Another head hangs lowly

[mirror_soldier]

Who| Thad and anyone
What| A new arrival being lonely without his AI buddy and finally giving into socializing. Kind of.
Where| Various sections of the Habitat deck. You can feel free to tag him in his own section of the deck as well.
When| After "Whistling in the Dark"
Warnings/Notes| None, beyond the general mild warning of there being some mention of how he was raised.

A replication of Craydl had sounded good when he had requested it. When asked about what kind of environment he would want, he hadn't really had any other ideas on what to say. It wasn't an exact replication by any means; when he'd described it, he'd felt the need to keep it purposefully vague, giving a general idea and outlining the superficial aspects of the construction, but leaving most decisions on layout up to the builders.

The end result was that, while it did look a lot like Craydl, it was different enough to feel wrong. Worst of all, was how empty it felt without Craydl's voice chiming in throughout the day; no witty or sarcastic comments when he was being too serious or getting too caught up in a project, no advice or chiding mother hen attitude when he wasn't sleeping enough or wasn't eating as much as he should. There had been times he'd found all of those things annoying, but now, even in the short time he'd been here, there had been more than one occurrence of him unintentionally speaking up to talk to the AI that wasn't there.

Despite all the people on Legion World and the fact that he could speak to any of them at a moments notice if he chose to, he'd never felt so utterly on his own. Not that he had done much to reach out to anyone since he'd been pulled here. Outside of doing maintenance and repairs he'd agreed to help with (which there seemed to be no shortage of), he'd hardly left his part of the Habitat deck.

The longer he spent in the building the more that unfamiliar feeling of loneliness weighed on him. The maze of grated floors and machinery began to feel both hollow and constricting; less like 'home' and more like an elaborate prison. Eventually, the feeling was uncomfortable enough to finally push him out.

Outside of his little lair was a stretch of what resembled an Alabama forest, and among all the trees, his warehouse of a building stuck out like a sore thumb but despite the stark difference, or maybe because of it, it felt more comforting than the imitation of Craydl. Still, comforting or not, there was only so much one could get from wandering the same patch of forest, and eventually curiosity and listlessness have the speedster cautiously exploring the other sections of the Habitat deck.

It was interesting to see just how different each section was. One moment you could be on a beach, the next in the middle of a city, a garden, or on a mountain side. It really was amazing the lengths the Legion went to, to make the beings in their care comfortable, as well as the various environments those people chose. It doesn't take long for him to get lost to curiosity and drop his guard, not caring quite as much if he's caught looking around. Or at least, not caring until he has been caught.

Any sign of another persons presence or any attempt to interact with the teen will have him acting startled and skittish, like a wild animal that's been cornered and is trying to judge whether it would be better to run or attack. While an attack is very unlikely, there is a good chance of hearing an insincere "I didn't mean to disturb you" spoken a little too fast.

Comments

[googledox]

"You needn't apologize," said the Coluan. "This isn't my area of the Habitat Deck. I have none."

What was there on Colu that he could possibly want replicated on Legion World? He held very little love for his homeworld and he'd spent most of his early life there trapped in the confines of the Colugov lab complexes under the capitol, anyway. He'd hardly seen anything else while living there.

Earth had always been a much more hospitable home planet, given how much it had always welcomed the Legion.

Even then, there was only one area on the ship that was truly his own, and that was the Science Lab -- which was now a place that he had to share with others these days. More than in the past, at any rate.

"And I was looking for you." Brainy floated in the air, his hands clasped behind his back. It created a somewhat imposing image, him floating there, staring down with an implacable expression. "I wanted to speak with you."

Sharp green eyes looked down at Thad as if Brainy was trying to pin him down with his gaze like one might pin a butterfly to a cork board by its wings.

"I must confess, I find your existence...intriguing."

[mirror_soldier]

Every interaction with the Legion members, so far, had felt awkward on some level. Seeing people on a screen and planning how you would interact with them if it became necessary, was far different from being in the same room with them, and having their full attention on you. Particularly when they didn't see him as Bart but as himself.

But if Thad found Brainiac 5's position or gaze intimidating to him now, he didn't show it, instead regaining his composure and reflecting that implacable look back at him. It wasn't until that last sentence that he showed any discomfort, and it was only in a slight darkening of his expression, something barely perceivable in the second or two it lasted.

