Just an average day

Lorrie P.O.V.
I had everything set up just right- all I needed was to put this thing together and find a proper power source for my own invention. I examined the blue prints Gizmo had given me, searching for a design I agreed with.
I have to give it to the kid- she may annoy me like there's no tomorrow, but she is a decent engineer. I pulled out a blueprint of a small robot, with four eyes (two on the front, two on the back of the head)
It was meant to act as a front line drone, heading first into enemy lines then exploding. Not a bad idea, but it looked a little clunky, and these days most battles were in space rather than on land.
Still, it was the beginnings of a good idea and so I put it on my desk for further reviewing. Time to try and find that power source again. I put on my goggles over my squinted eyes. This tends to cause explosions. Everyone else has gotten used to the strange explosions and smells emitted from my room.
"FIRE IN THE HOLE!" I yelled, tipping a pink liquid into the blue on in the flask. I prepared myself for the blast… Which didn't happen.
"Huh." I mused, disappointed. I poked the flask experimentally and was immediately rewarded with an explosion that threw me back and probably rocked the Explorer a little.
"Yes!" I smiled, holding up the now clear liquid. "Isn't science just great?" I said to no one in particular.


Isa P.O.V.
I was reading a really good book- The Tragic Tale of Dr. Jackal and Mr. Hide, when I heard the faint shout of "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" from one level below. Everyone else in the common room (Era, Spook, Pai, and Matrix) all immediately paused their conversation and covered their antenna.
I followed suit, putting in my bookmark and covering my own antenna. A minute passed and nothing happened. I glanced up quizzically, one hand drifting down to my side. Bad mistake.
The next moment, one of Lorries explosions rocked the room and I fell off my chair, from both surprise and the strength of the blast. I sighed, rubbing one side of my head.
This place was weird. Well, not the ship exactly, more like the people inside it. Spook is a psychopath workaholic, Pai I'm pretty sure is some kind of wolf hybrid thing, Lorrie's probably secretly a pyromaniac, Sax is sarcastic and candy obsessed, Caine is ok I guess, Flik is a shameless womanizer, Era is the social butterfly, Liz is a kleptomaniac, Jex is Liz's sidekick, Matrix is always fighting with Gizmo and Gizmo is a hyper smeet.
Yep, that about sums up the crew of the Explorer. So, where do I fit in? I'm the bookworm, the nerd, the quiet one. There's really only one way to put that- I don't fit into the crazy atmosphere on this ship. And I probably never will.
Ah well. I settled back into the world of my books. I always fit in there.


Liz P.O.V.
I pulled out each bottle as they came tumbling down the vending machine. I worked quickly while Jex kept a lookout. "How do you do that anyway?" She asked as I put the last one in a bag.
"Tricks of the trade my friend, its one of the first things you learn when living on the streets." I opened one and took a drink. This was part of a prank I was playing. Drive Spook insane by getting all the Coke bottles out of the 5 vending machines and hide them. She'll go nuts.
I had already raided two of the vending machines and the bag was starting to get heavy. "Carry this Jex!" I ordered, stretching.
Jex complied, grinning. Jex is an awesome friend. In fact, she's the one who got me in on all this Explorer business. And I'm glad she did. Sure, I learned some useful stuff growing up in the slums of Irk, but hey, here I get free meals!
Other people here are ok too. Gizmo's pretty cool; she sometimes tags along in me and Jex's exploits to drive everyone else insane. Isa gets wind of what we're up to sometimes and tries to stop us. Pfft. She just doesn't know how to have fun and get away from the books.
We arrived at the next vending machine and I bent down to retrieve the twenty or so bottles inside. I couldn't wait until Spook noticed.    


