#skillya

[vykker]

Oddworld Headcanon 2/?: Where do new Queens come from?

In Soulstorm we're introduced to the Keeper, a female mudokon who is a little old granny with an awesome and cute design. I was so delighted by her!! This got me thinking about 2 of my favorite things, Oddworld and Girls. We've known about the existence of queens for a long time, but where do they come from, and is/was the Keeper a queen?

When you start learning about irl animals and their queen systems you end up with a ton of interesting possibilities. For instance, you have queen bees, who are just regular female bees who were fed a special jelly [royal jelly] and put in a special, roomy honeycomb to turn into queen bees. However, hives may have more than one queen at a time, in which case the two young queens instinctively fight to the death.

Soulstorm leans heavily on the bee aesthetic for the keeper & the Sanctum where she resides. It could be that mudokon tribes produce multiple queens, but only the one with the strongest will/chosen by fate gets to become queen. Even though becoming queen doesn't seem so great to me as a human, to mudokons it's probably the highest honor one can earn. I imagine it would be crushing for a female to NOT become a queen, especially if it's something you've been hyped up about your entire life, have presented as being the highest possible achievement and so on.

But getting back to the bee thing- mudokons don't make honey, by which I mean, they probably don't have a chemical way of ensuring an individual is able to become a queen, in the way that bees can choose who gets to eat the royal jelly. [Though, if they could, you KNOW the industrialists would be selling it. I used to work at a store that sold royal jelly for like 50 bucks in a little jar. It was weird.] Thus, I feel it's probably random chance if a mudokon is born a "princess" or not.

Being born a princess does not ensure one will become a queen. The transformation into a queen is probably tied to ritual in mudokon culture regardless of whether it's pure biological randomness or not, and although it would be healthy for a tribe to have a few princesses as insurance rather than one, I also believe NOT being "picked" to be queen can be very depressing and alienating for them. This could be a possible backstory for the Keeper; either 1. she was not chosen to be queen, which she took as a personal failure for many years before devoting herself to becoming the Keeper; or 2. she fled from her tribe in order to NOT become a queen, and suffers from guilt now that her species' only surviving queen is being kept captive & she's way too old to become queen now.

Anyway, I believe you could apply similar logic to the other queen-centric races, HOWEVER, I think things are a little different depending on each queen's species and role in society. For instance, I imagine mudokon queens born of Sam would be highly sought after and prized. However, it would not surprise me if they all fail to become queens, just due to the industrialists failing at meeting their needs in captivity. Even if a princess were kept in relative luxury, being separated from the land and nature would prevent them from ever becoming queens.

I would imagine things as being similar for sligs- however, I personally imagine slig eggs being produced at a much higher rate, since it's mentioned that queen Skillya has 5 ovipositors, so maybe there's less stress around trying to find the next slig queen. Or maybe she can recognize what they are and keeps crushing them on purpose. I think Skillya would feel very threatened by another girl being called "cute" in her presence.

Now glukkons, I believe, actually have it worse out of all options. Lady Margaret is just one glukkon queen- there's implied to be more & its further implied that there are queen glukkons higher up the chain than her. However, I cannot imagine a glukkon queen choosing to share power with an incompetent daughter. Glukkons don't like to share power even in the best of times!

Thus, I believe that when glukkon princesses are born, the queen's in-house surgeons sterilize them temporarily, putting their reproductive organs on ice to completely eliminate the possibility of them starting their own lineages or hijacking the company. Competition between glukkon princesses is UNFATHOMABLY brutal. Whereas their brothers are just competing to become glockstars or whatever, the princesses are competing to become dynasty builders. Thus, a glukkon princess has to bust her ass from the day she's born to impress her mother & torpedo her sisters' efforts. Then, finally, when the current queen is too old to keep working, her favorite daughter is promoted to queen, uterus privilege no longer revoked, the vykkers thaw out her reproductive parts & put her back together again.

This would make Lady Margaret even scarier in my opinion- if her position as queen was not just pure happenstance, if she had to do absolutely atrocious things to her fellow princesses to get where she is today- you'd understand why she grasps on to power so tightly, why she refuses to forgive even the slightest weaknesses in her sons, considering all she has been through to get to where she is today. It would be rather boring if Lady Margaret became a queen just from a biological dice roll, right? Instead, imagine her as a vicious, power-hungry monster who FOUGHT to be queen, with a line of glukkon princesses below her, anxious for her to retire or die already so they can have the ultimate promotion- and she KNOWS it.

Anyway, these are just my thoughts. Since we met the Keeper in Soulstorm I am INCREDIBLY hopeful we will get to meet more girls in future games. I would especially like to meet a no-nonsense 80's style glukkon business woman with shoulder pads, I think I would die of happiness. What are your headcanons for Oddworld's queens? I really wanna hear them!!!

[ask-alf-oddworld]

I only chose Sam for the significance with her and Abe. But I’m really excited for the other two. Lady Margaret sounds scary, but I’m actually really excited for Skillya. She has a really cute design yet the idea of her eating her babies makes for an interesting and weirdly terrifying contrast.

For me it's a huge tie between Sam and lady Margaret, I wanna see abe happily reunite with his mom but I also wanna see what Margaret's deal was especially in relation to her trial with molluck

But what do you guys think?

[i-am-worm]

Inktober 52 2023 - Week 7 - ‘Odd’  D-D-D-DOUBLE BONUS

Slig chauffeur from Soul Storm.

That's him officer. that's the slig that stole the people’s hearts and minds.

EXTRA SLIG TIME

This is kind of a fan character, ‘Stu’. An albino slig from the scrapped bonus game that would have followed an albino slig escaping the birthing pool before being killed because of his abnormalities. YEEEEEARS ago me and @scifer​ did a few concepts and ideas for what this game would have been like and hoped to make a mock-up of what the game would have been like. But this was before the inviable tides of work and moving took away our precious time to work on such a project. We got more time now, but we usually do our own stuff, but I do sometimes wonder if it be worth us going back to doing more art.

You can see some of what we did here:

https://www.deviantart.com/sligstorm

and I recently realized we never uploaded the last of what we did or the start of our opening animatic either. It featured sligs sending their beloved queen Skillya fan mail (mostly bout their new guns, beating up Mukodons and how they hope she’s proud).

...mail of which would go down a chute into an incinerator to keep her butt warm. I need to get off my arse and put the sound and stills together and upload what little we started because I still think it’s very funny and worth sharing.

[a-table-of-fics]

Oddworld: Conar’s Ambition, Chapter 13, Draft 1, Part 8

“You’re sayin’ getting a time-out is like getting smacked around and shot?!”

“You ever hear of Slig Soup?”

“Slig Sou— what?”

“Yeah, why do ya think you only get the badass Sligs watchin’ over ya? They make sure the rest get the can pretty quick. Well, after the firing, of course.”

Conar made a sound somewhere between a grunt and a laugh.

“Mama always said we’d either be useful or tasty.”

“Oh my Odd,” Slim gasped.

“Yeah… it’s not great.”

“So, what now?” Slim asked. “I can’t imagine you’d be able to go back after all this.”

Conar said nothing, taking an intense interest in his Pime. His shaking hand went across Chairman’s side. What could he say? Mama Skillya was probably pissed, and he had nothing left to prove her wrong. Hell, what chance did he have to even reach Zeb, let alone rob him?

“What kind of question is that?” he finally demanded. “Once we’re… Once I’m rich enough, Mama’ll have to welcome me back! Especially once I get the best gun out there with my funds!”

“And… what about me?”

