The Wanderer pulled his tattered brown hood over his fluffy black hair, his orange banded horns just barely poking out of the holes. His yellow eyes were wary, and they darted back and forth as he made his way across the barren planet. He needed to find somewhere to sit down and tend to his wounds.
Droplets of red rolled down his gray skin, painful reminders of the reason he was being hunted in the first place. Eventually, his intuition led him to a rocky cave, and he started a small fire with a stick and two rocks, carrying it far into the cave as to not be noticed. Droplets of his red mutiny left a trail on the smooth rock behind him, and he sat down, exhausted. The smooth book between his hands never felt more comforting, and he flipped open the tattered leather cover, his eyes scanning the words of his ancient ancestor long passed. The same one who's footsteps he was following in now. The same red sickness that traveled through his veins also penetrated the body of the Signless. His sermons were printed in the Wanderer's book, and his dying rage was blossoming in the young Wanderer's heart.
The flickering light of the flame ignited the Signless' words, giving the aimless voyager the strength he needed to continue on his journey. The long and lonely road he walked was only his, shared before him by Kankri, on a time when Alternia was at peace, and was then named Beforus, and before Kankri by the one who's words still echoed in distant halls and closed chambers, the Signless Sufferer. Now, it was The Wanderer Karkat's time to walk the path of Blood. There was no one to welcome him to his lonesome path, because it was his and only his to walk. Somehow, the mutant gene that created his despised caste had survived the Signless' execution. Kankri was then born, raised by Porrim, just as the Dolorosa had done for the Signless. After Kankri's death, and the death of Beforus, Alternia arose from the ashes.
A new name for a new beginning. Things had returned to the way they were during the Signless' time, as Her Imperious Condescension had returned to raise a new generation of young trolls after killing Feferi Peixes, heir to the Alternian throne. Things were just as they had been during his ancestor's time, and the young Wanderer was forced to flee the planet with help of the Auxiliatrix, Kanaya Maryam. She took care of him; raised him from a grub. However, The Auxiliatrix turned herself in to protect The Wanderer. Her hope was that the highbloods would at least postpone their search for a little while.
He hoped she was alright.
However, the Wanderer was in danger. He could never rest or let his guard down, even for a second, or the Highbloods may find him. Or at least, that's how it used to be. For now, he was safe, at least for a while. The Auxiliatrix, being a hero of Space, had put him on a planet and relocated him somewhere far off in the solar system, where the Highbloods couldn't find him. However, he was now stranded, wandering his desert planet aimlessly.
All he could do was hope to not be discovered.
Unfortunately, all that was about to change.
A blonde man stood on the bridge of his starship, the space before him reflected off the glasses he was wearing. Lil Hal, a highly intelligent and complex AI version of his brother's brain, was his only companion.
To some, it may seem extremely bizzare that this guy is traveling around in deep space with an AI version of his dead brother's brain, but Hal meant a lot to him, even if he was way more of a douchebag than Dirk ever was. Hal was really the only evidence that his brother ever even existed in the first place, besides a few old photos. Not to mention that the AI was Dave's only companion on his lonesome journey.
Dave liked to refer to himself as an explorer, hopping from planet to planet in search of adventure. It wasn't like he could go back to Earth anyways, not after the incident several years ago. He was presumed to be dead anyways, and he didn't really have any family left alive to miss him, though. Therefore, there was no reason to go back. Besides, he didn't want to be forced to explain to his crewmate's families why they had all died and he had survived.
"Hal, plot a course to the nearest planet in this part of the galaxy that we haven't explored," Dave ordered, leaning against the control panel. "Okay. According to my calculations, the nearest unexplored planet is 1,413 miles from here, sir," Hal reported back, his tone flat as usual. "Good. What's our current speed?" The blonde questioned, raising an eyebrow. "1,000 miles per hour, sir," the AI responded.
"Well, we should be there in a little over an hour, then," the younger Strider nodded, leaning back against the control panel. He glanced at the framed photos of his older brother, Dirk, and the rest of his crew members that rested atop the panel. "Planet number 278. I'm proud of us!" The blonde puffed out his chest triumphantly, smirking ever so slightly.
To think, he could be the very first person to ever explore this planet! The thought excited him. He hoped that there would be aliens on this planet. It was always fun making contact with aliens. The nice ones, at least.
The Wanderer wrapped his tattered cape around himself, his wounds still aching from the confrontation with the Highbloods a few days ago, and another with one of the many strange beasts that roamed the planet, which happened merely hours ago.
It was good that this planet was mostly barren, though. The young Wanderer was so used to having the Auxiliatrix to defend him, slicing through the monsters that had the same red cancer in their veins as the Wanderer did. He had nothing but his thresher to defend himself, and ended up narrowly escaping. There was no more kind and tender Jade-blooded troll lusus to hold him close and clean the blood from his wounds.
He was going to get her back, even if it killed him.
Even if he had to suffer the same fate as the Signless. He was ready for it. No amount of burning pain shackled around his wrists could quell the fire in his heart.
"Looks like it has a breathable atmosphere, and the gravity is similar to Earth's, albeit a bit less," Hal said, projecting some complex statistics and graphs onto the computer screen. "Nice. I don't need to bring any sick gear then. Kind of nice, considering the last six fucking planets have all been shitty chunks of rock with noble gases for atmospheres," the albino rolled his eyes behind his black shades. "That is true. The last planets have not exactly been the most hospitable, and it's nice to have a planet with a breathable atmosphere," Hal responded to his captain.
Dave sat down in his captain's chair, crossing his feet in front of him, allowing Hal to pilot the ship. The captain's red eyes rested on the gray metal body of DIRKBOT, an incomplete, robotic form of his older brother. The reason why Dirk was creating it was unknown by Dave, and when he asked Hal, he never got a response. It was still unfinished, since it was unpainted. Still, the younger Strider knew how to upload Hal into the robot, so he could bring him on explorations and such. It was pretty lonely going anywhere without his trusty companion!
Dave didn't really call him DIRKBOT though, and had painted over his nameplate to make it say 'HALBOT' instead. It fit better, considering the fact that it was Hal in the robot. "Hal, take a picture of us," the blonde stood up from his chair and squatted down next to HALBOT, flashing a peace sign all whilst retaining his usual stoic expression.
"That's a good one," Hal projected the picture onto the computer screen, and the captain got up to look at it. "Yeah, it is."
