Zhangku

IC: Souper Saladd So they wanted some sandwiches. They would get their human sandwiches soon enough. Nodding as they ordered whatever they seemed to want, sans whatever they didn't want, Souper got to work quickly. Within a few moments, the slug chef handed Estelle a pair of Pork, onions, and lettuce sandwiches and gave William a pair of bacon, lettuce, onions, and tomato sandwiches. It seemed that they were going to go about this all day, so xhe made them without waiting for Estele to say what she wanted in particular because xhe felt especially bored today.

IC: Souper Saladd Laughing a little, the slug chef responded to Vincent's unanswered question, "Oh, that's easy. Not telling you what was in it, but I CAN tell you what wasn't. Paprika wasn't."

IC: Souper Saladd Shrugging, the slug chef slugged away, going back to the front as apparently the chef had another customer. "Oh, that." Souper said, sighing, "No matter. I already cleaned it up. But if you break into my kitchen while I am not here ever again, Vincent, I will cut off part of you in your sleep and feed it to you. You will eat it voluntarily because it will smell like the best thing you have ever eaten, and you won't realize what you've done until ITS TOO LATE." Souper said, yawning and moving away, "...are you hungry in the meantime? I can cook if needed."

IC: Souper Saladd Smirking a little, he waved off her compliment. Xhe was the ONLY slug chef she knew. Yawning, the slug went back into the rear of the kitchen, sitting down. Who was going to order something next?

IC: Souper Saladd Blanching at the thought of deep-frying so much fish, or rather fish and pseudo-fish, Souper sighed and relented, going to the back and getting all of the food she requested as deep fried as a Kentucky Born Retiree's heart. After fifteen minutes, the food was done and the Slug Chef put them together as artfully as possible, giving her a side of ketchup, mustard, and every other dipping sauce xhe had available. "Order up, Cat-lady."

IC: Souper Saladd Souper blanched at the thought and responded the only way that the slug chef could think of doing. "...how do you want them prepared then? I have a deep fryer back here if you want THAT."

IC: Souper Saladd Fish. Why did it have to be fish. Nodding to Ashley, xhe asked to her, "So what do you want, fishwise? I have tuna, salmon, Xillenese Pseudo-fish, and Gigantoric Goldfish."

IC: Souper Saladd So as usual everything went....less that stellar. The party had erupted in death and mayhem while he'd been tucked away in the ship's kitchen, they'd evac'd and now everything was mostly stable. Yay. Despite that, he was still on fresh food duty and xhe had no intention of going off duty any time soon. Today was going to be a good day to cook. And his first order of the "afternoon" or whatever functional time it was for the crew, not that xhe actually slept often. As a slug, you'd think that xhe'd need to sleep several hours a day to deal with the mental strain, but no, Souper had no time for sleep when xhe had a whole list of hungry crewmen bothering the chef at ungodly hours. So the rebel from a farming world wanted a Hamburger. Nodding to the Cardean, The Slug Chef quickly started work on the hamburger, staring directly into the human's eyes until they looked away. Yes, must keep the tradition of keeping the humans uncomfortable. Souper blinked a few times and regained mental footing, scanning the ship for what was to come. Ah. Spot. The doggie door that only opened up for spot opened up as the slug dog entered the kitchen, corralled in a corner until Souper could deal with him. Finishing the burger quickly, Souper rang the bell and chimed, "Order up, Caldean. Eat some FARM FRESH food" xhe said, moving back to the kitchen proper as xhe bent down and stroked the slug dog, the soft texture of its skin calming to the much larger, not canine slug thing. Sighing, xhe went into the kitchen's back and grabbed a big kale "steak", throwing it over to Spot, "Eat this and go back to Estelle. Now." xhe said, as the slug dog left the room. Estelle would be here soon and she always ordered the oddest things.

IC: Souper Saladd Well then. Another party to not attend or cook for. It seemed that today was a gold letter day for the slug person known as Souper Saladd by these humans and other various races. For now, however, the slug would wait and see what the Engi would do to the kitchen stores that the Slug had put away for safe keeping. Just because they were mechanical fleshy beings, it didn't mean that they wouldn't sneak away some of the food as snacks or potentially sell it to the highest bidder, especially some of the celebratory wine and spirits that the slug had kept hidden just for some sort of event that had not yet happened. And also the weapons that the slug kept in the kitchen drawer. Just in case, of course. You never know who could try to steal the kale after all. Yawning, the slug sat back in the seat that was ergonomically created for them. Special orders to the federation gave them quite the place to put their bottom, after all. Especially when it was so soft....gods and ancestors, the Kale was getting to them again...

IC: Souper Saladd Hearing the insane engi ramble was more than enough to temporarily distract the slug from the incoming transmission from headquarters, "Just to let you know, comrades, we're cut off communications wise with the ship. Chances are whatever demon that the Engi speaks of is causing this disruption, which tells me two things. One this thing knows we're here, and two it can cut off signals of multiple sorts. I felt a slight disturbance psiionically, but didn't want to disturb you all with this information as it was not currently relevant. I believe we're all being watched. Let us hope that this...human chosen can tell us what is happening."