Conar finally looked up from his meal. Slim’s face was hard to read, with his large eyes remaining neutral.

“Well, I figured freedom was a great bit of payment,” Conar said, “but… would you wanna cut when we finally get Zeb?”

[asameera]

Oddworld: Code 583 - Chapter 10: Room SB.322

WARNING: VIOLENCE AHEAD!

ooOoo

Night had long since fallen when Lure opened his eyes. His mind still foggy, he sat up slightly, shaking his head to chase away the sleepiness, which proved to be more difficult than expected. He stretched his limbs, savoring their flexibility and firmness. The dish he had consumed before falling asleep had to be stuffed with some damn vitamins, he still felt the effects of it. It was very pleasant.

Finally, he jumped to his feet, arched his back for a moment, cracking his vertebrae, and approached the windows. Through the glass, in the dark night dotted with stars, he could see the gigantic white sphere that lit the way. Despite the mask that enhanced his poor eyesight, the Slig struggled to make out the shape of the craters on the round surface. If he had the chance one day, he might buy himself precision glasses, like those held by snipers. But what would be the point? He was seeing the moon for the very first time in his life, and he certainly wouldn't get another chance. During his time at Slig Barracks, the pollution was so bad that clouds of smoke hid the sky, and when he had been transferred to Gottlieb Industriz, he had to take a train in a closed compartment without any windows. When his boss had asked him to accompany him to Nolybab, his attention had been taken up by his boss's mood and he had frankly not paid attention to what was over his head. And once he'd return to the factory, he would again be confined within these walls, in this small room, with her.

It was she who had spoken of the moon, he remembered now. This celestial body seemed important to her. Maybe he could at least ask her why? He squinted more, tried to identify the dark, blurred shapes. Some kind of spider? No. Then trees? Maybe not. Then maybe... a hand? Caught in doubt, he raised his own to the round surface. The four dark peaks matched the number of fingers, but it didn't seem to quite fit either. So he lowered his hand, almost disappointed. It would have been kinda cool if it had fitted.

He then looked down to the ground and suddenly noticed a whole complex of rounded buildings, strewn with white and green lights, as well as several control towers armed with projectors scanning the sky. He could even make out several advertising panels underlined by colored neon lights, which announced the newest products in vogue with the disturbing image of a Vykker on the poster. The Slig let out a swearing in his native language, feeling uncomfortable.

A purple skin that recalled the poisons they handled. Four arms as thin as dead shrub stems, punctuated by three long black claws. Three tiny legs that supported a naturally deformed body. A small, bulging belly, a back that seemed to go too far back, pulled by a protruding spine. A huge head that seemed to plunge forward, with a cephalopod skull reminiscent of the Glukkons. Very small yellow eyes deeply sunken in their sockets and disproportionately dirty lower teeth, which could be seen on the outside even when they closed their mouths. And of course, they were often adorned with an array of pharmaceutical or medical equipment.

Lure had never understood how anyone could make a sale with a face like that, although he probably didn't have any say in the matter - but still, they looked like evil chewing gum on legs! The Vykkers might be respected scientific researchers, but they still looked like mad scientists, ready to dissect you. In fact... they truly were mad scientists who didn't care about ethics or animal suffering - why would they, when the conglomerate they belonged to, as powerful as the Magog Cartel, didn't either? To tell the truth, they even played with it, with a certain sense of humor that displeased no one. Often, in a corner of the advertising poster, one could see the image of a small furry ball with big shiny eyes, stung on all sides with huge syringes, surrounded by a catchphrase: 'Many Fuzzles have been mistreated in order to bring you this product'.

At this sight, Lure understood two things. First of all, he was particularly sensitive to this black humor and couldn't hold back a chuckle, even though he knew that there was no joke in it. Nobody could really change at core. And then, if he was able to read so well, it meant that the airship was getting closer and closer to the complex. This was to be their destination. Just below the ship, the Slig spotted an Intern on a landing floor waving at them with two glow sticks. On the platform they were heading to was marked in capital letters 'SITE S - GATE B3'.

Yes, this was their destination.

Just before he turned away, Lure looked up one last time, but the moon had vanished from his view. He hurriedly retrieved the envelope that had slipped under his bed and walked to the locked door, ready to leave. The feeling in the pit of his stomach accompanied by a thud and a slight jolt told him that the ship had finally landed. Immediately, the door opened automatically in front of him.

“Please step out into the hallway and line up.”

Lure didn't need to be told twice. Nor did any other Slig for that matter. As if they had all been rehearsing the same choreography together for weeks, they had all stepped forward with the same mechanical noise, and were now standing as straight as possible, unmoving, waiting for orders. It all came so naturally, and that meant only one thing: the training at Slig Barracks had paid off. They were all good guys, shaped just right. They were all the same, out of the same mold. It was reassuring.

A little further on, Lure heard the gangway lowered and the cold night air rushed in with the dry sand. Lure would have gladly shivered, but now his entire genetic code remembered. He was a soldier, he was compliant, he had to show it. When the shrill voice ordered them out, it was as if a single entity had moved through all the security guards. Right leg, left leg, to the martial rhythm they knew by heart. One, two, one, two... no questions, no doubts, just an order in mind and blind obedience.

Although... Lure almost broke the chain at some point, when he heard a loud noise behind him and realized that the airship was taking off again. The rhythm within him was disturbed as unnecessary questions raced through his head. Why was it taking off again? Wasn't it supposed to wait for them? How were they supposed to get back? Was this normal? But he didn't say anything, didn't show anything. He continued to move forward and passed through the heavy automatic doors that invited them to enter a pale, sanitized world of white tiles and blinding lights.

The hallway stretched for several dozen meters before leading to a tiny office where a Vykker was waiting for them, obviously more busy flipping through files than greeting them. When the first Slig reached the office and stopped, all the others did the same behind, creating a long line that almost ended on the heeliopad. The Vykker didn't even look up from his work, but held one of his four skeletal arms straight out in front of him, claws open.

“The letter, please.”

The tone of his voice was as high-pitched as the airship's announcements, and Lure felt his eardrums protest. Did all the Vykkers really sound like that? If so, he was glad he wasn't working for them. He was more used to the loud, hoarse and deep tone of the Glukkons. Fortunately, the Vykkers employed mostly Interns rather than Sligs. Fortunately.

“Room SB-31. Next! Letter.”

As he went on, Lure could see the scientist repeating the same movements over and over. One arm to grab the envelope, a second to break the seal, while the last two were busy rearranging the files. The Vykker's disgusting yellow eyes took just two seconds to read the contents on paper before returning to his work.

“Room SB-36. Next!”

And as soon as the Slig left to make room for the next one, the purple creature tore up the letter before extending its claws again.

“Letter.”

The line moved on, nothing changed in this routine. Only five more. Nothing could be heard but the rustling of pages, the high-pitched voice, the tearing of paper. Only four more. The bright red through the lenses of his mask was hurting his eyes. Three. The sounds echoed, but beyond them was an amplified deathly silence. Two. He could hear his own blood pounding in his temples. One.

“Room SB-321. (riiiiiiiip) Next!”

Lure took a step forward and held out his envelope before the scientist asked for it. A useless gesture, because the Vykker didn't even look up to see him.

“Letter” he repeated in the same monotone, raising his arm.

Lure kept himself from sighing and adjusted his position to put the envelope between the black claws. Now in the front row, he studied the Vykker's behavior, tried to understand, to discreetly take a look at the words he had carried so far. But no other clue was revealed to him. Except for a tiny movement above the scientist: a camera seemed to follow the unfolded letter with its lens, as if it was recording the writings before they were destroyed. He wondered if someone else was reading through the object at this very moment.