The Wanderer sat in the cave, trembling, hissing angrily at his own fear. The Signless wouldn't be afraid. The Auxiliatrix would want him to be brave. The Signless' last words were etched into his mind, and he swore he could feel a sharp pain in his side and in his knee.
The same place the Signless had been injured when he became the Sufferer.
The Last Sermon echoed in his hollow chest, and a bright, burning vision of an equal Alternia kept the Signless' flame alive. An Alternia where he wouldn't be afraid to show his blood color, and where a troll wouldn't be treated by the color of their blood, but rather the content of their character. A ruler would be elected instead of being born into power by blood color. Mutants would no longer be culled, and the Wanderer, whom they laughed at and called a cancer, would be right all along. No little grub would have to hide their blood ever again. No troll boy or girl would ever have to cry alone in their room again, because they knew they were different, and utterly alone.
No one would ever have to walk the path of the Signless, Kankri, or the Wanderer again. There would be peace and harmony, and the next candy-red blooded troll would be accepted into normal society, and treated with the dignity and respect he deserved.
The Wanderer's torch flame reflected off the red river that was spattered on the smooth rocks of the cave floor, dancing in orange, yellow, and a similar red. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place. No medical supplies, but the cave was safe. If he were to leave, maybe he could find something to dress his wounds, but he knew the monsters on the planet could smell blood, and he was a sitting target if he went outside like this.
The ship landed on the surface of the desert planet, the metal ramp descending into the sand. Hal was already in the robot, which gave Dave time to collect his weapons; his railgun, laser gun, and his sword.
The sword was his favorite. It was given to him by Dirk, supposedly passed down from a legendary Welsh warrior, unmatched in skill and strength. Of course, that was probably just a silly story that Dirk made up to make the sword seem cooler. Still, it was definitely Dave's favorite. Dirk always called it Caledfwlch, which was supposedly its Welsh name. That name just kind of stuck, and it's been called Caledfwlch ever since.
He put the blade in his belt, motioning for Hal to follow him outside. The robot followed behind his master like a loyal pet, scanning the planet for any source of life nearby.
It seemed safe, and the albino's red eyes scanned the sandy horizon. Nothing but rock formations, sand hills, a few scraggly plants just barely hanging on, and more fucking sand. "There's so much goddamn sand. I've never seen so much fucking sand in my life. Just look at all this sand. If sand were a currency, we'd be filthy fuckin' rich right now. It's like the sand jackpot," Dave said.
"Thanks for the insightful commentary," the AI gave a robotic laugh, taking a small sample of the sand with one of his handy little robotic hands.
Hal had such a good sense of humor. A slight pang of sadness stabbed his chest for a brief second. Dirk was always really funny. Then again, Hal was Dirk, just only his brain, and as an AI. The good thing was, Hal didn't really recognize emotions well, and the only part of Dave that ever showed any hints as to what he was feeling was concealed by his shades. "Let's go. We have a lot of vast, empty desert to explore. I bet it won't just be a metric fuckton of sand, some rocks, and some cacti," the blonde laughed.
He started on his way, going northwest, his companion following behind. The captain unzipped his jacket, face reddening in the heat. He and Hal crossed what felt like endless miles of sand dunes without speaking to each other at all, except for occasional, incredibly shitty sand or desert jokes on Dave's part before Hal pointed out a cave between two large rocks. "Damn. Nice going, Hal. I didn't even notice that," Dave smiled awkwardly, loading his laser gun and pulling a flashlight from his belt. He always carried one, as having it when exploring unknown planets was extremely beneficial. Carrying one also meant he was prepared for all power outages, even though only a few had ever happened on his ship within the time he was captain. Hal could also usually restore power within a few hours without a problem, so that was nice. Just one of the many advantages of having an AI copilot and friend.
Hal took the lead, his urge to protect Dave getting the best of him. If he was hurt, he could easily be repaired, but if the human was hurt, he wouldn't be as lucky. Dave glanced down at the cave floor, noticing that his flashlight reflected off some kind of liquid. He leaned down and put his finger in it, glancing at the strange liquid. "Blood. And it's fresh, too. Still wet," the albino muttered. Hal turned around, looking down at the blood. "Be careful. Something might be lurking in this cave," he warned. The younger Strider nodded, standing back up.
The Wanderer heard distant footsteps and hushed voices, and quickly snuffed out his torch, backing up against the wall. Shit. He'd lost his thresher, so if he were to have to fight, it would be hand-to-hand. He knew he would lose, because he was injured. The Wanderer kept himself wrapped in his cape, prepared to defend if need be. Who could possibly be here?
This planet was supposed to be abandoned.
Maybe the highbloods found him.
"Did you hear that?" Hal turned to face the blonde once more. "Yeah," Dave responded. Hal crept quietly towards the source of the sound, following the natural twists and turns of the cave. More blood on the ground. Hal stopped for a moment to take a sample of it, but he was unable to determine what or who it belonged to.
The two stopped as they reached the source of the sound. Hal shone his flashlight in the Wanderer's face, causing him to hiss. Dave stepped in front of the robot, covering his flashlight with his hand, only allowing a small amount of light to come through. "You're freaking it out. Let's just—"
The blonde was cut off by a sharp pain in the back of his leg. The Wanderer had lashed out in fear and scratched him.
"Fuck!" Dave spat, yelping in pain.
The captain turned around to face the troll, removing his hand from Hal's flashlight. He turned to face Karkat, and removed his hand from the light. Karkat's skin was gray, clammy, and covered in blood. The troll's desperate hand held the Signless' book of sermons tight. The blonde realized that this alien guy was hurt.
"Do you need medical help, dude?" The captain asked calmly, as if earlier's confrontation didn't even happen. This guy probably didn't speak human language, let alone English. Hal knelt down, reaching towards him to try and touch him, but Karkat slapped Hal's hand away. The AI turned to face Dave, and he shone the beam of his flashlight on the back of the albino's leg, where the scratches given to him by the Wanderer had begun to bleed, and the blood made a small red stain on his sock.
The troll's yellow eyes widened in shock when he noticed the color of Dave's blood.
This guy had the same red disease in his veins that the wanderer did. "You...your blood."
"What?"
