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xenoredux · 5 years ago

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Balto but its been rewritten 24 years after its release

Okay so here's the Balto rewrite lol. It's quite a bit different then The Actual Thing but the plot itself is much the same, as are the major beats of the story. I dropped a lotta goofy shit in there just because it made me laugh, but try and imagine this stuff happening as if it's from an actual 90s movie made by a studio on its last legs.

Some things to know going into it:

I cut out the live actions segments because they seriously didn't matter at all. Like, who cares. The plot is fine without them and I don't think that one line from Rosie at the end makes a huge difference. I guess it's nice to see the statue but even than it's like..... whatever

In my fantasy world, Balto was a standalone movie that didn't spark any sequels. Eventually I'll write out my version of the sequels if they'd actually been good, but in the universe of this rewrite for this film, a Balto "franchise" never existed, hence why the ending is sorta different

It's still a "historical" fiction that holds very little relation to the actual events. There's a touch more actual history in there, but c'mon. You're not reading talking dog movie fanfic to learn anything. Pick up a book if you care about the actual serum run and don't get on my juicy ass about it if some things remain inaccurate

Please also note that I didn't baby this as much as I should have, so some major plot elements that are kinda stupid are likely still in there (I'm not a good writer lbr). I don't believe this is necessarily "better" then the OG, I just tweaked some stuff that always pissed me off about it. I also re-included cut content I thought was more interesting and made more sense then what we ended up getting.

There's also a handful of fake screenshots throughout for shits and giggles, and I'll likely have at least one or two more to share later this month. Some links to past character designs are also provided for easy reference so you can make up scenes in your head but with Brand Spankin’ New Designz.

So here's Balto v2.0!

The year is 1925, and it's wintertime in Nome, Alaska. Two dogsled teams are participating in a race. A malamute named Steele leads his team against a powerful, but older and more experienced mutt named Wild Joe. Steele, despite being a decorated and much beloved champion lead dog, is a massive dick, and he snaps at a critical moment at one of Joe's teammates. Joe's team wipes out, his chances of winning are in shambles, and Steele is waaay in the lead.

A flare is shot into the air to let the enthused waiting townsfolk know that Steele's team has passed the race's 3 mile mark. Meanwhile, watching from his perch on the balcony of a house, a wolfdog named Balto excitedly bounds back and forth, unable to contain his excitement. He simply cannot sit still despite the protests of his closest friend Boris, an old Russian-Jewish goose who isn't a fan of all the excitement. Balto drags Boris around the roofs of the houses, ignoring his chiding all the while, until he can see the finish line of the race.

Back down on Earth, a young girl named Rosie is inside a woodworker's shop. She's receiving a gift she adores: a beautiful handmade sled, perfectly fitted to her size. The sled includes a harness in front that also perfectly fits her dog, a purebred copper Siberian husky named Jenna. Rosie's parents playfully lecture her to not lose the sled like she loses her other belongings. Almost as quickly as she receives the sled, Rosie and Jenna are trotting down the street in their new getup.

Jenna comes to rest in the race's sidelines among a group of other female dogs. The smallest of them all, a Pomeranian named Dixie, chides Jenna for allowing herself to be made a sled dog, even if it is in the spirit of make believe. After all, a canine of her slender frame and social standing shouldn't be performing manual labor. Jenna sighs at her friend's internalized misogyny and eugenics talk, rolling her eyes as if to say "oh you!"

Nor should someone of her persuasion be meeting up with any strays, Dixie continues while going on to show her racist side, for Balto and Boris have just plodded up to the group. The other girls scoff and huff at Balto's arrival, but Jenna and Rosie both are glad to see him. Rosie gives the wolfdog a hug, telling him to keep outta sight of The Parental Units. Just then, Steele's team rounds the corner, and Rosie waves her hat at them as if it's a foam finger and this is the most arduous baseball game in history. A sudden gust of wind picks up her hat and sweeps it into the path of the oncoming team. Rosie begins to panic and, while Jenna soothes her, Balto runs out alongside the advancing sled team to retrieve it.

Balto manages to snag and deliver the hat before Steele passes the finish line, which visibly upsets Steele. His owner speaks to the man who leads Wild Joe's team. He seems unimpressed with Steele's performance, enough so that Wild Joe's owner admits it's likely time that Joe was retired. The two imply that if a sled dog can't even outrun Steele, it's time for him to hang up his harness, even if he is wearing a bitchin' little number they speak in awe of called "A Golden Collar", a veritable necklace of medals awarded to sled dogs who have proven they don't suck. As one can imagine, this pisses Steele off something fierce. He gazes into the reflection of his face in his own golden collar, getting a bit of anger-saliva on it in the process.

The important thing, of course, is that Balto managed to save Rosie's hat. Jenna thanks him and playfully teases him about how nuts he'd have to be to do something like run alongside a car made of dogs, to which the quiet Balto just smiles. Rosie's dad isn't smiling very much, though, because all he saw was the town's favorite punching bag running wild with his daughter's hat. He swears at Balto and kicks snow his way, spooking him into running off down the street. Rosie's dad herds his child away, scolding her for playing with wild animals, while Jenna tries to follow her friend. Unable to recognize where he's not wanted, Steele blocks Jenna's path and starts flexing about his elite gamer/sledding skills. The other girl dogs can barely contain their ovaries around him, but Jenna just politely excuses herself as Steele begins spouting off insensitive remarks about "the howler from the cannery".

But Balto's not going home just yet. He knows exactly how to navigate the neighborhood and find his companion. Boris complains about the cold and how much he's walked around today, so he pisses off back to to their place. Balto simply shrugs and wanders until he finds Jenna again. He trails behind her, hiding in various places along the street as Jenna follows her masters home. Jenna talks passionately about how she'd love to do something big and hella just to show up guys like Steele. Balto encouragingly comments on how he's sure she'd be the best at whatever she did, and she smiles at him in a particularly heterosexual way.

Eventually the two part ways, and Balto decides it's time to go home. As he trots along, he notices a glove that Rosie dropped. He smiles and rolls his eyes as he picks it up and turns to head to Jenna's and give it back. Unfortunately for him, Steele's ego bruises like a banana and heals just about as well, so the meat-headed malamute has dragged along his team to harass the town's token minority once he was alone. The only dog on the team who seems against harassing someone for something they can't control is Star, Steele's smaller, weaker, more cowardly little brother. Steele jeers at Star for being too much of a puss to participate in the g-rated hate crime before rolling a barrel in Balto's direction. Balto's bowled over by it and falls face first into a bucket.

Steele's team howls with laughter, then literally howls in an effort to insult Balto. The words "howler" and "feral" are thrown around a lot as Balto struggles to free his face from the pail. He never manages to, and before Steele can harass him some more, his musher calls out for him and the rest of the team. Steele calls his men to his side and makes his way out. The only one who trails behind is Star, who gingerly pops the bucket off of Balto's head. The two stare wordlessly at each other for a moment, the stunned Balto dwarfing the underdeveloped Star, before Star gets too scared to stay any longer and books it. Balto looks around himself for Rosie's mitten, but he can't find it. He sighs and begins heading towards the harbor.

As Balto walks through the cannery, the other stray and unloved dogs take notice of him and begin jeering at him. Despite how pitiful-looking they are, almost all of them feel the need to tell Balto in livid detail about just how shit he is in comparison because of his wolf heritage. Those who don't jeer hateful words hole up and hide from him as he passes them by.

Boris takes notice of Balto returning home, and he goes to wave to him with his one good wing before noticing something peculiar on the hill by the shoreline: wolves! A small pack of wolves take notice of Balto. They even begin howling to him. It's clear that they're inviting him to join their DnD party, and for a tense moment Boris is afraid Balto will run after them. But Balto simply shrinks away, shaking his head. His shoulders slump and he makes his way to the wrecked boat he and Boris live on.

Boris attempts to cheer Balto up with some wAcKy SlApStIcK cOmEdY before having to realize that harming himself is increasingly silly ways will not cure Balto's bigotry induced depression. He slumps against Balto as the two notice a flock of geese flying overhead. Balto asks Boris what it was like in "the old country", and Boris soothes in the most Russian voice ever conceived what are likely concerns he's heard many times before by assuring Balto he came to Alaska for good reason because the old country sucked. He also assures Balto that the busted wing he has was the best thing that ever happened to him, because it meant he got to live in Nome and find that lonely wolfdog kid those several years back. Balto can't help but crack a smile.

When the sun has gone down, Balto begins to leave the hovel he calls home. Boris reminds him to be careful on his nightly excursion to find food, to which Balto merely smiles and nods. He pads past the sleeping cannery dogs and back towards town.

Meanwhile, Jenna is sitting outside of the hospital doorway. She watches as her masters lead Rosie inside. Rosie's gotten a nasty cough, and she makes an odd wheezing noise when she breathes. As mom and pop speak to the very busy doctor, Rosie gazes out the window at Jenna, waving and smiling at her. Jenna stands up excitedly, but feels her heart sink into her stomach as Rosie has the sort of coughing fit a Flintstone's chewable can't fix. Her parents come to lead her away from the window. Jenna tries her damnedest to find a way to peer inside from around the back. There is a window, but she's unable to reach it, even as she's standing on her hind legs.

Balto, dirty from digging around in garbage, spots Jenna's vibrant red coat from across the way. He calls out to her softly, and though she does acknowledge his greeting, she barely responds. This concerns Balto, and he comes to join her under the window. She explains that she wants to see in, and Balto allows her to climb up and stand on his back to do so. She obliges, too worried about Rosie's well-being to thank him, and gazes longingly inside.

She climbs down from Balto a beat later, saying how she wishes she could understand what was happening in there. Most of what went on was just the doctor talking. Balto pauses and thinks for a moment, and then tells Jenna he has an idea. He leads her around to the boiler room placed adjunct to the hospital where the doctor's dog, a St. Bernard appropriately named Doc, spends his nights. The two make their way inside.

Doc is in fact there, snoring like a buzz-saw on crack. Balto gently wakes him up, and at first he's both annoyed to be woken and offput by The Wolfdog being in his face, but when Jenna explains the situation to him he becomes much more amiable. He leads the two over to the crawlspace under the hospital, stating there's far too much of him to love to allow him to fit under with them. Balto and Jenna thank him and go inside.

The two creep through the creepy underside of the hospital until they find themselves under a grate beneath the doctor's desk. The doctor discusses with the nurses how the children of Nome have diphtheria, a fast acting, aggressive disease that causes fatal epidemics. The anti-toxin he was able to treat the first few cases with has run out, and without it, all infected children will surely die within two weeks' time.

Jenna is unsurprisingly distraught at the idea of her favorite person on the planet dying a slow, painful death, so she scrambles out of the crawlspace and begins crying. Balto follows close behind her to see that Doc has already begun to comfort her. He apologizes for bringing Jenna here, to which Jenna states she's glad he did. Aside from Jenna's gentle sobbing, all is silent for a moment. Suddenly, a loud crash can be heard outside. Everyone turns to see Steele and his dogs have come back to ruin another scene. Doc becomes upset at the sudden influx of uninvited guests crowding up his personal space, so he goes to alert the doctor and get them all the fuck outta there. Meanwhile, the team menaces Balto while Steele tries to impress Jenna by pulling Rosie's missing mitten out of his collar. He offers to walk Jenna home to deliver it to her family as the team, lead by a pitifully unintimidating Star, back a snarling Balto into the corner.

