>> FEB. TEST DRIVE

[majoritymods]

TDM

Welcome to Majority Rule's first Test Drive! If you did not visit our App This Please, here's the rundown: your character can "arrive" in one of two separate situations on this test drive. While you are welcome to play from both on the TDM if you like you will need to choose one version of initial setup at the point of application and interactions as a member of that crew will be considered game canon. The two "start points" are waking from a sleeping pod on the Yggdrasil on this test drive itself or waking from a cryosleep pod on the Caduceus three months prior. We plan to always offer different starting points and situations on our test drives and in our application rounds in order to keep things interesting.

Specifics about these situations can be found in the prompts below. If you have any questions please feel free to hit up our questions toplevel on this post. You may also report character actions or get investigation/exploration information at the actions & investigations toplevel.

As a note we have also posted a poll test drive post to sort of make it easier to find/vote on things for the purposes of this for anyone who would like to mess around with trying out polls. We're drastically shortening the run length of polls for the purposes of the test drive and will be applying any relevant changes from them every other day or so. This is as much a stress test for our systems as it is for you.

To see what changes have occurred you're going to want to check out the "Ship's Log" section at the tail end of this post. Every event post in Majority Rule will have this section which we will periodically update as any polls or character actions are reported to us that would change anything or that we simply feel everyone else should probably know about.

You find yourself in a graveyard amongst the stars.

One way or another you have found yourself on or around the derelict and ancient Keros station. How? Well...

Majority Rule Navigator R33500 "Rhys"

1

Wake.

You wake slowly from cryogenic sleep inside of a cryosleep pod. While most of these pods are located in cryogenic chambers on the Lethe some may have been set adrift during that long ago battle or passing time. All will be within habitable areas of the Lethe or the Keros station - unless you enjoy danger and drama and have a plan for surviving otherwise.

You remember what you were doing back at home but you can't figure out how you got here. Things feel jumbled. You're in familiar clothing and anything you had on your immediate person is still on you...unless it was somehow gamebreaking in the "dimensional portal back home" or "destroys every game problem with the press of a button" sense. Ask on the questions part if you're unsure.

The glass of the pods is frozen over and difficult to see through and you feel as though you have been plunged into the deepest part of winter. Scrolling across the inside of the glass are almost too fast letters and numbers. You think you've only caught the middle bit or the tail end of it as you start to focus.

>> Protocol: Majority Rule loading...
>> Loading...
>> Majority Rule locked.
>> Initializing...
>> Sys.Admin poll query release cryosleep locks active voters y/n?

The final line lingers until you put in an input. Yes or No? You can hit "no" on purpose or on accident. Luckily for you if it was on accident...

>> Loading results.
>> Poll query release cryosleep locks: majority y minority n.
>> Locks releasing from active voters.

Active voters? Yes. If you abstained from putting in any input you will find the lock on your pod did not release. You can either get someone else to manually release you or figure it out on your own. Or you can try to convince the Navigator to undo the locks. He might just advise you to run your own vote for release though.

Whether you are released or still trapped in your cryosleep pod the network bracelet will chime as a new notification comes in. The username is Sys.Admin; no other character can register this username or any other beginning with "Sys."

>> Attention all crew. Unidentified Yggdrasil-class hospital ship has entered this quadrant.
>> Please be advised scans indicate the ship is damaged with several lifeforms on board.
>> Some escape pods have been detected. Recording trajectory...recorded.
>> Unidentified hostiles are in pursuit of the hospital ship. Sys.Admin advisory incoming.
>> Loaded. Sys.Admin advisory: rescue operations are suggested. Fleet Protocol prohibits combat engagement from medical crews.
>> Sys.Admin advisory: engage hostiles at will.

Occasionally Rhys will make advisory statements. Characters and players do not have to listen to them - they are the Navigator's advice but the choice of how to proceed is up to them. They can listen, do the opposite, or do something else entirely. There are no current restrictions on the actions of the Lethe crew. The only time Rhys will actively impede characters is if blackmail or violence is used to force votes in any direction. Rhys will consider attempts to murder other crewmembers as violence impeding votes.

What you do next is up to you. Prompts in Majority Rule are just that: prompts. Until vote results come in and are tallied there are no other restrictions on crew operations for the Lethe. As restrictions or courses of action are charted by the Majority Rule protocol Rhys will alert the crew. Action poll results will be strong compulsions the Lethe's crew cannot resist - but they can democratically change anything they dislike, so there's that? Once released from their pods characters may explore the Lethe or proceed out into the Keros station.

The Lethe is currently in the process of booting up. Only the lowest levels of life support are online. Gravity is only turned on in cryogenic chambers, the bridge, and engineering. Everywhere else is currently a free-float area. Oxygen is only being filtered through the areas the crew has accessed. Many areas are closed off currently due to heavy doors locked down beyond which life support hasn't yet initiated. Priority will be given to any areas the crew accesses - it's up to them to prioritize what they're trying to do.

2

Jumper bay.

>> Please be advised the Lethe is not combat ready.
>> Sys.Admin advisory: restore power to non-essential areas.
>> Suggesting jumper bay priority.