Pai P.O.V.
"And then- all the ooze went KERSPOLDY!" I announced, adding appropriate sound affects and spreading my arms wide. I was retelling one of the battles I'd been in- a small one.
Era was listening, laughing at my antics and Matrix was eating some left over mooshminkey from the fridge. Spook had left for a moment to get some of her all precious Coke from the vending machine from the other side of the room. Out of the corner of my eye, Isa was reading on a chair, knees up to her chest, and completely absorbed.
"NOOOOOOOO!" I've heard a lot of agonizing screams in my career, and let me tell you, that sound even gave me the willies. Spook was standing in front of the vending machine, staring in horror.
"Out of Coke?!" She gasped, kicking the machine. "Blasphemy!" I jogged over and poked her. "There's another vending machine full of Coke on the other side of the ship. Want to race?"
Spook rubbed her hands. "You're on!" then she paused. "Hey wait a second, no fair, you're way faster than me." I pondered.
"Alright," I compromised. "Let's race with an Isa on my back!" Spook walked over to the chair Isa was in and pulled the book out of her hands. "Rise and shine Isa! We're racing!"
"Huh?" Isa peered at us with her bespectacled pale red eyes, confused. "Come on!" I urged. "Get on my back!"
"I don't think this is a good idea…" Isa started, but was cut off when Spook lifted her onto my back.
"Welcome and thank you for choosing werewolf airways!" I said, me and Spook getting ready to race. "Please keep all limbs inside firmly tucked into me and try not to choke me as we go. Ready?"
Isa didn't get a chance to reply as that's when Spook and I took off.


Gizmo P.O.V.
I skipped down the hallway, happy as could be. Things were going good today, Matrix was off my back, and that's about all it takes to make me happy here. That smug twerp really gets to me.
I like it here, I like it a lot. I'm still the smallest, but I have friends here and this place is awesome! I even discovered a way to annoy my mentor, Lorrie. Get this- she HATES being called Cupcake.
I was on my way to my room to get one of my projects to tinker with in the common room when there was a sort of rumbling. I looked back to see Pai and Spook turn the corner, both running and shoving each other with their elbows, trying to get ahead.
Isa was on Pai's back, legs flying out behind her and hanging on for dear life onto Pai's neck, face a frozen expression of terror.
Then I realized if I didn't get out of the way, I was going to get trampled in the narrow hallway. So I took of as fast as I could go. I like running. I may be small, but I can sprint short distances and trust me, that's useful when being chased by either Lorrie or Sax.
Thump thump. Thump thump. Thump thump.  I looked back to see Pai was pulling ahead, tongue lolling out of her mouth and grinning insanely. This was the first time I've seen her running as fast as she can, and she has a weird sort of gait that made the thumping.
Her feet move in the rhythm smeets use when pretending to be horses. Usually, this doesn't work for speed, but Pai was increasing in hers, legs pumping and panting. Spook was falling behind and Isa had given up trying to wrap her legs around Pai's waist so she wouldn't fall off, she just hung on at the shoulders as hard as she could.
Pai didn't even seem to notice I was in front of her, so I moved to the side and let her pass. She stopped in the next hallway, in front of the vending machine (placed strategically across from Spooks door)
I slowed down, skipping to a halt beside the vending machine. Pai was panting, tongue still out of her mouth. For all the world, she looked just like a dog after running a long distance to fetch a ball.
Spook arrived next, chest heaving. "Next time," She announced, leaning against the wall. "You carry someone heavier." Pai just grinned.
Isa slid down, looking slightly queasy and leaned against the wall as well. "Can I get a Piggyback ride next time?" I asked, tugging at Pai's yellow hoodie.


Spook P.O.V.
Once I recovered from the race, I slid one of my PAK legs into the slot of the vending machine. Time for some Coke to refresh me.
The machine beeped. That didn't sound like a good beep. I looked up to see the dreaded words "OUT OF PRODUCT." I twitched. I couldn't help it. Two bottles of this stuff a day keeps me going.
"Stupid MACHINES!" I growled, kicking it.
I looked back, one eye twitching madly. Gizmo was hiding a laugh at my sugar withdrawal antics and Pai was still panting like a dog. Good ol' Pai. She and I go way back.
Isa was slinking off to go back to her magical world of reading. I sighed. That kid needed some work. She just didn't know how to have fun. She's just shy. That's why I'm going to be friends with her.
Odd thing was she was the oldest out of everyone here and yet was one of the smallest. Like I said, strange kid.
"I'm going to find a bottle of Coke if it's the last thing I do!" I announced, stomping off in the direction of the next vending machine. Gizmo shrugged and ran of to do her own thing and Pai tagged along.
"How do you run so fast?" I asked, for conversation. I already knew how. Pai shrugged. "You know, just some of the random ooze put in me." We continued down the hallway. I could feel the last reserves of sugar draining. I needed Coke, now!