Jenna's obviously not interested in Dog Gaston's posturing, but she's also got an IQ higher then 6 and understands that he's not going to go away simply because she asks him to. As Balto watches from out the corner of his eye, Jenna flirtatiously backs Steele into the glowing red boiler. She mutters something about meatballs under her breath as Steele begins to howl and shriek in pain. The smell of burning dog ass and the cries of a defeated jock archetype alert people to the scene, and all the dogs begin to scatter. Balto and Jenna try to join the reverse flash mob, but Steele flings himself hard into Balto and forces all of them to stumble. Lanterns shine in the literal dogpile's direction. Steele refuses to get off of Balto, so Balto insists that Jenna get away. She forgets about Rosie's mitten, which Balto snags to keep away from Steele's posturing self, and the men finally descend upon the dogs.

Someone pulls Steele off of Balto, and he begins making as if he's injured, intentionally limping and stumbling melodramatically around. The men start to make a fuss about the wolfdog injuring the town's best runner when one of them, Rosie's dad, notices his daughter's missing mitten in Balto's mouth. He begins yelling and kicking at the dog, going on about how he's dangerous and he'd better not go anywhere near his child ever again. Balto tucks tail and barrels out of town, and all the men stroke a miraculously healed Steele to compensate for the trauma of being attacked by a dog half his size.

As Balto pounds pavement, he passes the telegraph office, wherein an important message is being sent. A request for more anti-toxin to treat the epidemic is being relayed, and in it are the details of why this situation is uniquely urgent: the Alaskan winter is doing its worst, bringing blizzards severe enough that ships and planes alike cannot manage to deliver the medicine. Nome's best bet becomes obvious: use a train to deliver the medicine as closely to Nome as they can, then set up relay teams of sled dogs to receive and deliver the anti-toxin.

The morning after the message has been sent, the town organizes a race to test which dogs in town have the highest stats in stamina, speed, and agility. Almost every husky in town is lined up to race... all except a very upset Jenna, who keeps insisting the other dogs make room for her. Some dogs look at her with concern. Others laugh. But most of them seem convinced that her place is here in Nome, keeping her people company and not chipping any of her nails. Dixie tries to lead Jenna away from the race, but Jenna's so pissed that she angrily stomps away from the race altogether.

Balto, who has been hiding around town this whole time, slips out of the shadows to meet her. She vents loudly to him about being disallowed to participate because of the snot-nosed chauvinists running the race. If Balto didn't know the depth of her conviction before, he certainly does now; she begins to cry angry tears over what will happen to Rosie.

Balto can't stand to see a grown womandog cry, but he's worried about what will happen if he tries to line up with the other dogs. Everyone believes he attacked Steele, after all. Nobody would tolerate him joining the race... at least, not while they're all there. He wordlessly slips away from Jenna, assuring her he has a plan. In a moment he's disappeared. The race is about to start, and Boris has hobbled into town. He goes over to Jenna and begins complaining about how Balto didn't come home last night. Jenna tells him it's a long story, but that she's sure he'll turn up again soon. Maybe. Hopefully.

The starting gun is fired off, and the dogs take off with the speed and accuracy of drunken Nascar drivers. Just as soon as they've all bolted, Balto boltos past the starting line right in tow, which causes some reasonable upset among the crowd given word of Steele's definitely-real-not-made-up scuffle with the wolfdog has spread fast.

Despite the jeering Balto is faced with, he continues on. By this point, Jenna and Boris have noticed him running, and they begin to cheer him on as they scramble to keep up with him. Turns out wolves and their relatives are pretty fast.

In contrast to the other dogs, Balto's saving grace isn't just his speed, but his ingenuity. Balto breaks off of the track as he begins advancing on the dogs in an effort to avoid their snarling and snapping at him. He shows his cleverness by traversing obstacles like frozen ponds, hanging pulleys, and crumbling wooden beams that bridge buildings, all while maintaining pace with the other dogs. Any townsfolk who are capable of seeing him are too impressed with his abilities to remember his alleged attempted dogmurder.

To the surprise of literally nobody reading this, Balto manages to cross the finish line before anybody else, which includes an especially tilted Steele. Unexpectedly, several townsfolk cheer for our parkour-loving protagonist, and Balto's face lights up in pleasure, having never experienced praise from basically any human person.

Steele and Wild Joe's mushers come around to give Balto the once over, discussing how he'd be an invaluable asset to any team. Joe's musher believes he'd made a good replacement for Joe now that that dog's been laid off of his animaljob. Balto ingratiates his coy self with a gentle tail wag, and Steele has literally never been more angry in his life. His ego as sore as a freshly kicked-in face, Steele looks around for some way to prove Balto is totes nasty. A toothy grin spreads across his face as he spots Jenna leading a hobbling Boris over, and he quickly rushes the goose and snags him up, carrying him away.

Balto doesn't like seeing his surrogate feathered father being doghandled, so he snarls and chases after Steele, startling the men. The men follow Balto, who is following Steele, who is following his own evil agenda. Steele tosses Boris off the nearby harbor, and the bird struggles to collect himself in the icy water. Balto rushes Steele, still snarling. This spooks Steele's musher, and he begins throwing rocks at Balto. The man tells the wolfdog to stay away from his animal, and he states to Wild Joe's musher why Balto would be useless as a sled dog: he can't manage to get along with other canines. He's too wild. The two men collect Steele and depart as Balto similarly collects Boris, who is little more then a honking popsicle by now.

As Balto begins carrying Boris home, Jenna stops him and asks what happened. Balto gruffly states that Jenna's master would be angry to see her speaking to him. After all, he doesn't get along with other dogs given how wild he is. Jenna is so surprised by her friend lashing out at her that she can't speak, and she watches solemnly and wordlessly as Balto and Boris make like Rosie's health and disappear.

That night, the relay teams are being dispatched. The electric cross hanging on the church steeple is turned on - the pastor says that so long as there's hope for the children, the light will stay lit and the electric bill will stay high - and a handful of teams are sent out, including Steele's. The sick children watch from inside the hospital. Jenna watches from her new favorite spot just under one of the hospital's front windows, her face contorted in worry. From his ship, Balto ignores Boris's cacophanic snoring as he watches the teams head out. He gives a sigh.

A day passes as the relay teams power through the awful weather. Steele's team receives the medicine from another team who just had it delivered to them by train. Now Steele's gang is intended to deliver the medicine once again to the team of a dog named Togo. Unfortunately, Steele's unwarranted self-importance prevents this, as he dislikes the idea of not being the guy to deliver the goods to town. He tells Star that he doesn't need to follow the rules of the relay - he knows the way home and he can do this himself. He intentionally ignores the path to Togo and drags his team helplessly onward, and none of them but Star are any the wiser.

The governor's dog calls a meeting in the boiler room for all the other dogs in town. It's been longer then the townsfolk expected it to take for the meds to arrive, and everyone is getting ants in their collective pants. Balto watches the meeting from outside a window to maintain some discreetness. Doc tries to calm everybody down once they begin panicking, but they're all too much in a tizzy thinking about what will happen to the kids to hear him. Suddenly, the rabbling of the crowd is halted when a sharp, reverberating bark cuts through the noise. Everyone turns to the door.

In the doorframe stands the tall, bulky silhouette of an unknown beefcake. The dog steps into the light, and Wild Joe finally announces his presence verbally and not just cinematically. He informs the dogs that he's had a lot of time to wander since being unharnessed, and tonight he wandered by the telegraph office. He's a gifted enough fella to understand Morse code and the hopeless sighs of an old man sending 1800s text messages, and he informs the dogs that Steele's team broke the relay chain. Nobody knows where they are, which means, more importantly, nobody knows where the medicine is. Wild Joe suggests that the dogs make peace with the passing of their childfolk before he steps back outside and disappears into the snowy night.

Whatever the dogs inside the boiler room are saying, Balto can't hear it. Not just because their voices are drowning each other out, but because he's stricken with too much grief to care. Rosie has only been getting worse. What's going to happen to her?

Meanwhile in the hospital, the doctor is managing as well as one can to explain to the parents of the sick children that their one hope of salvation may or may not be lost to the elements forever. This barely registers with the horribly ill Rosie who, despite being in the same room as a doctor forcing her parents to confront her mortality, is now too sick to lift her head from her pillow. In an effort to afford their child a sliver of comfort, Rosie's folks allows Jenna into her room. Jenna pads loyally over to her girl, and for just a second Rosie's eyes flutter open. "Jenna?" is all she can manage to wheeze out before passing back into unconsciousness. Jenna gloomily rests her head on her owner's chest, whimpering softly.

Balto pads through town. Nobody is really out at night anymore. They're all crowding the hospital to keep close to their children. Balto's main goal is to find Jenna, to discuss this horrible thing with her, but he's distracted as he passes by the woodworker's shop. The same jolly man who had made Rosie her bitchin' new sled was now hunched sadly over a new, much less bitchin', much more morbid project: tiny coffins, each no bigger then 4 feet tall. A small collection of them has formed in a corner of the room. Balto shakes his head and gasps, breaking out of a stupor he was not previously aware he was in. Something has to be done.

The morning sun is peaking out over the horizon when Balto begins to depart from his home. He trots down from the harbor and along the shoreline, aiming to enter the forest the teams left through. Boris is plodding behind him, slipping around on frozen patches of sea water and flopping around in puddles of slush. He's going on and on, trying desperately to convince Balto not to waste his efforts on a town of people who'd be perfectly happy if he were dead. Balto doesn't reply, instead flashing Boris a solemn look. His eyes light up with new intention, and he grabs Boris by the beak, dragging him along as the old goose honks angrily.

Balto releases Boris as the two come to the back of the hospital. Jenna, who had once again settled out front, hears the commotion of the intensely pissed off bird wailing and honking. Balto wordlessly releases Boris, and just before Boris can complain further, Jenna comes over to the two. She and Balto share one miserable, knowing look before Jenna begins to cry. She presses her face into Balto's neck, weeping softly into his fur. Another child is herded into the hospital by a concerned parent. The girl wheezes and shakes violently as the door closes behind her. Boris looks on, all anger having subsided.

Instead, he says in a very business-like tone that Balto needs to hurry up if he's going to find the lost team. And he shouldn't keep Boris waiting. Boris is an old man who hates waiting more then he hates traveling. Boris begins to waddle off back towards the forest, and Balto can't help but smile. Jenna presses the pause button on crying long enough to ask what Boris means, to which Balto states that neither he nor his old man can stand idly by any longer.

Jenna understands, and she insists that the two allow her to come with them. It pains her to leave Rosie, but the child is barely ever awake at this point, and inaction won't make the situation better. Balto's smile grows wider, and the three take off to find the missing team themselves.

Hours pass. The three haven't ceased their journey, nor does it seem they've given up hope. Boris certainly has got a lot to bitch about, though. And he does this loudly and frequently as Balto and Jenna lead the way, exchanging words. Jenna vents about how it's ludicrous that Steele, a gloryhound who loves the smell of his own farts, was even selected to do the relay given how hard he is to handle. Balto agrees, if a bit softly. Jenna interrogates him gingerly, asking what happened the day of the race. Balto admits that the townsfolk have gone even more sour on him as of late, and that he's been genuinely afraid to be around anybody now... except for Jenna, of course. Jenna reassures him with the same viciously heterosexual smile as before that she'll stand by him no matter what. Balto can't help but smile back.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the frozen over Hell that is Alaska, Steele is blindly trying to redirect his team onto the trail, but the trail has long gone from his sight. Star, exhausted and growing antsier by the minute, suggests turning around and going back; it's totally obvious now that they're lost. Steele buckles for just a moment before snapping at his brother about how he knows where he's going and, having just told the worst lie in history, begins running directionlessly through the blizzard.

