action;

[abracafcku]

Who: Taako
Broadcast: None
Action: First Breath, Planetside
When: 9/28

First Breath

1. Kitchen
[The Marsiva had become boring after the first day of having absolutely nothing to do. He'd spent the time trying to understand what was going on, and then decided napping was probably the best thing since he was stuck anyway. Which is why he was in the middle of a trance-like nap when the Atroma jingle went off and he exploded onto the First Breath's kitchen with confetti and questionable looking chocolate pudding cups.

Taako blinked, then dusted the confetti off his clothes and wizard's hat. The first thing he saw was the sad state of this kitchen, and Taako put his hands on his hips with a sigh.]

Is this seriously what they want me to work with?

2. Cargo: Salvage
[After settling into the crew, Taako immediately went out salvaging. Something about that seemed to be the right thing to do, so he is dragging bits of metal sheeting, wires, robot parts, and sacks full of gears and pieces into the cargo hold. The planet is basically made for looting, so he's doing his level best to loot the shit out of it. He also has a Mage Hand - an invisible force - carrying several lush looking throw pillows trimmed in various colored fringe and blankets.

When he comes onto the ship, when he sees someone in here, he immediately motions to them.]

You, person whose name I totally remember, go grab the rest of this, hm? I'm not exactly the brawn type.

Planetside

1. Shopping
[You cannot expect Taako to go to a world of literal shopping and not come back with all the craziest shit. But sadly, he does not have a lot of money since he is recently arrived and was not part of this cargo haul that apparently got some people money and others not so much. Which means Taako has to do what Taako does best and improvise.

And he's doing a goddamn God Tier job at it. He's getting new outfits pieced together from clothing crates lost to the dumps, he's getting new throw pillows, blankets, random knick-knacks, and he's trying to find some goddamn weapons just because how bitchin' would it be to roll around the galaxy with a pair of machine guns strapped to his back? Totally, that's how much.

But he still has no money, so he'll slide over to the closest person in the same store as him and smile.]

Hey there, thug, you wanna help me with something?

2. Arena - Locked to Lup
[He could fight here, but why go through the effort? It's so much easier to wait until he sees a good bet and then toss as much of the Charmed credit he's earned so far straight into it. If he loses? Oh well. If he wins? Hell yeah.

So the second he sees Lup enter the arena, he knows exactly what to do. He bets every single credit he's earned so far on her winning. He highly doubts anyone here could conquer her level of spellcasting and the utter destruction he has a feeling she's capable of doing. Most people here relied on melee combat and, well, wizards are made for smashing from afar. This is also a good way to check what she's capable of and she did not disappoint.

Once the battle is over, he waits down by the fighters' exit, leaning up against the wall with a pocket full of credits.]

Nice job, Destructo.

Comments

[abracafcku]

Exactly.

[He isn't about to discourage this attention because he loves it. Magnus and Merle's ideas of fashion had been "whatever is functional" or "whatever doesn't stink/have blood on it from last time." He's enjoying being able to dress up without getting blood on his clothes ]

Although I could probably do with more skirts in case we ever go to a hot place.

[universal_charm]

Well, I can't say how good this particular place will be for fashion of any kind, but we come across ports and planets with a wider range if you want to hold off. Or, like most things here, seems like if you can find the materials and make it yourself, have at.

_{[ Sorry Taako, wish he could be more help with that. Skirts weren't for Kirk, so it's not his area of expertise - at least the finding part. ]}

[abracafcku]

[Don't worry, Jim. Lup is going to help him rip a store off for their entire stock so he'll eventually be good.]

Yeah I've noticed. This place is kind of a disaster, isn't it? Are all the planets this....... [He gestures at the mounds of trash everywhere.]

[universal_charm]

No, not all of them. We've come across some pleasure planets. Others are infested with cannibals. It just... varies. About one a month, by an Earth calendar if I've kept track correctly over the past couple of years.

This planet is a bit of a mess, but it's not all that bad comparatively. As far as starting yourself out, this planet is better than most. It's cheap.

[abracafcku]

[Cannibals. Ugh, gross. He'll eat just about anything (other than a rock, thanks Magnus) but eating other people? No thanks.

Earth must be where this guy is from so Taako nods along figuring he'll get a taste of what a "month" is here soon enough.

But then something hits him.]

Wait. You've been here for 2 years?

[universal_charm]

_{[ Kirk nodded. ]}

And I'm only what you might call the middle-ground of that. Quite a few people have been here even longer than I have.

_{[ He gave Taako a sympathetic smile. ]}

I wish I knew how to tell you how long you would be here, or when you could go home, but the truth is, no one really knows. We come, we go, and it's all at the whim of Atroma.

