Your name is Nepeta Leijon, and you're still trying to figure out exactly what happened. You are sitting in a white room with all of your friends, but you have no idea how you got here. You've only just woken up, and the room seems to be in complete chaos.
To your relief, most of your friends have woken up already, and there is a bed in the room for each of them. Tavros is still asleep on his, Gamzee at his side, and Terezi has yet to leave hers for some odd reason. Sollux and Karkat are sitting in opposite corners and trying not to look at anyone.
The rest of your friends are in the middle of the room arguing, and you are distressed to see Equius is very upset. He's arguing with Feferi in his lowest, scariest voice, and you know that's a terrible sign because if Equius is arguing with somebody as high on the hemospectrum as Feferi he must be terribly upset!
As much as you think your moirail is in need of a good shooshpapping, you don't think you should just jump into such a heated argument. Instead, you decide to sneak over to Terezi's side and get the details from her.
"Terezi, what's going on? Why is efurrybody so upset?" You whisper as you reach her side. Terezi twitches as she turns towards you, letting you see her bright red eyes. Of course, she hasn't left her bed because she is blind and can't get around anymore! You immediately feel awful for forgetting such a terrible thing happened to one of your friends.
"Equius is angry at Karkat and Sollux for crashing the ship," Terezi replies, thankfully unable to see your facial expression. Her face is surprisingly somber, on the other hand. This worries you, because the Terezi you know would normally have a scary laugh ready for any situation! But you can't ask about this now because Terezi hasn't finished explaining things to you. "Equius wants to see justice for what happened to everyone, and while I do love justice, I can't help but feel your moirail is blaming the wrong people for this one. I'd say he should persecute the ship that attacked us, but Aradia crushed it before we started to crash…"
The two of you look back to the others, as you sadly remember Aradia's no longer with you. She's been your friend forever, and you're crushed that she didn't make it. You look back towards Sollux, and remember how he killed her by mistake. From the looks of things he probably remembers too. And you know from how upset Equius is that he definitely is thinking it as well.
Eridan and Vriska seem more upset about what happened to them, but they're backing Equius up, which is likely why he hasn't submitted himself to Feferi's higher hemocaste. He's clearly angry, but also very nervous to be arguing with a fuchsia-blood. He's sweating bullets, and while you don't like to think about Equius' particularly odd fetish, you know he's likely getting off on this at some level.
You decide that while you don't know when the argument started, it's gone on long enough. You march up to the group and make sure you're looking as determined as possible.
Vriska is the first to notice you, and when she turns to face you, you notice her face and missing arm are wrapped in cerulean stained bandages. She rolls her good eye when she sees you approaching. "Weeeeeeeell now, looks like the cat girl is awake. Fun's over." You stick your tongue out at her as you walk by. You don't care how injured she is; nobody messes with your moirail but you!
You push Eridan aside as you walk up to Equius, and note with some satisfaction that you've sent him sprawling. Serves him right, making such a big fuss over his cape and his stupid gun. You don't have the time for him right now, so you ignore his protests as he straightens himself out.
As you reach Equius, you see Kanaya has been attempting to auspisticize between him and Feferi, but it seems beyond her at the moment. While she still manages to look the picture of grace and elegance, her head has been bandaged enough that she clearly suffered some injury in the crash she kept hidden. She sends you a grateful look as you march up to Equius and drag him off by the arm. You send one back to her. She's probably the main reason Equius and Feferi didn't try to kill each other. You know Vriska was probably rooting for that, at least.
As soon as the two of you are apart from the others, Equius takes you by the shoulders and turns you to face him. He leans in closely and starts looking you over carefully. You always appreciate how protective he can be, even when he's overbearing, but right now is not the time.
"Equius, why were you fighting with Fefurry?" you ask him with your eyes narrowed to slits. You shrug off his probing hands and jab him in the chest with your finger, which he likely doesn't even feel. Stupid muscles. "You've never argued like that with a highblood other than Eridan!"