Expectedly, this sends his team careening down into a gully he failed to notice on account of the whole reduced visibility thing. The sled tips over - though it seems the anti-toxin is still secured and unbroken - the musher falls out and hits his head on a rock, and the dogs tumble into a heap. Some of them are bruised. Some of them are worse. But nobody is dead, not even the flame dancing inside the musher's lantern. The only thing that looks dead is Steele's spirit. He stares wide eyed and panting as he realizes the team truly is lost. "What are we gonna do now, Steele?" Star asks hopelessly. Steele doesn't respond.

Night has fallen. It's cold as shit out in the forest, but the three musketeers haven't ceased their journeying yet. Boris, effectively feeding into every stereotype about old men ever, complains about how long this road trip has lasted. Neither Balto nor Jenna have the energy left to respond to him, so they don't. Boris gets huffy and says the kids can keep going if they want, but it's time for him to sleep. He decides to set up a nest on a large snowdrift, and Balto finally gets frustrated and turns to explain to Boris that there's no time to stop now. And then the snowdrift stands up.

A polar bear, hulking and powerful, is standing on its hind legs in front of the dogs. A screaming Russian goose is flapping around on the crown of its head, and the bear immediately begins trying to attack its winged hat. Balto leaps to his grandhonk's rescue, but the bear lands an easy hit on him and sends him flying. The goose isn't nearly as threatening as the wolfdog, so the bear turns to Balto, ready to tear him to pieces.

This understandably displeases Jenna, and she flings herself headlong into the bear to save her friends. She's more lithe and agile then Balto is, which makes it easy for her to dodge most of the bear's swings, but she's not as quick as Balto is, so she still ends up taking a pretty nasty blow to the legs. She flies across the forest floor and strikes Boris, knocking them both to the ground. Meanwhile, Balto's trying to deal with the bear situation on his own. He's not doing so hot, though, as the bear makes like a 90s sitcom bully and starts wailing on him. This sends Balto careening down a hill and across a frozen lake.

The bear quickly follows him. It doesn't seem to notice the ice below it cracking like splintering glass as it walks towards Balto, but Balto sure as hell does. And so do Jenna and Boris, who, despite their injuries, are scrambling to reach Balto before the ice gives. But they're too little too late. The bear takes another step and the busted ice snap crackle pops apart, taking the bear under as it shatters. Balto stumbles away from the gaping icehole that's growing larger and larger.

The bear is thrashing wildly around, foaming up the water and swinging its claws around in the air. Boris thinks fast and grabs Jenna's bandanna to toss out to Balto. As the bear struggles to grab both Balto and the edge of the ice, Balto snags hold of the bandanna and hangs on as his friends drag him from the freezing water. As Balto collapses to the ground, the bear's struggles begin to subside, and finally it drowns.

Balto is badly shaken, but ultimately unharmed. Jenna, however, bit total shit, and now that Balto is safe her strength has left her. Balto and Boris drag Jenna off the lake and lay her down. Balto lays down beside her, shivering hard from his time in the water. Without thinking about it, Jenna pulls herself on top of him, murmuring about how cold he is. Balto tries to argue she should go easy given her injury, but the two go silent instead, smiling gently at each other. Then Balto's eyes light up as he turns to Boris. He thanks the bird for not just saving him, but for coming along in the first place. Boris absolutely beams.

But his grin disappears when the dogs get up... and Jenna falls back down. Balto insists she's too hurt to continue the journey. After all, who knows when they'll find the team? Jenna tries to argue, but falters when Balto insists that without her help he'd be dead now, and he'd be devastated if something happened to her out here. Jenna asks Boris to take her back to Nome when she notices that he's waddled a short distance away. He's gazing intently at something, looking worried and guilty. Balto pads over to where Boris is staring into space to see what the fuss is about.

Turns out the fuss is about two hairy little things: twin polar bear cubs. One is slightly bigger then the other, though he may just be bigger boned then his brother. The two are huddled close to each other, whimpering and cooing. It's obvious they're very young, toddlers at most. "Oh no," murmurs Balto. The cubs gaze up at the two with wide, frightened eyes. Nobody has to guess what happened to their mother, and Balto feels himself overwhelmed with guilt too.

The cubs follow Boris closely as Balto goes back to Jenna. He tells her that he's sorry she can't continue the journey, but that she can help by keeping the bear cubs safe until they know what to do with them. Jenna agrees and the two smile warmly at each other. Jenna offers up her bandanna to Balto "to keep him warm" despite how small it is as Boris helps her onto a large tree branch. Boris begins instructing the cubs on how to help, going demanding grandad on them in record time, and Jenna wishes Balto good luck. Boris pulls Balto aside and, out of obligation to the source material, tells Balto that a dog cannot make such a journey alone... but maybe a wolf can. The group depart, leaving Balto by himself in the snow.

It's a snowy night in Nome. A somber mood hangs so thickly in the air that one can almost taste the chunky sadness. The streets are empty aside from one stray black mass. It's Wild Joe, makin' his way downtown. He passes the hospital and sees a child who is obviously ill but not in bed. Joe's face crinkles in pain as the child, a boy, coughs so hard he wracks his body in great tremors. Joe pulls himself away from the sight and, face to the ground, starts walking faster. In a moment he passes the telegraph office. His ears perk rhythmically to the beeps of the morse code. He whispers sweet nothings to himself like, "Cannot send more antitoxin. Weather too severe. Lost sled team only hope. Our prayers are with them."

Meanwhile, in a somehow less depressing part of the Alaskan tundra, Balto has finally caught sight of a glowing pink light. The wind is too hard for him to smell properly, but as he mounts a rise in the path, he can see clearly what rests at the bottom of the slope. It's the team! The pink glow is the light from the sled's lantern. Balto's so beside himself with joy that he throws himself headlong down the slope, previously unaware of how slippery the embankment really was. He only just manages to gain his footing at the bottom of the hill. The sled dogs look up at him in amazement, unfurling themselves from the miserable balls of fur they'd tried desperately to wrap themselves in. "Balto!" is heard in a wave of gasps.

Balto begins asking a slew of questions. What happened, is the musher okay, etc. etc. Everyone does their best to answer. Everyone, that is, except Steele, who has been sulking wordlessly since Balto arrived. Once he's gotten a satisfactory amount of info on the situation, Balto picks up one of the now empty harnesses on the sled and tells the dogs he can lead them home. Steele is none too pleased with this, and he steps on the harness, jerking it out of Balto's mouth. Steele insists the dogs will be able to find their way home by themselves - after all, he's leading them.

Everyone immediately becomes uncomfortable as the tension rises. Balto shrugs, assures Steele that he can do as he likes, but that the kids need the anti-toxin and they need it now. Balto knows the way back for certain, so he'd be happy to just take the medicine. Steele just about goes batshit at the suggestion, crouching over the crate of medicine like a wild animal, snarling at Balto. He threatens to rip Balto to pieces if he so much as tries to touch the crate. Someone tells Steele to lighten up, and Steele just about shits himself.

He flings himself headlong into Balto, telling him to get out and leave them be. In the scuffle, the medicine crate is tipped over, where it begins sliding down a tiny incline towards a cliff's edge. Balto eyes it nervously and tries to get to it, but Steele continually throws himself at Balto, snapping and snarling and threatening. The other dogs begin telling Steele to stop, that Balto isn't worth it. Star suggests that maybe just this once the howler might be useful, so the team might want to listen to him. Balto looks Steele dead in the eyes and tells him that children are going to die if everyone can't be all kumbaya for a second.

Steele sneers eerily and simple states that he doesn't care. And with that, he outright flings himself into Balto, tearing into him viciously enough to send him whimpering in pain. The fight halts for just a moment as Steele looks down at the wolfdog, who is now battered and bleeding. Steeles give a triumphant huff and bares his fangs before he notices something. The other dogs are advancing on him. They've stopped their gawking long enough to realize that Steele's intentions haven't just soured. They were never good in the first place. The medicine crate continues its gradual trip down the incline.

Steele is spooked by the dogs encircling him, and he demands they get away from him and back into their harnesses. Meanwhile, Balto, despite his injuries, has wormed his way over to the escaping crate of anti-death juice, finally securing it between his paws. Star turns and notices this, praising him. The other dogs gaze over at him too, finally realizing he's probably an okay guy actually. If Steele was angry before, he's furious now. He leaps over the hoard of dogs that had formed a tight circle around him and barrels at Balto and the medicine, screaming for the wolfdog to let it go. Balto quickly shoves the medicine away from the cliff as Steele snags him by the bandanna. The two dogs teeter totter on the side of the cliff before the bandanna rips in half. Steele unceremoniously falls off the cliff's edge, tumbling down into the valley below.

Balto cringes at the sight as Steele refuses to get up from his epic fail landing. Still, there's no time to lose. Balto hobbles over to the sled, surprised to find the other dogs are securing themselves in their harnesses. All except three, that is. One dog, a Chinook by the name of Kaltag, notices an especially icky wound on Balto's leg, and he uses what remains of Jenna's bandanna to wrap it. Another dog, a chow mix named Nikki, is placing the musher in the sled. The man's in rough shape, but he's still alive. Finally Balto takes his place at the head of the team, where Star is holding the harness up for him. Balto slips into it, and it fits like a glove. He takes a moment to breathe and marvel at the situation.

The dog sled takes off again. As it departs, a couple of white paws grapple their way up the cliff's edge. Steele hoists himself out of the valley. He's bruised all over, but he's alive, and he's none too happy. He wastes no time. He tucks the remains of Jenna's bandanna into his collar and begins rushing after the dogs. The guy may be bulky and injured, but he's full of enough rage adrenaline (ragedrenaline?) to overpower an elephant's higher thinking, and he's not slowing down til the sled has stopped.

It doesn't take long for Steele to catch up to Balto. He tells Balto to stop the sled and leave the team alone, but Balto insists Steele doesn't know the way. The other dogs all but tell Steele to fuck off given they've seen what kind of person he is, but Steele doesn't care. He pulls out a handy dandy trick he's been itching to repeat since the beginning of this summary and snaps at Balto's legs, tripping him up. Balto regains his footing quickly enough so as not to slow down the team, but oh no! A moment later, Steele snaps again, this time grabbing Balto's injured ankle.

The wolfdog can't recover so easily from that, and he falls over. The team goes tripping and spilling across the icy forest floor. Steele allows himself to fall behind and watch the destruction unfold. The team is barreling towards another cliff's edge, and Balto's meager frame isn't enough to cancel out the laws of inertia. Balto slides out of his harness as the other dogs try to stall their descent, finally bringing everything to a standstill as the crate of medicine teeters on the cliff's edge.

Balto dives forward and snags the crate, and the team praises him... seconds before the cliff's edge starts to crumble. As the rock breaks to pieces beneath his feet, Balto and the antitoxin fall into the snowy abyss below. "Aaaaaa," is how Kevin Bacon put it.

The next morning, everyone is abuzz is Nome. The people even pull themselves away from their sick kids in the excitement, curious to see what's happening. Something has arrived, though it's not the medicine. The dogs are equally riveted, huddled in the boiler room to discuss their own canine-centric news. Turns out Jenna returned home the previous night, aided by two polar bear cubs and a goose. The dogs prattle on excitedly, asking a weary Jenna all about her journey. But, in all honesty, they seem most concerned with how - and further, why - Jenna would ever be brave or foolish enough to pair with a howler while on a wild goose/dog/plot chase.