Sax P.O.V.
I leaned back in my chair on the command deck, gazing at the stars. The Explorer was on autopilot right now; I didn't need to be here. But, I felt like just taking a quiet moment. That's not something you tend to come across here.
"Hmm…" I pondered, scratching my chin. "I wonder what the key to the universe is?" just a random question, suiting for the moment.
"I know what it is!" announced a familiar voice. I instinctively put a hand on my fedora and glanced over my shoulder. That smeet has a habit of stealing this hat and I'd rather not have it leave my head.
"Gizmo, if you say the answer is 42, I'll kill you." Gizmo giggled, jumping in front of me. "No silly! Nothing like that!"
"Then what is it?" I asked, raising one eyebrow. What? I was curious. "It's POTATOES!" Gizmo announced, pointing to a table with all sorts of potato dishes on it. "Mash them, fry them, stick them in a stew!" Laughed Gizmo, picking up a plate of mashed potatoes. "WHO WANTS POTATOES?"
I just stared. "…Since when was there a table of potatoes there?" Gizmo shrugged, stuffing her face.
That's when Spook barreled into the room, making a beeline for the vending machine in the corner. She looked utterly demented, and I swear she was starting to foam a bit.
"There's GOT to be some in here!" Spook muttered, inserting her PAK leg and shaking the poor machine. "This is the third machine!" It beeped and it cheerfully showed the message showing there was no more Coke.
Spook twitched. "Hey!" I called out to her. "Not in front of the smeet. We want to keep her mind innocent." Spook bit back the swearing. "Although there's no telling how pure her mind is going to stay with Flik around." I muttered.
"Where…is…all the COKE?!" shouted Spook, hands shaking. Probably from so called sugar withdrawal. This is why I don't get addicted to anything. It messes with you.  Except candy.
I shrugged. "I saw Liz and Jex in here a while ago. They had a suspicious clanking bag with them. That help any?"
Spook twitched again. "LIZ!" she yelled as loud as she could. "I'm coming for you! Say you're prayers you drink stealing BLORCH RAT!" She stomped back down the corridor, fully on the warpath now.
Gizmo blinked, looking a bit torn. Probably trying to decide whether to warn her friend or tag along and enjoy the upcoming violence. Such are the complicated worries of a 12 year old.
I walked past her, following Pai and Spook. I wanted to see this- looks like Liz crossed the line on this one.


Jex P.O.V.
A demented scream of "LIZ!" echoed down the passage. Liz herself grinned. "And she finally figures it out." She said. "To the Cave!" I cried, pointing one finger up dramatically and starting to jog.
The bag of Coke bounced against my back, clanking as we went. The Cave in question isn't actually a cave. It's more like a deserted storage room, which Liz has bobby trapped.
Liz jogged alongside me, antennae listening for pursuit. Our goal from here was to get to the Cave, put the Coke there and then hold out the siege as long as we could. Why? For fun.
We arrived at storage room 6 and Liz opened the door, sticking up her hand to stop the bucket of oil from tipping. I activated the lights and they flickered on, showing a fair sized room with boxes everywhere.
The boxes were empty. They were mostly for show. And to slow down anyone coming in.
"And now the fun begins." Cackled Liz, setting down the bag.
Suddenly, a knock on the door. That was fast. I hit the switch to turn off the lights and Liz moved in front of the bag.
"Psst!" hissed a voice. "It's me! I know you're in there. Spook's looking on the west side, let me in!" I peered through a small hole in the door to see Gizmo in front of the door.
"Who's side are you on?" Liz hissed back. "Yours." Answered Gizmo, grinning. "Spooks on a rampage!"
"Alright." Said Liz. "What's the secret password?"
"What's with the password? You know it's me!" "Come on." I coaxed teasingly. "No coming in unless you say it."
Gizmo rolled her eyes. "Cheese of pumpernickel, Liz is the best, whoo." I opened the door, letting her in, stopping the bucket of oil from tipping. "You guys need a new password." Said Gizmo, sitting on one of the boxes.
I let the two of them argue it out, listening at the door for footsteps.


