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Challenge #00375 - A010: Animal Associate

The concept of pets is an odd one to explain, although firsthand experience tends to fill in the gaps you can’t quite articulate. And when pets are involved experience is going to happen whether it is planned or not.

Jane figured she should get used to aliens feeling her. They didn’t mean to be rude, she knew. They were just curious.

But, she swore to God, if one more of them tried to taste her hair…

One of her lizard shipmates sniffed the pet-carrier that was part of her belongings.

“Live food?” it queried.

“Not food,” she insisted. “Friend.”

Sniff snuff snuffle. “Smells food.”

The only language they shared was Broken GalStand. “Friend. Not food. Is…” she fumbled for the right words. “Animal associate.”

“Not smart?”

Jane considered the dickbaggery that Whittington, her cat, got up to on a daily basis. “Not smart. Friend animal. Never food. You eat, I get mad. You eat, I get sad. You eat, I charge.”

The lizard got its nose too close to Whittington’s cage and, true to form, Whittington sunk a claw into the lizard’s left nostril.

“YEEEEE! Predator! Predator not food!”

Whittington tried to bat at the lizard through the hole in his cage.

Word would get around, of course. But, just in case, “I tell captain of animal associate. Say to tell all.”

“Wise,” nodded the lizard. “Smart.”

“You go doctor. Get fix. Yes?”

“Yes,” echoed the lizard. As it left, she heard what was probably a lot of lizard curses.

She’d pick them up in due course.

Whittington became labled as an unsafe animal and linked to Jane in short order. It was up to her to provide educational videos about cats in general and Whittington in particular. Those lessons included Catspeak, proper handling, what to do if bitten (because cat saliva and lizard blood did not mix well), and active discouragement.

After the fifth crewman lost their tail, the word very quickly got around about Whittington. Crewmembers began to carry around water-pistols for self defence.

It was when Whittington figured out the ‘good’ prey on board that his reputation grew. Especially when the Captain caught him playing with some vermin on the bridge.

Evidently, casual feline cruelty was not as amusing to the lizards as it was to Jane.

And that was how the one about humans keeping dangerous animals for personal amusement got around…

If Jane had owned a terrier, things may have turned out worse for humanity.

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Perks of a new job

Did I mention that one of the perks of this job offer is that you get to burn down your current office? – RecklessPrudence

(#00374 - A009)

Amycus Carrow looked at the pink mess in front of him. The kitten plates were gone, but the abundance of pink remained in the office like a pall of death.

Delores Umbrige hadn’t cleaned up after herself when she was taken for psychiatric assistance.

Behind him, Headmaster Severus Snape caught his aura of

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Challenge #00373 - A008: Madthod

‘Is there really method to your madness, or just a functional madness successfully disguising itself as method?’

‘Both, of course, the precise proportions varying according to time and place.’ – RecklessPrudence

Rael watched helplessly as Shayde ‘wreaked hob’ on the enemy systems. She was cackling.

His own instincts to fix were not a problem in this situation. Digesting the poison they’d tried to use on them was. It was doing things to his internal systems that was, frankly,

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Challenge #00372 - A007: T'reka the Unobservant

Missing the forest for the exotic small mites living under the feathers of the woodpecker. – RecklessPrudence

She was focussed intently on the little bird on the branch above her. Of course, as an avian herself, birds were nothing new. But this little creature was like nothing that came from the records of Hu'lu'a. It did not scratch or pick at the bark between her and the grubs. It hammered at it.

Toktoktoktoktoktoktoktok…

She could infer that this creature had protection

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Challenge #00371 - A006: Lovely Light

He was not so much burning the candle at both ends as he was hosing it down with a flamethrower. – RecklessPrudence

He knew he never had very long, and his habits almost personally guaranteed it. Self-maintenance was limited to a brief encounter with the toothbrush once a morning, a shower simultaneously, and whatever food seemed the most convenient at the time.

Those who cared for him told him not to burn his candle at both ends. He ignored them.

Too much

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Challenge #00370 - A005: Cursed Curses

I get that it’s a curse, and it’s supposed to be horrendous and probably means I’m going to die in some terribly gory manner in a few days time, but did it have to be so damn cheerful? And the song is so peppy and catchy. This is like the opposite of what an evil curse is supposed to be, I feel vaguely cheated somehow.