The jumper bay is located mid-deck. There are 20 short-distance craft currently in vaious states of fueling. Each craft can fit up to four people and are suitable for making small trips to and from planets or other nearby areas. They have minor combat capabilities and are mostly meant for recon and short-distance travel. They can be used either to rescue Caduceus crew members or to engage the enemy combatants. Or to fuck off and do something else? Currently all ships are locked down. To take them out characters will have to work together to get things operational.

The jumper bay has a few space suits to each jumper which can alternately be used to traverse areas where life support isn't on or to space-walk. Or to go inside the Keros station where life support isn't really always a thing. These suits will adjust in size and shape to fit any crew member. They have no special capabilities beyond allowing you to breathe and not die in space for a while. The suit charges last roughly 48 hours when fully charged but none of these suits are fully charged. Some are dead and need charging and a few have anywhere from five minutes to three hours of energy. Probably someone should do something about that.

3

Weapons bay.

>> Please be advised weapons are currently inoperable.
>> Scans from weapons bay...inconclusive.
>> Sys.Admin advisory: send teams to examine situation.

The weapons bay is located near the top of the ship, close to the bridge but currently blocked off by a hell of a lot of fallen debris and one gaping open wound to the stars. They can...maybe fix that? Ignore it? Up to you. The weapons bay contains the armory as well as various defense systems. There is currently no power or life support to the weapons bay.

Once characters get into the bay they will be able to acquire cool phaser guns that...aren't charged. Yeah, might want to grab the melee weapons instead until you fix that. Or grab some of the trap mines and trip wires and other such gadgetry. Maybe you can lure some pirates into traps on the Keros station or on board the Lethe. If it's on the Lethe maybe try to mitigate the damage. Or don't.

4

Bridge & loading bay.

>> Most ship transporters offline.
>> Active transporters...one.
>> Sys. Admin advisory: fix transporters?

The Lethe bridge is currently mostly operational. There's life support and gravity - what more could you want? At the center of the Bridge is a holographic display that currently is showing the current spread of where the Lethe, the Caduceus, the Keros station, and enemy ships are in relation to one another. The viewport also gives a pretty decent view of...a lot of dead ships. Eventually it will also give a semi-decent view of some of the action.

There's a working transporter on the bridge to the loading bay. It's currently the only working transporter on the ship...and it only works one way. So if you used it, you're going to find yourself all the way down at the bottom-back of the ship instead of the tippy top. Enjoy the hike back!

The loading bay is currently connected to the Keros space station and is the easiest way to access the station. You can use less easy methods if you want, though.

5

Botany & Agriculture deck.

>> Critical alert: gravity offline in Agriculture.
>> All livestock unsecured.
>> Sys.Admin advisory: send teams to secure livestock.
>> Sys.Admin advisory: restore gravity functions.

Yeah, so. The Agriculture deck takes up an entire deck of the ship and is currently overgrown with some dead plants and a lot just wildly tangled. Lights are flickering on and off. There's oxygen, but there's no gravity.

There are, however, animals. Animals without gravity who have freshly escaped from their own cryopods. These animals are livestock such as: two...cows(?), a flock of particularly angry chickens(?), a pair of incredibly displeased cats, and a solitary and very confused dog(?). The horde of animals also happens to include character pets and companions if they, you know, have any of those. Floating around. Freestyle.

All of these animals are distressed for obvious reasons. Rhys will kindly advise against turning on gravity functions for this deck until the livestock is safely secured. Enjoy spacewalking to grab some animals who really don't want to be grabbed. This probably isn't the highest priority issue with pirates around but apparently Rhys felt it was worth noting. And the animals involved would probably feel it was priority one, actually.

Hippocratic Protocol Navigator A71355 "Alyce"

1

Wake...a few months ago.

You wake slowly from cryogenic sleep inside of a cryosleep pod...three months ago. As per the ATP, some characters found themselves waking from sleep aboard the Yggdrasil-class Hospital Ship Caduceus three months before the start of the TDM. Similarly to those on the Lethe, characters would wake slowly from cryosleep. They were in familiar clothing and similar to the Lethe crew anything they had on their immediate person was still on them...unless it was somehow gamebreaking in the "dimensional portal back home" or "destroys every game problem with the press of a button" sense. Ask on the questions part if you're unsure.

Unlike on the Lethe Caduceus crew did not have to submit a poll for freedom. Instead they were greeted with a very different methodology.

>> Protocol: Hippocratic Oath loading...
>> Loading...
>> Hippocratic Oath locked.
>> Initializing...
>> Cryosleep pod locks released.
>> Please report to the Medical Bay for recommended health examinations.

The crew of the Caduceus was able to get their ship fully operational while working together and learned from the Navigator, Alyce, that the Hippocratic Protocol had two main rules. First, do no harm. Second, treat harm where you find it. This Protocol prevents the crew of the Caduceus from attacking or injuring other people - if they try to do so they instead pass out. It also requires them to render aid if it is in their ability to do so, manifesting as an intense desire they can't shake. All crew of the Caduceus is bound by the Hippocratic Protocol and will be unable to break either of these laws until they become crew of the Lethe by the end of the TDM.

