Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

Boredom was the name of the game. Or rather, it would be. But, you see, the thing about games is, they're supposed to be fun. And what was happening right now was the exact opposite of that. At least, it was for Stardust.

Lafawna, being brilliant at exactly one thing (that being survivalism, of course), had constructed a small wooden house somewhere in the forest. It was simple, but it had all of the comforts of home, including a table, chairs and soft furniture. After all, a "creature of nature" (with all it entails) doesn't exactly get a good night's rest in a convertible. Linda did, but of course, she was a robot, and could probably sleep standing up if she wanted to.

This wasn't exactly their usual morning line-up. Start on the chores and sweep 'till the floor's all clean~ ...They'd actually already done that. They'd done everything, in fact. You might think keeping a cabin in the woods clean would be difficult, but Stardust was a quick little bugger, and Linda had a vacuum cleaner somewhere in that Swiss army arm of hers. So now they were just lounging around, not doing much of anything important. An oddly-shaped chess set sat on the table. Linda eyed the positions of the strangely-shaped pieces, then made her move.

"Checkmate."
"Wait, what? That move wasn't anywhere near my Hero!" Stardust was good at these sorts of games, but even he couldn't beat a machine.
"Remember, sir, if the Tagalong Kid is ever threatened, you have to immediately switch its position with the Hero."
"But then I get to move again."
"Only if the Tagalong Kid is no longer threatened after the switch. Unfortunately for you, my Mook has them both in a fork, and my Dragon is in position to defend it. Double check is instant checkmate. The rules are quite clear about that."
Stardust looked at the pieces one last time. She was right. An annoyed look took up his face as its new home.
"I hate this game."
"Better luck next time, sir."
"You're specifically designed not to believe in luck."
"Of course. But I do believe in random happenstance." There was a knock at the door. "...such as that, for instance."

So who was at the door, what was about to happen, and who was going to be involved? That, my friends, is for you to decide.

The silver being(spoken of In car rolled into town)knocked at the door frantically.his left arm was In his right hand,he was blakcened and damaged,andhis curcits were sparking In a variaty of places

Stardust ran to the door in a green blur and opened it wide. You can imagine his surprise when he saw this elusive, as-of-yet unidentified being banging in the door, with a limb detached and literally bleeding sparks. Stardust blinked just once. Then, he shouted at the top of his lungs.

"LINZ!!!"
"I'm right here, sir."
"Quit sassing me and get the chess set put away! We have a guest! Or... a patient. Or some kind of combination of the two." Stardust ushered the damaged android (if that was truly what he was) inside the cabin and exhaled sharply. This was hardly the quiet day he expected, but, with no offense to the one who was currently sparking to death on what was a chess table two minutes prior, it was not an entirely unwelcome development.

Stardust was a smart guy, but he didn't trust his hands enough to do the equivalent of a life-saving operation, whether the life at stake was artificial or otherwise. Thus, it was Linda's turn to shine. Her right hand retracted into her sleeve, and a soldering iron took its place. "Okay, first things first." The soldering iron turned red hot.

"Tell me where it hurts."

"E-everywhere...he set his arm down"it hurts...everwhere..."he was having trouble keeping his cybernetic eyes open.he gasped as something fell from a chest cavity...a pistol.I look inside would show his robotic ribcage was built as a gun rack for 14 pistols,an even larger device hidden deeper inside

Stardust's attention was diverted to the gun, which had fallen to the floor with a clunk. He picked it up, twirled it once for show, then placed it back onto the table. As he did, he noticed where it had fallen from. "Ay carajo. That's some firepower you have there."

Linda gently motioned for her fellow robot to hold still, and steadily began the daunting task of putting him back together into working order. It was slow, intrusive, and it certainly wasn't pretty, but that tends to take a back seat when you're missing an arm. Finally, after over an hour, Linda reverted her hand back to its normal shape and looked him over.

