk appeared. "Wonderful. I won't get hit for touching you around the ear and torso, then? Splendid. I shall use that to my advantage."
Ratchet did turn in the loose embrace and punched the other in the shoulder. "Haha, very funny."
"Ow." Alister's grin gave away the playful act. "I'm glad you caught my joke. But either way... There is one spot you should not touch deliberately unless you are very close to each other." A moment passed until Azimuth's tail waved slightly before them. Freeing one hand, the elder pointed at the end of it. "The bush. Don't touch it in any way unless you know the other won't mind."
"Huh? Is it supposed to be sensitive normally?" The doubt in Ratchet's voice was palpable. "I've brushed it so many times and never felt anything special or different from the rest of my tail. Or is it a cultural thing?"
"Rather a cultural thing, yes." Azimuth waved his tail to the side. "You simply don't touch the bush. Females normally don't touch it, and males...Well. Let's say it's not common to. Only in special cases."
"So, if a girl touched her own bush in public, even just to get rid of some dirt or so, it would be considered rude?" Ratchet found that unpractical. He was used to working in the sands of Veldin outside what often had led to little stones and thorns to be caught in the fluff of his bush. He couldn't remember anymore how many times he would sit down, lay his tail over a propped up knee and clean the hairs from any dirt.
"No, no no. You misunderstand. If you touch someone else's bush it's rude. Not if you touch your own." Azimuth chuckled a little. "But don't do it too often in public still."
"Gotcha." Staring thoughtfully to the side to his own tail, Ratchet let it flick to him, inspecting his bush. "Though I don't see what's so special about this."
"Well, how to put it..." Azimuth mused a little. "You can compare clinging tails to holding hands, I suppose. If you walk around with your partner and cling to each other's tail, it's quite the strong sign that you share a more intimate relationship."
"So, the bush is seen as the closest point of contact? Or else the whole tail would be seen as 'no touching' zone." Ratchet nodded. "I think I got it."
"Now you did, yes." Alister smiled a little. "So if you ever meet someone cling to each other's tails, you can expect them to be close."
"I guess my dad and my mother walked around like that a lot." He said 'mother' because he knew nothing about her except that Kaden had gone back to save her - instead found her dead already.
"Yes, they did. They did it so often that it was almost annoying." Azimuth sighed faintly. "But I suppose that was normal for them, lovey-dovey as they were."
"Well, you told me they were in love since adolescence, so their lovey-dovey-ness probably just carried over." He chuckled. He tried to imagine his father courting a girl or especially his mother, Kaden's later wife. She constantly changed appearance, even as he imagined her talking to Kaden - as she laughed, she had blue eyes, next she wore a smirk under a red bandana.
"Still there is no need to display it so openly."Alister waved aside with one hand while the other subconsciously wrapped itself a little tighter around Ratchet. "If it was me, I would rather like to keep things private. There is no need to show it everyone in the world."
"They probably just didn't care." He tilted his head back to grin mischievously up to him. "A trait I guess I have then inherited in the broadest of senses."
"... What do you mean?" Alister raised one eyebrow in confusion.
"I'm used to doing what I want and not care, as long as nobody gets hurt. So I guess my parents simply didn't care if they annoyed their environment, including the best friend of my dad." The grin he directed at the other was beyond cheeky, before he lightly jabbed Alister into the side. "Or they still didn't care, but did it also for the added bonus of annoying their environment."
"... Pfah. You certainly resemble your father more than expected." Azimuth rubbed the spot a little before he answered with an evenly mischievous grin. "At the same time, though, you're quite different." When Ratchet was about to ask, he raised his index finger and wiggled it slightly. "Ah-ah. No telling. That's a story for another time."
"Hey! That's not fair." Ratchet pouted as he looked at Azimuth reproachfully. "First you make me curious, then you keep it to yourself. That's evil of you."
"Not at all. I will tell you, just will I do so another day." Azimuth chuckled lowly. "To soothe your conscience: It is nothing awful that differs you two."
A sigh came from the younger. "Fine, though I wonder why you are grinning then so much about it."
"Insignificant reasons, really." To hide his smirk, he rested his head on Ratchet's, his tail swinging back and forth calmly. The danger behind the door seemed to have subsided as the scratching was no longer audible.