A71355 was unable to give the crew much information about how they found themselves on the Caduceus and no other lifeforms aside from the characters who woke there were anywhere to be found. The AI was initially shy and uncertain but was openly willing to answer any questions asked to the best of her abilities. Her memory was found to have been significantly damaged by a long hibernation and all the prior crew logs were deleted. The only information remaining were many medical logs, details on her Protocol, and the crew manifest. The manifest held the names of every character who awoke on the Caduceus along with some others.

2

Travel.

The Caduceus has been traveling ever since. After some time on the journey A71355 requested that the crew refer to her as "Alyce". Obviously a lot more than this happened in those three months. Characters visited two different worlds together and likely fell into learning how to work with one another and got to know Alyce as they sought answers together. Create as many noodle incidents as you'd like - this is just a basic outline to work with about what they'd have experienced and what they might have done. The two worlds that characters visited, in order and briefly, are:

Baatera, a large planet with two moons that is mostly comprised of huge tropical rainforests. The planet is near enough to the sun to be hotter than most are used to but not so hot that it can't be endured. Of the many species on Baatera there are two the characters would have had notable experiences with based on their landing site. The first are the Sashute, a small catlike folk known for being friendly and hospitable to strangers who live in elaborate treehouse villages. The second are the Vecialae, a large reptilian species known for their warmongering tendencies who live in underground caverns and tunnels they dig out. The Vecialae frequently attack the Sashute and anyone else who happens to exist in their vicinity.

Teclite, a smallish sized ice planet with no moons at the far edge of the star system Baatera is part of. Teclite is home only to the Tecra, a mammalian species with two legs and four arms who grow venomous spines over their body. Their "religion" is cybernetics and even their young children are made over into cyborgs. They are wary of anyone who doesn't have some form of cybernetic enhancement but allow certain visitors. They permitted the Caduceus to land after the hospital ship responded to a distress signal sent out by the Tecra due to an outbreak of illness in one of their smaller colonies.

3

Attack.

In the present day your crew was traveling to a new world after leaving Teclite. Well-stocked and somewhat familiar with how everyone worked together the mood was likely high right up until the attack came while in transit. While the crew experienced some friction on Baatera from the Vecialae the Sashute were well practiced at evading and repelling those attacks and the danger was "acceptable" in that no one died in the expedition or was grievously injured beyond healing. This moment right before the TDM started? That's when their luck ran out.

The familiar chime that comes before Alyce communicates sounds more harsh and frantic. A soft klaxon alarm as the Caduceus shakes with a series of small hits. The ship swerves as Alyce attempts to initiate an evasive pattern and they fall out of hyperspace.

>> Warning! Damage detected on the hull of the ship.
>> Hostile craft are in pursuit...
>> Please immediately fall back to bridge and escape pods.
>> I need to divert all available resources to shields.

Unfortunately The Caduceus has no offensive capabilities and under the Hippocratic Protocol characters are unable to cause harm or fight back. You hear Alyce's repeated warnings to retreat to safer areas as she shuts down life support and power to every other location once the crew is clear, diverting as much power as possible into defenses.

Unfortunately, some of the hits are heavy. Alyce does manage to steer them into the starship graveyard around Keros but the ship is floating dead by the time it comes into view. Characters may be injured from the attack or trapped in certain parts of the ship flying free. Characters who fell back to the bridge will hit the Keros station dock with the remnants of the Caduceus as pirates prepare to board.

>> Ȩ̵̛̛̝̖̥̪̭̱̘̝̯̣̦̹̣̜͎͖̩̣͓̩̬̻̳̯͉̳̬̭̼̱̪̫̮͎͔̬̭͇͚̝̯̉̊̐̈͊͛̀́́̉͐̓̌̅̌̈́̏́̉̒̓̏̓̈́͠͝͠ͅͅṽ̶̧̢̧̡̹̻͇͉͓͈̮̖̤̼̹̳̤̞̗̹͇̻̠͆͑̏͆̓̐͌͝ͅà̴̧̡̢̛̬͚̺̘̗̳̱͚̰͖̝͓̳̻̱̻̞̜̟͔͚̭̪͚̘̻̤̻̝̼̯̬̤̈́͑̃͐͒̀͋̾͗́̀͛̿͆̂̀̊́̃́̎̑̋͂̒͂̄͋͌̎͜͜͜͠͠͝ͅc̷̛̛̛̱͋̓̓͆̃̀̌̉̊͋͋̽͐͂̊̂̇̽̽͗̀̾̕̚̕ų̷̧̞̯̼̣͓̞͈̺͍̠̯̠̖̪̫͎̥͉͈̞̘̜̣̙̥̠̦̭̗̮͎͚͕̟͓̑͒̑̔̇͊̐͗̆̐̑̂̓̽̾̈́̃̐̓͒̒̄̀͒̏̒̀̄̓́̇͛̉́͛͆̀̋̚̕̕͜͝͝͝͝͠ͅͅą̸̡̟̹͓͔̠̙̥͙͉͉͚̭̯̗̪̻̘̪̼̖͎͕̞̫̫̯͓̙̻̮̀͐́͆̈́͐͌͠ͅt̴̨̡̡̧̛̛͇͍̹͍̼̪̥͕̳͈̩̳̬̜͚͕͉͎͇̭̤̣͚̜̥̬̱͇͚̳̑̄̋̅̓̈̐̔̇̃̒͒͗̌̔̔́̏̕̚͘̕̕͜͜͜͝͝ȩ̷̢̡̨̛͙͖̗͙͎͎̟̺̲̪͉͎͙̙̗̣̬̺̬͎͔̭̰̱͕̪͍̺̻̓̽̇̅̍͊͌̃͆̕͘͝.̶̢̧̧̧̨̨̢̰͇̤̱̲̺̟̗̗͚̪̼̲̲̖̲̳̗̩̺̪̻̲͉̰͎̫̲͚̝̙̠͍̥̱̻̆́͆͒̓͂̈́̈́̇̋͐͑͋̂̔͐̚͘͜͝͝͝ͅ