“Room SB-322.”

The sound of tearing paper resounded within him, but the Slig was already heading automatically down the turning corridor, following the others he could no longer see because of the curve. As he took his turn, he found himself facing a multitude of doors embedded in the walls, arranged in a staggered pattern. The Sligs he had been following a short time ago had already disappeared.

“Urgh... what a gloomy place...”

While looking for the door indicated to him, Lure took the opportunity to listen, but nothing came to him. It was as if he was absolutely alone down here. He tried not to think about it too much as he found himself facing room SB-322. The slight hesitation he had was not enough, and he entered inside.

He immediately felt the difference. The air was warmer, iron atoms were floating in the air. The white had disappeared, giving way to a light gray. Or maybe it was due to the reduced light? The floor and walls were completely covered with uniform tiles, and between them all, the joints looked strange, as if dotted with dark stains that had not been successfully removed. The same kind of stains that one struggled to remove after emptying a load of bullets on a Mudokon. On the ceiling, pipes were snaking between the tiles, ending in faucet-like devices. On the floor, several black drains contrasted with the pale ceramic.

And at the center of the room, there was nothing but a metal seat.

“Sit down.”

The voice came from the ceiling. It was different from the unpleasant tonality of the Vykkers, from the deep and threatening tone of the Glukkons, from the nasal sounds of the Sligs, from the whining of the Mudokons. It was a feminine sound, welcoming, pleasant. Motherly.

He had the feeling he had heard that voice before. It sounded like his protegee's, well, almost. There was something different about it. But he couldn't put his finger on it.

“I'm so happy to see you again. Sit down, you must be exhausted.”

The Slig complied while staring at every corner of the ceiling.

“Er... I'm fine, thanks. Do we know each other?”

There was a small crystalline laugh and Lure gulped. This time, he was sure of it. It was subtle, and if he hadn't lived with Asameera for the past few weeks, the nuance would have been completely lost on him. When she spoke or laughed, even when she was sad, Asameera's voice was warm, sincere. The laughter that was echoing in this room right now was exaggerated, superficial. It made him uncomfortable, and he decided to get up in a second.

He didn't get the chance.

A series of straps shot from the backrest and slammed into his waist and torso, pinning him to the seat. Leather handcuffs sprang up from the armrests and legs of the seat and shackled his arms and feet. Above him, a spotlight turned on, flooding him with its harsh light, blinding him halfway. Taken by surprise, he yelped, struggled, but only the same laughter filled the room, a little more real, rejoicing in his helplessness.

“Hey!” he shouted, as outraged as panicked. “What the fuck?!”

The laughter decreased a little as the stranger spoke again, the voice dripping with wicked joy.

“Don't worry, you'll have all my attention in a few seconds. I'm almost done with your brother.”

“My...? What? Hey!”

“In the meantime, let's see what your file says... '583. Responsible for arson blah blah blah significant property damage blah blah blah numerous victims blah blah high treason...' Mmmm... you have indeed outdone yourself!”

Lure couldn't believe his ears.

“Huh? But... what are you...?”

The wheels clicked into place, enough to finally understand what he was doing there. The fright made his adrenaline level rise so high that he thought his heart would give out.

“I have nothing to do with it!” he screamed. “I'm a security guard, I wasn't even there at that moment! Hey, you hear me?! It wasn't me! I was with her when it happened! I couldn't be elsewhere! Check it out!”

The invisible being royally ignored his plea.

“Ah... they are all looking for a way to blame someone else. It's unfortunate for you, but I read right here that there are many testimonies against you. And the seal and signature are authentic, so...”

“They're lying! I couldn't! It wasn't me! Gottlieb must know! He couldn't...!”

“Gottlieb judged you guilty by sending you here. I would ask you not to sue your employer, it's embarrassing.”

“B-but...”

“Silence!”

The order clashed like a whip, authoritative and implacable. The air suddenly left the distressed Slig's lungs, leaving him speechless and helpless. How did it happen? Why did it happen?

Suddenly, a whole section of the ceiling opened up and something slowly descended before Lure's terrified eyes. The scream that wanted to escape from his throat remained stuck in his paralyzed body. He had heard of them before, but never in his life had he thought he would come across one of these abominations.

The thing looked like a huge, fully mechanical spider. As a body, a white television screen covered with parasites blinked intermittently. On each side of it, there were black robotic arms with circular saws, claws, scalpels, syringes... Lure was so horrified that he couldn't count them. He could only see the blood still fresh on the instruments of torture, as well as the splatters on the screen. Above the device was a bright white halo, like an aureole, to signify that it belonged to the good side of Quarma and to make people forget about its horrific side - to no avail. The thing was held in the air by a huge mechanical arm that came out of the ceiling.

A Guardian Angel. Or, more commonly called, a Shrink.

The screen blinked faster and faster and a silhouette appeared. The outlines and features of the being were light gray while everything else remained white, making the image difficult to read. Only the cruel little eyes of the creature were piercing him with a threatening bright red. However, at that moment, Lure knew exactly who he was dealing with, his instinct told him all too well.

“Y-you're the Queen...” he stammered.

Inside the screen, the five little tentacles of the female Slig's snout twitched in a satisfied smile. A ring set with a huge glistening stone was surrounding one of them. Her little eyes were highlighted with mascara and slender eyebrows had been added with a pencil. A headband adorned with a flower was embracing the top of her bald head. Lure could only see her face, unmasked, but he could tell she was huge. Really huge. Like the monster of his nightmares.

“Uh uh!” she purred, fluttering her eyelashes, a huge fat arm readjusting her headband. “You may call me Skillya, my little one. You will forgive me for not coming to meet you in person, but my condition prevents me from moving myself. Fortunately for us, the Vykkers allow me to borrow one of their Shrink so that we can communicate. Convenient, don't you think?”

She was smiling, looking like she was having a good time, while the blood-covered robot kept levitating in front of Lure, circular saws all out and running. Slig sank into the back of his seat in a vain attempt to get away from the blades.

“Er... yes, yes, Y-your opulent Majesty, very convenient...”

“You know, I'm very happy that you and your brothers have arrived at this time. You'll be able to join me for dinner.”

“Oh I... I'm very honored, Your... er... imposing Highness but... uh... I, I ate a little while ago so I... I wouldn't want to impose myself any further...”

Once again, she gave him her crystalline laugh that sounded so fake. Lure felt as if a storm of ice had just swept into the room.

“Come on, don't be silly, kid! There's a place for everyone. Look, look!”

Her puffy face disappeared and instead a long table took its place on the screen. About thirty plates were spread out on it, and several interns were already walking around, ready to serve the first meat dishes. But there were no guests yet. The Slig blinked as one of the Interns finished seasoning the dish first and gently lifted the plate to bring it to the end of the table, to the forefront of the screen. He placed it between two hands with enormous fingers, which Lure guessed were the Queen's.

“Thank you my friend! Uh uh!”

Then the screen flashed back to Skillya's face, who was already biting into two pieces at once while making an appreciative sound.

“Mmmm, not bad! It tastes pretty good, but I'd like to think you'll outdo it.”

“Out... outdo it?”

There was something very hypnotic and disturbing about watching her gulp down her food. Lure couldn't help but remember that day in the lunchroom, when he was offered the meat cooked over a flame. The meat of his colleagues who had died in the fire. And Gottlieb's comment.