Jenna tiredly begins to explain what happened, why the goose and bears were there, etc. when a ruckus can be heard outside. The dogs all look up, but nobody gets up. Not yet. A few moments pass, and then the door, which has been only halfway open up to this point, swings open in full. Standing in the doorway is Togo's team, along with an exhausted looking Steele. Togo remarks that they found the dumb jock wandering delirious through the cold. He was just lucky enough to meander past their relay station. Togo shrugs and leaves the room.

Everyone immediately starts flipping shit again, asking a new flurry of questions so loudly they drown each other out. Finally, Steele breaks the silence by asking "Where's Jenna?" Everyone goes quiet and looks over at the token girl husky. Steele pads over to the middle of the room, looking at Jenna but speaking to everyone, as he explains in a voice so sincere it's sickening that his team died in the cold. Balto did in fact find him, the last dog alive, but all he cared about was taking the anti-toxin away. Balto never meant well, Steele asserts, his chest heaving with every passionate word. All he wanted to do was get back at the town for turning its back on him! Everyone gasps except Jenna and a stoic figure sitting in the corner of the room.

Steele says that Balto took the anti-toxin and, in a desperate effort to get revenge on Nome for never accepting his boorish, violent ways, threw it and himself over the edge of a cliff. The medicine, and presumably every bone in the wolfdog's body, shattered on impact. Why, Steele even tried heroically to stop Balto from this suicide mission by grabbing him by Jenna's bandanna, but... He punctuates his speech by handing Jenna the remains of her neckerchief. She gapes at it.

Steele says that this has been a tragedy for certain, but all the dogs must band together and be strong. Heck, he even generously offers to be a shoulder for Jenna to cry on in her time of need. Such a noble guy, that Steele. Except Jenna has a finely tuned 6th sense she uses solely to detect bullshit, and it's going crazy right now. She tells Steele to his face that she knows he's lying. Balto isn't violent. In fact, the primary reason he left to find the team was to save the children. To save Rosie.

The dogs in the crowd begin to murmur among themselves, but Steele casually states that it's such a shame the wolfdog managed to manipulate Jenna so efficiently that she honestly never saw him going feral, never considered his more selfish motives. Steele reminds the room of dogs that Balto attacked him several times before the relay teams were dispatched. Everyone seems a bit swayed by the reminder.

Everyone's trains of thoughts are prevented from actually leaving the station by the dog in the corner clearing his throat. Surprise surprise, the mysterious guy in the shadows was Wild Joe, resident lurker. Steele almost looks intimidated as the dog pads over to him. Joe basically goes off on Steele, detailing how it's hard to believe a dog who has proven himself violent for the sake of winning, is mysteriously the only dog out of about 15 to survive, and thinks himself a hero despite failing to bring back even one ounce of medicine. Everyone is silent as Joe and Steele glare daggers at each other.

Steele huffs at Joe and leaves the room, stating that he won't be insulted this way after having had such a traumatic experience. The dogs watch Steele go, then look at Joe and Jenna, then awkwardly begin to file out. There's nothing else of importance to be said, and damn has it gotten awkward in here.

When the two are alone, Jenna quietly thanks Joe for believing her. Joe snorts and states that he knows what Steele is like and he knows when he's lying. Then Joe tells Jenna plainly that he doesn't have much hope of the anti-toxin arriving, and that even if it did it's too late for his fallen boy. Taken aback at the realization, Jenna expresses sympathy for Joe, but encourages him to keep his chin up. Balto is a dependable dog who won't let the town down, because despite everything he's faced, he understands how important this is. Joe smiles for probably the first time in 50 years, then asks Jenna where the goose and bears she mentioned went.

That night, the electric cross on the church steeple turns off. Rosie's mother notices this from the hospital window, and her husband hopelessly wraps her in a hug. Rosie's condition continues to worsen.

While this is happening, Jenna abandons her post under the hospital window and leads Wild Joe to Balto's boat. Some of the dogs at the cannery ogle Jenna, but Joe sets them straight with a well directed glare and a scolding about the male gaze. Boris and the bear cubs are understandably shaken when they are met with a sentient hunk of muscle, but Jenna assures them that Joe is a friend. Joe makes himself comfortable in Balto's home and asks the goose if he can wait for Balto to come back with him. The two cubs remain anxious around the old dog, who playfully teases them by asking if they think he's gonna turn them into mukluks.

As all this is going on, miles away at the previously mentioned snowy abyss, the snow in the depths of the gorge begins to shift. In a few labored, measured movements, Balto manages to pull himself from the snowbank. He collapses exhausted back into the snow, realizing how dire the situation has truly become. God only knows where the medicine has fallen, let alone whether or not it's shattered. "Kids... Rosie... I'm sorry," is all he can manage to mouth as he begins to weep.

Soundlessly, a large mass moves across the snowy terrain towards him. The world is a void of white, and the figure is too, but when he looks up, Balto can just make out the dark features of a canine face. A majestic white wolf, large enough to dwarf any dog, is gazing down at him with vibrant amber eyes. The wolf howls, then pauses as if waiting for Balto to respond. He doesn't, instead shrinking away in embarrassment. The wolf gives him a strange look, then gazes past him for a moment, then finally withdraws, quickly disappearing from view.

Balto allows his eyes to wander. Suddenly, those wandering eyes widen. The medicine. It's sitting unharmed no more then 10 feet away. And after offering the cliffside its own glance, he believes it might be possible to get it back up.

Balto rises slowly but surely to his feet. He eyes the tracks the white wolf left behind as it departed. He reaches out a paw to touch one, and quickly realizes that his paw fits inside it perfectly. His shame melts away. He raises his head up high, nose aimed at the moon, and lets loose a howl.

As if by magic, the white wolf reappears in the fog. Balto continues to howl, feeling as if it's the most natural thing he's ever done. The wolf rejoins him, and it fills the air with its own howls. The blizzard rages on around the two, but for just a moment it feels as if the world around them shimmers with a newfound clarity.

Up on top of the cliff, the sled team is huddling close together. Their spirits all seem to have been broken by what they presumed was Balto's death and the lose of the medicine. The dogs straighten up, however, upon hearing... the howling of wolves? Everyone huddles in closer together, suddenly terrified. A second later, though, they realize the howling has stopped, effectively being replaced with the sound of shuffling snow. Wait, huh? Everyone peers over the cliffside.

It's Balto, very much not dead, and very much pulling the unharmed crate of anti-toxin behind him. The dogs yap with joy, cheering Balto on as he mounts the cliff. The moment he's within reach, several dogs lift him and the crate the rest of the way up. Balto collapses in the snow, absolutely pooped. He lies there for just a moment, beaming coyly as the dogs praise him for his feat. Is this what it's like to be respected? When Balto can stand again, the dogs go through the motions once more: musher in sled, lantern on crate, crate secured, Balto up front. And nothing can stop them now.

Well, they figure as much, anyway. But they're proven wrong a short while later. The team enters a deep valley, surrounded on all sides like a great white bowl made of high pale mountains. The air is eerily still. And then, breaking the silence, someone sneezes. The sound reverberates around the cereal bowl that is the mountain range. A moment later, a cascade of snowfall begins barreling down the steepest mountain. An avalanche! The team runs for cover in the nearest cave.

As the team enters the cave, the sled thumps loudly against the ground. The dogs hazard a look up as the tinkling sound of ice on ice becomes apparent. To their horror, they see a barrage of icicles begin to plummet down towards them. One severs the handles at the back of the sled, only inches away from the musher's head. Another slams down just beside the medicine crate, causing everyone to promptly flip shit. The team rockets forward as quickly as they can, just managing to clear the cave as the worst of the icicles shatters behind them. Okay, NOW it's gotta be over, right?

Dawn is just about to break. The cannery dogs are all struggling to rest in the cold weather. One of them, a shabby, long nosed creature, gently lifts an ear in his sleep. Some sort of sound is reverbing in the distance, so far away that it can't reach the true populace of Nome. But it's there, and it rouses him awake. Other dogs begin to take notice as well. On Balto's boat, the twin cubs follow Boris to the railing as they listen. The sound starts as a very low bellow, but soon it becomes clear...

Someone is howling. It's a foghorn! It's a train! No, it's... Balto!

Balto lets out another very primitive howl as he and the team advance towards the cannery. Everyone is overcome with joy. They're so close! The cannery dogs begin running to meet the team, eyes bulging in surprise. They didn't expect this because they really only skimmed the story up to this point. The sled team keeps pace, everyone acknowledging the cannery dogs with excited yips, as they continue towards town. Boris and the cubs climb out of the boat to greet Balto.

But the team is brought to a halt as a dog steps directly in front of the sled, unmoving. Everyone rams into one another, but at least the medicine isn't being flung off a cliff this time. The dog who stopped them is, of course, Steele. His bi-colored eyes shimmer menacingly as the sled's lantern's light reflects off of them. He says he's amazed that the dogs made it home, sarcastically giving Balto in particular a "Bravo". Very cute, very heroic.

But what does Balto expect to happen? Does he think all the townspeople are just going to accept that some guy they've always hated brought the medicine back? Balto has no idea what he's gotten himself into. His only choice, obviously, is to slip out of the harness and allow Steele to lead the team back into Nome. Now.

Wild Joe leaps out of Balto's ship, finally coming to see what all the hubbub was about. He pushes his way through the crowd of stunned cannery dogs and glares daggers at Steele, telling him that he never deserved to be the lead dog and now he's still so greedy for glory that he's holding up the cure for a child killing illness. Steele snarls at Joe, clearly not caring about his opinion. Then the other dogs in the crowd begin jeering "Yeah!" and "You tell him!" and various other cliches meant to show solidarity.

But the real surprise comes when the only dog who actually does slip out of his harness is Star. "Steele doesn't deserve credit for this!" Star spits at his big brother. "In fact, he doesn't even deserve the golden collar he's wearing! All he's ever done is boss everyone around. He's bossed me around since we were pups." Everyone's eyes drift towards Steele's neck. The golden collar and all the medals adorning it shimmer dimly. "You're the hero here, Balto," Star continues. "You deserve that collar. And you're gonna wear it."

He steps towards a stunned Steele, looking as frightened but unflappable as a weeaboo asking out a girl he likes, and lunges at Steele's throat. He yanks the collar off in one swift tug, stepping back and letting it fall to the ground at Balto's feet.

Everyone looks equally amazed at the sight of Star standing up to the guy who's shat on him his whole life. Balto looks at the collar before him, then at Star, then at Steele. "Thank you," he says awkwardly, "but he can keep it. It obviously means more to him then the kids do."

Now Steele is Peak Tilted. The team moves forward again, bypassing Steele and stepping on his collar as they do. Steele stands, chest heaving, for a moment's time before he loudly snaps "no" and drives himself at the team. He shoves cannery dogs out of the way left and right as he plummets towards Balto. Balto notices and comes to a stop beside a coal shoot. The team warns him to LOOK OUT BRUH and Steele flies at him, mouth agape and ready to bite. Just as Steele is about to land on Balto, Balto rolls over, sending Steele tripping over him in the process.

