[ The night the older hosts leave, all four of them, Rust goes for a walk and gets back late. He's used to the nest's dreaming by now, a smeared but vivid backdrop of impressions. The occasional brilliant emotion piercing him through, providing a temporary axis upon which to spin. They're likely used to his habits as well, up all night. Running like a city bus.
At any rate, he's confident he won't be missed.
He gives Kaji a long-distance jostle—a feeling like hot breath, like neon scraping the skin. An itch to your fingers, a twitch to your mind. Impatience. No words. He's already begun searching the vacant bunks—going through the bedding, even. He's quiet and methodical, careful to leave everything as he found it.
It's not one person he distrusts, or even a handful. It's the nest as a whole—this thing they're all straining toward, this collective compulsion. Whatever it is they're so gradually becoming. ]
Kaji & Lakshmi
At any rate, he's confident he won't be missed.
He gives Kaji a long-distance jostle—a feeling like hot breath, like neon scraping the skin. An itch to your fingers, a twitch to your mind. Impatience. No words. He's already begun searching the vacant bunks—going through the bedding, even. He's quiet and methodical, careful to leave everything as he found it.
It's not one person he distrusts, or even a handful. It's the nest as a whole—this thing they're all straining toward, this collective compulsion. Whatever it is they're so gradually becoming. ]