With every heavy hit as the ship accrued damage, Alyce's messages became harder and harder to comprehend. Her usually clear and helpful responses are mostly garbled and consist of frantic entreaties to stay safe. With the ship dying and gutted Alyce's functions are limited and she is "dying" in every sense of the word that matters but true to her programming her first and only concern is her crew.

4

Boarding.

As the crew scrambles to evacuate or chooses to stay put after the crash they will find the assorted Reaper spacecraft closing in are preparing to board the Caduceus. Alyce continues to urge the crew to leave but cannot force them to do so. If they choose to stay, or to try to figure out what the Reapers want...it seems they're pirates and scavengers both. And Yggdrasil-class ships are apparently very rare. One of the goals of the reapers is to take Alyce's core located in the depths of the ship below the bridge. If they are able to retrieve that they will next attempt to take Rhys's core, or will retreat with whatever they can grab.

The reapers are mainly this species but some other types of aliens can be found as well. No humans seem to be among their number. Actually, you haven't seen humans on any other planet so far...the reapers are armed with an eclectic variety of tech-y guns and less technical melee weapons. They will try to capture alive some of the crew but only seem to want a few captives. They're actively trying to take out anyone else.

5

Escape.

While some escape pods managed to make it to a nearby planet (these characters do not exist for this TDM but will be appable next round), many of the escape pods were lodged on Keros or are floating in space. One unlucky(?) pod managed to hit the weapons bay of the Lethe. The crashed Caduceus is lodged on the Keros station and characters who were trapped on the trip can get off as long as they've managed to put on one of the ship's space suits. The Caduceus's suits are white in color and each comes with medical kits and capabilities. Health scans, basic operational tools, that sort of thing.

Starship Graveyard

The Keros space station is a huge ringed structure with docking for several dozen large craft and hundreds of smaller craft...or it was. Abandoned so long ago that few remember the place exists the station is now in intense disrepair with many huge scars of damage open to space. While there are several ships still docked many are entirely nonfunctional or barely functioning. There is notable damage from a long past battle to the station and many of the ships and wreckage drifts around the station in a huge minefield. Some of the combatant ships from that long ago battle are part of the drifting wreckage. Since what does function includes ancient mines and some functioning weapons locked into defense mode few dare to go anywhere near Keros these days.

The Lethe has been sleeping at Keros for a long, long time. And now it has woken up as the Caduceus came flying through the debris to crash into the station, the Reapers hot on its tail.

1

Ancient defenses.

Currently some of Keros station's defenses are still active. Unfortunately for everyone these defenses are active against everyone, pirate and crew member alike. These include: laser turrets attacking incoming ships and escape pods; detonation mines within the station itself; chambers that quickly fill with paralyzing gas and so on. You can make up your own sci-fi traps within the station as you choose. It's a dangerous place that clearly thought it was going to be attacked or boarded. And it was obviously correct about that. Getting through the defenses and taking over the station would be hugely helpful in repelling the attack if you feel like doing that.

Currently the station is home to no lifeforms other than those that just woke or entered: the Lethe crew, the Caduceus crew, and the Reapers. The reapers are mainly this species but some other types of aliens can be found as well. No humans seem to be among their number.

Oh, and there's the monster in the station trash compacter area. But as much as that wants to kill you it wants to kill you just a little bit less than the pirates. Maybe.

2

...Trash compacter monster?

Much like the scene in the original Star Wars trilogy there is a huge room full of various space trash (ancient space trash even) on the Keros station that also houses a large...thing. Under the water and trash. You probably are best off if you never get a good look at it as it will try to drag you under and eat you if you're close enough. It can be scared off if you do real damage to it though.

The room WAS inactive, but guess what? It's one of the traps you can fall into. Ancient garbage and moldy gross water and suddenly you can hear a grinding sound and walls start to close in on you. So, like, have fun with that?

3

Crew swap?

Upon contact with any Lethe crew member Caduceus crew members will be offered the chance to officially join the Lethe crew once things are quiet enough that Rhys can voice the offer. Generally after any rescues are preformed. To accept Caduceus crew members must link their network bracelets to that of the Lethe crew member's for an uninterrupted minute.