[abracafcku]

[Four years? Some people have been stuck here for four years?!

Taako stops walking suddenly, looking at Jim with thinnly veiled shock. It was hard to think about and the fear of being stuck somewhere when Magnus and Merle were so far away actually scared him. He's been on his own before, that part he's used to by now, but he thought just maybe he'd found a home for a bit. He'd settled into a routine. He'd begun gathering stuff. He'd started tentatively making connections. He'd even gone on a damn date.

And now it's being ripped away from him.

Taako takes a shallow breath and tries to get all that emotion under his thumb again. Weakness is not an option now. If he's on his own again (minus Lup, but she was a Red Robe and he had to remember that), he has to ingratiate himself and fast.

The moment passes and Taako let's out a small, somewhat strained laugh.]

Man, that must suck to be here that long. What if you left the stove on? Bye bye house.

[universal_charm]

_{[ Kirk is patient as Taako runs through the emotions, understanding how shocking that news is. It’s an adjustments to be sure. He tried not to think about it unless asked honestly. ]}

You’ll probably have time to turn it off. The current running theory is that when you get sent home, whenever that may be, is that you are sent back to the exact time from which you were taken.

[abracafcku]

...

Oh.

[Well.

All that fear? Just evaporated. It's still there at the back of his mind since it's only a "current theory" and not an "established fact," but thinking that his world isn't marching on without him is reassuring. Magnus and Merle aren't going to find the next Relic without him. He isn't going to suddenly just disappear from the timeline with no trace. Kravitz won't go on a date with some other hot elf. Angus won't become a great mage in his absence and Taako will have to strike him down.

You know? It's nice to think about.

He lets out a sigh and a nervous laugh again.]

Why didn't you say so in the beginning? You gotta lead with that, my man. What a way to make a guy panic.

[universal_charm]

Heh, sorry. There isn’t really a good way to break news like that is there? Everyone takes it a bit differently.

_{[ He was glad that Taako was at least taking it in stride. He wasn’t sure what he would have done if Taako has begun to truly panic. ]}

But here, I’ll make it up to you. You hungry?

[abracafcku]

Mm, true, true. [He concedes that point with a nod of his head. He still doesn't like feeling that visceral amount of panic so soon after arriving, but Jim seems willing to make it up to him.

And food?]

I can always eat, homie. It's always good to sample the local cuisine.

[Taako glances at their surroundings and raises an eyebrow.]

As long as it doesn't follow suit with the aesthetic of this world.

[universal_charm]

Homie?

_{[ He raised a brow and laughed at the title. It was something he recognized from his own world, though the vernacular had fallen out of popular favor and only showed up in sitcoms and parties for the era. ]}

Never fear. I’ve found that while people might be willing to live with this sort of aesthetic, if rarely passes to their palettes. Good food is appreciated universally.

_{[ Even if that benchmark shifted by species. Either way, he began to lead the way to where he knew a small outdoor eating area would be, small stalls set up to hawk their goods. He had found places like these always held gems - small pool of competition, and you had better be better than your neighbor. ]}

[abracafcku]

Good because I am, after all, a chef. I'm quite discerning.

[Oh fuck yes. As he follows Jim through the streets, he spies where they're heading and the possibilities really start opening up for him. He used to be in this business. Not exactly the stationary sort, but he traveled with his wagon and gave cooking shows as entertainment and profit - selling his food to whatever town they landed in.

And now that he knows that his transmutation hadn't been wrong, he's eager to get back into the game.]

Aw hell yeah, this is what I'm talking about. Food stalls are the best.

[universal_charm]

Cheap and underrated in most cases.

_{[ Kirk considered the options for a moment before walking over to one, pulling out his wallet to transfer credits as he placed his own order, and glanced back at Taako. ]}

What would you like? I can’t really give recommendations, so it’s an adventure no matter what you pick.

[abracafcku]

[He wanders over and peruses the menu. It all looks foreign to him, until he notices something.

It's spelled almost like his name? What the hell? HAS IT ALREADY BEEN INVENTED? That's so not fair, but at least it does have his name on it. Maybe he can still claim royalties.

Taako points at that item with a curious expression.]

That thing. I've been on a quest to invent something named that because, natch, it's my name. So I want to see what this world thinks it is.

[universal_charm]

_{[ Kirk glanced at the name. It was probably the translater providing the letters, but he did have to chuckle at the others choice. He hadn’t really notice until just then. ]}

Taako would like a taco?

_{[ And yes, he pronounced them the same. He placed the order and paid, taking their drinks and tossing Taako his before cracking his own open and sipping as they sat back to wait for their orders. ]}

How does a quest to event a food item even work?