The coal shoot's hatch opens as Steele lands against the lever behind it. Steele tries to claw his way up out of the slowly opening hatch as the other dogs watch horrified. Balto tries to reach out to him, but it's too late. A load of coal drops down from another hatch above the ground. Hundreds of hunks from hell hit the hedonistic Steele as his grip slips. He screams as he falls down the shaft below, a 2 ton torrent of coal following right behind him. Eventually all that can be heard is the sound of stray chunks of coal bouncing around in the shaft. The sound fades as both hatches close. Steele is gone.

Wild Joe walks over, gazes at the closed hatch, and gives a low grunt. He laments on how it couldn't have happened to a nicer dog, then turns to Balto. He says that Balto can't stand around all day when he's got medicine to deliver. But first there's something he needs to do. Star was right, Balto does deserve a collar. And to make sure he has one, Wild Joe slips his own golden collar off his neck, effectively stripping naked in public, and puts it on Balto. Balto is awed. Boris comes up behind him and wraps a wing around him, complimenting him on his new look. Joe tells everyone to hurry into town, and so they do. Balto lets up a torrent of howls once more.

The team FINALLY enters town, and already a whole slew of townsfolk have gathered to see what's going on. They can't contain their relief and their joy upon seeing the medicine has honest to God arrived. Balto brings the team to a stop right in front of the hospital, and immediately the doctor and several other people pry open the crate. A wave of people descend upon the dogs of the team, petting and hugging them. Balto is no exception to this, as people he never expected to respect him begin rubbing his ears and stroking his back.

One of those people is Rosie's father. He hesitates for a second before stroking Balto's head, then leans down and wraps his arms around the dog's neck. Balto withdraws for a moment, but then allows himself to be held. When he's satisfied with the amount of wolfdog hugging he's done, the man coaxes Balto into the hospital, where the staff is already going about administering the anti-toxin to the children.

Balto is brought in to meet Rosie. It's been some time since he's seen her, and she's just been given her injection of the medicine. She's still too weak to lift her head, but she smiles at him all the same. She reaches out her hand to stroke his muzzle, and he licks her. "Balto," she cooes half asleep, "I'd've been lost without you."

She gives a sigh and begins to snore gently, and Balto considers this an appropriate time to head outski. As he turns to leave, he sees Jenna in the doorway, her face scrunched tight in a misty-eyed grin.

The two dogs throw themselves into each other, romping in the doorway. Jenna allows herself to weep, and even Balto's eyes get a little wet. Part of her had truly believed she'd never see her closest friend again. As the two pause and settle back down, she goes to git it and plants a kiss (or the dog equivalent of one I guess) on his nose. He returns the gesture and the two lean into one another. They sit in an embrace as the town continues its celebrating.

A year has passed. Balto, Joe's golden collar still adorning his neck, runs across the cannery harbor to the boat he used to live in. Boris can be seen teaching Luk how to sweep the deck with a poorly held together broom. Muk watches in amusement. Balto calls to Boris that it's time and that he and the kids are invited if they'd like to come along. Boris, overjoyed, leaps onto Muk's back and tells the cubs to pretend they're Paul Revere and hurry up. Everyone who lives in the cannery greets Balto as he rushes by.

Balto passes Dixie on the street as everyone hurries along. Dixie's owner is offput by the presence of the polar bear cubs hi hello what the hell, but Dixie nonchalantly asks Balto what all the fuss is about. Balto explains that it's time, and Dixie congratulates him. He continues his trek, and it goes very much like it did when he was competing in the trial race before the Great Race of Mercy took place.

Finally, Balto reaches the hospital's boiler room. Inside huddle a small crowd: Rosie, her parents, Wild Joe (who is looking a little green), Doc, the actual doc, and, of course, Jenna. Jenna's the center of attention, and she's clearly exhausted. But she's not so exhausted that she can't look up at Balto with a smile on her face. Wild Joe grabs the blanket that she's tucked into and pulls it off of her as Balto and his friends gaze over her.

A litter of 6 puppies whimper out complaints as they reorganize themselves against their mother's warm belly. They're sickeningly precious, squeaking and huddling together. Most of the little ones are varying shades of red like their mother, but the smallest newborn looks remarkably like her father. She lifts her tiny, trembling head and lets out quite possibly the smallest howl any living thing has ever uttered. Everyone chuckles, and Balto leans his head into Jenna's cheek. Their faces are awash with pride.

So there you have it, Balto But Not Balto But Still Balto. Happy 24th year of existing, you trashfire of a movie you. I genuinely love this movie more then I should, and this has been fun to work on. Later this month I'll dump some more Balto stuff here, but it's just about time for me to start a new project for this blog. Hope yous guys enjoyed the wolfdoggy content. Cheers.

#balto #balto words #balto draws #amblimation #rewrite #fanfic

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rpchive · 7 years ago

Text

Ninety Fourth Encounter-- Parading Around

after this, all the Starbound involvement will probably slow down a lot

Collin steps up to Silky and XL's door, takes a small breath, and gently knocks on it a couple of times. Silky answers the door, no longer wearing her armor. Instead, she's now wearing clothes much more standard to hylotl fashion, deep blue with a creamy trim to them. "Oh, hi Collin! Need something?"

He glances over her for a second as he answers, caught off guard by the unusual change in attire. "Uh, not exactly? I wanted to see if you were feeling any better since our uh, last conversation." Silky: Oh, um...yeah, that's...it's whatever, y'know? I've gotta be the bigger fish and all that. Besides; we kind of got invited to this whole parade thing or whatever for saving, well, all the sectors from war and stuff, so...why should I care about that stuff anyway? My reputation couldn't possibly be better than "I saved the entire star system;" don't you think? My mom's gonna be so mad that I'm not even gonna mention her; it's gonna be great! Uhh, anyway, I have to help XL...not dress like a pirate captain late to their DND session, so... Collin: Wait, wait, hang on. You're going to a parade? Silky: Um, we all are? You helped us stop Atlas and everybody else, didn't you? Oh, but nobody's gonna know Jay...well, I guess Almiet will, but all the delegates are gonna give us weird looks... Collin stammers out the beginning of several different sentences, clearly not sure where to start. After several tries, he finally settles on a single question. "Now?" Silky: Well, not right now; we still need to land, but...probably in a little while? Certainly today. Collin: O-Okay, uh... I guess I'll let you guys get ready then? Silky: Okay! Just make sure everyone else is on the same page too; I told Rio to try and tell everybody else, but she got so excited she might've forgot to tell some people. Collin: Y-Yeah, I guess so...

He gives a small wave and then heads off to the console room to see if he was the only one that missed the memo. Rio is the only one in the console room, excitedly spinning her chair around. Collin: Uh, hey Rio. I heard something big's going on today, huh? Rio stops her chair by gripping the console, then turns to look at Collin. "The delegates are holding a celebration since the war is over; and we all got invited! It's my first party! I've never been to a party before!"

Collin: I'm... not sure if I really have either, actually. Was I the only one that missed the news? Rio: Um, I definitely told Nydins and Firefly; Demo told me to get lost, but I told her anyway; I told Clair, but after that I guess I got a little distracted, so nobody else knows... Collin: Well, I can help tell the others if you want. Rio: I'd appreciate it! I'd like to keep watching the coordinates for now; I wanna know when we land right when it happens! Collin can't help but smile slightly. "Alrighty, I'll get going then."

With that, he quickly hurries back to his room and pokes his head inside. "Hey hon, you in here?" Azreldeh is floating a few feet away from the door, while Zenith is awkwardly standing outside of the closet.

Azreldeh: Yeah, what's up?

will you stop thotting it up for like 5 seconds

Collin: No, not- Ugh, sorry, didn't expect anyone else to be here. You guys hear about the parade thing yet? Azreldeh: Well, not really, but I'm guessing that's why Jay rushed into the closet a minute ago. That, or there's something really interesting in there. Collin: I mean, it's just a closet so I doubt it.

He steps inside and makes his way over to the closet, although he doesn't look inside either. "Uh, you okay in there Jay?" alienrabitt: "...I have no idea what to wear! There's gonna be celebrities there, right? Wait, aren't we celebrities now? This is so sudden; I...oh, wait, this is totally gonna be my first impression to these guys, they won't even know, ugh..." Collin: I get what you mean. I feel like going in this might be... questionable at best. alienrabitt: "I'd...have to agree. Moon Aperture or whatever; they were one of the bad guys, right? So that giant logo, in front of all those people, at a celebration about the war being over...y-yeah..." Collin: I guess my real problem is that I'm... not really sure what else I could wear? I've never worn anything aside from jumpsuits after all. Azreldeh: Just don't show up naked, you'll be fine. Collin: Well I wasn't planning on that. I'm not dumb, just... Azreldeh: Look, it's a parade, not a ball; just...wear something casual. No suit; no slacks; just service. Collin: I'll... give it a whirl? Uh, do you still need a minute in there, Jay, or...? Jay comes out of the closet, which he has made a mess of instead of actually changing clothes. "Uhh, no, you go ahead..."

Collin steps inside and closes the door behind him. Several minutes pass until he finally comes back out. He's changed into a white button up shirt with a sweater pulled over it, which is then tucked into a dark pair of pants with a belt, along with a pair of black shoes. He takes his jumpsuit which was draped over his arm and tosses it over onto the bed and then stands in the doorway, blatantly looking as though he feels entirely out of place. "... Ta-da?" Azreldeh: Oh, that's a lot better! Looks a lot less uniform. Collin: ... You're not messing with me, are you? Azreldeh: Nooo; just about anything is better than that jumpsuit. Collin: If you say so... Uh, guess it's your turn then. I also probably need to check in with Karumet and Daedalus. Not sure if either of them are really going to be interested though... Azreldeh: I'll make sure your boyfriend actually changes clothes. Good luck with those guys. Collin: Alright, I'll be back in a few then.

He heads out of the room, still fidgeting with his clothes a bit, and makes his way down to Karumet's door and gives it a couple of knocks. Karumet answers the door after a moment, her clothes messed up like she slept in them. "...Hm? Collin?"

Collin: Uh, yeah, sorry if I woke you up? Karumet: It's...whatever. Had to get up eventually...uhh...you changed clothes? Something really special must be happening, huh? Collin: Yeah, apparently we've been invited to a parade back in Silky and XL's universe for helping them out with... all that stuff. Karumet: Then the people who did that should probably actually be the ones going, right? Someone's gotta watch the ship anyway... Collin: That's.... a fair point. But at least you'll know why everyone else is doing... this.

He gestures at his new outfit for a second. Karumet: Yeah, I guess so...are you even comfortable in that? Collin: It's... different. I'm not really sure how to feel about it honestly, but unless I'm going to my grave in a jumpsuit, I had to wear something else eventually. Karumet: Oh, I absolutely agree; but you're gonna want something a lot more comfortable; practical; and flexible when you're done with this mess if you're still gonna be running around playing Superman. Collin: That's... fair. I'll be honest, I'm not super huge on this collar thing. Do people actually wear these?

every time I read this line I have to doublecheck the description to make sure which kind of collar he’s talking about so I don’t get the wrong idea

Karumet: Some humans might. Fashion is very diverse among cultures; didn't Silky say her entire race was sort of big on fashion? Maybe you could ask them to make you something cool. Collin: That's... I'll think about it. Anyway, I'll let you get back to your own thing, sorry. Karumet: Suit yourself.

With that, she closes the door, and audibly flops back onto her bed. Collin scratches the back of his head as he makes his way over to Daedalus' room and knocks. Daedalus finally answers after a minute or so, his work visor flipped up from his face. He starts to answer but notices Collin's outfit partway through his sentence. "Need somethi- ... Wow, now there's something I thought I'd never see. Finally decide to give up the brand, eh?"