'It's some kind of tradition'.

“M-majesty... the thing you eat, it's...”

She smiled broadly at him.

“Your brother of course!”

More and more meat was served on the plates.

“You, and all the others, who had dishonored your employers, who had dishonored me and made me suffer, you will all join me.”

Suddenly the Shrink spread its multiple robotic arms and turned its circular saws to full power. Skillya's red eyes flashed with resentment and sadism.

“On my plate!”

Panic struck him as the Shrink was about to pounce on him and tear him apart alive. He pulled on his arms, wagged his tail frantically to activate his legs, put all his strength and desperation into freeing himself, but the straps only dug deeper into his flesh and ribs, the bones in his arm creaked under the thick cuffs, and the components of his mechanical prosthetics sizzled with agony. Tears of terror escaped his small eyes and flooded his face under his mask, blurring the vision of horror before him. He felt the first blade close to his muzzle and his nerves gave out completely.

“NO! NO! HELP! MOMMY HELP!”

He could barely hear the voice over his own screams and the screeching of the saws.

“Shut up! Don't call me that! Do you really think I'm going to help you because you invoke that pathetic word? Who do you think I am, you little fool? I am your Queen, and nothing else!”

“Don't say that! You can't be her! You can't!”

“Where did you think you came from? Are you stupid?”

The spinning teeth sliced into the flesh between his shoulder and his neck. Lure screamed, more in fear than in pain. A stream of hot blood spurted onto his own face, visor and muzzle. He could already feel the saw cutting painfully into his bones.

“NO MOMMY NO! PLEASE! WHAT HAVE I DONE? WHAT HAVE I DONE WRONG? I'LL FIX IT!”

“What have you done wrong? I'll tell you.”

With that, Skillya stabbed her son's prosthetic arm with the scalpel blade. A spray of sparks flew out of the cut and made the room flicker like a strobe light.

“You were born.”

She turned and turned the blade without realizing that she was chopping metal and not flesh.

“And I will never forgive you! I'll never forgive any of you!”

Lure's body began to convulse as his mother, no, his Queen plunged the saw deeper and deeper through his collarbone. There was nothing left to do. Through his empty mind, transient with pain and nothingness, he managed to see her image. She was smiling at him, her hands on his belly, softly speaking his name.

Lure.

He wanted to see her.

Lure.

He didn't want to die.

Lure.

He wanted to continue living his miserable existence, to be able to see her.

“A... Asameera!”

The desire to see her again filled his being, pressed hard on the spot the saw had not reached yet.

“Asameera!”

She was looking at him with her sad and compassionate eyes.

I would have been sad if you had been killed.

He didn't want to make her sad!

“SAM!” he screamed.

The rest happened in a flash. Literally.

There was an supernatural flash and lightning fell from the sky directly on the Guardian Angel. The screen cracked and snowed over in a cacophony of static and high-pitched screams as Skillya roared in surprise and rage. Then another bolt of lightning struck, then another, then another, still on the same target, pushing the abomination away from the half-unconscious Slig. The lights on the ceiling exploded and shards of broken glass were blown in all directions. With a long distorted bestial scream, the screen exploded and the Shrink's supporting arm gave way. The robotic device crashed to the ground with a thunderous ruckus. The last sparks lit up the room dimly as the robot's carcass began to release whistling smoke.

Just before he lost consciousness, the Slig thought he heard wings fluttering nearby, then a familiar voice calling his name. Then his head dropped completely to his chest and he heard no sound any more.

ooOoo

...

I really, really, reeeeeally hope you’ve enjoyed it!

First: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/asameera/691287639162290176?source=share

Previous: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/asameera/693472918491070464?source=share

Next: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/asameera/694116763177189376?source=share

[ask-alf-oddworld]

That all sounds great! I would definitely love to see all three queens we know of (Sam, Margaret, and Skillya). Seeing Molluck again would be good since it can’t just be left at him escaping to the Yayman’s, and I do remember reading somewhere this idea of him and Abe (reluctantly) teaming up which could bring about some very interesting interactions, and his knowledge would be very useful in a place like Nolybab, which from what we know the population is very Glukkon-heavy.

Things I would love to see in the Soulstorm sequel:

-Abe meeting Sam and it’s emotional

-Baby Abe

-Munch

-Buddy, he’s a Khanzumer so he’d be perfect in the next game (also in dear Alfs Buddy seemed to be really good friends with Alf so I’d love to see that bond)

What would you guys like to see?

[cecil-mudokon-defunct]

((I KNEW I had seen a design like that somewhere before!))

[magog-on-the-march]

SKILLYA

WHO SHE IS

She might look cute here but her appearance is deceiving.

Gigantic and extremely ferocious, she spends a majority of her time suspended in a special pool that helps her give birth more easily. She is a sharp contrast to Sam - Skillya sells her babies knowing exactly what kind of lives they’ll lead. While on the surface they’re less oppressed than the Mudokons they torment, no reasonable Mother would allow her children to live in such conditions.

Gluttonous and cruel, she loves to be surrounded by her favorite foods and adorns herself with flashy jewelry.

SELFISH MOTIVATIONS

Skillya sells the Sligs as security workers and directly benefits from it. The explanation for her behaviour is simple - she hates her children.

The birthing process is so painful for her that it fills her with a deep hatred towards those she considers responsible. Her anger surfaces in other, even more unusual ways, too - it isn’t uncommon for her to eat her children as soon as they’re born, just as pay back for the suffering they cause her during delivery.

NATURE OR NURTURE?

Maybe the Sligs inherit their Mother’s mean streak, or perhaps this goes some way to explaining their sadistic behaviour. On top of never having known any love or affection, the Sligs also have to deal with the fact that if they don’t scramble away fast enough when they’re born their Mother might just eat them alive.

Everything in Skillya’s lair is tacky, from the mismatched pillows she demands be constantly fluffed to the ugly lamp shades and the general mess. She isn’t known for her elegance. She’s always at risk of being crushed by her own weight and, like the Mudokon Queen, she can’t move unaided. She also spends her days surrounded by television screens, a huge tray of food in front of her, but the only pain she has to numb is the physical one.

(x)

[ask-alf-oddworld]

She probably spotted some delicious newborns!

After Oddworld released some concepts for Skillya the Slig Queen I had to draw her <3 She probably sees a really tasty dish or something

[alienguardian]

Bless Farzad for giving us this beautiful lady

[vykker]

Oddworld Headcanon 4/?: The Tragedy of Queen Sam

It's often suggested that if you want to write a good story, you should imagine the worst thing that could happen to a character, then write it. But what if one idea could be the worst thing that could happen for EVERY character? It's well known that Abe's mother Sam was supposed to be in Munch's Oddysee. She would have been held captive in Vykker's Labs, before the story pivoted just to Abe rescuing Labor Eggs. They even got as far as rendering Sam. However, it's never explained where the story would have gone after she'd been introduced. With this in mind, here's my theory/headcanon/wild speculation that Queen Sam was supposed to die at the end of M.O.

1.Sam is ancient and severely depressed. Sam has a ton of concept art, and each piece emphasizes the fact she is not doing well. Here she is smiling, but her eyes are exhausted and pained. Here she is with a hair piece resembling a halo, but imo, it also looks like a noose being lowered over her head. The official Art Of Oddworld Inhabitant books says this about Sam: "We got to portray a likeable earthy grandma quality". Abe is an adult, sure, but not so old that you'd expect his mother to be a grandma already- her elderly status seems to be the earliest design element they wanted to emphasize.