Dave turned around to face the Wanderer, shining the flashlight in his face again. "Get that shit out of my face! God! You're going to burn my fucking gander bulbs out! I need those, you dumbfuck!" The Wanderer tried to swat the flashlight away, recoiling in pain. "Sorry!" The blonde muttered, covering the piercing beam with his hand.
"Do you need some help, bro? You're bleeding," Dave asked, looking down at the faint shape of the Wanderer pressed against the cave wall. "Never in my life have I ever seen anyone, or anything with the same blood as me. At least, not anything that wasn't a carapacian or a dumb animal," he said, staring at Dave's bloodied leg. "Do they see you as a curse? A cancer? A mutation? Are you an infection bubbling up at the back of their spine, trying to flee the boiling fever of their torment?" The troll squinted.
"Uh...what?"
"Your blood. It's...the same red as mine. Is that not a fucking curse? Does it not haunt you every goddamn day?"
"Um...no. There's nothing wrong with my blood. Every human has blood this color," the blonde responded, sounding confused. The Wanderer was silent for a long time. "On my planet, all those of us with your blood color are mutants. We're a cancer which has no place on the hemospectrum, which is basically bullshit that highbloods made up to keep the lower classes under their control. And I do need medical attention, but not from one of your fuckhead gross pink alien people," he hissed, gritting his teeth; showing his small fangs.
"Hey, you should be happy we found you and are gonna help you out, dude! You're hurt. Also, us 'pink alien people' are called humans, and we're you're only hope. There's jack shit in this desert except sand," Dave squinted.
"Fine. But just know that I'm coming because it's my choice. Here I am, consenting. Giving you shitbucket 'humans' permission to dress my wounds by my own sound mental judgement. This is solely, 100% my choice, only because I'd like to not fucking die in this shitty ass ugly dark cave, where I can barely see for shit. Put away your weapon, Srodar."
"It's Strider," the other corrected curtly, reaching down to help the troll up. The blonde wondered for a second how Karkat knew his last name, but then realized it was embroidered on his captain's uniform. He pushed Dave's hand away and stood up on his feet, stretching his arms out to keep his balance. Karkat still held his book in his hand. Hal followed behind, not really caring too much about the exchange that had just happened. That could've gone a lot better, but it could've gone a lot worse too.
The Wanderer followed behind Dave, blinking in the harsh light. The captain arrived at his ship, stepping up onto the ramp. Karkat stopped dead in his tracks. "Whoa. You never said I had to go into your freaky ass alien ship," he hissed, staring down at the metal ramp. "Do you want to stay here in this hot ass desert, man? Besides, it's comfy. You'd like it," Dave nodded, striding onto the ship. The troll eventually walked onto the ship, following the captain reluctantly. "Again, I'm doing this 100% by my own free will." Karkat made sure to reiterate that he wasn't any kind of prisoner or something. "If you say so."
"So...Mr..."
The blonde paused. "What's your name?"
"Wanderer. I'm not telling a scumbag like you my real name," Karkat hissed. "Alright. Mr...Wanderer," Dave shrugged. "I'll show you to your room. Unless you don't wanna stay on my 'freaky ass alien ship,'" the blonde smirked slightly. "I never said—"
The blonde simply nodded and led the alien down a long hall, stopping in front of an empty room. He pressed a button, and the doors slid open, and the albino glanced at The Wanderer expectantly. "Hey, what about those rooms?" He asked, pointing to the seven rooms that they'd just passed. "Those ones are shit. Trust me, they're like a festering bucket of shit in comparison to this one," Dave said calmly. "And the one on the end is mine, so that one's not available."
Okay, so maybe Dave didn't want Karkat in the rooms that belonged to his dead friends. Was that really so much to ask? Besides, those rooms were locked, boarded up.
"Why the fuck are they boarded up?" The Wanderer questioned. "Because. They're shit," the blonde repeated.
The troll squinted at the captain for a moment before entering the room, the sandals he worse shuffling across the metal floor. "Whoa, what the hell's that?!" the troll's body stiffened, and his gray finger pointed to the bed. "It's a bed. Your people don't have beds? Where the fuck do you sleep? On the floor?" Dave questioned. "What? No! We have recuperacoons!"
The blonde pushed his shades up a bit. "What the fuck is a recuperacoon?"
"You—you know! It's a cocoon, and it's full of slime, and you stand up and sleep in the slime. It's very pleasant, actually. Probably far less shitty than your ugly and dirty ass human 'bed.' Note the enclosure talons around the word that I just made with my prong nubs," Karkat glared at the bed, disgust written all over his face.
"Dude, what the fuck are enclosure talons? Do you mean apostrophes? And prong nubs? Are you shitting me?" Dave laughed. "What?! It's the best word my people could come up with. I personally think that 'enclosure talons' sounds much better than 'apo-strife-whatever' bullshit." The Wanderer seemed really angry.
"How do I even use this thing?" The troll looked down at the bed. "I can't believe it. I have to demo how to lie in a bed. This wasn't a part of my job description," he sighed, walking past Karkat and over to the bed. He lifted the blanket, retaining his same stoic expression. "Step 1, lift blanket. Step 2, get into bed," he said, sliding into the bed. He put the blanket over him. "Step 3, lie down. Step 4, profit " The blonde gave a thumbs up, then got out of bed.
The gray-skinned alien squinted at the captain and picked up the blanket off the floor. "Okay. If you need some food or shit, I'm leavin' the door unlocked," the captain told him, closing the door.
Karkat was left alone, and he looked down at the bed, sitting on it. Although he hated to admit it, it was sort of comfortable. He would never say that to Dave, though. The troll wrapped his cape around him, setting his open book down on his knees. Now was a good time to look to the Signless' words for advice. He was in a time of need and suffering, after all.
Hopefully these people would keep their word. Karkat felt a little scared. What if this crazy dude wanted to hurt him or experiment on him? What if he was gonna turn him in to the highbloods? Maybe trusting this Strider guy was a mistake.
The troll got up and pushed the button for the door, opening it. He was not a prisoner here. They didn't lock him up, and he exited the room without an issue. His wounds ached, and a lot of his body was bloody. A wave a pain welled up in his heart. He missed the Auxiliatrix. Karkat leaned against the door frame, the pain in his legs worsening. Hopefully Kanaya was Alright. Probably not.
What if she was hurt? Or dead?