"There's not much we can do for you without a proper mechanic, but that should hold together for at least a couple of days. How do you feel?"
"I actually have a couple of questions for you too, pal. Firstly, what the hell happened to you? You walked in here looking like death warmed over. Second, why did you come to us?" Stardust suddenly had a realization. "And finally... don't I know you?"
---
(Keep in mind that this is a few weeks after "...rolled into town...", and Stardust is somewhat bad with putting names and faces together. It's my justification for why he may not remember someone, even if the real reason is that the RPs are in progress at the same time.)

He nodded,picking the gun up,loading it back into place"and much better...thanks..."he stared down at the floor.if he had been human,he would have been blushing because he was so near linda.he sighed"and its Necros...we met afew weeks ago..."

Linda shook Necros' hand, now that both of them were in place again. "Delighted to meet you again, Necros. You're actually quite charming for someone with the name of a death bringer." She looked at Stardust with a seriously-are-you-kidding-me-this-guy-almost-died-don't-interrogate-him sort of look, then turned back to Necros.

"You'll have to excuse my master's bluntness, but he does raise a good point. Someone in the city could have done much more for you, especially with damage of this caliber. There must be some reason you came to us first."

He stared at her at a lose for words"w-well...I..."he rubbed th abck of his neck with his good hand"I...well..."

(mind if i join in?)

(..I was looking through RPs, saw this one and noticed 'in the forest'. LET ME IN *slams RP doors* Please.)

(Hooray for me sleeping in on Saturdays. You're both welcome to join. Let me just set this up to make it easier for you.)

Stardust noticed the flustered look on Necros' face. He knew precisely what was going on. "Ah. I see how it is. You didn't come to us, you came to Linda. Now I feel like a third wheel." He put one lens of his goggles over one eye to check what time it was. (It was useful having an HUD in that sort of place.)

"Fawny's been out for a while, so I'm going to go see what's taking her so long. You know what to do if there's trouble. Considering the condition of our friend here, I anticipate that won't take very long..." He looked at Necros like a father whose daughter was getting ready for a date. "But with all those guns in his chest, I wouldn't expect it to be all that serious, either. Bye now." Stardust exited the small house and started walking through the forest in the direction of the city. He wasn't really in the mood for running today. Besides, he knew the girls could handle themselves just fine. Protagonist death isn't something that happens in RPs very often, and when it is, it tends to be reversible.

Meanwhile, Linda and Necros were left inside. Linda gave Necros a glance. "Say... do you like chess? We'd just finished a game when you arrived."
---
(I should note here that Stardust and Linda are both quite subtle and passive when it comes to romance, partially because that's how I am in real life. Just because Linda and Necros are the same species doesn't necessarily mean they're compatible, so she's essentially testing him to see if they have anything in common. Still, for as long as I'm on this site RPing, her obligation is to Stardust as a member of Team Rebel, so even if she does turn out to reciprocate it, don't expect it to become an important character point or anything.)

(ok I'm doing my gender bender of Azrael, Aria)

Aria walked the Streets Smiling. 'hmm Wonder who i'll meet today. Hmm Maybe a boy i can be with...." she started to Fantisize as she walked Not looking where she was going.

H nodded"y-yeah...I do..."

(Understood)

I hope that Stardust is still in the forest ._. If not, it may hurt logic laws, but whatever.)

A long, long blue-gray like tail was shuffling through the grass, looking like a furry snake, especially with the thick, round bulb of fur on top of it. Suddenly the tail raised and bristled (now looking like cobra), just like shields on Boy's head, when Boy hissed and noticed something.. or someone on HIS territory. AGAIN. The little catmadillo attempted to stalk the weird Cousin (Stardust), his strangely coloured eyes observing his moves, all four paws touching the ground noiselessly.. Well, he was good at being quiet.. but if Stardust would turn around, he'd see Boy's tail and maybe even a leg sticking out from the bush.

He still needs to train.

There is a lot of Cousins on his territory lastly.. And Mum still wanted him to guard this place AND to don't come near Cousins or Cili...vili..lili.. thing. He was only 32 Weathers.. or 8 years (like two small Cousins said) old! This isn't old enough to complete such a paradoxal task! Another bath in grass and mud after stalking the Cousin... Oh wait, is he coming near 'Town'? Hahha! It means another occassion to study Their language! ..Oh. The catmadillo hissed quietly to himself. He forgot his booook..