"Hush Nepeta, I must ensure your time spent unconscious has not led to permanent damage." He raises his hands to check you over again, but you're close enough that you can see his eyes dart to the side, even behind his shades.
"Don't you change the subject with me!" You snap at him, and he withdrew his hands in a hurry. You glare up at him, undaunted by his large size, as he fidgets and sweats.
It takes several minutes before he can speak again. "I am of the opinion that the mutant and the mustard blood should be held accountable for their failure. Their mistakes as our pilot and-" he visibly shudders as he says the next part, "as our leader. Lady Peixes disagrees with my opinion that the mutant should be culled for his blatant defiance of the hemospectrum. As well as my opinion that a pilot who failed to fly a ship should be held responsible." He's visibly shaking at this point, and you see a tooth chip as he clenches his jaw.
"Equius, shoosh." You say sternly, papping him softly as he trembles with anger. "There was nothing that could be done about the crash. That scouterrorizer came out of nowhere, and I was the one who was supposed to watch our surroundings for attackers."
"Regardless, the mustard blood failed to keep the ship aloft, and succumbed to foreign substances. And the mutant-"
"Do NOT call Karkitty a mutant!" You snap. Instantly you realize you've made a mistake. At your outburst Equius has straightened out, regained his composure. You lost your cool, acted like a wriggler, and put Equius back in control. You'd start swearing if your moirail wasn't so prudish.
"Nepeta, I call Vantas a mutant because that is exactly what he is. His blood has no place on the hemospectrum, meaning that he has no place in troll society. He is an unnatural entity, one who should not exist. And because he knew this, he sought to flee the Alternian Empire. The best option for him."
He leans down, face to face with you, as he continues. There is a cold fury radiating from him, and it frightens you. "However, he chose to drag his friends down with him. He convinced you to follow on this excruciatingly foolish endeavor, despite my advice to the contrary. And so I followed, to protect you from his selfish mission. Because you are emotionally compromised." He straightens out again, looking relieved to have gotten that off of his chest.
You are trembling with rage at this point. You know Equius has been aware of your feelings for years. You told him yourself; he's your moirail after all. But while he's always disapproved of your flush crush, he's never used it against you like this. You hesitate for a few moments, working up your courage, and finally manage to squeak out a rebuttal. "So are you."
He flinches at this, and you can tell you've hit home. Still, he continues to try to maintain his lead. "Excuse me, Nepeta, but I must say that thought is absolutely ludicrous."
"Is it though? You say my feelings for Karkat are impairing my judgment, but what about you? I know how much you cared for her!"
Equius slumps at this. The two of you stand face to face in the corner, staring at the floor. You note the others have been pointedly trying not to pay attention to your conversation, but from the glances Feferi and Kanaya give from time to time you know they've been listening at least a little bit. Vriska doesn't even pretend not to snoop, she just rolls her eyes as the room goes silent and calls out, "Awkwaaaaaaaard." You pointedly ignore her, though you feel vindicated when Kanaya silences her with a furious glare.
Equius begins to speak again, and you snap to attention. His voice is faltering, and you pretend not to notice the tears running down his face. "I can't forgive them. If not for them, she wouldn't have perished." He looks up at this, and smiles, though only slightly. "She was so beautiful. Even in death she was the picture of grace."
You raise a hand to his face gently, "It's hard to see somebody you love get hurt," You say, softly. He raises his own arm and lets it hover next to your face. You smile at him, and then press your cheek against his hand and purr. You feel something click back into place, and suddenly you and Equius can understand each other again. You can tell he also feels this, because he is smiling back at you, the first genuine smile you've seen out of him in a while.
"I have been acting foolishly, haven't I? Equius says sheepishly.
You grin at him. "Only mostly!"
Equius gives a resigned sigh, but you can tell at this point it's mostly for show. He's calmed down completely now. He rolls his shoulders and turns back to face the rest of the room. "Very well then. I shall explain myself, and set things right. You have my thanks, Nepeta."