He failed. He failed at protecting her. The troll returned to his room and closed the door, lying down on the strange human bed. It was kind of comfortable. Not nearly as comfortable as his recuperacoon, however.
He heard a voice outside the door, and Hal entered the room. "Hello, Mr. Wanderer. My name is Hal. I'm the ship's medical officer, so I'm gonna do my job," he said calmly, kneeling down on the floor next to the troll. "I don't hate you as much as I hate the Dave human," the Wanderer nodded. "Which is to say that I hate you a lot, because the Dave human is absolutely repulsive. And not in a good way. Then again, you're almost equally as repulsive, but just less, because you aren't pink and ugly."
After Hal finished caring for the injured troll, he left the troll's room without so much as a goodbye.
Finally, Dave returned to the room. "Yo. Now that Hal helped you out, do you wanna leave?" the captain asked.
Some stupid part of him got nervous, and wanted to ask Dave to help him rescue The Auxiliatrix. Besides, everything still hurt. He needed somewhere to stay where he'd be safe for a few days while he recuperated. "No," he blurted. Fuck.
A soft red blush spread across his face, and he looked away.
"What...? Why? I thought you'd wanna bolt out of here faster than a fuckin' Olympic sprinter," the blonde laughed. "What's an olympic sprinter?" The troll questioned. "Never mind. Just tell me why you don't want to leave. You seemed really eager earlier," Dave told him. "Because. I'm hungry. I haven't eaten jack shit in so long." He quickly made something up out of sheer embarrassment.
"I can get you some food. What do you wanna eat?" Dave said calmly. "I don't know, all your human food probably tastes like shit anyways," Karkat growled. "I'll get you something," the blonde shrugged. "Eat it if you want," he said, leaving the room.
The blonde came back with a bit of bread, and gave it to the troll. He held it in his gray hands and simply stared at it for a while. "What the fuck is this?" The Wanderer squinted. "Bread. You don't have bread on your planet? Shit, you're missing out. Bread is like the food of the gods." "Well, good. Because I only deserve food fit for the finest gods," Karkat responded. He sniffed the bread a bit, and then licked it.
His gold stare shifted to Dave.
"Go away!" Karkat hissed.
Dave left the room, watching Karkat through the door. He was eating the bread, even if he was only taking a few small nibbles. It was like watching a child try a new food that they weren't sure they'd like or not.
A gentle blush spread across his face, but he quickly resumed 'cool guy' façade.
He watched Karkat get into the bed, and he moved around a lot before he finally got comfortable, and fell into a light sleep.
The troll looked very cute when he was asleep. His messy black hair fell around his face in a perfect way, and his cheeks were flushed a soft pink, probably because he was flustered about having to stay on some alien ship. The blonde on the other side of the door blushed softly as a slight smile came onto his face.
Shit.
He hadn't had another living being as a companion in so long; let alone one who he thought was attractive. It was a very strange feeling, but he kind of liked the way that it felt. It'd been just him and his crew on a three-year mission until the accident, then it had just been him and Hal. It felt utterly alien having someone else on board. Especially a cute alien boy. He'd been floating through space aimlessly for so long that he nearly forgot what having a crush felt like.
After snapping out of his daydream, he returned to Karkat's room, finding him awake and sitting on the bed. He was reading his book, and he looked a little better than he did a few hours ago. Dave poked his head through the doorway, looking at the now-awake troll. "Hey!"
Karkat simply looked at him, rolled his eyes, and returned to his reading.
As Dave went to leave, the troll spoke up.
"Wait."
The captain stopped dead in his tracks and returned to Karkat's room, standing in the doorway once more. "Yeah?"
"You're the leader, right? Like of your weird as fuck alien ship?" Karkat asked.
"Yeah. I am the only one, after all. Why?" The blonde looked at him. "I...I hate saying this. To think I failed. To think I'm so fucking incapable that I can't even save my own fucking lusus!" Karkat hissed.
"What is it you need, dude? Also, what's a lusus?"
"I need you to help me rescue my lusus. Her name is Kanaya, but you shouldn't call her that. Call her The Auxiliatrix. She turned herself in to the Highbloods in order to keep me safe, and they're keeping her captive. And a lusus is a caregiver, dumbfuck. Don't you have one? You know, a guardian? Fucking retard," Karkat sighed.
"Oh. Like a parent. I get it. Still, I don't know about the whole saving your lusus thing," the blonde told him. He didn't really wanna risk his life for a random alien's parent, even if said alien was cute as fuck and the only possibility of a friend that he'd had in months. "Well, you're a douchebag. She's in danger. Chances are that they'll kill her, and I'll never see her again! But you know, what-fucking-ever, right? On top of all that, I have an oppressive regime to overthrow," the troll growled.
"Let me sleep on it," Dave told Karkat. "Thanks, you festering river of shit. You're absolutely deplorable. I'm obviously in no fucking shape to save her, and if I went back there, I'd be culled immediately because everyone and their fucking ancestor is out to get me. Just because my goddamn blood color. But yeah, go ahead, just fucking sleep on it, bitchlord. By the way, the fate of my entire planet, all trollkind, and possibly even the galaxy," the troll spat angrily, forcing Dave out of the room and locking the door behind him.
Talk about angst. The captain checked to make sure that HALBOT was back in his charging station and that Hal had put the computer into sleep mode, as well as locked the ship down. Good. Hal was probably asleep in the computer. "Goodnight, Hal." Dave said quietly, to no response from the AI.
He passed by the old rooms of his crew members, trying to ignore the sick feeling he got every night when he passed by them. It was almost as if their ghosts had come back to haunt him for his fatal error on the day of the accident. He got to his room and opened the door, sitting down on his bed. After stripping out of his clothes and changing into a t-shirt and shorts, the blonde got into bed, closing the curtains above him.
Nice and dark. The captain hoped insomnia wouldn't bug him tonight, since he was pretty tired and wanted to rest. Unfortunately, this was when many of his negative flashbacks, memories, or ideas came to haunt him, particularly about the accident.
However, after lying awake and staring at his ceiling for a few hours, he finally drifted off into a peaceful sleep.
The Wanderer fell asleep still wondering what was in those rooms. It was obvious that Dave was hiding something, and it creeped Karkat out a lot. What if he was like a creepy scientist or something? The excuse that the rooms were shit was obviously fake. What did Dave care that some of the rooms on his spaceship kind of sucked? Maybe he was some kind of OCD nutjob. He just hoped that he wouldn't wake up missing some organs tomorrow.