IC: Souper Saladd Odd. Well, xhe supposed that might be the case. However, it seemed Wulf had seen some rather odd footprints here...now what could those be. Turning to the rest of the group, xhe asked a question that pretty much all of them probably wanted to answer, "Should we un-cryofreeze one of them to see what is going on, exactly? I would advise, for now, not to unfreeze all of them at once. We should determine what exactly is going on here before we go as thoroughly as that. For all we know they might be test-subjects." xhe said, aware of something apparently probing their mind,"And be on the lookout. You don't know what else we might find here."

IC: Souper Saladd It was odd to see a bunch of humans in cryotubes. Especially given that the facility was abandoned and that there were...odd life signs nearby. Deciding to figure out if these humans had minds left, Souper began to scan them all, attempting to figure out why they were cryogenically frozen in the first place. At the very least before anything that was nearby could come and eat their group. Xhe didn't feel like being eaten today, for now it was for the best to just scoop in and leave.

IC: Souper Saladd It smelled terrible on this planet. Then again, every planet that wasn't similar to the jungle that Souper had once called home, called by a different name, in a different time, was terrible smelling. Earth was a weird smell as well. Too much variety. Either way, the mission was more important, and as per their job, Souper began to scan for nearby life forms. If the Colonel was right, xhe'd pick up something sooner or later. Perhaps it was for the best to allow the terrible headache to get worse for now. At least there was kale waiting for them back home on the ship. After all, it helped with the headaches in a way that no human would understand.

IC: Souper Saladd, He Who Is Welcome To the Jungle "Alright, Colonel. If I may put forward a name, generally we named planets after revered members of our society. Might as well consider continuing that tradition. Perhaps we should name it after one of your great humans? Or do you do that for inane reasons back home? I can never tell" xhe said, shaking their head, "Call it something strong. Xanthus. There is a ruined city on your planet with that name, correct? I think it might fit, here." they said, wondering if their idea would even be considered given the situation.

IC: Souper Saladd, Thinker of about it "Very well. You have determined my usefulness and I will do this. However. For this, I will ask you to do one thing. If I died, make sure the contract is still paid out to my family. Understood?" the slug said, the priorities straight. It didn't matter if they survived. It really didn't. By the end of the day, Souper would find out what was going on here and move on, as they always did when these sorts of situations happened. Looking towards the jungle, Souper couldn't help but feel somewhat nostalgic. It was like home.

IC: Souper Saladd, the Grim Cooker "Relief? I cannot delve into their minds and cure what ails them mentally. That is not how I work. I am NOT careful. The only way I can reach out to other minds safely is if they can speak back to me. Unless you wish me to cook for them" the slug said, shaking their head, "Besides...explain to me what I must be missing, Colonel. I do not like to be wrong about my assumptions" xhe said, watching the colonel carefully. There was something that she was not telling the slug.

IC: Souper Saladd, the slug that time apparently thought was a soldier. "Yes, I do indeed have a question for you. Aside from the obvious, 'Does the kitchen need to be manned'?" the slug said, obviously heavily sarcastic in that the tone was dripping with disgust for the ground mission, "Am I to detect thoughts of these....people...so that we know if they are about to ambush us? Or am I to be used as bait? Or perhaps this is all an elaborate ploy to eliminate my cooking and not have to pay me...ah well, it doesn't matter, my actual question is, quite simply, why did you put me on the ground, Colonel?" xhe asked, somewhat annoyed that they were to be actually used for a possible combat situation.

IC: Souper Saladd The Kitchen. That was all that the slug was worried about. Whatever had been happening, the slug did not care. Sure, xhe felt a psionic pulse coming from inside the ship, but it was directed outward, not inward. If it had been doing so in that manner, xhe would've worked and gotten to handling it if the other slugs on the ship did not do anything to fix it. Munching on some kale, the slug simply watched to see if someone was coming into the mess hall to relax for a short time. You know. While the ship was under attack.

IC: Souper Saladd What xhe wanted to make, huh? Well, Deuce was in for a surprise. "Very well. Your food will be on the counter in ten minutes, wait at a table and you will know when the food arrives" xhe said, surprising the human. Time of day was hard to determine, so the slug decided to make something interesting for breakfast. After a few minutes, ten total, a large omelette was on a plate with some chopped up fruit in a bowl next to it. Inside of the egg dish was turkey bacon, sausage, and Souper's favorite vegetable, Kale. There was also some cheese in it as well, although it was simply small slices of cheddar. "Order up, human" Souper said, remembering what xhe'd say at the place that they used to work at.

IC: Souper Saladd Rolling their eyes, the slug seemed more nonplussed that before as they got the grill lit up again, "The menu is ask and I will tell you if I can make it in a timely manner. If I can do so, I will do so, if not, I will tell you otherwise. Ask and you shall receive as part of the fact you are a member of the crew and I serve those who need to eat fresh food and those who eat fresh food only. Now, Deuce, what would you like to eat?"