***
(DON'T KILL ME FOR MY GRAMMAR, PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE)

"Wow. Half cat, half armadillo?" Stardust smirked as he looked behind him. "I didn't think that was physically possible." So much for Boy staying hidden. This "Cousin" was quite a perceptive fellow indeed. Or maybe it was the goggles. They did some strange things.
---
(Sorry this wasn't longer, but I'm in need of a shower and dinner, so I won't be posting for a few hours.)

Aria Smiled happily. Wraped in her fantasies. She was Walking till she got to the edge og town. She Sighed. "nothing seems to come my way"

Stardust didn't say much to Boy. He figured this kid was just having fun. Everyone seemed to have their own way of doing that in this town. Instead, he continued his walk, reasonably sure he was still being followed, until he happened to pass by someone very odd.

Hi," Stardust said almost instinctively as he passed Aria. He'd expected a hello back, maybe some small talk about the weather, but there was something about this young woman that seemed familiar somehow. It was as if he'd seen her before. But as bad as he was at remembering people, he was certain he'd never met her in his life. She did remind him a little bit of Shirley, though, with that daydreaming expression... and the way she appeared to be directing it at him.

Back at the cabin, Linda made her opening move in her game of chess with Necros. "I've been meaning to ask," she said as she slid the pawn forward, "How exactly did you become so gravely injured?" She could tell he was something of a wandering spirit, as most of the people they'd met so far had been, but he was also a fighter, and when one looks as though they'd picked a fight with a freight train, it's bound to raise a few eyebrows, not to mention some questions.

He sighed,staring at the peices"I can't say much...but I can say this..."picking up a pawn,staring at it as he rolled it in his fingers,as if he was examining it"...revenge is a cold thing...and sometimes things you did In the past can catch up to you...and when it does..."he plays the pawn"it can end badly..."

Aria Looked to Stardust. "h-hello"She said Shyly. strange as it is she always loved to meet Knew people. but there were Many a time where she was really shy,especially around certain guys. Stardust seemed to remind her of a boy she once knew. a wolf by the name of Cyrus. Aria decided to follow him keeping her distance.

Reaction for Stardust's remark? "HISSSS CHAWHAWHAWHAW..."

And then Cousin left. Oooh... And then he started talking. ...Oooh! That may be useful. The Boy followed this stranger... And it may sound ridiculous, but as he stepped into the city from the forest (still with one paw on the grass), his nose was immediately hit by dozens of scents. A loud howl escaped Boy's mouth as he hid back in a bush.. Just to jump forward. Got to stay strong. Got to follow the Cousin. Gods, his fur was already soaked by those Cililili smells..

As Aria and Stardust maybe started talking, Boy tried to decipher their words, repeat sentences after them quietly and even attempted to 'write' something in the dust with finger. A little, dirty, Mobian catmadillo following the two, mumbling something and writing in dust his own weird signs. Um.

'Start using words, please...' Come on, he already knew what's a 'hello'!

"Oh, lovely. Now I have two strangers following me." Stardust rolled his eyes in humorous sarcasm. "If you want to talk, there's ample space right beside me."

Meanwhile...

"I can certainly see that." Linda shuffled a bishop to the front lines. "If there's one thing Lafawna has truly taught me, however, it's that the past is precisely that. We should remember it, but we still have to live in today." She looked at Necros and smiled. "For someone with no formal education, she occasionally says some very wise things. Astonishing what we can learn if we look closer, isn't it?"

He gave a nod,moving a pawn,freeing up the rooke"yes...but when your past comes back to haunt you...you can't hwlp but live In it..."

Aria Smiled Moving Next to the rabbit. "s-sorry, I get shy around New people Sometimes."

Scrib scrib scrib. The catmadillo stuck out his tongue, scribbling Aria's words, then he looked up, slightly confused. He stared at Stardust - this Cousin looked smarter. "Two - people, one - person?" That was one of those tricky words, wasn't it?

How he misses his booook...