Dave woke up early, as always, and went to the room where he and his crew used to eat meals. HALBOT was there, having prepared breakfast for his captain. The blonde's hair was a mess, and he was still wearing his baggy clothes from the night's sleep. His shades were sliding down his nose, but the blonde didn't bother to push them up. HALBOT knew he'd snap out of it once he had something to eat, and maybe a coffee. "Good morning, Dave," HALBOT greeted, pouring the albino a cup of coffee, just the way he liked it.
The blonde nodded and gave a thumbs up in response, sipping on his coffee and digging into the delicious meal that his brother's AI had made.
Karkat got up from the bed, having slept surprisingly well. "Fuck you, comfortable human bed," the troll hissed before opening the door and exiting the room.
"Did you make a decision about the fate of the troll's parental 'lusus'?" HALBOT asked, making some toast for Karkat. Dave just remembered that. Shit. "Uh...not really. I kinda just think I'll help him, I guess. Besides, it sounds important. He said the fate of his race rested upon my choice, but that might just be a bunch of shit," the younger Strider shrugged. "I doubt it. Besides, in the troll's defense, it is his parent, and he is in no shape to fight anyone on his planet. He doesn't even have a ship to get back," the artificial brain deadpanned.
"Wow, Hal. Never thought you'd side with him," Dave joked. "I don't see what harm could come of it. Besides, maybe a little adrenaline to get my blood flowin' will make me feel...a little better," he spoke quietly. "It has been scientifically proven that exercise does help with depression," HALBOT nodded curtly. "I don't have depress—" the blonde went to deny the blatantly obvious fact that he did in fact have depression, but was cut off by Karkat.
"Have you decided yet, you repulsive pink scumbag?" Karkat asked brashly, sitting down in what once was Dirk's seat at the table. HALBOT put the plate of toast in front of the troll, returning to the kitchen to clean up a little. "Yeah. I'll do it. You gotta promise though that you nor anyone else will hail me as any kind of hero, got it?" The blonde questioned, staring blankly into his cup of coffee.
"What? Why?" Karkat scoffed. "Got it?" Dave asked again, his gaze unflinching. "Okay, okay, god. I fuckin' got it, you ugly piss stain," the troll looked offended, as if someone had just personally insulted him and all his family. If trolls had families, that is. Maybe they insulted his lusus or whatever.
"I'll get on it 'soon as I finish eating," he told the alien. The Wanderer stared him down until he was done eating. From there, Dave made his way to the bridge, still in his baggy t-shirt and shorts.
Karkat was disgusted at how his human legs looked in those shorts, and he pitied the ugly virgin of a captain. He found him repulsed by himself as he realized it was a bit redder pity than he'd originally thought. Dave was just so fucking lame.
They were officially headed to...fuck. Wherever crabby guy came from. He forgot the name. The albino stepped back from the computer and let Karkat put the coordinates in, having Hal, who had returned to the computer, plot a course to the troll's planet. It was a long way from where they were, and the journey would probably take days. Oh yay.
After a few painfully long days of Dave's cool guy façade bugging the shit out of the Wanderer and lots of questions about the dead crew, they finally arrived a couple hundred thousand feet from Alternia. Karkat said there was no way Dave's 'big ass ship' could land undetected on the planet, so they'd have to use one of the smaller backup escape ships.
Hal decided to tag along in his robot form, which made Dave feel a little better. Karkat instructed them exactly where to go, which was good, because if they got noticed, they'd easily be killed on the spot. The blonde shoved his weapon into the troll's hands, quickly briefing him on how to use it. He always kept another weapon on him, so it was fine.
They landed in a discreet location outside a huge prison building, where The Wanderer knew they were keeping his lusus. How he knew this was beyond Dave, but maybe he had magical troll powers or something. A teal-blooded troll was guarding the door, but against the three of them, he was outnumbered and outgunned.
They headed further into the prison, The Wanderer leading the way. He carried a stolen torch in his left hand, and his weapon in the right. After taking out the guards and disabling security with the help of trusty ol' HALBOT, they got to the cells where the prisoners were kept.
The Wanderer's face contorted into a pain-filled expression upon seeing all the trolls locked up in the cells. Many of these trolls were his friends, ones he had preached to; even ones he had yet to meet. At the end of the hall, there was a cell lit with two torches; orange light reflected off a slender, curvy silhouette, hands bound behind. Upon closer inspection, it could be seen that the troll in the cell wore a torn white dress, stained with green, and pricked by multiple holes that revealed her gray skin. Her gaze was projected at the stone floor, her short black hair a mess, and her face bloodied, bruised, and tear-stained. She looked much older than Karkat, but then again, who knew how old magical alien women ever really were?
The Wanderer saw her and nearly dropped his torch.
"Kanaya."
His voice sounded soft and weak, and rattled off the stone walls. "K-Karkat?" The troll woman glanced up at him. "I'm here, mom," the male troll smiled softly, crouching down and reaching through the bars, his smaller hand touching his lusus' leg. "Oh my, look at you! You've gotten so strong! Who are your bizarre companions?" She asked softly.
"Oh. They...they found me on the planet you left me on, and brought me here to rescue you. They're alright I guess; pretty annoying," he glanced back at the captain and HALBOT behind him.
"Hey Karkat's mom. I'm Dave, and this is my good bro, HALBOT," he told her calmly.
"Ah. Thank you, strange Dave alien, for assisting my lovely Karkat in his voyage," she smiled slightly. "Human. Human Dave," Dave corrected nonchalantly.
"That doesn't fucking matter," Karkat dismissed Dave with a wave of his hand. "What does is that you're stuck here, and we have to get you out before those highblood fucks find out we're here," the mutant-blooded troll turned to his Jade lusus. "Where's the goddamn key?"
"One of the highbloods keeps it over there," Kanaya gestured to a hook on the wall that had several key rings dangling from it. "So, how'd you get here, Karkat's troll mom?" Dave asked, sticking his hands in his pockets. "Well, that's quite a lengthy anecdote," she laughed lightly, blushing a soft jade. "You can call me Kanaya, if you'd like—" the troll was cut off by Karkat's angry voice. "No. The Auxiliatrix is what you call her," he growled.