You're happy to see your moirail is feeling better, but you're not yet entirely convinced. "So you're not going to pounce on Karkitty or Catpurr?" You hear snickering and glance over to see Feferi trying not to laugh at your puns.
Equius looks stern again. "I shall make no such promises. Vantas and Captor have caused our crash with their negligence, and execution remains the most fitting punishment. However, I shall at least promise to stay my hand until a more appropriate time." His face is resolute, but you can tell he's still feeling better because he didn't call Karkat a mutant this time. You feel confident that he'll be fine to rejoin the group now.
Equius heads straight for Feferi, standing in front of her and giving a stiff bow before speaking. "I apologize for my lewd behavior Lady Peixes. I allowed my emotions to get the better of me, and behaved rashly in a crisis situation as a result, attempting to split our group and inflict punishment against the will of a superior. I am willing to accept any punishment for my inexcusable behavior."
Feferi is still looking up at Equius despite his head being bowed, but she's doing her best to look serious. She raises her head and puffs out her chest, acting every bit the imperial heiress she is meant to be… until she looks over at you and winks. You snigger, as Equius stays rigid, his gaze fixed on the floor.
"Whale it's about glubbing time!" Feferi says with a grin. "Your sentence for attempting to krill our friends shall be… to cull them!"
Equius stands up straight immediately, a look of utter bafflement on his face. You grin, knowing Feferi's unique definition for culling. "You wish for me… to cull them?"
"Yes! You shell look after the wounded and make sure they're back to perchfect health! And until you do, I shell not forgive you!"
Equius is losing his composure more and more by the second. "Lady Peixes excuse me, but that is hardly the proper definition of culling. It traditionally a term used for killing the weak and defective trolls."
Feferi stomps her foot and jabs a finger up at Equius' face. "To shell with that! If I say culling means caring for the injured, then it means caring for the injured!"
Equius stiffens yet again, clearly dealing with a great deal of emotional turmoil. He fidgets and shuffles his feet for several tense seconds, before sighing and slouching over in defeat. "As you wish, my lady."
"Stop calling me that."
"Yes ma'am." He walks away grumpily.
You give Feferi a beaming grin and rush over to hug her. "Fefurry, that was purrfect!"
Feferi looks relieved, "I'm really glad you think so! I wasn't sure how he'd take that."
You step back and reassure her. "Don't worry, Equius loves fussing over people, it makes him feel useful."
"Indeed." Kanaya glides over with a smile. "I'm sure that we're in good hands with Equius… as long as he doesn't close them." You gasp in mock anger and playfully swat at Kanaya's arm, and she gives you a knowing smile.
"Excuse me, I do hope I'm not interrupting anything." A voice rings out from behind you, and the room goes still. Everyone turns slowly to face the source of the voice, with the exception of Sollux, still hiding in his corner, and Gamzee, who remains frozen at Tavros' side.
The voice comes from a man standing at a door next to Karkat, which you notice uneasily has no handle in this room. He looks like nothing you've ever seen before, with white skin and no hair or horns to speak of. He's dressed in white and green, a sharp suit that you can tell he takes expert care of. At his sides several similar looking men are assembled, armed with some large guns you don't properly recognize, dressed in green. You note with some confusion that their skin tones are all different. An indication of blood color perhaps?
You stalk closer to get a closer look, but are forced to retreat when one of the other men raises their gun at you. Equius takes note of this and lowers his head to charge, hissing angrily. But before he can launch himself at the group the man at their head raises his hand and his follower lowers the weapon.
"Now, now, is that any way to welcome our guests?" The man says smoothly, his voice low and melodious. "It would hardly be fitting for us to threaten people staying under our roof."
"So you're the one that locked us up then?" you are shocked to see that Karkat has gotten to his feet and is glaring daggers at the group. One of the other men jumps visibly and whirls around with his gun at the ready. But before he can take aim the suited man is at his side, and knocks him out in a single blow.
