HOMESTUCK ᴥ don't mind my bad reputation

[8fold]

Alternia had always been a planet geared to survival of the fittest.

At first, the outbreak hadn't changed much about how Vriska lived her day to day life. It was as simple as doing what she had always done. Self-preservation was the name of the game, and Vriska was an expert player.

Things had started going south as the fungus spread. It crept through the lower classes, taking over entire lawn rings in a matter of days, and then making its way towards the shore. It was then that things became trickier for Vriska. She'd lost communication with most of her friends, be it because they had to flee or...

What did it matter? She didn't have time to dwell on what might or might not have happened to a bunch of trolls she had never actually met face to face. She had to take care of herself, and that's what she was doing as she pieced together what she could on the beach. She could feel the sand in her shoes as she worked on her raft, uncomfortable and scratchy. It was nothing like the pirate ship she used for Flarping, but resources were scarce.

She hadn't planned on taking the flee tactic, really, and she was still bitter that she had little else to resort to. But what was she to do when her lusus started showing the signs of infection?

Cutting down her guardian hadn't been easy, and she preferred not to think about it. The battle wounds were reminders enough.

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[acquittal]

Many trolls are born and die every day. More than anyone can keep track of. Killing and death are not anything foreign to Terezi, but she's starting to learn how to tell an infected troll from someone healthy. It's easy to smell it, she thinks, really easy to tell that way, but from a distance it is impossible. But there's always something off about their appearance. Sometimes they're completely drenched in blood, sometimes they're vivisected and skipping rope-- those cases are easy enough! But there are sometimes subtler deaths where someone was smothered or poisoned. You can tell with them by the mechanical way they move.

She doesn't want to abandon her unhatched lusus. She doesn't want to leave it to harm's way. But there is a sort of moss growing on it, and she can see that just fine from her tree. She knows it's dangerous and she's not about to test her luck.

There are a good two things to consider!

Firstly, there's the origin of this fucked up thing. Terezi has gone through her own personal library several times and found nothing that might explain it. She can think about it for as long as she wants, but there is never any sort of confirmation. That drives her a little nuts. But an uneducated guess says the infection thrives on land.

Secondly, there's the matter of her friends. Where are they? Terezi has lost contact with all of them. She supposes in such a widespread disaster, there's no time to take a coffee break. She can't just leave them behind-- even though she's already making plans to do as much-- ah, fuck it. Terezi supposes this is another trial of the fit and the unfit. It might suck to have a friend die of this but it's better them than her. And it isn't as if Terezi hasn't lost friends before. Maybe not to sickness but to a spider lusus.

She decides that the ocean may be her best bet. After captchaloguing everything she cares about, she heads that way as the bright Alternian sun sets. She moves quietly but quickly through the forest surrounding her home so as to not attract attention. It works, she thinks, it works until she actually stumbles across the beach. It is there that she finds Vriska.

"Vriska!" she says as she approaches, senses sharp in the darkening evening. "It seems as though we may very well have had the same idea."

[8fold]

The shuffling of feet causes Vriska to whirl around, hand instinctively reaching for her sword. Her fingers tighten around the handle, slightly loosening only as she realizes that her guest is (hopefully) more friend than foe. Though her emotions don't show it, Vriska is relieved to have a familiar face nearby.

"Glad to see you made it!" She grins widely, though she doesn't move towards her friend. "I wasn't sure there was anyone else on land left." Her last encounter had left her doubting -- Equius had seemed fine at first, but as they talked, the symptoms became more and more apparent.

Her sword still had some of her friend's blue blood splattered across it. She didn't think anything of it.

"I mean, I guess, if anyone was to survive, it'd be us, huh?"

[acquittal]

Ah, she sees that. Equius is the only one with that shade of blue for blood that Terezi really knows, so she figures it out quick. She sizes Vriska up. Takes in the scrapes on her shoulders. Looks over the progress she's made on that raft.

"Why, of course," Terezi says, breaking out into a grin. "Of course it would be Team Scourge! We are simply the best there is." She steps towards Vriska after putting away her FLARP cane, and goes to touch the raft. "Two is better than one. Let's sail off into hell and high water together. I'll help you finish this. What did you bring with you?"

[8fold]

For a brief moment, it feels like they've won something. All of their hours of gaming, and they're the last ones standing. How nice it would be to be able to rub that in Team Charge's face!

Childish taunting has to be pushed aside, however, when there's no one left to taunt.

"I've got enough wood to finish it -- man, that was an ordeal. The trees are covered with that shit." She motions back towards the land. It was strange to see most of their world covered in a soft white fuzz. "Only enough rations for me, though." She hadn't expected to have any company on her endeavors into the ocean. "We'll run out quick, but," she shrugs, "then I guess we start fishing."

There was an excitement in her voice. This was it, this was a real adventure, not some fake pretend bullshit.

"I'm Captain, though," she adds, as though the title needs to be established before she can continue. This is her ship, pathetic and small as it is.

[acquittal]

Terezi laughs, grin widening. "It is my humble opinion that a grand Marquise such as yourself deserves that kind of title. After all, Mindfang is actually a pirate! I practice law."

But then she's quickly all business. "I brought enough for myself, too. I have never been much a fan of fish-- it stinks-- but I suppose I'll get used to it. Did you bring a rod? Nets? Traps? I did bring a net, but nothing else. I'm sure some unlucky nearby will have one in their hive if you didn't."

[8fold]

"I doubt your services will be needed," Vriska replies with a dark smirk of her own. "Welcome to lawlessness, Redglare!"

She thinks about what she took the time to gather. "No rod exactly, but I have enough spider silk..." Her lusus' webs were, naturally, the strongest there were. She'd been using the thread for booby traps, to catch approaching enemies. "We could make one up pretty quick."

[acquittal]

"Then, once we're done with this raft, let's set to work on that. Spidersilk sounds efficient enough."

She stands from her squat and looks over the wood critically. "I brought my own hammer and nails. You work on this side-- I'll work on the other. Let the building commence and may our seaside voyage begin! In a timely manner, of course."

And without another word, she sets to building.

[8fold]

Ship repair had never been Vriska's job. That's what a crew was for, after all! And she had had the best -- even if most of them had been threatened into it. But she was a captain, so she at least knew her way around.

She sat opposite of Terezi, working on her already half-finished side.

"What a drag, though!" she exclaimed to break the silence. "Everyone's too dead to do our manual labor." There was something of a laugh in her voice, but it never quite surfaced completely.