this is not a spaceship | Glowfic Constellation

It makes an angry sound. You are not my princess! This is not my hive! I must return home!

I don't know what you're talking about.

(Bipeds talk to the newly arrived psychic biped. It talks back.)

There's little or no chance of my ever returning home. Perhaps it's pointless. But I must try.

Bipeds talk.

I can't do this all day and the guy who caught you doesn't want to let you go, but you're saying there's more than one of you?

My Hive. This creature has mental powers. It tries to push the whole concept at the biped, mostly wordless. Tens of thousands like it, mostly smaller, all bug-things living inside a mountain, ruled over by one person, the princess.

I was travelling through the teleporting gates, but they sent me here instead. If there are no others like me on this planet, no Hive, there will be no gate, and I cannot ever return.

None of us has ever heard of the gate you're describing or of anything that looked like you, even smaller ones.

...For a brief instant, despair. It sits on the floor and forces itself into battle-thought for a few seconds. Everything sharpens to a point, plans of how to evade or disable the fire-things forming and dissolving in instants. Perhaps it could startle them long enough get to that ball and smash it. Perhaps it can burn its poison glands to create a cloud of toxic smoke. Perhaps...

Then the state of mind lets up. Have you seen the entire world? And I would learn your Hive's language, if you can assist.

None of us have personally seen the entire world, but we know things about most of it. I can translate a few things but then I have to stop, I really can't keep this up.

Please do translate everything you think, and perhaps what the others say, while you still can. Is it common to imprison creatures with those devices?

Bipeds talking bipeds talking bipeds talking. "It wants to know if 'those devices' are common," the psychic one says/thinks. "Yes, Pokéballs are the usual way to keep Pokémon portable and contained most of the time."

Are most Pokémon (It makes a reasonable attempt at this word out loud) people? I am. And I do not appreciate being contained.

The biped translates this thought for the other bipeds, then, "No, most of them aren't. The girl with the Rapidash" (this is accompanied with a concept; it is that biped) "is arguing that you should be let go, but you'd probably just get caught again and the person who caught you wants to keep you."

Why?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Isabella Marie Swanna ◎ "Ace"

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

the_very_best

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