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Help Me Polarize, Help Me Down [Thunder and I, L]

Postby zapdragon555 » 05/14/2015 11:02 PM

Image

Blake really hated getting mail. That was a given; it was never from anyone he wanted to hear from. Most of it was bills--he was used to seeing those, though Matt had always paid them in the past when they shared an apartment--and the rest was advertisements, junk, and finally, letters from his parents. The only parents in the world, Blake was sure, who still spent money on stamps to send letters to a son who would never return them.

He supposed it was awful of him to just snub their letters. He read them, really. Most of the time. But usually they just made him feel shitty. And there was something terribly fake about them, too, the kind of fake a pair of social workers would show to their depressed and estranged son. They'd always send him things, too, check up on his habit of taking his medicine--if one could call it a habit--ask how living alone was going and ask if he wanted to come home. Blake hated it. He really, really did. And so it was for that reason he usually ignored the things he got in the mail, instead piling them in a closet never to see the light of day.

But with this package, such a treatment would prove a bit difficult. Blake gaped at the human-sized box, face pale as a few delivery men carefully moved it inside of his apartment, and the one thought that made it through Blake's head was something along the lines of, Great, my folks finally bought me my own coffin.

"Sign here please, sir," a delivery man said in a monotonous voice, tapping Blake's shoulder with the clipboard. Blake made a kind of stammering noise in response and fumbled for the pen, signing his name slowly and pushing the clipboard away. "Thank you, sir. Have a nice day."

And before Blake knew it, he was staring at this enormous box standing upright in his living room, staring at the address label. Yup, from his parents. Who else would send him something like this? It... it wasn't his birthday, was it? No, Blake's perception of time had been off for years, but it wasn't that off. Something itched at him--something that had been pretty much dead for as long as Blake cared to think back, which wasn't too long, but he wasn't much in the mood for remembering how many times he'd experienced curiosity. Yes, curiosity. What the hell had his parents sent him this time.

Blake shuffled to a drawer in the kitchen and pulled out a butter knife, stared at it for a moment, then moved back over to begin cutting the tape on the box to open it. There was really only one way to find out.



But there will come a time
You'll see, with no more tears
And love will not break your heart
But dismiss your fears
Get over your hill and see
What you find there
With grace in your heart
And flowers in your hair



"Tomorrow will be a good day."


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Re: Help Me Polarize, Help Me Down [Thunder and I, L]

Postby Thunder » 05/20/2015 1:37 PM

As Blake began cutting open the box, a whirring noise started up. At first it was faint and not much louder than the sound of a laptop at work. The noise of the butter knife grating against the tape obscured it. As seconds passed, however, the whirring grew louder and louder. There was definitely something mechanical inside, firing up as Blake got closer to revealing it.

Right as the last bits of tape were cut loose, a hand slowly reached out of the box, pushing open one of the cardboard flaps ever so slightly. If someone wasn't terrified enough to spring back from it, they would find that although it was certainly a very humanlike hand -- five digits with nails on each and peachy colored skin -- there was something just a bit off about it. There were ball bearings inserted at each finger's joints and what appeared to be the outlines of metal plates casing the hand.
Image

Next came a face poking out of the box, blinking at Blake and his room inquisitively. It was by no means a frightening face. In fact, one might even call it handsome. It resembled a twenty-something year old young man's looks, pale and neatly curved, though oddly enough it had pure white hair growing from its head and almost lime green eyes. Again, there were traces of what looked like metal plating, as well as what seemed to be rivets around the cheeks, but they looked like they were nothing more than tattoos on this strange boy's face.

He carefully stepped out of the box and brushed out the folds in his clothes. He wore simple, casual attire: black sweatpants; a white hoodie with pink, light green, and black designs; and a pair of black Converse sneakers. After taking a moment to make sure he looked presentable, the boy returned his gaze to Blake, giving the other guy a warm smile. With each movement there was another quiet whirr.

"Hello," he greeted. There was a soothing quality to his voice, a lullaby that could lull even the most cantankerous babies to sleep. "Are you Blake? I hope I was sent to the right place."
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"If everyone is one, none will be afraid."

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Re: Help Me Polarize, Help Me Down [Thunder and I, L]

Postby zapdragon555 » 05/23/2015 9:10 AM

The whirring noise had, admittedly, startled Blake just a bit. But at first he'd dismissed it as the air conditioner kicking to life somewhere in the house, and continued cutting the tapes. As it got louder, curiosity had long taken over, and stopping was not an option, despite his cautious nature screaming in his ears for him to just dump the thing in a dumpster and be done with it. When a hand of all things, however, pushed out of the box, Blake froze and stared at it with wide brown eyes, the butter knife gripped tight in his hand as he stepped back to get a better look at the appendage. If nothing else, it looked... wrong. Very, very much not alive, and yet, it was moving...

When the face appeared, Blake jumped slightly, eyes flashing to the startlingly green eyes, and stared. He watched in a mixture of awe and fear and confusion as a literal stranger stepped out of the box and dusted themself off, then smiled at him. Obviously, Blake had gathered, this was a robot. No living human looked like that; and no living human could stay still in a dark cardboard box for that long. As the robot spoke, Blake's eyes lidded slightly, some form of understanding beginning to trickle into the back of his mind.

Right. His parents had... sent him this. But why? Hell, how much money had this thing cost?

"H-hey..." Blake ventured, breathing out and making his chest jump as he spoke. "Uh... yeah, I'm Blake. Why... um..." Blake dithered, a little distracted by the softness in the robot's voice; it was... well, it was pretty. And soothing. And it made what he was sure should have been agitation in his brain dull to a quiet confusion. "Who...?"