She's also shown to be exhausted and depressed, which is why we have so much cool art of the Shrinks, which are AI's designed by Vykkers Labs to serve as therapists and companions to treat her depression. Also, while looking for more info about the Shrinks, I learned that apparently they were originally called Angels. So Sam was to be surrounded by angels? Of course, this could've just been to make her seem more saintly. But aren't a lot of saints martyrs? Anyway, back on topic...

2. Sam is trapped. I find it interesting that in every piece of art, Sam is deliberately shown sitting on a raised, immobile platform. Often times, she's even in chains. Some of the concept art includes the scenery around her platform, but there's never any sign of a trolley or crane or something that the player might use to save her [or the characters could use in a cut scene to save her]. If the intention was for the player to move her, you'd think there would be concepts for how this might be done, but from what I can tell, there aren't.

Her immobility is NOT a result of her status as a queen, either. The other queens we have been shown- Skillya and Lady Margaret- have concept art displaying how they may be able to move, albeit with extreme difficulty. But still- some thought was put into these queens being able to move somewhat. Sam deliberately cannot.

So she's immobile. But couldn't this mean that Abe wasn't going to save her in Munch's Oddysee, but just meet her instead? While this is a possibility, I think it would be an Odd™ choice. For one thing, it seems like a waste of time and assets to put a complicated character like Sam in a game and not have her do anything. They could have had Abe learn about Sam through some other means, then vow to save her. Like maybe he can relay a few messages to her through the Shrinks? Or something else? But no, clearly, he was meant to meet her in the flesh. So would he have met her in person, left, THEN come back to save her? Would it have been a race against the clock for Abe, considering her advanced age and declining health? Maybe! But I don't think so, and here's why:

3.Sam has accepted her inevitable death. You'll notice that in each piece of concept art, Sam is never shown to be sad. Her eyes are kind and her expression is soft. Not only that, but in most depictions, she's shown with her arms outstretched. She is made to look placating and serene.

I think Sam knows that the end is near for her, and has made peace with this fact. Why? Because she met Abe. She knows that Abe will save their species. She knows that, by sewing his mouth shut as a baby, she succeeded in keeping him alive long enough to reach adulthood and fufill his role as savior. I think finally getting to meet Abe is a massive comfort to Sam; not only because of her believing that her species will be saved, but knowing that she has done her job and can finally pass on and rest. And I think she even tells Abe this, too. She sends him on his way warning him that she knows her time is short- but that she has accepted this- and this is the catalyst for his next adventure: Find a new queen!

4.Sam dying would be the worst thing that could happen to every character. And because of this, it would make for some incredible storytelling potential.

Abe would lose his mom. It would be absolutely devastating not being able to save her. To meet her ONCE and have her pass away shortly after? ABSOLUTELY heartbreaking. Furthermore, if her dying wish were for him to find a way to save their species- that would be some powerful incentive for him, not that I think he really needs it, but still.

The surviving mudokon scrubs would suddenly be a finite resource. It would be harder than ever for them to run away.

Some factory owners might even try to kidnap wild mudokons.

Munch would not be assisted in traveling to Ma'Spa, because his Mudokon allies have their own problems to deal with. He would have to take the gabbiar there by himself.

Vykker's Labs failed to keep Queen Sam alive... oops! This would bring to question everything else about how they operate, and I do NOT imagine vykkers take kindly to being scrutinized.

The industrialists are now cut off from their labor supply. Their ENTIRE ECONOMY is based on an endless supply of easily replaced labor. Imagine the panic. Imagine what lengths they would go to find a replacement. They would tear the whole continent apart!!! They would tear EACH OTHER apart!

Lady Margaret- who is dying herself! - now has to deal with THIS shit!!?? And since it's been said that Margaret's own grandmother is currently frozen and is only thawed out for emergencies- well, this would be one hell of an emergency! Can you imagine her fury?

As the population of worker mudokons stagnates, who would have to step in to fill the gaps? Where would the glukkons get new workers from in the mean time? Would it be the sligs? Would Queen Skillya be put into overtime laying eggs? We know she already hates doing that. Would it be some other easily exploited species? Would THEY grow to resent the mudokons?

And who would the Industrialists blame for Sam's death? Well... who do you think?

So anyway, that's my theory. It doesn't really mean anything and with Lorne being on twitter and all it's possible there's been some lore shared that would disprove this theory. But still, I figured i'd share it and see if anyone else had reached the same conclusion or had any ideas. At the very least it's an interesting What-If. It would have made an incredible cliff hanger ending for Munch's Oddysee if it had happened, that's for sure!

[ohfugecannada]

Queen Skillya as described in dear Alf and the Oddworld wiki:

Has zero maternial attachment to her Slig offspring, has no moral qualms about giving them away to the Glukkons as security/slaves for profit and punishes them for disobeying their Glukkon superiors by cooking and eating them.

Queen Skilla in the Farzad Varahramyan concept art:

[oddclan-askblog]

28 for the Oddworld ask game!

Which character from the lore do you hope shows up in the games?

Queen Skillya of the Sligs. Seems like she'd be a very sassy and mean character. I'd love to see how Abe and Alf interact with her. Especially if the got to do so after meeting Queen Sam (just to slam down how much worse the Slig queen is lol.) Also 3D modeled baby sligs would be cute af.

[a-table-of-fics]

21 and 22

Oddworld Ask Game

Do you have any headcanons?

My main one is actually going to come into play in my fic, or so I hope!

You see, the official story is that the Sligs were useless pond scum until they made a deal with Glukkons for cybernetic parts. Given how many of them are sold off by Skillya at birth, I don't think this is the whole story, if it's really true at all. I think this is propaganda to make Sligs grateful for their place.

Do you have any AU ideas?

Unfortunately, I do not have any, per se, but alternate scenarios would be fun to witness. What would happen if the Glukkons never retreated to dark magic, or attempted to reconcile with the Mudokons today? What if the Wolvarks started trying to find jobs in East Mudos? What if Munch never met Abe?

All of these are fun ideas, but I haven't gotten around to really thinking about this, I'm afraid.

[ask-alf-oddworld]

MOTHERS

[asameera]

Oddworld: Code 583 - Chapter 12: Scarlet world

WARNING: Violence ahead (again) ^v^Y

ooOoo

The wound was beginning to close. Despite its depth, the stitches held his skin in place, and the Slig had the distinct impression that the strand of feathers he had received was accelerating his healing ability, like a talisman. But that was only what he wanted to believe. Perhaps because he longed to be able to use his limbs properly again, even though he knew where it would lead: He and Asameera had agreed that, once his organic arm would recover and his condition would improve enough to be able to act on his own, the future Mudokon Queen would use her powers one last time to send him safely away. And even though Lure knew this was the best possible choice, he couldn't quite rejoice.

Asameera was coming every day whenever she could and was taking care of him as much as she could. She was able to bring down his fever, soothe him with her simple presence. Thinking back on what she was capable of, he would be lying if he said he wasn't impressed.

“Yer powers are - ouch! - limitless, by Odd!”

Now he could speak on his own, and he could bear to be pulled up to a sitting position. He couldn't lift his arms yet and had to rely on her help to feed himself, but at the very least she only had to raise the food to his snout so he could grab it with his tentacles. At least he could chew it himself, much to his relief.

“Not exactly” she replied with a faint smile. “There are shamans far more powerful than me. Some are able to bring a soul back to life, at least if they deem it worthy and if certain conditions are met. In any case, it doesn't just fall into our laps, it can take decades of training and meditation to reach even a decent level. And then, we borrow our powers from the spirits, from the elements, they are not really ours.”