>> Alert: I cannot contact the Hippocratic Navigator.
>> Sys.Admin advisory: suggest bringing crew under the Majority Rule protocol.

This will free them from the Hippocratic Protocol so they can fight but immediately put them under the Majority Rule Protocol. They will also no longer be able to contact Alyce on their devices until and unless something is done about Alyce's current situation and status.

4

Downtime & resupply.

Eventually the Reapers will either be defeated and scared off or will head out with their spoils in victory - that's up in the air dependent on player actions. Either way one thing is certain: characters will eventually be able to regroup and attempt to resupply the Lethe, preform repairs, and explore Keros and the ships docked there. Characters can kind of choose their own adventure for what they'd do next at this point.

The TDM will be flowing into our first in-game event in March, which will consist of landing (or crashing, or something else) on our first planet. The first planet is pre-determined in order for us to have the first event and TDM written well in advance but every planet after game open will be decided by vote as per our FAQ.

Wildcards welcome.

We aim to let players take creative lead for themselves when possible. Don't feel constrained by the above prompts. They're guidelines to help you get a feel for things - we're cool with people making shit up as long as it isn't making up an interdimensional portal home or something like that. Use common sense and "yes, and" away. We encourage use of our investigations and questions and will be trying to get to things in a timely manner. Most of our responses will come in the evenings.

Ship's Log.

This section of the event will be updated regularly with a brief outline of what's going on that everyone should know about. Just check it every so often if you want to be up to date!

Pursued by Reapers the Caduceus fled to the starship graveyard that was home to Keros station and the sleeping Lethe. As soon as the Caduceus was within sensor range the Lethe and some of its crew awoke. Some short time after the Caduceus crashed into the station after jettisoning several escape pods.

Alyce's core and several servers were removed from the Caduceus by Izuku. The remaining servers were removed by Alhaitham.

NAV • LOGS • NET • OOC • MEMES

code

Comments

[blastedass]

[Okay... he hadn't expected to be answered. Honestly thought this dragon was some creature that got out of its cage. He stares at the reptilian being for a few seconds, surprise on his face, before wiping it off and scowling up at it. Well, if it can talk, that's one problem removed.]

Doesn't look like you can do much even if you knew.

[What with those flapping wings and cracking tail not helping the dragon do anything more than spin further in the air. On the one hand, it keeps the beast trapped, but on the other hand, it's not gonna help anyone. And there's no fire-breaking raging attempting to torch everything. Or even (he assumes) eat the creatures around it...

Wait... don't tell him this monster came out of one of those pods! A sentient dragon of all things.]

It's called gravity, ya pile of scales! And it's fucked right now.

[He shoves off the ground and floats up into the air.]

Where'd you wake up?

[merelychewed]

[ Oh, the look Bakugo ends up getting. That look of long-suffering. ]

Of course, I would die only to find myself once more in the company of rude men. Why am I not surprised...

[ Admittedly, Bowen grew on him over time, so not all is lost.

Still, it's just his luck. Rather than peace amongst the stars, he has chaos and loud, sassy children. At this point, Draco gives up on trying to right himself as the sheer lack of gravity seems very intent to continue letting him slowly rotate around and around in place. At least if he holds still, it may stop him in one spot again. ]

I woke up here, little boy. [ If he's being called a pile of scales, Bakugo is going to be called little. ] Same as the rest of these creatures. I believe the holding chambers that had all of us opened on their own when the bracelet began rambling on about protocols.

[blastedass]

[Ignoring the look. Not so much the words.]

You wanna keep floating there spouting shit or you wanna get down?

[The mention of death, however, rubs him the wrong way. Mostly because he doesn't think he'd died and gone to space, but if this dragon's talking about passing on... Shit, he's NOT dead! Remember that!]

"Little-"!? [An ashen brow twitches in sheer annoyance at the retort. Oh this fucking lizard is gonna be left to rotate for DAYS! Until the mention of the bracelet snaps him out of his spite and back to task at hand. Indeed, there's a bracelet on the dragon's limb. Or wing. Or wherever the hell he's wearing it! But if this dragon's wearing one, that means he definitely is part of the "crew" of the Lethe. A big difference compared to the general livestock floating around.

Sentient dragon as a crew mate. Yeah, sure, whatever!

Bakugou aims one hand behind him and a smaller explosion detonates from his palm, angling him towards Draco's back. Which he promptly alights on like one would mount a horse. Rude? YEP! Care? NOPE!]

Brace your legs.

[Another explosion straight up, this one stronger and propelling both of them down towards the floor below. It'll at least get Draco out of the air and back in control of himself.]

[merelychewed]

[ Draco would have harped on further about how little Bakugou happened to be but the child proceeding to explode himself through the air to him and landing on him without permission whips that thought straight out of the dragon's head. All that's left is complete and utter indignity. ]

What?! How dare you—!

[ How dare he think that he can jump on his back like that is what he was going to say but that ends with a startled shout when he suddenly propels him towards the ground instead! Draco puts his legs out, preparing for what will most certainly be a crash landing of a dragon straight into the overgrown dirt below.