"Whatever dude. I still wanna know how the hell you got in this nasty ass prison. It smells like a brony convention in here," Dave crinkled his nose a bit.
Kanaya looked a bit confused by the blonde's metaphor, but began to tell her story nonetheless. "I turned myself in. I had hoped that the highbloods would cease, or, at the very least, postpone their search for Karkat once they had me. I did it to protect him."
The Wanderer couldn't reach the key ring, since it was made for highbloods. The general rule of the hemospectrum was this: the higher you are on the spectrum, the taller you are. Of course, there were always exceptions, and variations to the rule according to sex. However, mutants were always freakishly tall or short. All of the heroes of Blood had been very short, with The Signless only reaching 5'2" at the end of his life.
Karkat's face was a bright red, realizing he couldn't reach the keys. Kanaya laughed a bit, nodding at Dave, which was a subtle signal for him to help the troll with the keys. The blonde held back a snicker, walking over to the ring as he stood on his toes and plucked the keys off the ring. He held them over the flustered mutant's head, a shit-eating grin plastered on his usually emotionless face. Dave tossed the keys to HALBOT, allowing him to open the door while he looked for something to cut the ropes that kept The Auxiliatrix's hands bound. "Dave. Let me use Caledfwlch," HALBOT demanded calmly. "What? No way in hell dude, this sword is only able to be handled by Striders who are cool and ironic enough to handle it, that being me." "Give me the sword, Dave. Or are you forgetting who gave it to you?" The robot questioned, causing Dave's smile to fade. "Okay. But don't scratch it," the blonde said, handing over the white blade. "Good pun," HALBOT said, grasping the blade by its gray and white striped hilt, turning to face the cell.
Dave unlocked the door, allowing The Wanderer to run into the cell and hug his lusus.
The robot went into the cell, holding the blade. "Excuse me, miss. Let me just cut these." He manipulated the blade deftly, cutting the ropes that kept her from hugging the mutant back.
"Thank you, Hal robot," Kanaya smiled softly.
She stood up to her full height, her tattered and stained white dress falling just above her knees at the longest point. Besides that, she had nothing else on. No jewelry or makeup, as it had been confiscated. She wasn't big on jewelry, but she always wore a necklace with Karkat's symbol on it to remind her of her beloved moirail and child.
The Wanderer let the Auxiliatrix lean against him for support. The Jadeblood clutched her side in pain as she winced slightly. "Are these your sick-ass robes?" Dave asked, removing some flowy, Jade green and black robes from a drawer about ten feet from the cell. "Oh. Yes, thank you," she nodded, gritting her teeth. "I'm sorry, Karkat. I'm not in any shape to welcome you back. Regardless, I love you," she said softly, pressing her full black lips against his forehead.
"Miss. You should return to the ship with us so that I may dress your wounds. It's—"
HALBOT was cut off by a cerulean-blooded girl with glasses who burst into the prison, standing in front of a cobalt-blooded buff man, a purple-blooded juggalo girl, two teal-bloods, and an intimidatingly tall fish-like troll wearing a cape.
"Karkat! Get out of here! Don't worry, I won't let them hurt you!" The Auxiliatrix hissed, her maternal instinct taking over. Her blood boiled in her veins, and the anger only a mother could feel when her child was endangered filled her. She stood up, but HALBOT took her arm and allowed her to lean against him. The captain, the robot, and The Auxiliatrix created a barrier between the highbloods at the door and the mutant. Dave suddenly felt scared. What if they tried to hurt Karkat?
"Well, well, well. What have we here? This is certainly a unique situation," the cerulean-blood laughed, taking a step forward. The group tensed up. Kanaya whispered something to HALBOT who nodded in agreement, and then let the troll stand on her own. The robot extended his arm and grabbed a tube of lipstick from the drawer, handing it to The Auxiliatrix, who was on her feet with an angry glow in her eyes. She motioned for Dave to stand back as she removed the cap from the lipstick. The thing seemed to just suddenly turn into a chainsaw, and Kanaya hissed loudly, willing to protect Karkat until her last breath.
"Vriska! What are you doing here?! I told you, leave him alone!" She spat angrily, looking back at Karkat, who clenched his weapon tightly.
"No tricks, Kanaya. I'm just happy that I caught you all at such a great time. I'm not sure who the ugly pink guy and the robot are, but I'm sure they aren't important," Vriska scoffed. "Now. Give me the mutant, and we'll have no problems," she demanded. "Over my fucking corpse," Kanaya yelled, flipping her chainsaw on.
"Fine."
She closed her eyes for a second, then opened them again. The highblood almost felt bad about this. Almost. She used to be red for Kanaya, and still kind of was. Hurting someone Kanaya loved wasn't really what she wanted to do, but Her Imperious Condescension had given exact orders; 'if you see the mutant, capture him and slate him for culling.' Vriska was, admittedly, quite red for their dear leader, but was also partially scared of what Lovely Miss Condy might do if she found out that Vriska had encountered Karkat and let him free. It was her life or Karkat's, and she'd choose her own any day. Besides, she promised not to hurt Kanaya, or any of her odd friends.
And so, she activated her mind-control powers, something very few trolls of her quite high blood caste had. She was indeed a strange case.
Karkat stared at Vriska, and shouldered past Dave and HALBOT. "Karkat! No!" The Jadeblood shouted, grabbing Karkat's arm, trying to hold him back. "Kanaya. Let me go," he said calmly. She knew Vriska was mind-controlling him, and tears rolled down her face. "Aw, look. The mother loses her child. Again," the cerulean-blooded woman laughed. Of course, she did almost feel bad.
She grabbed Karkat by the wrist and pulled out her sword, holding it to his neck. "One move, and the cancer gets it," she laughed, glancing at Kanaya, then at Dave, who was gritting his teeth, holding his railgun so tight that his already pale knuckles were impossibly white, almost the color of the cueball-like marble blade that HALBOT still held.
The Cerulean Seer turned to face the door, her blade still pressed to the mutant's neck as the other highbloods followed behind her. She slammed the prison door closed, leaving Dave, HALBOT, and Kanaya in the dimly lit, dank stone room.
The jadeblood began to cry softly, retracting her chainsaw. HALBOT handed her a handkerchief to dry her tears. "It's okay," Dave said darkly. His voice sounded exhausted. "We'll save Karkat. Hal, go back to the ship with Kanaya. Tend to her wounds. I'll go try and get Karkat back. Give Cal here," the blonde looked at the robot, motioning for him to hand the blade over.