“Oh, come on!” he chuckled. “Teleportation, summoning, healing, telepathy or I don't know what... it seems pretty awesome to me.”

She scratched her head, turning a little pink.

“Let's say that some have more predispositions than others. There are also prodigies, but they are extremely rare. But as far as I am concerned, the price to pay is high. I collapse from exhaustion after just a simple try, as you saw.”

He had a hard time calling everything she had done to save him a "simple try" but he said nothing. She placed her hand gently on her belly and smiled.

“One day I will pass the torch to them. I will offer them everything I have, until I have nothing left. It won't be equitable, unfortunately. And when I'll be completely drained, I'll still have my affection to give, without distinction.”

Lure grimaced bitterly, feeling a bit annoyed.

“Your kids are a bunch of ingrates!”

“That's how the transmission works for us.”

The Slig's grin deepened. He let out a swearing word in his language.

“I can believe you on that. Our Queen has passed on her cruelty. That bitch.”

Several Slig insults followed as he shivered uncontrollably. Asameera's smile fell and she stared at him wordlessly, pained. He held her gaze for a moment, hesitating, then sighed heavily.

“It's funny, actually. We have always feared our Queen. We were taught from the beginning that she was our worst nightmare, and that facing her was the thing to avoid at all costs. No one wanted to find out. Everyone learned terror because of her existence. But you see, nobody really knew who she was.”

He would have gladly buried his head in his hands to let out an incredulous and ironic laugh.

“And all that time, all of us, as soon as we felt threatened, we called our mother for help. 'Mommy mommy!' like some fucking kids! Ah ah ah! And we knew nothing! Ouch!”

He was shaking again. Asameera gently put her hands on his shoulders in a mute attempt to calm him down. Her surprised air destabilized him a little.

“Lure... Do you mean that no Slig knows that Skillya is both your Queen and your mother?”

While suppressing another shiver, the Slig shook his head as if it were obvious.

“Of course we don't! Who would call their worst nightmare for help? Nah, we were all told that our mother died, and we were just lucky that our Masters were charitable enough to hire us. You betcha! I mean, what choice did we have but to believe them? We don't remember anything before Slig Barracks, and believe me, we're going in early, from the end of our second year I think... we can barely handle our pants at that age!”

Again, a mirthless chuckle came from his throat.

“When I think that I called for help the same bitch who wanted to eat me, right in front of her! Ah ah ah what a shame! I swear...”

A soft heat enveloped his valid hand. She had just closed her two palms around his, one on top of the other, with caution.

“You can call me. I came once, I'll come again.”

She looked down at her still flat stomach.

“I'll protect you, as I will protect them.”

Lure was silent for a moment. He wondered why his chest hurt so much.

“Ah... so now I'm your son?”

He smiled under his mask as he remembered he had said the same thing to her a few days ago, when she had offered to name him, as she will name all of her children. But this time, the feeling was tinged with a bittersweet taste that he tried desperately to swallow.

“No, still not” she replied with the same knowing smile. “But you are still someone precious to me.”

“Yep, very precious! I'm worth thousands of Moolah!” he sneered. “You better take care of me, big girl!”

She laughed at his joke.

“I'll remember that.”

The Slig chuckled a little more without taking his eyes off her. He would have liked to remove his mask to see her true colors, but it was still too early. And then, he had no illusions, without his visor, the forms lost their contours and the colors melted into each other. With a grunt of pain, he only managed to close his fingers around hers.

“Hey Sam... have you already met her before? Our Queen I mean?”

She blinked.

“What makes you say that?”

“Well, the first day we met, I remember you mentioning her... but I'm not sure why anymore...”

“Ah yes, and you've thrown a beer bottle at me.”

“Hmpf! That's a minor detail! But uh yeah, sorry. So anyway, uh, here it is...”

He squirmed for a moment under her penetrating gaze without realizing she was amused by his awkward attitude. She supposed he couldn't do better right now.

“No, I never met her” she finally admitted. “However, I was told about her, and I was shown her, the same way I showed you how I found you in the laboratory.”

While suppressing a shudder, Lure decided to rename the laboratory into slaughterhouse in his mind.

“I see” he commented in a false cool attitude. “And... was it important? I mean, there had to be a reason they showed her to you.”

“I was very young at the time. I wanted to know more about the Sligs. Why did they join the industrialists? Why did they see us as the enemy? How did it all start? I thought that if I looked into the past, maybe I could find a solution for the future. I just wanted to understand. I just wanted us to stop being oppressed.”

She shook her head in turn, as if to admit that all these hopes were only silly dreams, a utopia.

“Skillya was not the only female capable of procreating, of course, but she was the most vain, superficial and easy to please. Like they did with us, the industrialists came to offer the Sligs a deal. You were originally swamp creatures, you lived in watery environments without any problems. But they dried up the lakes, and you were not made to survive for long on dry land, which they gradually turned into a desert. In a way, you had no choice. Mechanics, robotics, technology... I guess you needed it. Or at least they made you think you did, no, they made sure you needed it. So you accepted their offer, in exchange for which you submitted yourself entirely to them.”

A shadow of regret passed over her features.

“Our peoples have never been very close, our relationship was really only one of mutual indifference. But sometimes I think that maybe if we had talked to you, if we had offered you help, if we had looked for another way, if we had done something, then nobody would have had to...”

She paused and shook her head again with regret. Lure felt sorry that he could not put his hand on her shoulder.

“Well, maybe, but then again... you probably weren't even born so you couldn't help it. And what's done is done...” he ventured.

The future Queen shrugged one shoulder sheepishly before pulling herself together.

“But Skillya accepted their proposal with open arms, blinded by the benefits, the gifts, the idle life. All she had to do in return was to assume her role as a progenitor. That was what was waiting for her anyway, so she didn't hesitate for a second. She joined their side, leaving absolutely everything behind, without thinking about the consequences or your future.”

“Yeah... a saint.”

Asameera could not hold back a small bitter smile as Lure let out another swear word.

“But I still don't get why she hates us so much” he muttered. “What does she mean by 'because you were born'?”

“I don't know much else about it. I just know that for a Slig Queen, giving birth is a terribly painful act. She may have singled you out as fully responsible for her torment, without thinking about the rightness of such a judgment.”

“Ah.”

Lure remembered his nightmare, the titanic mass that screamed incessantly, the air charged with pain, the words that filled the space and looped around.

“Ah.”

He remembered his own pain, the pain that gnawed and boiled in his mechanical arm when he was waking up. All this time he had thought it was nothing more than that, a mere nightmare, something that had never happened. But as he stared at his damaged and inert prosthesis, the Slig was thoroughly convinced of the opposite. All along, it had not been a nightmare, but a memory. He remembered Skillya's screams when he was born, and she had tried to devour him when he was only a few seconds of age. She had swallowed his arm, and if he was still alive today, it was only because he had screamed directly into her ears with all the power of his voice. His voice had made her let go. His voice had saved him.

“Ah ah ah ah ah!”

His arm was burning. His whole body was burning. Then he knew it was true. It had happened that way. Even though he was very young, what had happened to him at that time had not completely disappeared. His stump remembered, all that time. And now he remembered too.

“So that's how it is? It was our fault, was it? My fault?”

His incredulous laughter grew even louder, tinged with resentment and rage. In a reflex, he swung his valid fist against the wall behind him under the horrified look of Asameera. The stitches held and he didn't even feel the sharp pain that tore his entire shoulder.