But there will come a time
You'll see, with no more tears
And love will not break your heart
But dismiss your fears
Get over your hill and see
What you find there
With grace in your heart
And flowers in your hair



"Tomorrow will be a good day."


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Re: Help Me Polarize, Help Me Down [Thunder and I, L]

Postby Thunder » 06/29/2015 8:04 PM

The robot let out a gentle laugh, one as equally soothing as his speaking voice. It wasn't a mocking laugh either; instead, it conveyed the sense that this robot understood Blake's confusion and sympathized. He had seen many such reactions from other people he got sent to in the past. Clearing up the situation was simply a matter of introducing himself and his purpose.

"I'm glad this is the right location," he chuckled. He took a moment to glance around the living room and then placed one hand over his heart, smiling warmly at Blake. "My name is Alba, and I am what you could call a care bot. Your parents ordered me to come keep you some company. I hope that's all right with you."

He blinked, and his expression shifted to a more apologetic, sheepish one. "I'm sorry if I startled you. I know it's not everyday that you meet a robot like me...or everyday that you get a giant package in your room with someone walking out of it. Please forgive me. Scaring people is not my intention."
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"If everyone is one, none will be afraid."

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Re: Help Me Polarize, Help Me Down [Thunder and I, L]

Postby zapdragon555 » 07/04/2015 10:21 PM

Blake blanched slightly as the robot began talking eloquently, nothing automated-sounding about its voice. Well, there was that unnatural calmness about it, but other than that... terrifyingly normal. Okay, just keep cool. He just... needed to... explain the situation. He didn't need help--he didn't want help. He didn't order a robot, it was all his dumb parents' idea, he wanted nothing to do with this Alba or this care bot business...

None of these thoughts made it coherently out of Blake's mouth. Instead the young man simply put his pale, nervous hands into the front pocket of his hoodie, turned, and walked towards his bedroom, and subsequently bedroom closet where he usually went to think or just not exist when such actions were needed. "Nope. Nope, not doing this," he mumbled under his breath in a casual voice, trying to work through the gears in his mind. He had to find a way to get rid of this thing... he'd gotten used to living alone, now, and having to share it with this... this thing was just about the last thing that Blake wanted.



But there will come a time
You'll see, with no more tears
And love will not break your heart
But dismiss your fears
Get over your hill and see
What you find there
With grace in your heart
And flowers in your hair



"Tomorrow will be a good day."


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User avatar
zapdragon555
Will Draw For Food
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Joined: 02/24/2009 11:10 PM
Location: "I mean... for me, I could love someone even if I, you know, wasn't paid for it...
Status: I love you, and... and you don't pay me."

Re: Help Me Polarize, Help Me Down [Thunder and I, L]

Postby Thunder » 07/22/2015 2:48 PM

If Alba thought anything of Blake's reaction, he didn't show it. He maintained his unusual calmness and simply watched as his unwitting client left for his bedroom. The robot had seen similar situations before; a client would order him for another person and take that person completely by surprise. But Blake, at least, simply walked away. Others in the past, typically those with some kind of beef against machines like him, had more violent reactions that left Alba needing some repairs.

He decided he'd let Blake have a moment alone. The poor guy probably had a lot to take in; it seemed best not to bother him presently. Humming to himself, Alba took the box he arrived in and laid it horizontally, creating a makeshift chair. He sat down and quietly gazed around at Blake's living room. There was definitely an air of solitude about the place. There was something about the furniture, layout, and colors that gave off such a vibe.
Image

"If everyone is one, none will be afraid."

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Thunder
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Re: Help Me Polarize, Help Me Down [Thunder and I, L]

Postby zapdragon555 » 08/27/2015 11:51 PM

Blake, admittedly, stayed in that closet for quite a long time. He only came out when his stomach was complaining from lack of food, and normally he could ignore it, but there was something about the whole situation that made him more on edge, more nervous, and therefore more ravenous. Maybe he could sneak past the thing... but... it wasn't like he could just live in his music closet.

Well, yes he could. He'd done it before. It had nice storage space for hoarding nonperishable foodstuffs, and enough space to lie down, and... Blake trashed the idea. There was something melancholic about the cramped space; it wasn't nearly as small and cramped as the one in his and Matt's old apartment. Blake's mouth twitched into a frown, and finally, he pushed open the door and slinked out, uncurling from a hunched position and rolling his shoulders a little under a baggy hoodie that masked most of his scrawny body. There wasn't going to be much avoiding the robot, really. It was too... there. Blake honestly hated the idea of giving it the time of day, but another part of his ingrained personality didn't like being rude, especially not to something that was basically designed to meet him. What an irritating situation.

Blake poked his head into the living room where the robot sat on its box, and he scratched at dark dyed locks--it looked as though the brownish roots were coming in. "Uh... hey. I'm gonna get a bite to eat... you don't eat, right?" he asked, mumbling, already inching towards the safety of the kitchen.



But there will come a time
You'll see, with no more tears
And love will not break your heart
But dismiss your fears
Get over your hill and see
What you find there
With grace in your heart
And flowers in your hair



"Tomorrow will be a good day."


Pen | New Pen | Breed | Wish | Sales | Art | Imp. | Add-ons

User avatar
zapdragon555
Will Draw For Food
Will Draw For Food
Pets | Items
Keystones: 485
Donate
Joined: 02/24/2009 11:10 PM
Location: "I mean... for me, I could love someone even if I, you know, wasn't paid for it...
Status: I love you, and... and you don't pay me."


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