Chapter Text
Life has been…. Strange and difficult to navigate through.
Her life wasn’t bad by any means, far from it. Kit has a loving family, a place to call home, friends, and a whole world to explore.
She always dreamed of being part of something bigger. She heard so many stories when she was little, of fantastical lands far beyond the jungles. Sure, she knew of other settlements, and she was there before during the incident with Scratch but- There was so much more out there.
She heard so many tales of wanderers who have been through fire and ice, have gone from hell to back- That told stories of lands serene, far from their humble little village.
Lands covered in golden fields of wheat, bathed in pink as the sun sets every day.
Lands broken into small island chains by currents and shifting oceans.
Lands surrounding gigantic geological formations rich in minerals, bringing those sights unimaginable wealth.
Their village was beautiful, yes, but it was… so small in comparison.
Kit heard stories of great heroes that protected the innocent, gave their all for the ones they love. How the heroes of old defended the lands from invasions of their kind and monsters alike.
It was all so grand and ambitious… She could be one, maybe one day, ha.
But that’s all dreams, what was reality like for her? Well, it was a bit mundane, but having friends like Scratch or Kaboodle – you know there won’t be a single day without some shenanigans happening.
She would figure out what she wanted to be later (seeing a pattern here), but for the most part Kit’s priorities were to get to know more about the world, help her family out with their business, and maybe travel someday.
That was more than enough for her to think day and night about.
Things changed with HER arrival.
You know, Kaboodle told her that day, when they were out in the middle of the night…
“No matter what, we got this, okay?” He said, offering her his grabby hand. Which she took, nodding in approval.
Boy were they NOT prepared for what was to come.
They saw something break orbit and crash into the ground, toppling trees and uprooting smaller plants as the weird shape plowed the ground below.
They remained hidden for a time, until they saw the figures move into the village proper, not stopping at the defensive walls for long.
You couldn’t imagine the panic that the two felt at that moment. Everyone besides them was asleep. What is something happened? What if those people were malicious? They could cause a lot of harm! WHAT WERE THEY TO DO!?
They didn’t have the time to think, they just- Go. Kit grabbed stunned Kaboodle and ran as fast as she could, barging through the main entrance gate, taking cover as they assessed the threat.
…
What. What. What. What. What. What-
You know the deal, they lunged and fought “their”, “copies”.
They were freaked out, you know. The standoff was the last point before the embers sparked into a full blown fire.
Can you blame them? No, not really. They were scared, and there was no explanation of what any of this meant. They couldn’t have know that those people were- like- good.
Well, at least they lost fair and square. No trickery or whatever. They were just glad that nobody was hurt after… the whole ordeal. It was already exhausting just to think there are two of you.
…
The next few days, heck, weeks even have been…. Complicated.
She got along well enough with the other “her”, and the other people were also pretty nice, actually!
Kaboodle seemed a bit more skeptical, but trusted the judgement of his friends.
He read a book about something similar like… “Clone theories” or “parallel universes” and all that jazz, but he didn’t think any of it held ground.
He though it to be just entertainment with pseudoscientific facts thrown into the mix to spice up the reading experience, but it seems SOME part of it was true. At least to him all this makes more sense, and hey- getting to talk to another “you” is an interesting experience. Can you brag about that yourself? Didn’t think so.
But back on track- Meeting them- this group- Was so bizzare.
Creatures she didn’t particularly recognize, only being to assign vague labels in her head to parallel their world, the space ship that can fly through entire universes, clones of her and Kaboodle- All of it was so much.
But… There were differences, they could tell, all of them.
The other…. Well- THEM were different in size compared to Kit and Kaboodle, they were physically weaker and visibly far more tired, worn down by… She could only assume constant fighting. No amount of small heals can erase the scars of attacks that split mountains.
From caution, fear and aggression – to sympathy, worry and care.
That was the progression of what they experienced in that time. They grew closer, they… Knew so much.
This other Kaboodle… He knew tech like the back of his motherboard, he could fix anything given the time.