It won't hurt him, sure enough, but it will kick up quite a bit of dust into the air. ]

[blastedass]

[Did you want him to blast you through the air alone or maybe drag you along by your scaly neck? Nope! He's going down like a bronco for calling him "little" in the first place! That indignant response makes it even more amusing and Bakugou's wearing a wide smirk on the way to the ground.

Mind, he's cautious to not rocket them down, keeping the explosion tame enough to allow Draco to easily land on his legs without crashing or jarring his knees.

Bakugou's a jerk, but he's not about to be a fuck up on his "rescue" effort. Four solid 'clump whumps' of legs and claws on dirt still blows out a fair bit of overgrown greenery and soil. Touch down.

And he's off, dismounting from the dragon's back with a push on the spine and legs straddled a bit to take advantage of zero gravity. Which speaking of, now there's dirt in the air... Ugh.]

Don't get stuck cause I'm not helping you down again.

[Now to deal with the other animals.]

[merelychewed]

[ Draco sneezes in the cloud of dirt his forced landing has kicked up but that'll be all. He's quick to dig the claws of all four feet into the dirt and overgrown plantlife to ensure he doesn't begin drifting again before swinging his head around to fix Bakugou with a glower as the boy kicks off back into zero gravity. ]

You could have asked before doing that!

[ He is a very displeased dragon. However, he is also a dragon who is no longer floundering around in the air, so as much as he would prefer to keep harping on at Bakugou, he does relent, albeit being very stiff-sounding about it. ]

But I do... [ Ugh, does he really have to say it? ] ...appreciate the help. I suppose.

[ Wow, super grateful-sounding there, Draco. Sure. Anyway, golden eyes flicker away from Bakugou to the other floating creatures. This is still all such nonsense. ]

Does anyone even know why, as you put it, "gravity is fucked"?

[ Look, that doesn't enter the English language as a curse word until long after Draco's time. He doesn't even consider how funny it must sound coming from him. ]

[blastedass]

[Look, he's dealing with a dragon. He'd rather not get whipcracked on the back by a tail, or worse, attempted chomp by sharp teeth. Can this guy breathe fire? Cause that's another problem. Either reason, he's abandoning the immediate area to deal with other animals since he got the big guy down and secure.]

You forget how to say thanks or something? [Right, he could've asked and Draco would still be up there right now cause they had to talk about how to do it. Compared to the executive decision route which resulted in this. Right now. Success.

When he gets the stiff-necked gratitude from clenched jaws, that's enough for him. Not that he needs it. Draco's secure. Bakugou catches onto one of the cats with one hand, cussing at it when the creature immediately starts to squirm in his grip.] God dammit, stop clawing at me, you little beast!

[Where are the cages?]

We're on some kind of spaceship and the fucking power's gone out all over the liner. People are trying to get the rooms back online one by one.

[Heh, he got a dragon to say "fuck". That makes his bratty side grin.]

[merelychewed]

[ Not even a thank you? Oh, the brat deserved one and yet... Draco, now firmly on the ground thanks to Bakugou, slow motion sprawls himself over the vegetation, although half of his tail still floats up into the air thanks to the lack in gravity. ]

Why, of course. Thank you for the rescue. [ There's a beat. Wait for it. ] And the free entertainment you are about to provide. Perhaps being stuck on a "space ship" will not be so bad after all.

[ He's having a pretty good time watching him tangle with that cat, even if he didn't understand even half of what Bakugou tried explaining. That said, he does extend a wing to point it off in the direction of the animal-specific sleep capsules. They're much roomier than the humanoid-sized ones. ]

Over there.

[blastedass]

[Somehow that "thank you" sounds both sincere and mocking at the same damn time. It'd serve that scaled bastard right if he winged this cat at him and let it claw at his face for a few minutes! But not trusting the dragon to keep the cat safe, Bakugou's left finally stuffing the fucking thing under his arm with its legs pinned.]

I'm not fucking entertaining you! [While he's probably certainly entertaining to watch. Fighting with a cat in zero gravity. The moment Draco points towards the capsules, Bakugou jerks his head towards them, noticing they're at least undamaged, albeit knocked around some.]

Don't just point at them, Scale Face! Get them! [He's not going to throw the cat towards the capsule and get a fur in one! Dragon guy can make himself useful (and figure out how he's gonna move in zero g for the time being). Consider it exercise!]

[merelychewed]

[ Scaly brow furrowing, Draco can only frown at Bakugou as he carries on like that. ]

Have you considered I would be more willing to help if you displayed even an ounce of politeness? [ He chides the boy, sounding far less amused now that it's being made clear that Bakugou sure does only seem to know how to speak at the volume of yell. ] Because until you do, I shall not lift a single one of my scales, on my face or otherwise, to help you, even though you did indeed help me first.

[ Which normally would mean him being happy to help out but not if he's being shouted at and insulted! ]

[blastedass]

[Oh this goddamn overgrown lizard... Bakugou's brows twitch in irritation at the dragon's stubbornness and sheer brass in telling him off like that. It's not like he NEEDS the help, but at the same time, this isn't the easiest work to do by himself! Herding a bunch of animals through space.]

I get it. You don't wanna let go of the ground. [With the cat under control, he detonates another explosion behind him and sails towards the animal crates.] Scared you'll get stuck flapping around in the air again?

