Chapter Text
Gears whirred and shutters groaned to life as water poured down around the strange creature standing in one of the two compartments—a bipedal figure adored with round ears and a fat slug-like tail. One of their paw-like hands held a metal rod, sharpened into a spear, and the other clutched a rock– weight enough to be dangerous but not lethal. The figure impatiently shifted their weight back and forth as the lengthy process continued in their place, water cascading down from above and landing on superheated coils below, causing steam to billow up and activate the door in front of the creature, which was now moistened due to the heated steam. Gingerly stepping through and wiping his brow, or at least where one would be above those blackened eyes, a small black nose sitting modestly between them. Each step they took was solid and full of purpose as they used the spear as something to empower their already robust stride. He then hastily stuffed the rock into a sash that bore around his body, lined with multiple pockets filled with various objects and trinkets before using that now-empty hand to give a hardy smack to his large gut, huffing out about needing a meal.
This creature is affectionately named the “slugcat” for its similar features to both creatures. The one that walks up to a path dug into the ground has a name that was given to him by his people, although more often than not he goes by a simpler name– one relating to the reason for his travels. “The Gourmand”, or just “Gourmand”. While being a very food-motivated creature, and partially the reason he even delved into this region, it was a mix of wanting to see the various cuisine he could stir up, as well as finding a worthy food source, one that could provide. But the amount of food was very tempting, it was enough to make his mouth water, although a lot of trekking was still needed.
The Gourmand struggled to fit in the pathway, having to tuck in his stomach and take a deep breath in before crawling through to the next opening. While it was odd so many openings dotted the area, many were dug by travelers before, either being slugcats or the other odd creatures which called this place home. This new area Gourmand had traveled to was… strange to say the least. A ramshackle mass of different materials ranging from organic to parts from a long-forgotten society. He used the hilt of his spear to sift through some of the material, checking out of both curiosity and the possibility of anything useful in the mess. He managed to pluck out a few various pieces of trash, some pieces of metal that weren’t completely rusted away just yet and would possibly be of some use later.
Adjusting the strap around his body, he kept on walking, the land around odd and nigh naturalistic. Quite literally everything was made from trash with small ponds of water sitting in any of the dips. Gourmand stopped at one of these ponds, crouching down and looking at his reflection. This couldn’t be sanitary in the slightest, he huffed quietly and stood back up, wading through the waist-deep pond until he could possibly make it to another open area. Although his pace suddenly stopped once he felt something brushing against his legs. His pace suddenly quickened until he stood out of the pond, strange leeches now latched on his legs which he diligently smacked off with the hilt of his spear. A look of disgust spread across his face, this place was more disgusting than he thought.
He quickly scrambled away into a hole nearby which led to somewhere buried underneath the rubble, in fact, it was more of a cave than a meer hole. The trash around him had been compressed into a solid mass that was more rock than pieces of various debris. In front of him was a myriad of poles stuck in the ground, made from various rebar. Gourmand strode to the edge of the piece of footing he was on, looking down he noticed a pool of water filled with more of those leeches. He shook his head to regain focus as he slipped his spear into the strap, a compartment on the back that he crafted himself. The Gourmand was actually quite proud of it, portable storage was brilliant! He monologued to himself before realizing he probably needed to keep moving. He hopped from the landing and to one of the poles, gripping it tightly as he slid down a little, he was surprisingly agile for someone so large.
The orange slugcat scrambled up the pole, then swung to the next, his sash rattling with each movement, then pausing on the third to catch his breath. While he was agile, it did use a lot of energy– and he was a damn hungry boy. With his free hand, he rattled it through his sash, grabbing a large fruit and chomping on it idly as he kept glancing around his new area, mostly for threats. Once that was down, he returned to his swinging until his paws were on solid ground, he looked back at the pit of water below, sneering and kicking some dirt back toward it. That’ll show them.
He continued traveling through various crevices, having to squirm and wriggle through them due to his sheer girth. The gourmand came to another open area, this time dotted with strange plants that the round slug was familiar with. His eyes lit up in a giddy pleasure as he retrieved his spear and rushed to the plant. The Gourmand hopped in place with glee, he’d encountered these plants in the previous area he was in, one dotted with old machinery and various dangers– including plenty of lizards of various sizes and colors. They were these strange plants that stood high from woody stalks and were held in something akin to a large and long bud. What was inside was much more important and special. The orange slugcat took a few sturdy steps back, aiming his spear and suddenly throwing it with unadulterated power, enough to leave the poor rotund specimen huffing from exertion as the bud was knocked off its throne and to the floor below. The spear also deflects off and is caught expertly by him.
No time was wasted through, quickly sliding over and grabbing the bud, and retreating back to the hole where he came from, it rumbled before suddenly popping open, some of the contents going flying out but most falling into a conveniently shaped container. The seeds inside puffed up into a crispy snackable food that one could spend minutes on end stuffing their face with. This was exactly what the Gourmand did, taking pawful after pawful of that delicious puffy snack and shoving it into their mouth, which crackled loudly while also melting in his mouth. He couldn't help relaxing some as he gazed off into the sickly green sky, it was a nice little respite he needed.
Gourmand dug through his sash to grab some more snacks, combining them with some of the mouthfuls of popped seed. That was the joys of life, the combination of flavors and textures was something akin to a euphoric sensation rattling through their squishy body. Not literally, but that is what it felt like– experimentation was something to be enjoyed when things seem the same every cycle. Soon enough he could hear the distant rumble of thunder, taking the leftover seed as well as the pod itself, he hurried off through the pipes until he found a marked entrance. It was a square with a notch in the bottom erased. While it might seem odd to some, it was quite familiar– or at least something the Gourmand had come used to during his travels.
It was a shelter, something made long ago by the beings which used to populate the land, or, once again, so what he had heard. It was something commonly talked about where he was from, theories and guesses on who or what lived here before them. While visually the footprints they left behind would vary, like the large structures of his home and the factory-esqe buildings that populated others. Whoever was here before was very advanced. The Gourmand slumped over once he squeezed his way into the shelter, it locking behind him in a water-tight seal. It was much quieter in here, giving time for one to think.
Setting the sash aside, he got cozy. While this wasn’t his preferred way of sleeping, it sure beat getting pelted by the immense rain outside. The slugcat’s mind began to wander as he lay there, he always got ponder-y when it came to sleep. Although today’s topic was something he’d been thinking of a lot lately. How long had he been here? It felt like hundreds of cycles, but that couldn’t be the case. He missed his home dearly, and whom he considered family and friends were starting to become a blurry memory. It hurt his head to think about that, about the deafening loneliness that came with traveling by himself. But it’s not like anything here could hold a conversation, he hadn’t seen any slugcats since he left the tree, and it seems like a rarity. Or most likely, he was by himself, alone. As his mind worried, he slowly drifted off to sleep as the quiet rumble of rain started outside.