Collin: Look, we got invited to this parade thing back in Silky and XL's universe, and it's not a good idea to be walking around with that symbol-

Daedalus: Yeah yeah, it's got a bad reputation everywhere, I'm not surprised, so spare me the politics. How're the new duds treating you? I wouldn't have expected the collared shirt honestly.

Collin: I'm... managing. I wasn't really sure what to go with so I just sorta grabbed some stuff- Wait, why do you care?

Daedalus: Oh come on, don't be like that. I'm genuinely curious, I was sort of afraid you'd never let the suit go. Anyway, parade then. Am I invited, or are you just bragging?

Collin: I'd.... assume so? I mean you can just pass off as my twin or whatever, so it's not like it'd be questioned very hard even if someone asked.

Daedalus: Alright, I'll head out of here in a few minutes then. I just gotta wrap up something before I go.

Collin: What are you even working on this time, anyway?

Daedalus: It's a mystery...

He whispers his last sentence in an exaggerated mystical sounding tone as he wiggles his fingers and closes the door. Collin can faintly hear him making ghostly noises which then get smothered out by the sounds of something grinding against metal. He shakes his head and makes his way back to his own room. Jay has pulled on some sort of black, short sleeved, hooded jacket with a couple of decorative straps going across the chest that have large, ornate silver buttons attaching them. Beneath these straps is a zipper that serves seemingly no true purpose other than perhaps to vent the thing. Alongside this, he wears plain white shorts; some black boots that don't go much higher than his ankles; and a scarf with stripes of black, purple, and silver. "Ugh, it better not be cold out there..."

I lost this jacket somewhere and that makes me sad :(

Zenith: Can you even feel hot and cold like that?

alienrabitt: ...Not unless it's extreme, honestly; I could probably walk out there in anything, but I'd get funny looks if I dressed for the wrong weather. Anyone's gonna look at you weird if you wear shorts and it's colder than 60°... Collin: Hard to guess the weather when you're not even sure what planet we're going to be on though. alienrabitt: Well, there's a human delegate; so the weather should be pretty natural...I've heard some planets have acid rain and actual meteor showers, but wherever we're going should be pretty tame in comparison. Collin: Well that's... good. I'd rather not get pelted with giant flaming rocks during a parade. Seems like a real mood killer, huh? Azreldeh: Don't think that's what they mean when they say to knock the audience dead. Collin: Yeeaah, probably not. Anyway, I'm heading to the console room. Are you guys coming too, or...? Zenith: I'll, uhh, pass...I'm not too big on crowds...

Azreldeh: I'll probably wait here until it's dark anyway; but I'm...pretty sure nobody's gonna be cool with a demon running around. Collin: That's... fair, I guess. Well, I'll be in the console room if you need me. Silky and XL have joined Rio in the console room, XL having decided to not change out of her jacket after all; the remainder of her outfit a mystery. Collin: Hey guys. Are we getting close yet? Rio: We're probably a few minutes away from landing! I can't wait to meet everybody! Do you think the glitch delegate is gonna be cool?

cannocly I don’t even think there is one. there’s an adventurer that’s “important” lore-wise, but he’s no delegate

Silky gives XL a nervous glance, and XL subtly shakes her head at Silky before Silky answers: "...Um, I...think they aren't showing up! Yeah, them and uhh...Lana don't get along well! Because Lana is really unpredictable...! And Nuru's also very, um...sudden...?"

Rio sits there quietly for a moment before glancing off to the floor.

"...Oh, I guess that makes sense. Well, I'm sure all the other ones will be cool too..."

XL: ...Y-yeah, definitely! Collin: I mean, it's a space parade. How could it not be cool? XL: Every parade we've ever seen has been a space parade...

Silky: Yeah, but this will be their first! Precantaro comes strolling into the console room, his cloak billowing behind him in a more exaggerated way than normal. He nods at the others in the room before speaking. "Well well, I hear we're getting a hero's welcome back in your home universe, yes? Looks like even Collin got dressed up for once!"

Collin: Can we not make a big deal out of this, please? XL: Oh, they're gonna be thrilled to see you, pal. You stopped that big rock thing from eating everybody, after all. Precantaro: True, but I can't take all the credit. It was you and your friends who did all of the work leading up to that point. I just wrapped up the loose ends. Silky: Yeah, that's why we got invited to this super cool parade!

XL: Well, it...might not actually be cool; it really depends on who organized it. Collin: What do you mean by that? XL: Let's just say Nuru has definitely snuck out of every single event Koichi has organized. Collin: Uh... alright then? Rio gets out of her chair as the IT comes to a stop, and XL and Silky follow her to the door as she excitedly heads outside, where Almiet is waiting with several other delegates. Among them is a large, white avian in ornate, red and gold robes; a thin, blue hylotl with glasses lenses so thick you can't see his eyes, who is also currently wearing socks and sandals; a green floran with hair of multicolored leafs that reaches down to her legs, wearing cloth so crude it doesn't qualify as proper clothing; an apex in a red bandanna and some incredibly casual clothes on save for her boots; and an elderly human woman with her hair pulled up into a bun who is currently sitting under a large, yellow blanket draped over a floating, mechanical chair, leaving only her slippers poking out of the bottom. The slippers in question have plush triceratops heads on the ends.

Almiet: It's so nice to see you all again! I'm sure these people need no introductions to you three, but I'll introduce them once your friends are all here! As if on cue, Daedalus strolls out after them. "Sorry I'm late folks. Took a little longer than I thought to wrap up." Jay comes out of the IT along with Firefly, who has made no effort to change clothes. Collin: I think that's everyone. So uh, you were gonna introduce us? Almiet: Right; so this big avian guy is Tonauac; and if you can't pronounce that, just call him Tony. Toto and Tweety are apparently /very/ unacceptable, so don't call him those things. He's a huge pacifist, and super soft, but you still probably shouldn't hug him without asking.

Almiet: Next is the hylotl...

Silky: Koichi! He's very smart, but not so big on, uh...fashion...unlike most other hylotl. But you won't find a better tactician!

Almiet: And I guess he can't find any mirrors...?

XL: C-captain!!

Koichi: Don't worry, I get that a lot.

Silky: Uhh, n-next is...!

Almiet: Nuru, the gorgeous Floran princess! Don't try to touch her, she's not afraid to bite.

XL: And the apex is Lana; her and Nuru often helped us in the field themselves!

Almiet: She doesn't like bananas; don't ask! Not unless you want to get punched; or shot; or stabbed...

Silky: And last, but not least, we have Esther, the human delegate! Esther: It's so very good to meet you all finally! Truly, we are honored. I only hope Asra didn't give you a hard time out there... Collin: We've survived worse things than all of that, really. We're just glad that we were able to help. Esther: While that might be true, it's not every day you run into the parents of the villains you fought, now is it? I truly can't apologize enough for her actions... Collin: Wait what. XL: Esther is the human who adopted Asra after Earth was eaten.

Almiet: Esther is also a hundred and seventeen years old! Daedalus: Well. Didn't see that one coming, did you?

Collin: N- Uh... Hoo boy, this is gonna be a long day, isn't it? Almiet: Um, well, if you want to go outside, we'll start the parade...

Nuru: And if you don't like it, feel free to join Lana and I elsewhere. Collin: No no, it's fine, sorry. Almiet heads outside with Esther; Koichi; and Tonauac, while Nuru and Lana head off in an entirely different direction. Silky sighs in relief after everyone leaves.

XL: The tension between them is still so high; I'm not sure how this is going to go off without a hitch...! And the novakid delegate skipped out again...

Silky: Ugh, they probably couldn't talk him down from asking to fire actual cannons during the parade again...

XL: He's going to burn down the entire city someday...

Silky: That's why he's not invited! Daedalus: I've heard of fireworks but sheesh. Guess it's hard not to be hotheaded when you're made of flames, huh? XL: There's a lot going on here politically; but I won't bore you with the details; just...be aware that Nuru's not exactly the most morally sound delegate, and that Tony was incredibly devoted to Kluex until he found out about it being a cult. Collin: Yeesh. That must not have been fun to figure out... Is everything going to be alright? XL: Tensions are high, to say the least. Asra never came forward once the war ended; but Esther definitely knows where she is, and Nuru...

Silky: ...Asra was raised by a delegate, but Nuru was raised by Greenfinger. Collin: ... Ah. Wow, that's... Yeah I can see why that'd make things a little awkward. XL: This entire thing is a see saw of politics; and if it goes off without a hitch, everything will go just fine! But if any fighting breaks out, everything will go to shit so fast...

Silky: Not to mention that Nuru's with the apex delegate right now, which...probably isn't sitting well with everyone who's scared of Atlas...

alienrabitt: So much for not getting into politics...

XL: That's kind of hard when you party with actual politicians. Believe me, we're leaving a lot out. Daedalus: I feel like I was tricked into a political song and dance by the promise of attention and maybe free candy. Not a fan, guys. Not a fan. XL: Look, as long as Nuru and Lana don't do anything stupid, everything will be fine! Because those two are on the thinnest ice right now, and them ditching does not look good...

Rio: ...Don't even worry about it! You guys enjoy the parade; Jay and I will make sure they don't do anything weird.

alienrabitt: Uhh, are you sure about that, Rio? If things go south--

Rio: Oh no, if things are this politically tense, the last thing these people need to see are their champions and saviors sneaking off in the middle of a party to hang out with morally questionable delegates. So the people they don't know about should definitely be doing that instead! Can't look for someone you don't know, right? Collin: I... can't argue with that logic, actually. But are you two going to be alright on your own? XL: Hey, if nobody knows who Jay is, nobody knows he's a kleivenn either. I'm sure they'll be fine. Collin: Alright. Do you have one of those communicator things? You can at least let us know if something's going on. Rio: XL took them all back to work on them some more after the incident; I don't know if she actually finished them or not...

XL: I didn't. I mean, they're mostly done, but I didn't have the time to stuff everything into new cases. Collin: Oh come on, you left them because of the cases? XL: There's more stuff now! They wouldn't fit into the old cases! Collin: Alright, fine. Just... be careful, you two. Daedalus: Well, if we're splitting up the big names and the small ones, I might as well go with them. It might be more interesting than waving at children anyway.

Collin: Okay, now hang on-

Daedalus: Look, if anything tries to hurt them, I pinky promise I'll try to roast them alive like I did with that Oz freak. Besides, power in numbers and all that, right?

Collin pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs. "God, fine. Just get out of here you three." With that, Jay, Rio, and Daedalus head off in Nuru and Lana's direction; while XL, Silky, and Firefly head off for the parade. Collin: I've got a bad feeling about all of this...

He takes off to catch up with XL and the others. On the way to where the pair of delegates had gone off to, Rio's communicator goes off like a phone. Jay shoots her a curious look as Rio pulls the communicator out of her pocket.

Rio: Um...who is this?

???: "Oh, good; you have some sort of communication with you now! I was worried I'd have to call your ship and make a big deal out of this. Okay, so, that red chick that was working with Atlas, she's one of you guys, right?"

Rio: ...Asra? How did you-

Asra: "Uhh, I'm Asra motherfucking Nox; that's how. Answer the question; things are gonna get tight."

“how did you get a private comm line?” “I’m asra motherfucking nox”

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Rio: Wh- she is, but...what does that--

Asra: "Right, well, something tells me she's not supposed to be on the arms of a couple of apex guards right now; and I've got a warrant pulled up here with Almiet's sign on the dotted line; so you'd better stay alert around those diplomats, sweetheart; they aren't looking at you like you think they are."

