this is not a spaceship

[allforthehive]

The Hiver Warrior Tk'tlz expected to continue being on a spaceship for the next nine days, then serve on the personal guard of Princess Hllzt, a very prestigious position. It doesn't understand the gates work, it just knows that they take ships across the black sea in an instant. This is the first time it will experience gate travel, so it is waiting attentively, curiously, at the moment of transfer.


This is not a spaceship.

Comments

[alicornucopia]

"He thinks you'd be good in a fight and impress people, especially since no one else has one."

[allforthehive]

I am indeed a Warrior, but you can tell the one who caught me I do not fight without a good reason.

It's starting to say a few words out loud. Caught, fight, I. It has a very thick accent, though, due to the mandibles.

[alicornucopia]

"He thinks he could train you to do arena battles," shrugs the psychic. "I don't have a bet on this, I'm just translating."

[allforthehive]

The Hiver has no response to this. Eventually, I require water and carbohydrates at this time.

[alicornucopia]

The biped who caught the hiver says something, but before the psychic can translate it most of the bipeds are shouting at each other.

[allforthehive]

The Hiver shouts into the fray, "I! Not! Pokémon!"

[alicornucopia]

And now it is in the ball again. Apparently the guy holding it doesn't like his Pokémon weighing in on debates.

[allforthehive]

The next time it's let out, it gives its best roar while surveying the area.

[alicornucopia]

It is in the same room. Bipeds are alarmed by the roaring. However, there is a bowl of water and another bowl of foodish substance present, in addition to a smaller selection of fire creatures than before (though still several).

[allforthehive]

"No Pokéball. Dark." Bowls? Alright. It downs the water in one go, samples one of the foodbits and finds it unpleasant but edible. It puts the bowl back down, it's not starving.

[the_very_best]

The biped who caught it, and the one who was previously identified as the one who wanted to let it go, are having a furious argument. The psychic is not in immediate evidence.

[allforthehive]

It identifies a few of the words. It weighs in with, "I fight if good reason."

[the_very_best]

Wants-it-let-go looks at it when it speaks, but apparently their conversation isn't actually about that.

Psychic walks into the room, yawning. "I can do a few more minutes."

"Thank you, Joe, the sooner it can talk for itself the better," says wants-it-let-go.

"I don't see why," says caught-it.

"Larry, I will call the cops on you if you mistreat it -"

"- yes, we all know your dad's a cop, Bella, but I gave it water and food and it's not even eating the food, it can have treats when it behaves like any other 'mon!"

[allforthehive]

"Food is bad. Not enough-" something in its language, apparently.

[the_very_best]

"Everything can eat that stuff, it's generic," says Larry.

"Look," says Bella, "even you admit that if it's a 'mon it's a legendary one and that means you don't know what it needs, and fortunately with Joe helping it can tell you. If you won't stop keeping a speaking creature like it's your pet Bidoof -"

"- arena star combatant!"

"- like it's a regular Pokémon, the least you can do is take reasonable care of it!"

"Everything can eat that stuff! It gets treats when it does what I'm training it to do, not before."

[allforthehive]

The Hiver tries to talk to the telepath, soliciting as many words as he can as quickly as he can. Apologize for heavy demand on you.

[the_very_best]

Joe obliges as best he can, although by the time a few minutes have gone by he's rubbing his temple and then he shakes his head and wanders off again. Meanwhile, Bella and Larry shout at each other.

"Why do you even care, it isn't like it was yours!"

"It doesn't have to be mine for me to not want you to starve it because you don't know what its species eats, and not want you to enslave it because it looks like it's probably a bug type and you have a team slot!"

[allforthehive]

"Larry. You are not my princess. You are a prince claiming everything he sees not knowing what it is. This is not my Hive. If I fight for you, it must be trade."

[the_very_best]

"Sure it's a trade. You win me tournaments and I get you 'puffs," says Larry.

"That is not how you trade with sapient beings."

"Stop trying to tell me what to do, Bella!"

[allforthehive]

"Where I come from I was respected. I have no Hive here, and probably no chance to return home. But I am a Warrior, and the purpose of my existence is to fight."

"I will fight for you if you respect me, and provide me with sufficiently not-terrible food, and allow most or all of my time to be spent outside of that irritating Pokéball, and provide me with art supplies. If you will not do this, attempting to escape is my only option. I will fight whatever Pokémon you want me to fight now if it will prove I am worthy of such, to your standards, unusually good treatment."

[the_very_best]

"Ha," says Larry, "see, it's coming around, mostly, wanna match, Bella?"

"It might not even really be a Pokémon! What if whoever you're fighting overshoots and it dies?"

[allforthehive]

"Death in a good battle is better than any other fate that awaits me outside of a Hive."

[the_very_best]

"Whoa, let's not get crazy, now, I can't replace you if it turns out you're not as tough as a regular 'mon," says Larry. "Maybe you should be a show 'mon instead, that's safe -"

"Aaaaaaaaugh!" exclaims Bella.

[allforthehive]

"I still do not know many words. Do you wish for me to fight, or not?"

[the_very_best]

"I don't want you to die. 'Mon can usually fight a ton and not die but Bella thinks you're a weird 'mon."

"Or not one at all! It could be an alien or something!"