Work Text:
“Zabuli, what the hell are you doing?”
At the sound of their name, the figure froze almost comically. Sweat began to gather at their forehead as they slowly turned to face the one who had addressed them.
“Nothing much… just uhhh…” They nervously said. The silence that followed was deafening.
“Uh-huh.” The other said, unimpressed. Zabuli slouched, looking down towards the purple grass that covered the ground. They shifted in their spacesuit watching as the deep violet blades brushed against their boots. A sigh sounded from in front of them.
“Show me your hands.” The other said, referring to the hands hidden behind their back. Zabuli slowly brought their hands out, pouting. In their hands was a small creature. The creature had a long visage with a short black beak. From the short beak, a pair of black and white streaks lead to its black eyes. On top of its head were a set of small horns. The creature had the body of a gazelle but instead of a smooth furred back, a thick-plated shell covered the expanse. Colorful feathers dangled from its sides like wings.
“And what’s that exactly?”
“A cute lil muffin! Awe yes you are~” They cooed, petting the small creature affectionately. The creature chirped in response.
“You didn’t even bother to scan it, did you?” Their companion sighed while pulling out a device.
“I got distracted!”
“Sure, you did.” Activating the silver device, it expanded into a holographic tablet.
“Come on, Sef! Don’t be like that!”
“Not even 20 minutes on this planet and you manage to deviate from the plan. I don’t even know why I try anymore.”
“But. Its. So. CUTE!!!” Sefris rolled her eyes as she held up the tablet to the creature being smothered by her companion. Said companion huffed as they were ordered to hold the creature away from their face and no, they could not move in any way that would disrupt the scan. The tablet pinged, signifying that the scan was done; allowing Zabuli to pounce on the poor creature.
Sefris stared at the 2 for a moment before giving the small creature an f in the chat. When she turned back to the tablet, a model of the same creature greeted her with basic information.
"
Arvoerus trogleus:
-Omnivore
Habitat: TBA
Stage: Infant
-Estimated Age: 2-3 years
Gender: TBA
Weight: 2.1 lbs.
Height: 3.7 inches
-Researched Data-
"
The lack of information was not uncommon as they were on an uninhabited planet never visited by the Overseers before. When they had first landed, they were greeted by ash-colored sand and the bright light of the planet’s sun. They had landed on some sort of beach with a line of flora grew a couple of yards away from their space craft. As Sefris started to unload after confirming that it was safe to exit, Zabuli sprint out into the flora. Thus, leading the 2 space travelers here.
“Imma name yooouuuuuuuu, Missie!” Zabuli exclaimed. “Short for missile launcher.”
“1. Of course, you name it after a tool of mass destruction. 2. Don’t name it! You don’t even know its gender!”
“Missie can be a boy’s name-”
“And NO, we aren’t keeping it.” Sefris stated, turning off the tablet and crossing her arms. Zabuli squawked.
“Why not?!”
“You know damn well ‘why not?!’. We can’t take specimens onboard and we barely know anything about it! There’s no way we’d be able to take care of it!!”
“Ughh, don’t bring logic into this. Me and her never got along well.”
“We need to get back to work Zab. Put it down and help me with unpacking. We need to set up communications and a hub here.” Sefris sighed, turning to go back to their ship, only to be met with fur. When she looked up a shadow blocked out the sun and fog appeared on her visor. After the fog had cleared, she was met with a very angry mama.
“Uh, Zab?” Sefris croaked.
“What- oh…”
“Oh shi-”