"Forgive my soldiers, they are not used to visitors off planet, and lack the composure to cope." He gives a pleasant smile towards Karkat, who is shocked by the speed at which the man knocked out his subordinate. "To answer your question young man, you have not been locked up, but you have been taken under our protection. Or to be more specific, my protection."
The man spins gracefully to face you and the others. "My name is Doctor Scratch, leader of the Federal Extra-terrestrial Logistics Team, or FELT, for short. A rather simplistic name, certainly, but it suits our purposes well enough."
"Well isn't that nice." Terezi says with a grin, as she hops off the bed. "So explain something to me, Doctor, if that is your real name… just how is it that you are able to speak Alternian?" Karkat gapes angrily at her, and you wonder what's going through his head to make him so furious.
"I'm not speaking Alternian at all, as a matter of fact. I am speaking a language known here as English. It would seem that by happy coincidence they sound exactly the same." He smiles widely as he looks at Terezi. "So am I safe in assuming Alternia is the name of your planet, then?"
Karkat slaps his forehead in frustration, and Terezi grimaces as you all realize her blunder. This Doctor Scratch was clearly very perceptive.
"As to my real name, Doctor is but a title. It refers to my status as a researcher of matters from off planet. It is also a common term for health care providers."
"Medicullers." Eridan mutters and you nod in understanding.
"Mediculler?" Scratch repeats with a grin, "What a beautifully sinister term."
"Terminology aside, would we be correct in assuming it was you who provided medical care to our wounded?" Kanaya asks, stepping forward with a frown. She is still on guard, sizing up Doctor Scratch and his soldiers. You look around and see Equius and Karkat are still on guard as well.
Terezi is sitting again, silently frowning at the ground after her slip-up. You can tell she's still off balance due to her sudden blindness. Eridan has moved between Feferi and the soldiers, but is otherwise the picture of indifference. Vriska seems to be attempting to probe the group mentally. Sollux has yet to budge from his corner. And Gamzee has moved for the first time since you woke up. He's just staring at the soldiers. You're glad he's facing away from you, because the way the soldiers are looking at him uneasily suggests that he's intimidating enough at the moment that you don't want to see his face.
If Doctor Scratch is intimidated by the hostile looks he doesn't show it. His smile has gone from manic to calm once again as he faces Kanaya. "You are quite correct my dear. Our medicullers, to use your terminology, were excited at the prospect of working on an alien species. Though we found that with the obvious exception of horns, our species skeletal structure is almost identical. Fascinating, is it not?"
Feferi smiles at this and hops forward. "That is very interesting indeed, Doctor Scratch! Tell me, when you rescued us from our damaged ship, did you happen to find any of our supplies?" Her smile broadens and she stares at the group, calculating. You can understand why. Now that you know Doctor Scratch has examined your bodies while you were unconscious you feel far less motivated to trust him.
Doctor scratch sighs and shakes his head sadly. "Alas, it would appear that most of your belongings were damaged in the fall. We have salvaged all that we could, of course. If you wish, I will gladly allow you to look through everything and assess for yourself."
"You don't have any problem with us accessing potentially dangerous technology? What are you, stupid?" Eridan says disdainfully.
"I have secured all weapons safely away for the time being." Doctor Scratch replies with no indication he heard the jibe. "To provide you with some of your less dangerous materials however, is only natural. You are my guests after all. And I believe you will find that as hosts go I am simply the best there is."
One of the soldiers smirks at this, which you take note of. You do your best to size these strange people up, and are nervous to see that the soldiers all seem at ease now. They are looking over you all confidently, despite their earlier skittishness. Something about this conversation has led them to believe your group is not a threat, or that the Doctor is simply a bigger one. Either way, you may be in bigger danger than you realized.