“Don't fuck with me! You're the only one to blame! We didn't ask you anything, you hear! We didn't do anything wrong! I didn't do anything wrong!”

He was about to hit the wall again when he was stopped in his tracks. The big hands of the female had spun at full speed towards his arm which they framed henceforth with firmness. It was only at this moment that Lure was fully aware of the pain in his shoulder. A twinge so deep that he had to grit his teeth and wonder how he could have even stirred. Ah, what had he done now? And she, who stared at him alert and tense, she only accentuated the weight of his stupidity. His pathetic moan remained blocked somewhere. In his throat, in his bruised flesh, or around his ribs, Lure didn't know. His weak, contracted body seemed to be plagued by all kinds of torments. He wished he could have run away from them, vain as it was. Instead, he remained strictly still, his red glasses glued to Asameera's fists, which carefully descended to encircle his hand. His long fingers, entirely covered by her powerful ones. As to protect him from the cruel world he had almost left.

“Calm down, Lure. Please.”

How was it possible that he had never noticed certain details before, despite their proximity imposed by his former job? Why was it bothering him now, when he had never looked into it before? Why did all these insignificant details, like the huge size of her hands, the warm cocoon they offered him, their strength and softness, why did they strike him so much now?

He didn't linger to think deeply, it had never suited him. If he started here and now, his head would certainly explode. He let these trivial and primordial questions swirl around him at will while he contemplated those big hands.

“Sam, I...”

Suddenly the future Queen's bulging eyes widened as a terrified glow ran across their surface. Her head whirled so quickly toward the door that her long mane of feathers swirled around her with agility. Details, again, insignificant details.

“He's coming back” she whispered urgently.

So soon? What a pain in the ass!

She released her grip on him and the air suddenly felt very cold on his skin. With a contrite grunt, Lure cautiously straightened up, relieved that his strength had returned enough to control his black iron legs again. She helped him hide in the locker, however, to gain time. In her haste, she practically shut the door in his face and gave him only a hasty apology in response to his indignant squeak. He then heard her run out the door. The sound of her steps too, details, details. Then the violent slamming of the door put an end to all this. No more details. Only the thick darkness of the locker and the crushing silence, disturbed by a background sound of drips coming from a badly closed faucet.

He sighed and looked for his feather talisman. He played with it for a while with his tentacles, appreciating the softness and flexibility she had offered him. Something swelled in his chest and a whisper came from the depths of his being. Something unsuspected, but which made him more determined than ever.

“When I recover, you'll come with me.”

ooOoo

That night, or so he assumed, Lure was violently roused from his sleep by a sound he knew too well and had been taught to love. The sinister and chilling sound of a detonation.

“Where d'ya think yer going?!”

The deep voice was thundering, vibrating right into his spine. Lure felt his blood run cold with terror. A Big Bro. It was the voice of a Big Bro, recognizable in thousands. Since when did Gottlieb hire these muscle-bound fatties? Why the hell hadn't Asameera told him?

Asameera!

“Hold still!” the voice summoned with obvious pleasure.

The ground shook with the cataclysmic noise of the colossus' reinforced pants. With his hearing assaulted and his heart pounding, Lure tried to focus on the strand of feathers tangled in the appendages of his snout to calm himself. The racket was such that the Big Bro could have been right on top of him, ready to crush the locker under his weight. He tightened his tentacles further on the strand.

“Relax, I just want to play a little! I'm bored!”

“Stay away!”

An alarming cacophony ensued. Sounds of broken dishes, sounds of furniture being thrown, sounds of running and chasing, drunken laughter, cries for help, sounds of banging against the front door, sounds of impact against the walls.

The sound of a powerful slap, followed by a surprised exclamation of rage.

“You bitch! Come here!”

An all too familiar click. Lure felt his heart miss a beat.

“I said hold still!”

A gasp. An interminable second of silence.

Bang!

A high-pitched cry of pain.

“Sam!”

Lure's scream went unnoticed, but his tail had wagged in the middle of the controls in a reflex registered in him. Within a second, his mechanical prosthetics lifted themselves, bending over his rib cage before leaping prodigiously to right him in a single bound. In a second he was on his feet... and the door of his locker ended up flying to the other side of the toilets in a metallic clatter, torn from its hinges by his double kick.

In the other room, a deathly silence fell. Lure felt his vigor melt away instantly.

“Oh crap.”

The heavy mechanical footsteps of the colossus suddenly echoed, louder and louder. He was slowly coming closer behind the door.

“Shit shit shit shit shit shit!” he swore quietly.

“Who's there?!”

Lure rushed to the entrance and pressed himself against the wall between two lockers right next to it, resisting the urge to yell 'No one, loser!'

With a final thunderous clang, the footsteps stopped. Then the huge fist slammed into the other side of the door and the thick metal buckled under the impact. The little Slig barely managed to hold back a yelp.

“Get out without a fuss and I'll let you go! Potentially.”

The cruel laugh he let out spoke volumes about his honesty. Petrified, Lure tried to think of a solution, to come up with even the beginnings of a plan, but the blood was pounding in his head and the biting fear consumed all thought.

At that moment, the handle came down and the door opened. Lure didn't dare to look in that direction and sank further into his hiding place. Nearby, so close, the compact mass advanced into the darkness, shaking the walls with every step. The Big Bro paused briefly, scanning the dark space in front of him, as his large hand rested on the locker just above Lure's head, strong fingers twisting the iron. Paralyzed, the little Slig held back a whimper. All it took was for the hand to go down a few inches and he would be discovered. If only he was able to fight, if only he had a weapon!

Above him, the metal twisted slightly and as he feared, the hand moved... to the side, scratching the steel with his nails with a horrible screech. In the darkness, a typical noise knotted Lure's insides as the Big Bro cocked, disarmed, and re-cocked his weapon with a sneer, several times in a row, as a sadistic aura spread through the air.

“You can't hide for long” the big vicious voice rang out. “But so be it. I love hunting!”

He took a step forward with force, then another. The tiles shattered under the impact. He was taking his time, letting the sounds of cracking tiles spread through the air in the intervals of silence. He would find his prey, that was a certainty. Lure had to get out of here.

The exit was only a few steps away. He would just have to cross it, then he would find Asameera, and then she could do her magic thing and drag them away from this place. But for that, it was necessary to move in a total silence... something impossible in his state. His legs whirred at the slightest movement and his enemy brother, his back always to him, stood still too often to listen. He couldn't leave his prosthetic limbs to crawl on the ground either, not with two arms in shreds.

He had to match his pace.

The Big Bro raised one of his four reinforced legs again and Lure held his breath. The huge foot crashed to the floor with a bang, covering the brief whirr of his smaller pants. A second commotion echoed through the room and the little Slig left the confined space where he had taken refuge. There was no turning back. He stood perfectly still, waiting for the bodybuilder's next move.

Which didn't come.

The giant didn't move, his huge finger clenched on the trigger. An indescribable tension had invaded him. A tension Lure could feel, it was affecting him. And suddenly he realized his mistake: even if the Big Bro couldn't see or hear him, he could still feel his presence, just as Lure felt his with full force. He saw the monster's head sweep across the space in front of him, slowly, from right to left. The little Slig then saw with horror his shoulders beginning to rotate as well, and the bright red dot of his little left eye about to appear at an angle to him. He was about to turn around.