The signal cuts off on its own. Daedalus: Well, that was fast. I think I got to about fifty-six steps before something happened. alienrabitt: I...don't even know where to start. XL wouldn't happen to have a functional prototype left, would she?

Rio: Well, no, she doesn't. I felt bad that she was going to scrap most of these, so I just...kept one? But I didn't think it could work since there wasn't anything left for it to connect to...well, besides the IT itself.

alienrabitt: Then we're just gonna have to see if Lana knows what's going on, right? We can't find out where they're going if nobody knows what's going on...

Rio: If Lana doesn't know about this, that would just raise more questions, but we can't confront Almiet in person; not while she's in the middle of a parade with everybody watching... Daedalus: I'm more curious about what they'd even want Demo for. Taking a hostage seems like a weird thing to do during a parade, doesn't it? Rio: Asra mentioned she recognized Demo from working with Atlas; they must know she was there too...

alienrabitt: How is that even possible; I smashed her head like a pumpkin...!

yeah, I know

Rio: Wh-what?

alienrabitt: ...Look, l-let's just...focus on figuring out what's going on and how to find Demo before this really escalates; okay? We can talk about...that later. Daedalus: And that means finding the plant and the ape, yeah? alienrabitt: ...Yeah, those two. They're the closest. Daedalus: Well, let's keep after 'em then. Besides, it kinda looked like they had something else they wanted to do, didn't it? Might be related to this other stuff. The group carries on with their search for the pair of delegates, only to find them in a private room, sharing drinks and telling stories. For the first time since they arrived, Lana doesn't look remotely uptight, as she is the first to greet them.

Lana: Oh, there you guys are! I was starting to think all of you'd go watch that dumb parade like a bunch of 12-year-olds. Nice to see there's some real adults among you!

Nuru: Glitches convert food to energy, right? So answer me this: does that mean you can't get drunk?

Rio: I, um...I've never tried alcohol; but, uh, we...we came here for something more important than that!

Lana: Oh, pshh! And here I thought you guys would be fun! Alright, who's calling us in to work now; is it Esther? Daedalus: Nah, just a little bird named Asra that gave us a tip. Got any idea why some Apex guards would wanna kidnap one of our guys? Nuru squints curiously at the trio as she processes the statement. "...Why are you affiliating with a known war criminal? And, more importantly, why are you believing her?"

Lana: I never ordered anybody to be stationed anywhere near your ship; I know damn good and well that Atlas did you guys a rainbow of wrong. If anybody saw some shady apex; they're working in Atlas' name...but you're saying Asra Nox told you about this?

Daedalus: That's the only Asra I'm aware of. Think her word's not good or something? Nuru: Considering she worked alongside Atlas; Kluex; and my father? She's not at the top of a good list. Daedalus: Think we should tell them about that other thing she mentioned? Rio: Almiet signed off on the warrant.

Nuru: ...With what you've been telling us, she should've signed a lot more warrants

Lana: ...No, she shouldn't have signed any damn warrant if apex guards are behind this; they answer to me first; not her. Something's going on here...

Nuru: So what, forgery? Or do you think Almiet's working with Atlas' creeps suddenly?

Lana: No, she would never; she took so many of those bases down on her own because of what they were doing to the people they caught...

Nuru: All the more reason to raise questions; what's saying she didn't let people go?

Lana: You don't have to kill everybody on the wrong side, you know...

Nuru: Would this be happening if they were dead? Just saying... Daedalus: I might not be the most qualified to guess here, but she didn't strike me as the "leave no survivors" type. So some remainder of Atlas' forces could be staging something, maybe? Lana: Whatever's going on won't be stopped with us sitting around arguing here; it's only going to carry on and get worse behind the scenes if we don't get moving. I'll find out where those bastards ran off to with your friend; Nuru, you need to let Almiet know what the hell is going on. Do not derail the parade; the last thing we need is chaos breaking out. Having anybody walk away from this is as good as firing into the crowd; understand?

Nuru: Don't talk to me like a child; I'll get it done and meet you at your ship. Get out of here.

Rolling her eyes, Lana takes her holster off the seat beside herself and pulls it on as she heads out the door. Daedalus: Uh, hey, we're not just couriers here. What're we supposed to do? Lana: Come with me; wait for Nuru to catch up; and help me kick some ass, as any hero would. Daedalus: Alright, now we're getting up to my speed. The trio follows Lana to her ship; very sleek and pristine, with a mix of modern and futuristic tones. As the group boards the ship, a large, gray ferret roughly two feet in diameter and four feet long excitedly bounces over to greet Lana, the bell on its bright, green collar jingling with every step.

Rio: Oh, is this your pet?

Lana: Yes; his name is...n-not important right now.

She quickly glances at a panel by the door and busies herself with contacting somebody else to dodge the question. Daedalus: Dear God... It's like someone rolled up a carpet and gave it legs and a face. As Lana carries on with her call, one of what is presumably her personal guards comes carefully stepping into the room as he attempts to scoop up the ferret. Out of Lana's earshot, he addresses the animal quietly: "Mr. Wigglebottom; you slippery bastard; you're gonna get stepped on; come here." The ferret writhes around in protest as it's captured, jingling all the way down the hall as the guard quickly attempts to sneak out.

>intergalactic hardass >pet ferret >Mr. Wigglebottom

Jay masks his laughter as a cough as he glances away from Lana, her attention drawn to the abrupt, loud noise Jay made beforehand.

Lana: ...So as I was saying...

She returns her attention to the call. Daedalus moves to the wall behind Lana and braces himself against it with both hands. His facial expression almost makes it seem like he's in physical pain trying to hold in whatever words are trying to break free of his lips. He takes one deep breath in before turning back around. "S-So, who's on the phone there?"

I can’t believe Daedalus got assassinated by a ferret

Lana: My commander in chief; Crona. She's saying the apex weren't part of our guard, and that they've taken one of our police cruisers for a joyride. The red one, of course; the bastards.

Rio: Well, that seems easy to spot at least...?

Lana: No, the police cruisers have top of the line cloaking so that they can catch everyone off guard; also helped Atlas' creeps patrol the streets undetected, helped them abduct unsuspecting victims of all kinds, even out of apex city limits. These bastards know what they're doing.

alienrabitt: Is there good news?

Lana: Oh, absolutely; Atlas was always worried about Almiet, so, fortunately for us, the cruiser has a tracker that's active as long as the vehicle has power. I know where they stopped; which route they took; which sector they jumped to; and which planet they landed on. They won't be getting away. Daedalus: Wow, already off planet? They move fast. Ending the call, Lana begins to leave for the bridge. "I'll pass along the coordinates; you...wait for Nuru." Daedalus: Man, sounds tough, but I think we can handle it. As Lana leaves, Rio drags her hands down her face and turns to Jay. "This is going to take too long, please tell me you know where Demo is." I...don't. We never had that kind of connection; even if I made a gate, it might not lead to our Demo. Daedalus: Now that'd be a real shit storm. Tiny does have a point though, who knows how long this is gonna take if we go the conventional route. The only other option I could think of is getting Nydins' attention; but then everyone else on the IT will know what's going on. You sure telling them "hey, don't freak out, but someone got kidnapped and it just might start a war if you tell somebody" is gonna go over well? Daedalus: "Things not going well" is pretty much our forte apparently, but I get your point. As Nuru boards the ship, the door pulls up to close behind her. Curious to be so expected, she glances over the trio apprehensively again. "I'm hoping you've found them."

Daedalus: Apparently they didn't think to look for any tracking doodads in their stolen vehicle, so that seems to be the case. Nuru: Good; some solid progress. I got ahold of Almiet; she was audibly dancing on eggshells trying not to get your friends' attention by answering me, but she agreed that she never put out any warrants for anyone on your ship. This whole thing is getting more curious by the second...and it's terribly sloppy. I don't think they didn't look; I think they found what they were looking for. Daedalus:Why sweat the small stuff if you've already won the game, huh... The ship takes off, and Nuru heads off to meet with Lana on the bridge. Seated in her captain's chair, Lana sharpens a large knife as she waits for the ship to arrive at its destination.

Nuru: ...Almiet never posted a warrant; these guys want us to know what they're doing, and they knew we'd follow them. They want our attention.

Lana: Ours, or theirs?

She gestures to the hallway with the knife.

"They didn't take one of us; and Nox was the one to tip these people off. If these apex are after something, it might not even be one of them. Maybe they knew these people would get us involved."

Nuru: What, so you're expecting them to try and ambush us?

Lana: I'm expecting them to try to kill us; yes. Daedalus: Man, if I had a nickel... Rio: ...You don't need to go out there...

Lana: You're absolutely right; but I won't be caught dead any other way. I either fight for the justice the innocents deserve; or I'm a coward hiding behind somebody else's weapon, and I'm no better than every other apex that sat back and let Atlas destroy everything we ever had.

Nuru: ...I can't stay either. Not after everything my father did to my people. Not after everything he allowed to happen to everyone else. I have to make things right; I can't allow everyone to chalk us up exclusively as savages and villains.

Rio refuses to look at Nuru after she mentions her father, quietly keeping a sharp response to herself.

alienrabitt: ...Just...let us go out there first. I get that you're fighting for these big causes, but this is our friend they've taken, and it's us dragging you into this. If things go south, and something happens to you two--

Lana: Then it will be on us; our actions are our own decisions, and nobody else's. These are apex; these are my own people, my own responsibility, and they will answer for their actions personally. I'm sorry, but you won't be stopping us. Daedalus: I can't argue with that, but if you two get shot, the folks back home are gonna be really pissed at us for roping you into everything. Ideals make terrible body armor, so don't get too reckless on us. After a while, the ship reaches its destination, and the group heads out to a jungle planet with a warm, heavy atmosphere. Lana's face screws up in disgust, but Nuru looks perfectly fine with this development as she leaves the ship.

Nuru: So the base is going to be a little east of here...unless you're backing out already?

Lana: Ugh, this place reeks of...what is that? Something smells sour...

Nuru: Likely the trees; they're pollinating.

alienrabitt: Can we please save the botany lesson for later?

Lana: Ugh, it burns my eyes...how did they even get off the ship?

Nuru: Likely wore suits with sealed helmets and not bandannas. Look, why don't you stay here in case things go south and we need to leave fast? Clearly you're not suited for this place...literally.

Lana: You take these guys and go ahead; there's no way in hell I'm letting some fucking trees stop me!

Lana rushes back into her ship, the door closing behind her. Rolling her eyes, Nuru starts heading in the direction of the apex. The rest of the group follows after her, and Daedalus idly glances around the forest as they march on.

Daedalus: Y'know, this might sound bad, but... shouldn't Apex be used to jungles? I mean, they're apes, right? Nuru: Jungles, yes; these trees? No. Gives them an allergic reaction triggered by whatever they used to mutate themselves to become more apelike. Originally, apex looked similar to you humans; biologically, the differences were negligible; but over time, they began to devolve as a trade-off for their intelligence. Clearly it skipped a generation with Lana... Daedalus: Ouch. I thought you two were friends. Nuru: Sometimes. Sometimes, we very much aren't. I don't like how she's stalling this; she didn't need to call a commander, or go to her personal ship... Daedalus: You don't really think...? Nuru: No. She would never turn around and try to follow in Atlas' footsteps...whatever she's doing here, it has to have a reason...

the risk she took was calculated, and she is excellent at math

The group arrives at an abandoned apex lab; the security is so busted that the door is still half opened from whoever was there previously. A short ways away is the red cruiser, which has since been crashed.