"No. It's much too dangerous. Trust me, Dave human, you don't know who you're dealing with," Kanaya spoke up. "Go back to the ship. Get as many weapons as you can. Hal-bot, I will take you up on your offer. We are going to save Karkat," she nodded, determination flashing in her eyes.
The blonde half stumbled, half ran back to the mini escape ship, whilst The Auxiliatrix and HALBOT followed close behind. On what Kanaya had said about weapons, Dave's best weapon was Cal, but he did have his railgun. That could come in handy if he had to fight the cerulean bitch. He sat for a long time, trying to plan out a strategy for each weapon that Vriska could possibly.
He turned around to see Kanaya wearing her full Alternian garb. Damn. She must've changed when he was thinking about battle plans. She was standing in front of one of the windows, using it as a mirror, and brushing her hair. "Are y'all ready?" The blonde questioned. The robot nodded, and Kanaya put the brush down, letting out a sigh. "Yes. Thank you, Dave," she nodded, following Dave out of the ship. HALBOT still let her lean against him, as she was still injured.
"Kanaya, where would they have put him?" Dave asked, glancing back at her. "He's probably slated for culling. They'll try and get rid of him as soon as possible," she started, "I know where. Let me lead, okay? Keep your guard up."
To be honest, he kind of wanted to save this guy because he liked him. Both as a friend, and because he was kind of cute, in a fucked up way. As cute as an angry gray alien mutant could be, which, surprisingly, was sort of...a lot.
It would never work. Besides, Karkat was an alien. Did aliens even know what homosexuality was? What if he was in love with some troll girl? Maybe not, considering the fact that he was a 'cancer' or whatever. Still, what if his weird alien concept of love was way different than human concepts? Dave figured Karkat would probably end up staying with them though, because he couldn't go back to Alternia again. Maybe something could work.
No. He was getting ahead of himself. Things probably wouldn't even work out, and Kanaya would probably take Karkat and leave, just like she'd done earlier. Then again, there was always a possibility that everything could go to absolute fucking shit. Also seemed likely.
Whatever. They had more important things to worry about. Like saving Karkat before the creepy spider girl killed him. That was pretty important, especially considering that the mutant-blooded troll made him feel a certain way that he hadn't felt in a long time. It was godawful and damn near moronic. They didn't even know each other. Dave only liked Karkat because he was cute, and his all-bark-no-bite personality was adorable.
The younger Strider was so lost in thought that he didn't even realize Kanaya talking to him. "and then, Karkat comes back with us. Okay? I'll show you how to get there," she told him. Shit. He probably missed her whole spiel. Oh well.
The blonde simply nodded in agreement, following behind Kanaya. He hoped that no one would say anything about his actions being 'heroic', as they weren't. That was not him. Heroes didn't exist. There were only leaders, brave people, and martyrs. He was not a hero. The very thought of being classified as one gave him a headache for reasons he'd rather not think about.
After a lot of seemingly pointless sneaking around, they arrived in an open place that looked sort of like a field, except a ton of trolls were crowded around something that Dave couldn't really see. He tried to look over the crowd, but a metric fuckton of horns obscured his field of view. "There he is," Kanaya pointed out. "Let's go. We aren't here to witness his execution," she said sternly.
They began to shoulder through the crowd, finally reaching the front. There he was. Karkat, suspended by his wrists, wearing only his weird black and red pants outfit thing. His wrists were locked in orange cuffs that were shaped like a sideways 69. He was very bloody, and he seemed really dazed. Vriska, as well as several highbloods stood around the outside of the crowd, probably to make sure no one acted up.
Vriska was facing Karkat, smirking at him. A cobalt-blooded archer held a bow and arrow, standing about 200 feet from the place where Karkat was.
The mutant-blood took a deep breath, opening his eyes. He looked at the crowd, and then began to speak. "Hey. Listen up, fuckers. I have something...important to say," he winced, laughing a bit. Kanaya knew we had to wait, or we wouldn't stand a chance. "I have a vision. A vision of a better world. A vision of an Alternia where a troll is not judged merely based on his blood caste. A true troll's worth should be determined by his personality; by his courage, his willingness to sacrifice himself for others, his ability to be strong in situations that are difficult."
He paused, taking a deep breath as he shifted uncomfortably, his wrists burning.
"We are all one kind. My brothers and sisters of low blood and short life; although we are weak, together, we are stronger than any adversary. Let us unite! Let us rise up against those who keep us enslaved by our own blood. Let their shackles no longer bind us. This is not about blood color or caste. All who threaten our inevitable justice are to blame, be him of low or high blood. All who try and keep us from succeeding are the enemy. This enemy is ruthless. On your feet, my brothers and sisters. Together, we are a force to be reckoned with.
We are the rebellion, my kindred. Where my great ancestor, The Signless Sufferer failed, we will succeed. No longer will we allow ourselves to be downtrodden; walked upon! We are our own! My brothers and sisters, now is our time. We are one people, a casteless family. We are blind to color of blood, bound only by allegiance. My just and noble friends, it is our rebellion now. And to you fuckers who think you can trample my flame, you're correct. However, there is one thing that you fuckbuckets can never kill. You cannot kill our idea. You cannot kill my idea, you worthless scum. You can kill my body, just like you did with my ancestor.
Our idea will prevail.
And it is so fucking beautiful. The future I see is so fucking beautiful."
By now, lots of the crowd was crying and cheering. The highbloods were looking confused, glancing around. "Nonsense!" Vriska shouted. "Bullshit! You'll never—" she was cut off by the crew of the Victoria, plus Kanaya, who cornered her. "Equius! Kill him!" She hissed, several highbloods coming to try and take out Dave, Kanaya, and HALBOT.
The blue-blooded troll nodded and fired a single arrow, apologizing for what he had done. He knew that Karkat was a good person. The rules of the hemospectrum must be abided by, however. "Karkat! No!" Kanaya shouted, teleporting to where the troll was, just in time to take the shot herself. The Jadeblood winced as the head of the arrow pierced her skin, but she remained on her feet, clutching her bloodied side where the arrow had struck her.
"Kanaya?"
Karkat's voice sounded weak. "I'm here. We're here to rescue you, Karkat."