[Bakugou lands on the crate and pushes the cat inside. It looks rough, but it's actually gentle and avoids hurting the pissed-off feline.]

Sure that'll look great. Big bad dragon, unable to round up some livestock.

[Tactic change.]

[merelychewed]

[ Said big bad dragon gives a snort and turns his head in the direction of the floating cow-like... things. Draco isn't sure what they are but they were making cow-like noises in their gravityless panic, so that was what he would assume they are for now. ]

Ah, so you want me, a large predator, to launch myself through the air at frightened, helpless livestock?

[ There's a pause as he raises his scaly eyebrows, golden yellow eyes flitting Bakugou's way to gauge his reaction to that particular idea. Then, he pushes himself back up to stand, although he does not yet do what he threatened to do. There are no dragon's launching themselves at poor cow-things just yet. He takes his time, stretching his wings out and then tucking them in again and then... ]

Very well. I shall do just that.

[ Bakugou is allowed a moment to disagree with this plan but he had better be quick about it. ]

[blastedass]

[Cows. Getting the cat secured, Bakugou pushes off the cages and heads for a dog. Lot easier to handle than some hissing flea bag cat. He'll get the bigger ones after he's done with the smaller. Like chickens and dogs and shit.

As for the idea, Bakugou frowns at the logic of it. Sure, normally you'd be an idiot to want to throw a damn shark at a fish. But there are two things here working against that idea.]

What, you worried you'll lose your sanity and turn into a mindless eating beast?

[Since the dragon seems perfectly cognizant and communicative right now. Enough to taunt with sarcasm and attitude. Doing himself a disservice suggesting he can't control his predatory nature.]

There's no gravity. They best they can do is shit themselves.

[Aka, the animals can't do a thing about who or what comes to help them. They're animals. He doesn't know how dexterous Draco is with his claws, tail, and mouth, but you know... he didn't seem unwilling to help cause he couldn't, but more cause he chose not to. Big difference.]

You're smart enough to handle this, Scale Face. Stop playing stupid.

[Whether that's a count of trust or something else, who knows.]

[merelychewed]

Hmm...

[ Foul-mouthed and needlessly abrupt Bakugou might be but Draco can't fault his logic. He's breezed right through the dragon's game without so much as a single damn given and, at first, it earns a thoughtful look, and then... a laugh as he takes it in stride. It isn't always a bad thing to be called out like that. ]

Very well. I cannot disagree with you, even if you are a crass child.

[ Which roughly translates into Bakugou wins this one. He proceeds to go forward with his previous threat of launching himself at the cattle still slowly pinwheeling through the air. While the two creatures do not like that, as predicted, Draco does it to help now rather than to make Bakugou's life that much more difficult.

Of course, there are a whole lot of bawling noises from the cow-things at the sight of a big, scaly monster gliding through the air — which is odd to Draco, flying without even having to unfurl his wings — towards him. He reaches out for the first, catching it firmly but with care between his foreclaws. The second one, he sails on past, and now he has to figure out...

Wait, how does he stop now? Oh, oh no, this is going to—

Well, at least he manages to turn in the air to put his back to some random farm-related building before careening into it. The cow-thing is safe, although Draco lets out an annoyed grumble. ]

Bah, why is this place so troublesome?

[blastedass]

[He's not the top 5 of his class for nothing. Aggressive, rude, and all the appearance of a delinquent that he is, Bakugou is actually quite the brain to go along with his brawn and power. So when he hears that brief laugh as the dragon gathers himself, he chalks it up to his victory before the other male even comments on it. Guess he's not a stupid lizard after all.]

Better prove me right. [He's not calling him out for his petulance for no reason. Bakugou fully expects the dragon to have both the intelligence and ability to handle the challenge in front of him. He's not a mindless beast and he's already proven his smarts. So go round up the damn pests and show him some dragon skill!

... and also make the cattle shit themselves, as expected. Gross.

Noise levels make a racket as well. With Draco heading for the bovines, Katsuki scoops the dog up and blasts back towards the crates, putting the animal inside and shutting it once then. Then heads for the pens the cattle are kept in. One good tug swings the doors open, checking to make sure they're not broken and the locks still work. Then turns his attention back to Draco.

Honestly, it's pretty fucking awesome to see a dragon sailing through the air. Crazy, but awesome. Using his foreclaws to capture the beast without wrecking it. Tch, fucking knew it. Playing dumb out of some stubborn sense of pride. Takes one to know one.]

Shit- [Another explosion rockets him off the cage collection, zipping past the dragon and blasting twice more with controlled bursts to get himself behind him. Then braces his back against Draco's (see? not riding like a horse this time) and uses another two explosions to counter the dragon's speed and weight. Slowing him down before either crash into the building equipment. The worst part of space stations...]

No gravity, dammit. That's why.

[merelychewed]

[ Draco can't help but let out a growl that rumbles right through him and to Bakugou where he braces against his back; he knows he wouldn't have liked ramming into a building any better but the reaction is instinctual and he bares some of his teeth, lip curled briefly when he cranes his head around on that long neck of his to stare down at the hero-in-training.