Just as the torso was about to follow, a dull sound like a hydraulic shock resounded through the pipes in the back of the room. In a mechanical reflex, the Big Bro turned his attention sharply in that direction, raised his gun and fired without delay. The blast of bullets lodged in the lockers, the tiles, the plumbing as the soldier continued to shoot at everything in front of him. Lure leapt up and swung his legs toward the door and plunged out of the room just as his enemy turned, riddling the area where he had been just seconds before with bullets. Lure rolled to the side as soon as he hit the floor, taking cover behind the wall that separated the restroom from the main room. He tried to crawl to where the bunk bed stood without thinking to hide under it, terror prevailing over the burning pain in his arm. But his damaged prosthesis was dragging behind him and his good arm was still not supporting him.

In desperation, the little guard curled up into a ball with his head tucked into his chest, praying that the partition would offer him enough protection from the giant's crazed overjoyed outburst. Several bullets managed to pierce, digging holes in the now cracked surface. Lure clenched his teeth, his eyelids tightly shut, his heart pounding in his chest as the machine-gun kept firing.

When the noise finally stopped, Lure almost felt as if he had gone deaf. But a sickly mix of leaking water, crumbling plaster and the painful grinding of metal still evoked the agony of this place. His own demise seemed more inevitable than ever. The air reeked of danger, almost preventing him from breathing.

He had to leave. They had to leave right away.

The little green creature scanned the darkness before him, looking for Asameera. Only she could help him, as she had done so often before. She was his only chance. She...

He spotted her. She was curled up on the floor, halfway out the exit. Something was wrong. She was holding her stomach with one hand, while with the other she was trying to crawl. Her face was marked by distress. Her breath was weak and erratic, and her mouth opened in a silent scream.

It was only then that he noticed the trail of blood left in her wake. She had been shot.

He moved without thinking.

“Sam!” he yelled as he jumped to his feet.

Running to her. That's what he would have done if the sky hadn't fallen on his head.

It was as if the thunder had exploded directly on him, while the enormous arm of the Big Bro sprang directly from the wall a few centimeters from him and closed on his throat. Lure had just the time, in a reflex, to grab the large biceps which blocked his breathing without really knowing what was going on. Then, before he had time to understand, he was violently pulled back and passed through the wall in his turn, his body screaming under the shock while the partition half-collapsed on him. The smell and taste of his blood were the only two things his brain could still identify with incredible accuracy.

“Hu hu hu! Found ya!”

With his back pressed against the bundle of steel muscles, Lure struggled, wagging his little tail in the middle of the controls without really knowing what he was doing. He could hear the whirring of his legs gesticulating, faster and faster, as the pain receded slightly to give way to panic.

“So, what do we have here? Huh? Pff, just a bug! What a pity!”

He heard a faint whimper. Through the now gaping hole and his blurred vision, Lure managed to make out Asameera writhing on the ground, crying.

“Oh shut yer trap!”the Big Bro barked, raising his gun at her.

“S... stop...”

The blast rang out and another bullet flew at her, barely missing her head.

“Stop!”

Lure's scream pierced the darkness and his huge brother turned his attention to him, pressing him harder against his torso.

“Huh? What's ya problem, little shit?”

Lure felt his energy slowly returning as the rage rose, devouring the fear in its path.

“Why you! Why did you do that?!”

“Whaddya talkin about, sucker?”

“Her, you fucker! What did you-?!”

Just before answering, the huge Slig grabbed him directly by the throat with his powerful fingers and turned him around to face him, tightening his grip. A strangled gurgle escaped from the little Slig as the new 583 blew a alcohol-laden breath over him.

“Huh? I don't care 'bout the bitch! I was bored, she resisted. That's what we usually do, I've already killed for less!”

He laughed almost happily as rage exploded in Lure. He roared and threw a kick toward his face, barely grazing his tentacles. His second attempt was stopped in its tracks by the giant's other hand.

“Hu hu hu! Even that stupid slave hits harder than you, you piece of shit! Look I'll show you, that's how it's done!”

The next moment, the air whistled in his ears and Lure hit the ground at full speed. And again. And again. Blood exploded in his mouth with each impact, while the Big Bro laughed and tossed him around like a rag doll. Finally, he was sent flying across the full length of the room and crashed into the opposite wall before rolling limply onto the floor, barely conscious.

“So? Ya got it?”

The scarlet world around him had shattered into multiple pieces. The glass of his visor had cracked on all sides and he could hardly see. Sounds had become deaf. The viscous, thick, iron liquid was choking him, sticking to his face and mask. He wanted everything to stop. He could barely feel the ground shake as the Big Bro came dangerously close to him.

There was nothing he could do. Until the end, he couldn't do anything. How could he fight such a monster without arms nor weapons? Even his mechanical arm had been broken during his brother's last burst of violence. Only a dozen centimeters of twisted and sharp metal remained, testifying to the full power of his enemy. It was over.

In the multitudes of identical red worlds of different sizes his visor now offered him, he stared at a spot without seeing it. The spot became a little clearer, barely moving. The colossus had almost reached him when Lure finally realized that he was looking at Asameera's feathered lock, still tangled in his tentacles. The feathers lifted slightly, as if they were alive, as if they were talking to him. Lure remained mesmerized by the movement until the Big Bro stood over him.

“Well? Ya got it?”

The feathers gave a wide and light jolt. For a second, Lure thought he heard a distant sound screaming 'Live!'. He managed to answer in a whisper, without really knowing to whom.

“Yeah... I got it...”

He felt the giant's icy foot pass under his waist to turn him over. Lure tried to stand up. His mechanical legs were miraculously still responding, but strangely. Obviously, they must have been twisted. Above him, a mocking laugh echoed at his futile attempts. Lure gritted his teeth. He wouldn't get a second chance.

“Hey... sucker... I wanna... know somethin'...”

Again, he was grabbed by the throat. Again, he was brought within inches of the Big Bro's masked face. Again, he felt the bad alcohol in his breath. Only this time, he also felt the cold metal of the gun against the side of his face.

“You got balls, little shit, I'll give you that” he chuckled. “Tell me, maybe I'll answer.”

Through his cold anger and pain, Lure managed a wicked smirk.

“Pray tell...” he growled in a voice dripping with venom “How thick is yer head?”

“Wh-”

CRACK!

The Big Bro never had a chance to finish his sentence. In a blistering gesture filled with rage and murderous impulses, Lure had thrust the sharp end of his metal arm right through his temple. The giant's whole body convulsed as his prey turned and turned his arm to go as far as he could. Lure rejoiced at the disgusting sound of wet suction and cracking skull and kept pushing again and again, until the prosthesis came out the other side with a spongy noise. This morbid spectacle, multiplied in his vision, gave him a Machiavellian grin up to his ears. Finally, the shaking stopped and the whole top of the colossus collapsed, dragging Lure with it. The little Slig twisted and turned his thick neck in all directions to free himself from the clenched frozen fingers. He managed to keep his balance and allowed himself to look down at the corpse slumped on his huge prosthetic legs.

“The answer was: not thick enough.”

ooOoo

Phew! That was close! I hope that maybe you’ve enjoyed!

Unfortunately I can’t tell when the next chapter will be published, I was supposed to write it a few days ago and... well, I still didn’t begin ^^’. I’ll try to write it quick!

How was the action here? Not used to do this kind of scene.

Thank you!

First: https://at.tumblr.com/asameera/oddworld-code-583-chapter-1-one-night-in/lhmmi36wqq3n

Previous: https://at.tumblr.com/asameera/oddworld-code-583-chapter-11-down-with-the/rce8wsy0hqal

Next: https://at.tumblr.com/asameera/oddworld-code-583-chapter-13-with-me/ad97xftyl7ou