In comparison… Her companion was far less proficient with it, even if he was still an outstanding mechanic for his skill level. He was also less of a dick to others, that much was evident. Not so snarky.
It’s not too bad though, it’s okay to be a little on the edge after… Whatever they have gone through. It must’ve been a lot if…
…
I guess there is no putting it off for any longer, hahaa…
The other Kit… She… Seemed to be the most impacted by… all of this.
She seems to be the leader of this group, or at least the anchor that keeps everyone going despite the odds being stacked against them.
…
She always seems so tired, so… Worried.
Her senses fluctuate from being sharp and always on edge – to being numb and unresponsive, her mood tends to swing from completely normal – to nearly having a breakdown…
She constantly struggled with sleep, until recently at least…
Just what happened… What did she go through, that was so painful… That… She is like this…?
You have a hunch, but you would never dare ask, not without her permission. She is still you, and she deserves to take is slow and do it at her own pace.
She deserves the rest, no matter what. She’s been through too much already.
…
This… Got Kit thinking.
This expertise… Proficiency in fighting, thinking on the fly, seeking weak spots, using the environment to her advantage… Stars- even the way she just- Knows what and how to do things that Kit wanted to do herself, too.
…
She must’ve been through this before, some of it at least.
Does that mean she got to be the hero? But then why is she here… Why is she so… Broken?
…
Whatever it was… She won’t let it haunt her other self, her friend- No. Her FAMILY.
She won’t let whatever that was happen again, and will ensure her new friends are safe too. They’ve gotten close already, and she can’t imagine a life where they aren’t part of it.
Their bond… Kinship… They will be there for each other. Just like she promised to Kaboodle, Scratch- Everyone.
They will protect their home. Protect their friends and family.
Such is the conclusion that Kit came to, and her resolve would not be shaken, no matter what.
…
And now… Hm, how about we return to the present, and see what these two are up to? I’d assume they sneaked out of the house late again, only to this time… Go to the local observatory? Curious… I guess it IS the best time to stargaze, in this case closer than just under the night sky, in that case they would’ve gone to their usual hanging out spot on the hill-
Aaaaanyways- Getting side tracked already-
Ahem, so! The Observatory. It’s a relatively small building, built out of a material similar to regular stones and marble (painted accordingly, a white that faded to the slightly grey-yellow tint), it had 4 entrances on each side of it, had a large glass dome, and housed a giant telescope that was installed recently. It wasn’t anything special, nor was it state of the art technology- a handout, a gift from another settlement that had installed a better one recently.
It was a bit dusty due to lack of use due to infrequent visits but… It would do.
All they could see was stars, stars, stars…
How did you do it again…? Ah, right.
You picked the one you liked most(usually the brightest one) and whispered something… A prayer or a wish, something of sorts… So that maybe, whatever you wished for can be imprinted onto the star, and perhaps the Universe will hear it.
It’s mostly a legend these days, wishing for answers from something beyond their understanding or grasp.
Would they know of the Gameovere? In some capacity maybe, in general? No.
But it didn’t matter too much right now, they wanted to give it a shot anyways.
Or- I guess Kit wanted to, Kaboodle wasn’t too enthusiastic, feeling likei t was mostly a waste of time even if their new friends are proof of something greater existing beyond their planets, galaxy- Universe. He was more curious to see if he can find any traces of other worlds being like.. theirs. Having life and all that entails.
…
Kit would try anyways.
“There goes nothing” She said audibly, looking through the lense of the telescope, picking the brightest star she could find.
She wished…. To be able to keep everyone safe, be able to help them, save them.
She would repeat it three times, and witness the picked star sparkle ever so brighter, even for just a split second.
Did it mean it… Worked? Nothing changed. She felt the same, the world was the same, and even the glow returned to normal.
Was it not strong enough, or did it work at all?
Oh well, it was worth a shot. It was an interesting experiment, at least. To see a star react to a wish like this.