"Uh-huh." Ratchet crossed his arms, out of one option since Alister likely wouldn't let himself be dislodged if he shook his head. "Man, you are so bori-"
A loud grumbling interrupted the otherwise silent corridor, making Alister stare.
"... I hope that was your stomach."
"... It was."
"...Then perhaps it is better if we get going again." Argh, why did he have to propose that? He was more than reluctant to move, and that showed in his subconscious move to hold Ratchet a little closer. But, sadly, mind and wishes do not go well with each other all time, and so he continued to speak despite his dislike of the proposition. "If we are lucky, we will find some food around here too."
"Not sure about that. If these really are Nefarious' quarters, there won't be any food, at least not for organics. What should the guy do with it?"
"You have a point. Still, we haven't expected water in this facility either, have we?" Speaking of which, he felt a little thirsty. Reaching for his storage device, one of the bottles popped out and into his hand. Soon it was opened and emptied by a bit, and then offered to the younger.
"Thanks." That had been necessary. Though the water rushing into his stomach contrasted that while it filled, it didn't sate him. Just wonderful. At least they wouldn't parch from a lack of water.
"You're welcome." Taking the bottle again, he stored it away once more. As reluctant as he was to get up, his now free hand fell into his lap. He surely did not want to move, just like the time where Ratchet had comforted him, and just like that time when he had examined Ratchet after-
A quick shake of his head. Despite what they had been doing a while ago already, the memories of that time certainly startled him still. He better forgot them again, or he would be all stutter and embarrassment again. Nevertheless, it made him realize something.
His gaze directed at nothing, Azimuth's grip fastened around Ratchet a bit. He was growing attached of the younger, perhaps too attached even. How had he come to that ridiculous idea with the kiss anyway? Had he been asked what to do in such a situation before meeting the other Lombax, he certainly would have beheaded the person suggesting that, and yet...
Something was wrong with him, or rather: Something had changed. Whether it was for the good or the better he could not judge.
After a few moments of silence a sigh escaped Ratchet. "I guess you are right, with the food, that is." Considering the many crazy things he had encountered before, Alister's thoughts were sensible in comparison. It was only that Ratchet had lost much of his optimism from back a year ago, so... He just didn't want to get his hopes up too highly on finding food. And even if, there was still the possibility that luck would turn against them again.
"Don't be so generous with your optimism. That is my job normally." A chuckle escaped Alister as he said that. "We will find something eventually. Perhaps there is something on the map that Lawrence gave us as well."
Ratchet activated his helmet again and called up on the map on his visor, looking at the chart of symbols depicting different 'hot spots'. He quickly jumped his gaze away from where he knew the emergency door was placed in the map and flew around the stylized corridors and rooms.
Just like Ratchet the elder enabled his helmet again. As it seemed, there were indeed some "recreation materials" in specific rooms. Perhaps nutrition was included in that term? It was worth a try, at least.
"Recreation material? I wonder what that means - and if Lawrence had any say in naming the rooms." As far as he knew, Lawrence only found pleasure in two things - his own rock band and insulting Nefarious.
"Perhaps it includes nutrition. We have to find out." Oh did he not want to get up, and that was clearly audible in his voice. So lethargic and reluctant that it seemed like he was absolutely distant again. He jerked, however, as another sound, this time closer to a growl emitted from Ratchet's stomach, almost sounding angry. "Okay, okay. Let's go before your body demands you to eat me. By Fastoon, you sound like a Leviathan."
"Hey, we haven't eaten since almost or more than a day. 'Course I'm hungry." Ratchet was reluctant too to leave, but the pulling in his stomach was persistent and eventually overpowered his laziness. Wriggling from Alister's surprisingly tight embrace he stood and turned around, offering a hand to the other.
"Aren't you hungry as well?"
At that question Alister did not answer - his stomach did. Baffled just like the younger a long, clearly audible growl sounded, and a slight tone of red shone through the elder's fur. Before Ratchet could remark anything though, he jumped up and pulled his helmet a little lower. "Let's not waste any time."
Ratchet barely restrained himself from laughing as Alister ducked past him and ran down the corridor. "You're in a pretty hurry suddenly. Hungrier than you thought?"
"Are you coming already?", was shouted back. Azimuth had run ahead quite far by now, already standing at the corner towards the main corridor.
Ratchet grinned as he ran to the elder who didn't deem him with an answer, just a 'Hmph' as he turned his back to the younger, rounding the corner.