Flik P.O.V.
I flipped through my Play Irk magazine, oohing and awing at all the pretty ladies. Pity that no one here is like that. Well, Era is close.
I was walking down the hallway when a shout of "HEY YOU!" jolted me out of my slight drooling. Spook skidded to a stop right in front of me, murder in her eyes. "Whoa!" I said, holding my hands in the air. "I didn't do it! Someone else put a red sock in the white laundry!"
Spook paused. "You did what?" I blinked. "Uh, nothing." I said innocently. "What's going on?"
I could almost swear Spook looked like she was starting to get rabies. "Liz and Jex stole ALL the Coke! ALL OF IT!" I took a step back.
"Sorry, haven't seen them around. Mind if I tag along?" Spook just stomped past, fuming. "HAS NO ONE SEEN THOSE MISCREANTS?!" she yelled.
Pai, and Sax rounded the corner next, obviously following the rampage that was a Coke deprived Spook.
Pai frowned, looking behind us. "Where'd Gizmo run off to?" Sax shrugged. "Probably meeting up said miscreants themselves."
We were now walking down the girls corridor, a place I'm normally never allowed in. Not just because of the fact I'm male, but because I'm a "total creep and pervert." Era's words, not mine. Sheesh.
Lorrie's door opened a bit down the hall and she poked her head out. "Anyone seen some flasks with green liquid in it? I can't find it anywhere." A thin tendril of smoke drifted out of the room, signs of more, less forceful explosions.
"No." I said, waving and flashing a grin. Lorrie just narrowed her already squinted eyes. "What are you doing here anyway?"
"Following everyone else." I replied, pointing to Spook who was now turning the corner, hands jittery.
Lorrie just sighed. "We run out of Coke?" "Something of that nature." I shrugged. "I'm tagging along because it looks like it'll end in violence. Why don't you leave the experiments for a second?"
Lorrie closed the door, which had a large sign on it saying, "DO NOT ENTER (This means you Gizmo.)"
We jogged to catch up with the growing crowd of people following the deranged technician.


Caine P.O.V.
I was just walking around when I heard whispering. Suspicious whispering. The kinds of whispering you hear when the whisperer is in trouble.
I chuckled. Around here, there's only two people that whisper like that and that's Liz and Gizmo. I knocked on Storage Room 6, knowing that probably where the sound was coming from.
"Code Blue! Code Blue! Unidentified persons outside entrance!" I heard Liz gasp from inside. "No one's home!" she called out.
I rolled my eyes. "It's me, Caine." That's when I hear a sort of strangled cry from farther down the hall. "Uh oh." Said Jex. "That's the last machine she's just checked."
"What?" I queried, completely lost. "Where have you been Caine?" Gizmo asked. "Spook's out to kill us. Well, mostly Liz and Jex. But since I'm here, I guess I'm on the list too."
I frowned. "What did you guys DO?" "We just stole ALL the Coke on board." Said Liz smugly. I face palmed. "You guys are really in for it now."
Spook then rounded the corner, along with every other member on the ship. "Where are they?!" She yelled, looking like she'd run threw a hurricane and now had soap in her mouth.
There was a second's pause. Liz Jex and Gizmo stayed silent as a mouse. I let the suspense build up.
"They're in there." I grinned, pointing. Spook may be ok with trying to kill ME, but I figured she'd let them off somewhat easy, even IF they'd stolen all the Coke.
"HEY!" yelled Liz. "You're not supposed to give us away!"
"PAI!" yelled Spook. "On it." Replied Pai, hefting her giant axe. I could hear Liz screaming. "CODE BLACK CODE BLACK!"
With a mighty swing, the axe took the door clean off it's hinges.


Era P.O.V.
With a crash the door fell and Spook stomped in, eye twitching. The rest of us squeezed in, not wanting to miss a second of the action.
Liz Jex and Gizmo were backed into a corner, the bag of Coke shielded by their bodies. Not like that would make a difference, at this point, I don't think Spook would mind breaking a few limbs to get at the bag.
Liz paused, considering her options. Then she grabbed Gizmo's arm and held up a flask of bubbling green liquid. "Don't come any closer or Gizmo gets it!"
Lorrie snorted. "So what?" I poked her. "That's not nice." "Well it's true!" she protested. Then she gasped. "HEY! That's the Atmosphereum I was looking for! Give it back!"
Gizmo paused in her wiggling. "Does it explode?" Redundant question. Close to everything Lorrie owns can explode.  Lorrie nodded gravely. "So don't drop it or anything."
"Ok." Liz said, pocketing the weird chemical. "EMERGANCY PLAN DELTA, GO!" Jex grabbed the bag while Liz jumped into a laundry vent, sliding down. Jex went next and Gizmo ran past, jumping on a box, snatching Sax's hat from her head with a giggle and dived down headfirst. "Oh she is a DEAD smeet." Fumed Sax, rubbing her head where her hat usually rested.
"…Why is there a laundry chute in a storage room?" asked Caine. Sax just clenched a fist. "Let's get them!" she shouted. "Count me in!" yelled Lorrie. Spook just ran out of the room. "To the laundry room everyone!"
"Great." I muttered. "That's three angry females on the warpath."