[abracafcku]

[Yes, it is named after him! These bitches stole his idea!

But at the same time, he didn't really know what it was all about except that it involved sour cream, grinding, meat, and....something? Well, he's about to find out.

He takes the drink from Jim and does the same, giving it a quick sniff to see if he can detect anything wrong with the smell before taking a sip. Bubbly - he can dig it.]

Pretty much like this. I've been trying to invent a food I could name after myself - The Taako - y'know? It'd help my brand, maybe make me a good chunk of gold, the usual.

[universal_charm]

Well maybe this will give you some inspiration. I’m not sure exactly what it entails on this planet, but I know what a taco is on my home world - Earth. Tortilla shell, or a crispy corn shell, your choice, meat, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, onion - you know, pico de gallo - maybe some avacacado. They can get pretty inventive. We even have some made specifically for breakfast.

_{[ Man, now he misses breakfast tacos. Eggs and bacon and beans and cheese... delicious. And San Fran has always had a delicious selection to choose from. Hopefully he’s not drooling. ]}

[abracafcku]

[Holy shit is this guy just giving him a recipe? He quickly jots down in his mental notes all the ingredients he didn't know about yet and puts an asterisk next to "pico de gallo" and "avocado." He'll look those up as soon as he's back on the First Breath and start researching what all these things are. Surely someone somewhere has written these things down?

And also for breakfast? Well damn, son, he's going to be rich when he gets back home.]

What's a --

[He can't finish his question because the vendor is passing over the food now and Taako's attention turns completely to that. He grabs the wrapped up half circle greedily, but then ever so carefully peels the wrapping back. Inside is something he's never seen before - this must be a tortilla shell? It's blue and there's definitely meat inside and a white cream along with vegetables, but he isn't sure if this is what you'd call an alien taco or just a regular taco.]

Is it supposed to be blue?

[universal_charm]

_{[ Kirk’s own meal is also wrapped in a blue shell, but his involve items that look like beans and rice and cheese, with shredded meat on top, a small cup of green on the side. He looked into Taako’s and gave a little shrug. ]}

Probably. I have to think it doesn’t have to much of a taste given the rest of the items on it, so the coloring is likely from its base crop.

_{[ He nudged Taako with his shoulder and gave an encouraging smile. ]}

Come on, let’s find a seat and see if they taste as good as they look.

[abracafcku]

[What the hell sort of food turned things this shade of blue? Jim had said "tortilla" or "corn," but Taako had never seen blue corn of this particular vibrant color. Maybe a tortilla plant was blue.

Almost neon blue.

Eh.

It's almost charming how Jim is leading him doing so he follows after, still visually picking this taco thing apart. He's dubious about the taste, but it definitely smells amazing.]

Lead on, my man. You've got me enraptured at this point.

[He sees a table for two a few rows in and motions to it.]

How about there?

[universal_charm]

_{[ Different planet, different ingredients. The ingredient might function like bread, but it’s makeup would be different, though digestible. He nodded at Taako’s choice and went over, claiming the seat and settling down, pulling at the wrapper on his meal and picking up the green liquid, slowly dribbling it over his tacos. ]}

You look like it wasn’t quite what you were expecting.

[abracafcku]

[These colors are clashing horribly, but Jim seems unperturbed about it. So Taako settles down across from him, crossing one leg over the other as he inspects his food.]

I honestly had no expectations. A mystery quest is a mystery after all. I just know I'll know it when I see it.

[And blue definitely doesn't seem right.]

What is that you're using?

[universal_charm]

The equivalent of what I can assume is cheese? It seems more plant based though, rather than dairy. I think the tortilla might be a product of an algae, given the color, rather the wheat.

_{[ He scooted the little cup over to Taako. It was creamy, and tasted somewhat tart. ]}

Give it a go?

[abracafcku]

[Was cheese meant to be a sauce like that? Taako reached over and dabbed his pinky finger against the rim where some leftover sauce was clinging for life. A sniff and a taste later, he was pleasantly surprised. Tart but not overly so. Could do with a little more creaminess to even it out. He hummed in thought and then shook his head.]

Pass for now, my man. Gotta eat this as it was given so I can experience.... Whatever this is.

[He just doesn't know how to eat it. Taako glances around and catches a glimpse of another patron digging in, turning their head to the side to take a bite.

Easy enough.

He follows suit and the shell crunches, enveloping the meat and vegetables inside like a hug. The meat is spicy but saucy, the vegetables crisp and fresh, and the sour cream is as he remembers it. He is definitely on the right track - just not blue.]

Oh my God. I'm so glad they named this after me.