Suddenly, overcoming the shock of seeing the actions of Kanaya, a majority of the lowbloods in the crowd rushed to attack the highbloods that were keeping them back, attacking them.
Dave forced himself through the mass of angry trolls, pushing his way towards Karkat and The Auxiliatrix.
"You're safe now," Dave told him, pulling Caledfwlch from his belt. He stood on his toes and slashed the chains that suspended the troll, burning his wrists. He just wished he could've done more.
Karkat fell, but Dave grabbed him, holding him close. "Stay safe," he told the troll, shoving Caledfwlch in his belt. He put The Wanderer down, turning to face the Jadeblood. HALBOT immediately came to try and tend to her wounds, but she kept smiling and brushing it off like it was nothing.
"Kanaya..." Karkat knelt down next to his lusus, putting his hand on her back. Tears welled up in his eyes, and he hugged her tight. "I'll be okay, Karkat. You'll be okay, I promise. Everything's gonna be okay," she reached up and gently stroked his face with her bloody hand. "I'm proud of you. Keep on following in The Signless' footsteps. I love you. Thank you so much for rescuing me. It means the world to me.
My son."
And those were the last words of a hero of Space, who's eyes became glassy little universes, flecked with sunlight and Jade tears that she was blind to.
Karkat looked grief-stricken, but he got up silently, following Dave and HALBOT through the cheering crowd of lowbloods. He waved weakly at them before going onto the ship. The door slammed closed and HALBOT took over piloting duties. The Wanderer could do nothing but stare blankly at the floor. "She's dead. She's dead, Dave," the troll glanced up at him. "She...she died for me. Kanaya was the only person who ever loved me for who I was, and now she's dead," he said weakly. Dave hugged Karkat, and to his suprise, the troll didn't try to push him away or anything.
"Not the only person. Did you see all those people out there cheering for you? They love you. Blood color and all," the blonde reassured. "I can't believe she's gone," the troll breathed, grasping onto the human's shirt.
Yeah. He knew how that felt.
"Hey, it's okay," Dave tried vainly to make Karkat feel better. "No it's not okay! She's dead, and she's never coming back. And she died because of me!" The troll sobbed, wiping his red tears. "I'm scared, Dave. I'm a coward. I'm nothing like my ancestor."
"That's not true, dude. You were awesome back there. I'm sure your ancestor would be proud. Kanaya was. Besides, it's not your fault that she died," Dave told him. "I...I'm sorry for insulting you earlier. Calling you names and that shit, you know. You're not actually as repulsive as I said you were," The Wanderer said. "Thanks. You're not awful either," Dave told him.
DOCUMENTATION LOG, DATE 20-6-2475:
COPILOT DOCUMENTATION.
USERNAME: HAL9000
PASSWORD: **************
COPILOT: HAL
[.106.75.413: 299018]
REGARDING: EMOTIONAL AND MENTAL STATES OF 'THE WANDERER' KARKAT AND DAVE STRIDER.
It's been a few weeks since we rescued Karkat. He's been grieving for a while, but I think he's finally starting to get over it, which is good. Dave still hasn't showed him the rooms, though. He keeps asking about them. I think both of their feelings of grief have allowed them to bond. They seem much closer and have been getting more familiar with each other over the course of the past few weeks. Relationship highly promising; despite his insults Karkat is nice. All bark and no bite.
-END LOG-
ID: 4137790
USER LOGOFF Y_
- [END OF DOCUMENT] -
Karkat entered Dave's quarters, without knocking, as usual. "Hey," the blonde glanced up at him. "You said you'd show me the rooms, fucknut. You promised," the troll squinted.
"Whoa, no way dude. I didn't promise, no offense. Look, to make up for the not promise, we can go have some drinks. How about it?" The blonde smiled slightly. "Ugh, fine. I can't believe I'm actually agreeing to consume your shitty human soporifics. They all probably taste like garbage," the troll scoffed. "Whatever you say," Dave laughed, getting up from his bed and going to the kitchen where Hal usually made food. "What do you want?" "Besides not being here, whatever's good I guess," The Wanderer shrugged.
Dave knew how to make drinks because Roxy taught him, and he used to DJ for clubs where he drank sometimes, so he picked up a thing or two from being in that environment.
It was nice, drinking and joking around, listening to some shitty pop song from the 2460's.
"Hey, Karkat, can I ask you something?" Dave glanced down at him, setting what was probably his third or fourth martini in a row now down. "Whatever, I guess. You're gonna tell me anyways, because you're retarded."
"Yeah. Anyways...do you want to dance with me?" The captain blushed lightly, laughing a bit nervously. "What? Are you—" Karkat stopped, his cheeks flushing candy red. "Is this a show of your feelings for me? Are they of the red persuasion by any chance?" He squinted. "Haha! That's a good one, dude! You're fucking funny," the albino snickered, knowing what Karkat meant.
"You know what, I'll dance with you, but not because I like you. Because I pity you so much."
The two were blushing, although probably for different reasons. Dave took Karkat's hand in his own, guiding the troll's smaller hand to his own side. Karkat looked at Dave, his yellow eyes nervous. The blonde gave him a gentle smile, putting his hand on Karkat's shoulder.
The two danced together for a while. They ended up very close, their faces only a few inches from the other's. The blonde blushed at the awkward situation, bursting into a fit of awkward laughter from all the alcohol in him. Karkat did the same, but as soon as Dave got himself together and stopped laughing, he pulled the troll close by his cape, their lips brushing together.
Dave went in for the kiss.
It was passionate and rough, and it tasted like sugar and shitty alcohol. Regardless, it was fucking fantastic. The blonde felt all his senses come to life as he kissed the other, pulling away hesitantly.
Karkat was speechless for a short while, simply staring at Dave for a while. "That...that was okay, I guess," he shrugged, knowing what the captain was going to ask. "Mhm, sure," Dave laughed, sliding his hand up the troll's back and into his fluffy, messy black hair. "Can...can we do it again? It...you...fuck it, whatever. Just kiss me again, you festering river of shit," the troll grumbled, his face bright red.
"Certainly," Dave laughed, kissing the troll again.
Dave never expected things to turn out this way, but he was sure glad that he chose to help Karkat on that day.
Yeah, things hurt, and the physical and mental scars from accident would always remain, but maybe things could get better.
Maybe he would finally be alright.