"Well then, it is time I see to other matters now." Doctor Scratch claps his hands and announces loudly. "I'll give you time to discuss everything amongst yourselves. If you should need anything, just knock on the door and one of my men will assist you." He waves his hands, and the soldiers leave in formation. He pauses as he reaches the door.
"Be gentle when you break the news to that sleeping friend of yours. He will be in for a terrible shock, I'm afraid." Doctor Scratch chuckles as the door closes behind him with a loud boom. Your friends group up immediately.
"We are in big fucking trouble here everyone." Karkat says angrily. "We are unarmed and locked up, and who the fuck knows what's been done to us already!?"
"Loathe as I am to agree with a mutant, Vantas is correct." Equius growls, "While this Doctor Scratch is clearly considered a person of character here on this planet, we do not know the true motives of this species. And our ship will not be usable after the severity of our crash."
"Equius, I told you not to call Karkitty a mutant!" You snap.
Feferi nods in agreement. "Yeah, everyone knows the hemospectrum is a bunch of beluga anyways."
"Shut up you two, I know I'm a fucking abomination." Karkat says with a sigh. He rubs at his head, and you see his bandaged head is still covered with candy red blood, staining the bandages and spotting him with his strange blood color. Karkat catches you staring and smirks bitterly, "See, you think it's weird too." You look quickly away in shame.
"You know, as much as I love being left out, I'd appreciate it if you guys brought this conversation somewhere I can participate." Terezi calls out sarcastically.
"Fuck you, Terezi, why should all eight of us move for your lazy ass?" Karkat snaps.
"Because I'm blind, and without a cane I can't navigate this room properly!" Terezi replies with a grin. "Now come to me, peasants!" You scamper over ahead of everyone else and purr; with a big grin that Terezi matches. "You see, Nepeta and I can see that you guys are a bunch of jackasses, and I'm blind!"
"God fucking damnit this is going to become a thing with you, isn't it?" Karkat sighs in resignation as the rest of your friends start to follow you.
"Tavbro, you're awake! It's a motherfucking miracle!" Gamzee bursts out in joy, and suddenly everyone rushes over.
The first troll to reach Tavros' side is Equius, who seems determined to make good on his promise to look after everyone's injuries. "Nitram, under Feferi's orders, I am obligated to cull you."
Tavros' eyes bulge out of his head as he looks up at Equius in a panic, and he stammers out a protest. "I uh, don't think that Feferi would, um, order anybody to cull anyone. She's definitely, probably, not interested in culling anyone. So I'm going to, uh, refuse your offer to, well, cull me."
Feferi grins as she reaches Tavros' side. "Don't you worry Tavros, culling means caring for sick and wounded now!"
"I'm definitely sure that is probably not true."
"If I say it's true then it's true! Isn't that right Equius?" She turns to Equius with a smirk, and he nods his head reluctantly.
"It is as Miss Peixes says, Nitram. I shall provide you…" he shudders, "medical service." You and Feferi giggle at each other as Equius resumes looking Tavros over.
"Well I guess if that's the case, then it's, uh, fine then?" He looks over at Gamzee beseechingly, but Gamzee has become far less protective of Tavros now that he's awake. His relief is obvious, and you know if you had access to your shipping wall you'd be cataloguing this as soon as possible!
"Do you feel anything is at all amiss?" Equius is examining Tavros' head and neck area, and checking his horns for damage. Since his horns are so big, if one were to crack it would probably hurt a lot!
Tavros smiles uneasily as he tries to sit up. "I don't feel any pain at all…" He frowns as he continues to shift. "I uh… wait a second." Everyone stares as he throws the sheets off of himself, and starts prodding his legs. "My legs feel, uhh, invisible." He blinks and looks up. "Wow, I'm sure there was a better way to say that."
"Yeah, it's called being paralyzed, dumbass!" Karkat says, rolling his eyes. He freezes as he realizes what he just says. "HOLY FUCKING SHIT TAVROS, YOU'RE PARALYZED."
"Seriously, somebody is going to have to make me a cane or something, because I feel really left out right now."