IC: Souper Saladd, open for business Wallowing a bit in their own emotions for a little bit, the slug got a hold of themselves when the knock on the window of the kitchen came. Knowing immediately that it wasn't Nicole again, Souper pressed the button that opened up the kitchen for service. For now, the slug still had a job to do. Thinking about the past could come up again later. Having already packaged the leftover Salmon away for later consumption, the slug looked over to the tall human and huffed, "Yes, what do you want, Deuce? The kitchen is open for service still, just had to deal with a rather uncooperative doctor and shut her off from my kitchen's services. What would you like?" xhe said, still somewhat tense.

IC: Souper Saladd, Them Who Does Not Like Those Sorts Of Questions Bristling as Nicole turned to speak to the slug, Souper turned to Nicole, while xhe was still quite busy cleaning the grill off from the detritus of the salmon, such was life as a chef. Not speaking for a moment, the slug looked up and spoke simply, "That is a question I will not answer. When we are all on an important mission to save those that do not seek annihilation, we do not dredge up our horrible nightmares that cause us to be incapable to dream of anything else. If you again make your past the only business that matters ahead of your duty again and ask me this question, I will not even deign to respond. You know NOTHING of trauma. NOTHING." the slug said, pushing the button that shut the gaps in the walls with metal as the slug slinked away, cleaning the rest of the kitchen.

IC: Souper Saladd Shrugging, the Slugperson did as she asked, taking a little bit of time to get it nice and seasoned after dipping it in the natural soy oil fryer. After no longer needing to prepare it, xhe put it on a plate with some fries and a thing of water and put it on the counter, "Here, Ashley. It's ready for you."

IC: Souper Saladd Giving a slight glare at the direction of more people arriving in the room, the slug's vision told them that it was just Ashley, so the angryness sort of faded. Taking the salmon off of the grill, xhe began to fillet it until it was no longer a solid piece of salmon flesh, repeating the action with the other slabs of salmon on the grill. As xhe prepared it, the slug looked over to Ashley and company, "I suppose you two...want some salmon? How would you like it, sandwich, burger, or specially seasoned and served to you? Or perhaps you just want it fried." xhe asked, going over the various choices.

IC: Souper Saladd, Early Memories Sluknar. It had been a very long time since the slug had thought of their first home. Systernius, the planet it was on, was a jungle planet, and as a slugling it was paradise. Cooking the salmon in from of them, the Slug Chef continued to reminisce. The city Sluknar was the colonial capital and as an earlier settled place compared to the rest of the planet, it was the only place interstellar travel came and went from. It was filled with fruit trees and the slug-equivalent to the human plant Kale all over the place. It really was made so that no slug would go hungry and resort to piracy or anything silly like that. Forcing down the salmon with their food-flapper, or a spatula as the human's called it, xhe continued to think... --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was a normal day in Sluknar. Slugging along with their parents, a young Souper, or as xhe was known then S'parznax Salzarorodd, was going down to the store. It was store day. The sky was filled with clouds closer to the ground than any on Earth, yet close to the surface enough to be supremely visible. It rained a lot on Systernius, such was the jungle climate that it seemed to have all over, being a small planet. Yawning, S'parznax, with their parents, arrived at the store... "Can I get some veggies from the veggie section, parent?" the young slugling asked, small in comparison to the large hulk of flesh that their two parents had. They were large due to a lifetime of sedentary farming, using machines to deal with the crops. As a result, they were each around 300 pounds, slightly above normal for the sedentary farmers of the planet's surface. However, they both leaned down, their heavy pink antennae nuzzling the little slug and nodding, "Go along child" they said in unison, due to the fact that they were practically one mind at this point in their marriage, "Go get your favorite. You've been a good little slug, we'll fetch you if you take too long" they spoke, leaving Souper to go off to get some food. Within moments of Souper's arrival in the section, however, the sky began to shake above the store. Worried, the couple Salzarorodd slugged their way over to their child, grabbing the slugling, "Come" they both said, "We must get to the shelter. There must be another one of those pirate raids" Nodding in agreement, Souper took a hand of each of the large slugs and they headed out the door. Just as they did that, however, darkness hovered above them and then Souper knew nothing. Hours, if not days, later, the little slug woke up, on a table. Some humans were hovering over them as they were muttering something in a language that Souper had not yet learned. Pushing a button, one of the humans muttered something along the lines of "Let's see if this one survives, we haven't tested on a child yet" and held the slugling down as a machine, equipped with a small drill, began to bare down on them. Looking to the left, just before the humans could hold the slug's head still, Souper saw something that would change their life forever. Piles of dead slugs with holes in their heads. Including Souper's parents. Dead. ------------------------------------------------------- Shaking their head out of their reverie of endless hate, Souper focused on the salmon. Xhe was lucky it was as thick as it was, it just needed to be flipped over now. Frowning and doing so, Souper frowned. The daydreams were coming back. Xhe thought that they'd gotten past them but...sometimes the past refused to go away.