'I find your existence intriguing'; something about that phrasing rubbed him the wrong way. He couldn't quite pinpoint why though, which made him question whether it was really intentional on the Legionnaire's part, or if it was his own distrust twisting the words into something more degrading than what they really were. His own instincts on matters of socialization hadn't exactly served him well over the past few months, or ever, if he were to be completely honest with himself. It wouldn't be the first time he'd mistaken someone's intent or twisted it to fit how he wanted to perceive someone.

It didn't help that he only knew Brainiac 5 from vague history files and his interactions with Bart Allen. He was use to most of his socialization taking place with people he'd been monitoring for years; people whose idiosyncrasy, histories, habits, and personalities he knew well enough to be able to predict or manipulate how they may react to him. He didn't have any such advantage here, and the other male was someone he found hard enough to read and predict back when he'd still only been yet another person on a screen.

"Intriguing in what way?" Attempting to give the benefit of the doubt, he tried to keep his tone soft, but the frigidity that crept over the edge of his words was hard to miss.

[googledox]

"Your creation seems like an overabundance of pointless effort to exact petty revenge on a single individual. A waste."

One might have interpreted that as him saying Thad himself was a waste but that wasn't what he meant.

"Creation should be for its own sake, especially when it pertains to sentient beings."

It was a lesson he'd learned the hard way, with Computo. How long had it taken him to accept that it was wrong for him to create a sentient AI with the purposes of using and then destroying it?

"You wouldn't be the first clone that was a Legionnaire, by the way. Superboy briefly spent some time with us here in the future before we successfully managed to return him to his own time." A pause. "Despite being modeled after Superman, he wasn't cloned with the...purest of purposes in mind by the organization that cloned him."

What with them wanting their own organic machine to control and all. And Brainy had never found out about the Lex Luthor element.

"He said he found his time here somewhat...liberating. He was able to act as a hero free of any preconceived judgments or reputation he back in his own time. He claimed it was a time that allowed him to refine his personal and superheroic identity -- to decide it for himself."

[mirror_soldier]

Already half anticipating to hear something hostile or suspicious, Thad was quick to take that first line the wrong way, his body language stiffening, and fists clenching at his sides as he glowered up at the Legionnaire. But as Querl continued speaking and his meaning became clearer, Thad's demeanor lost its hostility and though his expression remained wary it softened.

He had to let those words settle in his mind for a moment before he could come up with a response. Encouragement, or what sounded like it, was just about the last thing he had expected to hear coming from any of the Legion, let alone Brainiac 5, and the comparison to Kon-el made it all the more odd. Having met the other clone, it was hard to even think of them as having anything in common, despite the similarities in their backgrounds.

"Our situations weren't entirely comparable," Still, it was hard to miss how Brainy's words related to him despite that. "but I do appreciate the sentiment and offer."

There was a part of him that wanted to ask why the Legion seemed to trust him enough to even suggest an invitation into their ranks. Was it simply based off a hope that he would choose to better himself, or 'find himself' under their guidance and comradery? Or was it something more cynical? Something like being desperate for more members now that their numbers had been paired down so far. But he couldn't think of a way to ask in to it without either seeming desperate for validation or sounding as if he was arguing in favor of them distrusting him and seeing him as a threat, so having at least a modicum of self-preservation and pride, he kept the question to himself.

"Thus far, the opportunity to learn about my family and myself outside of the influence of..." What did he even call him now? There had been a point where he'd referred to him as father but that left a sour taste in his mouth even thinking of it now. Anything else felt too informal or disrespectful and despite everything he still couldn't bring himself to sink to that. "my creator, has certainly felt..." hollow, nerve racking, sickening, "I don't know if I would call it liberating, but intriguing."

[googledox]

"I myself found that the Legion offered me a chance to develop a unique perspective when I joined, different from what I'd been led to believe on my home planet."

Thad wasn't the only one with ties to a villainous legacy.

"On Colu, I was expected to dedicate all my work for the planetary interest and they made it almost impossible for me to escape the imputation of who I was descended from." A pause. "That's why I carry the title Brainiac 5. It originally wasn't my choice; it was given to me when I was born."

Who would choose to name themselves after one of the worst supervillains ever to live, after all?