Shoving the door open the rest of the way, Jay cautiously heads inside first. "Looks like nobody's been in here for decades...there's plants and water all over the place; were Atlas' apex even stationed here?"

Nuru: This looks...older. I don't think he had any involvement here; nothing in here should even be functional with how run down this is.

alienrabitt: ...So then why would they run off to a place with no advantages? They can't do anything to Demo here...

Rio: ...I wouldn't be so sure about that. As run down as this place is, there's a level underground that still has some power. I'm picking up a really weak signal from it. Daedalus: I still haven't figured out what they're even trying to get out of all of this. Seems like a lot of trouble just to try and kill some people, doesn't it? Nuru: At this point, your guess is as good as mine. Some busted up place like this won't be able to pull off a fraction of what Atlas' labs could; why they'd risk prancing off into a jungle that's practically toxic to them for a lab in this state is beyond me.

As the group heads further down into the lower levels, Rio continues to check behind them to see if Lana will try to catch up with them, but Lana doesn't show. Increasingly more nervous, Rio looks back towards the rest of the group.

"The signal's stronger now, but I can't quite place where we are yet...there's at least four other people here." Daedalus: So Demo and at least one or two Apex, judging by how Asra worded it. Who knows about the fourth though... Nuru: ...How are you capable of connecting to this place? You're a glitch...

Rio: ...You didn't know your father very well, did you?

Nuru seems almost stunned by the response, but collects herself quickly. "I know he and Atlas agreed on questionable things, but-"

Rio: Questionable? I...no. You have no idea about what they did; and I don't have the time to explain. Please, just...don't ask. It really is for the best that you don't know what I am. Daedalus: .... You alright there, tiny? Rio: ...We're getting closer to the room. There's a lot of equipment still functional down here, but most of it's gone untouched. They turned on the lights; turned on some cameras; unlocked some doors...that's about it.

alienrabitt: They...didn't even do anything to Demo?

Rio: Not here, at least.

Nuru: ...I don't understand; they're just waiting for us? No traps; no weapons; just...watching and waiting? Daedalus: This is somehow even worse than just being shot at or something. This doesn't add up at all.. As the four of them enter the room Rio told them about, they find two apex in Atlas' purple armor; Demo, who is lying on the floor in handcuffs; and a person who appears to be human, save for their eyes; slitted and glowing a dull yellow in the dim light of the room.

Apart from their eyes, nothing else stands out about this person whatsoever; their white lab coat and black pants mundane; their short, brown hair not even stretching to their shoulders; no glasses, no visible markings of any sort, they seem entirely plain.

Nuru: You...you aren't human, are you?

???: I am not. But I'm close enough...on the outside, anyway.

alienrabitt: Who are you, and what the hell did you want with Demo?! What did you do to her?!

???: I've done absolutely nothing beyond keeping her still and silent. She's perfectly fine. Why, even the guards are; these suits are dysfunctional, they didn't bond whatsoever. Everyone is perfectly safe. Daedalus: Well ain't that nice? Now that we're all here safe and sound, you mind sharing what the hell this is even all about? ???: Of course. Your apex friend, Lana, was it? She asked for my help to try and get you to tell us where Asra Nox was hiding. But I'm quite disinterested; I'd much rather know about the pair of starsouls you're traveling with. This one wouldn't say much about you; and I couldn't find out much about them from them either. They were very...hm...uncooperative. But I'm so opposed to force, I just dropped the subject. I figured you'd be more willing to talk since I have them here; but the more that I look at you, you aren't going to say anything unless someone's in danger, are you?

Nuru: Putting people in danger just makes them like you less! Nobody's gonna tell you anything if you do something stupid!

???: Of course you're right. I'm not here to cause trouble; we all agreed that we only wanted answers, and that nobody should be hurt. Daedalus: What does it matter to you? I mean, we've got about as much of a clue where Asra is as any person on the street, and knowing about these two isn't gonna do you much good either. ???: Maybe you don't know where Asra is, but you have someone who can tell us. And learning about these starsouls; that was for my personal gain; it was my half of the bargain, you see; I lure one here with the other, and, as long as we find out where Asra Nox is, I get what I want. So please, tell me; I would like to be done with sitting down here.

Rio: ...I...won't. I can tell you're just waiting for my answer so you can do something terrible to Jay. I don't know who, or /what/ you are, but I've heard enough to know you don't deserve that answer. And from the sounds of it, you can't make me tell you, either.

???: Absolutely right again. What a smart little thing you are! I can't do anything to you, that's true; and I won't be doing anything to anyone else until I can answer Lana. You're going to keep me waiting, aren't you? But, you know, you won't be able to take your friend back if you don't answer me...if you leave without answering me, Lana will just blow this place apart. Why do you think she went back onto her ship? So, I'll ask again: will you please answer me? Daedalus: Ah, wonderful, so we have been backstabbed. Looks like we're at a gridlock then. Might as well cut your losses and give Demo back, 'cause you're just wasting time otherwise. ???: You'll die if you take her without answering me. Lana is watching this all right now. If I hand her over without an answer, this building will explode.

Rio: ...Fine. I'll give you coordinates.

Nuru: W-wait, seriously?! You knew where Asra was this whole time?! Rio: I knew from the moment she called me. Lana must've known too; but she couldn't tap a line she didn't know about prior. She didn't have a communicator anyway; there was no way she could've reasonably intercepted the call. But she knew Asra was watching us...so she knew we could find her.

Nuru: If you do this, they'll execute her. They executed Kluex at the doors of his temple; they killed my father on the steps of our alter; the humans will be out for blood, just like everyone else who wants justice! Do you want that on your hands?!

Rio: ...If I don't, we all die. If I tell someone, I start a war.

Rio turns to face the camera.

"I'll only say this once; so if you aren't listening, it's your own fault you don't find her. This was just where she was when she called us; even I don't know where she's living. It's the only lead you have; the only one we can give you.

X, -55273992; Y, 60546348."

As Rio finishes listing off the coordinates, the pair of apex soldiers shove Demo over to the group, and the stranger standing with them excitedly darts towards the five, only to be knocked clear across the room by a large, silver hammer as Nydins races out of a Grief Door. Picking up Demo, she urges for the group to enter, and the six of them vanish into the Grief House without a hitch.

Nuru: H-how did you do that?! What are you?!

Nydins: I'm...just me! Don't think about it too much, okay? ...Is everybody okay? Daedalus: Well, yeah, but how the hell did you know to come look for us? Nydins: You were on the verge of starting a war; do you think I couldn't see what was happening? Daedalus: ... Fair point. Well what the hell do we do now then? Lana's on a warpath to find Asra, and that...thing is after our neighborhood kleivenn. Rio: She won't find Asra; I gave her the wrong coordinates. Those were to Beta- er, maybe I shouldn't tell you which system, actually...

Beta GLaDOS; you can google em

Daedalus: Well well, look at you being sneaky for once. Still, Lana's played her hand. What do you make of all this? /He turns to look at Nuru as he asks his question. Nuru: I...I thought...I didn't...Lana...

Nuru chokes back tears, clutching her fists as tightly as she can while she stares at the floor.

Rio: ...We'll have to tell the others...it's not safe for them to think she's still one of you. I'm sure Asra already knows...

Nydins: Oh, she does. She jumped planet as soon as she ended the call; so you were right about it just being a lead. Daedalus: This is turning into a fine tangle of yarn, isn't it? alienrabitt: ...Nydins, can you just take us home? The parade's gotta be over by now...

Nydins: Yeah, it ended a few minutes ago. Everyone's probably coming back now, but I'm sure Almiet told Collin why I left, so he'll probably be freaking out. Uhh, let me just...

She opens the doors to let out into the console room of the IT. Collin immediately rushes up to the doors as they open, quickly glancing around as he tries to do a head count. "What happened? Is everyone alright?" Nydins: Demo's in handcuffs; Lana should be in handcuffs; and Nuru is in tears! Other than that, everyone's fine. Collin: That's... better than I hoped, frankly? Seriously though, what the hell is going on? alienrabitt: I think Lana found...something awful; and she was trying to use it to figure out where Asra was. I have no idea what it really was, but-

Demo: ...You don't want to. Look, can somebody break these things, or pick the lock, or something? My arms are falling asleep. Collin instinctively reaches out for the cuffs but is suddenly cut off as Daedalus reaches over and grabs the chains connecting the cuffs with one hand. A loud hissing sound comes from his hand, and the cuffs snap apart a moment later as the chains are melted apart.

Daedalus: Hey hey, look at that. I do have magical bullshit powers. Kinda...

I mean...I know “why,” but why

Sighing in relief, Demo sits upright as she attempts to regain feeling in her wrists.

"...Look, I'm not sure what that thing was either; I thought it was something like us at first, but when it tried to figure out what I was, I genuinely wish I could've physically thrown myself out the metaphorical window with that idea. Whatever it was, you don't want it touching you. As for Lana; she's on a wild goose chase right now; we probably won't see her for a few more hours. If Nuru can calm down, she should use that time to explain the situation, and we should use that time to haul some fucking ass out of here!! Collin: I mean, I'm not entirely opposed, but what about the situation here? Demo: Fuck the politics; fuck the war; that thing is after us, and it wasn't satisfied with just me. It's got a thing for kleivenn, pal; you want another thing grabbing around Jay's chest? Let's fucking beat it, dude!! Let's ditch these guys; they're the ones who made the mistake of bringing an apex with a strong sense of pride on board, okay? We can't be everybody's bandaid; we're gonna be stretched so thin, we won't even be able to help our damn selves. Collin: Alright alright, fine. But we need to get Nuru out of here before we go, otherwise they'll be out two representatives. Nuru: ...I...I can leave by myself...

Rio: ...I can't even imagine how hard this must be for you. This wild goose chase nearly led to an assassination attempt for some skewed vision of the greater good...

Nuru: ...This war has taken absolutely everything I've ever had away from me, one by one. I'm not going to tell the others about Lana; I'm going to tell them to leave her to me.

alienrabitt: W-wait, what are you saying?

Nuru: I don't care if she's looking for Asra Nox; staging a kidnapping in Almiet's name; making an attempt on my life...she's a criminal now too. Criminals need to be brought to justice; and I won't let her wind up answering to those bloodthirsty laws alone. She's either coming home and giving this up, or she won't be going anywhere else at all. I'll find her and stop her by myself. Daedalus: Well... power to you, I guess. Maybe she'll come to her senses if you smack her around a few times? Nuru: ...Just stay safe out there.

A little hesitant, Nuru leaves the IT, closing the door behind herself. Collin: I feel bad for her...

Daedalus: Well, if they need us I'm sure the IT will turn us right back around. Right now I say we take Demo's advice and punch it out of here before that freak shows up or something. Nydins: Unfortunately, I have to agree. If it's any consolation; Esther is both massively relieved and grateful that we didn't turn Asra over for real. You made the right call, Rio; even if it was risky.

Rio: ...Normally I wouldn't have taken a risk like that, but...with that floran around; I don't know; I got so nervous I just...did it. Collin: I'm just glad no one actually got hurt. Let's get out of here before that changes. With that, Nydins heads to the console to send the IT off, and Rio leaves the room.

the next log is an Unexpected Surprise, but I can’t really judge for you whether it’s good or bad ;}

#[S4]

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