…
They would spend a little while taking turns to look at the stars, eventually just taking a seat on a few chairs on wheels and, looking through the glass dome, at the sky.
“Y’know…” Kaboodle began “Never in a million years did I think we’d not only get confirmation of something greater existing beyond the bounds of our world, but to also SEE something so unthinkable as our other selves is… Something, alright.” He wanted to get it out, since they didn’t have the time to talk about it before, not when helping others settle in for a while.
“Hah, you don’t say.” Kit chuckled, leaning on the back of the chair, staring out into the sky, her expression unreadable.
“I was so scared at first, but now…” She would lower her gaze and turn to face Kaboodle “I just want to know that they will be okay. They are our friends, our family, even if they are different.”
After hesitating for a bit, Kaboodle would lean back as well, simply saying “Second that.”
…
“Do you think she will agree to help me out tomorrow? I’ve got some ideas, and you guys could join in too!” Kit would offer with sparkles in her eyes.
“Ehhhh… Maybe. I was going to help our the other me and Scratch to figure out the thing that Gobbles was doing with the ship lately.” His eye would shift back to the stars “I’d like to though, maybe just another day. It would be cool.”
“Ah- Of course- I’m sure we can find time a little later… I’ll get it organized, don’t worry” Kit would put one of her hands to hold her chin as she considered her options “How does… Next week sound?”
“My schedule is free, so I don’t see why not.” Kaboodle shrugged “Gotta ask other though, dunno if they got something else in mind for that.”
“Well, obviously- But, I’m sure it won’t be the last time we get to do something like this.” She would sigh and slide off of the smooth chair, extending her hand to Kaboolde, who takes it and quickly slides to wrap around her in his usual backpack transportation position. Off they go, it’s already late.
…
The next morning went as usual, only that Scratch, Gobbles and both Kaboodle’s were up earlier, surrounding their ship Nimble as they discussed.
“So let me get this straight… You want to recalibrate the neurology sensors AND tinker with an ‘empathy module’ that supposedly exists, and I don’t know of.” Asked Kaboodle, not particularly angry, just. Flabbergasted by the suggestion. He knew this ship through and through- what would even accomplish?
“Well, yeah- Kind of. I just need some help managing it, as well as having a second, third and forth opinion-“ Gobbles explained, trying to prove that this would be a good idea.
“Hmm… I can see where you’re going with this, but I don’t know how plausible that would be to do” said The “Sidekick”, his arms crossed as he watched over the deactivated ship.
“Uhmm… Well… Now that I think of it-“ Scratch would reach into the front pocket of her work apron, taking out the gizmo-gadget she was tinkering and improving in the background during the past few days. “If it works similar to this one, we could… Actually get it to work”
“Really think so?” Kaboodle would interject, seeming skeptical of any radical modifications without an all clear from command(cough cough Dusk-).
“Purr-ety sure” Scratch said with a wink, making Kaboodle close his eye in slight annoyance, trying not to blow up from either laughter or secondhand embarrassment for that sort of a pun.
The “Sidekick” held on worse, taking minutes to recover and say his piece “S-so- Uh, yeah, we get to it then?” He would ask, one of his hands shifting into a welding tool to make adjustments.
“I’d say so!” Said Gobbles with confidence “I think it would only be fair for our companion who saved us so many times”
“Then let’s starts!” Enthusiastically said Scratch, holding a box of all sorts of tools and other gadgets that will come in helpful for their procedure.
Oh boy, it will be a long day.
What were they even up to anyways? With The Nimble I mean- It was just a ship, just code that made up a metal ball that flies around and gets them places. There isn’t much more to it than that.
…
Right?
…
Ah, perhaps that’s why Gobbles was so insistent on this whole… Emotions and changes and improvements.
I wonder if his theory will succeed…
Giving their companion autonomy and the freedom to choose for itself, who or what it wants to be.
What it wants to do.
I wonder what it’s thinking... Would that be enough? Does it work? Does ANY of it matter, in the end?
I don't know.
I suppose we will have to find out, shortly...