“Lookin’ for somethin’?”
Arkay nodded, his eyes glued to the vast wall of confectionery. He had come into this little void kiosk looking to do some much needed shopping, but the brightness and sweetness of this corner of the kiosk was almost hypnotic to him. All Arkay had seen in a long time had been grey, gold and more grey, so seeing something so hideously colourful was basically food for his eyes.
“What ya lookin’ for then?”
With a quick shake of his head, Arkay returned to reality and looked away from the wall, searching for the voice that had been speaking to him. It belonged to a rather metallic-seeming creature not much taller than Arkay. Standing upright, it was mostly made of metal plating and various mechanical features, many of its joints being held together with cogs and springs. But in between the robotic parts was plenty of purple muscular tissue. The being’s face was covered up by a brown mask, and green eyes glowed through not just the eye sockets, but the mouth and other gaps too.
After a quick second look, Arkay realised why, despite being so alien, this being looked vaguely familiar. He had briefly met a group of Decay Lords in the past whose only organic parts seemed to be made of the same stuff as this creature’s joints were.
“Sorry, got distracted.”
“No worries! Happens a lot. Buncha people like t’accuse me of being a Voidborn. How can I help ya?”
Arkay tutted. “That’s mean. I don’t think you’re a Voidborn.”
“Ya’re the first t’say that!” The brown and silver-armoured being may or may not have been smiling, Arkay wasn’t completely sure. “Ya in need of parts t’fix ya ship?”
“Yeah. I have a list of things…”
“Well, ‘nfortunately, ain’t got any parts!” The creature explained. “All our ‘ere teleporters kinda got… blown up, ya see.”
Arkay sighed. “I feared as much… Is there really nothing… here?” Arkay couldn’t help it, but his gaze was drawn back to the wall of sweets.
The being leaned to one side, tutting. “Ya thought we kept actual stock ‘ere? Nah, all the ship parts, we teleport ’em in. Too big t’actually keep in stock, and too many bloody models too…”
“What about…” Arkay swallowed somewhat nervously. “What about all those sweets?”
“These sweets?”
“Yes.”
“What about them?”
“Are they… real? Or are they teleported in like everything else?”
The being shrugged. “Nah mate, they’re real. For some darn reason, Ewal really, really wanted t’have them, then kinda left me to deal with all’a it. The only stuff we keep in stock are Life Goddess treats, so I ain’t got a problem keepin’ them stocked up.”
Arkay hesitated for a moment, reaching into the little pouch on his side. “Are you… sure you haven’t got anything…”
“I’m tellin’ ya, we really ain’t got anythin’.”
“Oh. Sorry… I bet you’ve been getting that a lot… Must suck, on top of all those dumb accusations you mentioned…” Arkay sighed. “Gonna be honest, that’s a really nice way to display confectionery.”
The being’s smile perked up. “Ah, no worries mate. Tell ya what, since ya’re so nice, I’ma put you at the top of the list for when we get these darn teleporters fixed. What’s ya name, mate?”
Arkay blinked. “Uh… You don’t need to do that…”
“Yeah I do. Ain’t no one commented on my fabulously sexy sweet shelf before. My name’s Atuho. What can I call ya?”
“I’m Arkay…” Arkay stuttered.
“Which ship?”
“Thantir Two.”
“Oh ya’re with ol’Galyn! Ah good. Ya want some sweets?”
Again, Arkay fumbled with his pouch, reaching for the payment card. “I shouldn’t, this is supposed to be for emergency purch-”
“It’s on the house. Ain’t no normal Decay Lords eating this stuff anyway…”Atuho grabbed a nearby paper bag and started filling it with sweets from every draw. “Plus, kinda owe ya’ll for holding ya’ll up with supplies.”
“That’s not your fault though!” Arkay exclaimed. “How was anyone supposed to know?”
Atuho shrugged. “T’be honest, mate, I think it was one of those darn Voidborns, ya know? They get hecked off easy…” With a smile, Atuho handed Arkay the overfilled bag.
“Yeah, I guess…” Arkay sighed. “Thank you, good sir!”
“Thank ya too, mate!”