Matrix P.O.V.
I chortled as I followed the mob down the stairs towards the laundry room. Why not take the elevator you ask? Well, it's a tiny little thing and having too much weight in it makes it stop.
Admittedly, it's a creepy elevator. Era is absolutely terrified of it and won't go in it, not even for French fries.
So, down the stairs we went, Spook first, Isa bringing up the rear and the rest of us wedged in the middle. By the time we finally got the bottom level of the ship where the laundry room and engine rooms are, I figured we were probably too late.
But no, there was the troublesome trio; standing in front of the chute they'd come through. It looked like the bag had gotten stuck and they hadn't noticed us yet.
"Ok Gizmo," said Liz. "You climb back up and pull it down." Gizmo peered up the tube doubtfully. "Kind of slippery isn't it?"
Liz leaned down, sneering. "Scared?" Gizmo scowled and her jaw jutted out, the way she does when she's angry. Trust me, she's given me that look enough times.
Without another word, Gizmo climbed in the chute, scrambling up. This was so bizarre and oddly funny even Spook hadn't charged yet, waiting to see what would happen.
We didn't have to wait long. "I'm stuck!"
Liz frowned, peering up. "What do you mean you're stuck? You had no trouble getting down."
"Just shut up and help me!" Gizmo snapped. Jex, being the tallest there, tried to reach up and grab Gizmo's ankles but she was out of reach. Liz cursed.
"Need help?" Liz cursed again and whirled around to find us blocking the way out. Jex snapped her fingers. "Aw, I thought we'd make it to the engine rooms before we were cornered." Gizmo banged on the chute wall. "Hey! What's going on down there?"
Spook raised one hand then pointed at the offenders. "ATTACK!"
"Protect the coke!" Liz yelled up the chute. "What else am I supposed to do?" said Gizmo irritably, probably bummed about missing the action.
Spook charged first, heading for the chute. Sax followed closely, as her hat was probably in the bag as well and Lorrie went next, intent on retrieving her Atmoswhatis.
I could have jumped in, but meh, watching was pretty fun.
Liz set to work right away, mischievous face settling into one of concentration. Spook isn't trained for battle at all but she's fairly strong, for a girl. Pai was the one to worry about though. She doesn't need her ax, or a signifigant amount of her strength or attention to cause damage.
Jex backpedaled to the other side of the room, one hand holding the flask of the green stuff Lorrie wanted. However, Jex is known for having three left feet and of course she ended up stumbling backwards, the stuff flying out of her hand.
The green flask flew through the air and landed in my hands. I hardly had time to register the fact before Lorrie was flying at me. And the flask had sticky stuff on it for some reason, making it stick to one hand. Not that Lorrie would care.
With a yell, I ran. What? I'm not good without a gun or something ok? And so I was forced to flee. I could hear Gizmo frantically trying to wriggle down the chute, probably a mixture of the dark and missing all the action.
Isa was trying to calm things down from the sidelines, as was Caine. Generally Sax would be there too, but she was still trying to retrieve her fedora.
Things were about to completely fly out of control when- "I GOT IT!" Spook had secured the Coke and was already gulping one down. Liz paused, long enough for Sax to snatch her hat and put it on her head.
Lorrie ripped the atmoswhatever from my hand, which stung, making me grunt. Panting all around from us involved in the fight.
Era grinned, spreading her arms wide. "And so the balance has been restored! But for how long will it last?" I just grunted and started to move out. Everyone else started to follow suit, trooping back up the stairs.
"Hey? HEY! Where're you all going? I'm still stuck! GET ME DOWN!" I chuckled at the outraged yells of Gizmo. I sure as hell wasn't going to get her down. I spotted Isa doubling back, wringing her hands like she always does when she's worried or uncomfortable.
All in all, it's just been an average day.