[AN: Forgive the horrible poetry]

“You found the tomb/ You

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More sound advice

When you are aboard an alien construct of uncertain design and purpose, you touch nothing! You have no way of knowing if a lever could vent the atmosphere into space…if…if a switch could activate flesh-eating nanobots! Until you have studied everything, you have to assume that this station’s sole purpose was to isolate and destroy you personally! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?! – RecklessPrudence

(#00369 - A004)

Humans.

The very word quickly became an agonised plea to the

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Sound advice.

Whoa whoa whoa… stop right there! What have I told you both? We do not…ever…goad the universe! –RecklessPrudence

(#00368 - A003)

Herman’s hand was covered in chalk. He had run out of blackboards and was now working on the walls. “If. We. Can. Synthesize. A breach. In space. And time…”

“In orbit,” said Newt.

“We could… theoretically…”

“Warp the space-time continuum and travelvastdistancespreviouslyunknowntoman! Jus'thinkofallthediscoveries!

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Have you ever had a dream...

That made you honestly depressed once you realised it was only a dream? And not for one of the usual reasons - living loved ones, missed chances taken, you’re a superhero - but for something on a much larger scale?

Say for instance, you had a dream that lead to near-free energy for all, universal healthcare and education (there was no distinction in living quality to mark the Third World anymore), grand societal change for equality and to redress past

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From a forum discussion...

…on making humans unique on a galactic scale without turning us to either primitive brutes, diplomats, or supah-speshul-snowflakes.

I’m not sure if I’ve submitted this before, but a cursory search didn’t turn up anything.

Poster A: Humanity possesses the right combination of above average curiosity and below average sense of self-preservation. This has lead to us following technical development pathways that the rest of the galaxy would consider, well, insane.

When other species reached for

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Post failed alien invasion

*Alien and Minionbot are watching the sky. They are in one of the major polities located on a large landmass in the northern hemisphere. It is the non-sunward-facing portion of the fourth segment of the seventh larger segment of the planets orbit, by hu-mon calender.*

Minionbot: So historically, these hu-mons seek dominance by attempting to detonate one another with precise munitions.

Alien: Right.

Mb: And being dominated, they attempt independence by detonating their oppressors with the same precise munitions.

A: Right again.

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Stolen from a Webcomic

Alien (thoughtfully): A whole holiday of disguise and deceit [Ed: Halloween]… truly these hu-mons are a formidable race.

*points at minionbot*

Alien: Every one of their vaunted ‘holidays’ are actually exercises in deception and warfare.

*resumes thinking position*

Alien: Christmas - a thinly veiled exercise in obfuscation and forensic cryptology. Easter - infiltration and recovery… New Years Eve… a form of globally coordinated mass ordnance deployment.

Minionbot: What about Valentine’s Day?

Alien: Ah yes, Valentine&

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[citation needed]

“The problem with quotes on the internet, is that you can never tell if they are genuine or not.”
-Benjamin Franklin (c/- RecklessPrudence)

(#00363)

“The same thing’s been said about the Galactic Text-nets, though it was attributed to Mark Twain.”

“Really? I’d have thought they’d give it to Confucius.”

“Which one? The lizard, the bug, or the human?”

This resulted in a minute’s worth of

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Fun with (decidedly non-Standard) Units

2000 Mockingbirds = 2 Kilomockingbirds
Basic Unit of Laryngitis = 1 Hoarsepower
453.6 Graham Crackers = 1 Pound Cake
1 Kilogram of Falling Figs - 1 Fig Newton
Time Between Slipping on a Banana Peel and Smacking the Pavement = 1 Bananosecond
Half of a Large Intestine = 1 Semicolon – RecklessPrudence

(#00362)

“Echo!”

The space whirling with birds now filled with imitations of Shayde’s voice saying ‘echo’.

This pleased her no end. “Oh aye, they’re mockin'birds.

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Challenge #00361: Stupid Mammals.

*irritated muttering*  "… Stupid mammals and their ability to function regardless of temperature….“

Cold.

The desire to hibernate was strong, but in this environment, the desire to hibernate could kill. This place was permanently cold. They would sleep and never wake up.

The ship’s human knew this. Given their species-inherent desire to eliminate the Other, the surprising part was how they did not use the current situation to win.

The captain watched in amazement and torpor, as

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