He does rein it in, though. He knows better. ]

I am not sure this is the kind of flight I enjoy. [ This entire lack of gravity lacks in... the weight of flying, he supposes. The air is still and everything is in disarray and cluttering up the space. Draco could rattle off an entire list of complaints but he won't. ] Give me a push toward the enclosures, would you?

[ He still has the bawling cow-thing wrapped up in his foreclaws, held tight to his chest with the hooves wisely pointed away. ]

[blastedass]

[Bite him and he'll blow you damn head off. (Not really, but you know, threats.) The explosions aren't too hard to manage in the zero gravity, having taken just a few tries to orient himself when he first got out of that cryopod. By now, he's as good here as he is at home so stopping the dragon's soar isn't difficult. Still makes them rebound slowly the opposite direction since there's no real good surface to safely land on at the moment. Best to stay in the air and recollect.]

It's not cause you can't do more than go in a straight line without any repulsion to change direction. [Something the dragon doesn't have(?) since there's no air for his wings to catch and beat on. Best to get them through this task and done. Bakugou glances around the dragon's body to triangulate the direction, aims with one hand behind him, and "boom!" sends them towards the enclosure at a nice clip.]

Where the hell are you from? Some science lab creation?

[merelychewed]

"Some science lab creation"?

[ Draco echoes the words but he can't make sense of half of it. Oh well, at least this time he doesn't have an adverse, snappy reaction to being sent flying through zero-g by the angry lad's explosions. He has to wonder if he might not be able to use his tail as a rudder at least, given more time to acclimate and test such a theory out, but now isn't the time for it.

The cow-like creature continues to wail and flail and Draco isn't sure how much longer he can safely keep it in his claws.

Lab creation, though... ]

I am no more a creation than you are, lad. I lived in the lands of mankind from hatching to death, where the Britons once ruled.

[blastedass]

[Oh great. That's fucking fitting. Either he's not from a science lab, which raises more questions, or he is and can't remember, which is the optimal explanation. Bakugou keeps their path steady and the explosions light enough to remain slower than previously. Directing them towards the corral so Draco can get the flailing beast inside it.

Has to swing around to the side to nudge them into a better angle, but it's not too long before the dragon's able to catch onto the pen where the cows were previously kept. Bakugou's gonna trust he'll be able to shove the beast in without much issue. He'll handle securing the gate behind it.]

You mean you're from the past?

[Britons he recognizes. This creature is from Great Britain?! England?! What the fuck?]

You're from Earth?!

[merelychewed]

[ Draco has no trouble at all hitting the pen with his back legs and stopping them there. Shoving the alien critter back into its pen is equally simple enough now that he's actually at it. In it goes, still bawling in horror at being so manhandled (or is it dragonhandled if Draco is doing it?). ]

The past greatly depends on what time you come from, lad. Perhaps. [ Ah, but he sounds surprised by this. The dragon will crane his head back around to peer at Bakugou from over a shoulder, a scaly brow quirked in curiosity. ] But yes? Why would it be such a shock to you that I do?

[blastedass]

[Dragonhandled. Definitely dragonhandled. Whatever. It's a cow. It'll forget in time. At least it's inside and safe and they can focus on getting the others back in their pens. The cats and dogs are already shut up, so now it's the livestock. Fucking chickens are gonna be a pain in the ass. Bakugou'll probably have to handle them alone.]

Because Dragons don't exist where I come from. They're fucking make believe. [Dinosaurs existed, but dragons? NOPE! Only in fiction stories. Bakugou's wearing a skeptical face, sneer and all, arms crossed over his chest as if he needs some more reassurance that's really where the dragon came from. Wow... is that a quirked eyebrow ridge? Fucking weird seeing expressions on that dinosaur-like face.] Any "records" we have are stories from thousands of years ago. No fucking bones either.

[merelychewed]

[ To that, Draco can only give an indignant huff. Make believe! ]

Ah, yes, because children who shoot blasts of fire form their hands are so much more reasonable than the idea of dragons being real. [ Last he checked, that was definitely not a thing, either! ] But if you must know, the only way you'd get a piece of a dragon is if you were to extract it from one of us while still alive.

[ Does that sound awful? It sure does. Well, now that the first cow-thing has been stowed, Draco gently kicks off from the pens, sending them drifting back out and across the deck. ]

Otherwise, we return to the stars once dead.

[blastedass]

[Don't get huffy with him! That's the world he came from, ya overgrown lizard!]

Careful. You're gonna start sounding jealous. The Number 10 hero in my world is the Dragoon Hero: Ryukyu. Her Quirk allows her to transform into a dragon. She looks like a silver, slimmer version of you. [With tits. While dragons themselves are make believe in his world, they aren't forgotten or ignored. Many people still find them amazing and both heroes and villains theme themselves after them.] Relax. I'm not gonna rip out a horn or tooth, Scale Face.

[He doubts he's going to be able to take anything from here back with him once they do find a way home. Cause they all need to go home someday, dammit! Bakugou lets himself go and floats backwards, watching Draco push off a moment later and drift. Hmph, he's getting the hang of it.]

Your dragons come from stars?