Writing Prompt Answer
Username: ThatPinkThing
# of Nagalines you own: 6
Prompt Answer:
"Missing?!"
"Impossible, one of you just hasn't looked hard enough!"
"One of us? You're supposed to be in charge of this place!"
The bickering continued as the trio of nagalines snaked between legs and under desks. Ginger led the charge, determinedly heading to the main genetics labs. Moira followed at her heels, and Minnie skittered behind, lagging a bit with her smaller legs. Minnie's blurred vision stayed locked on Moira's tail, but she managed to catch snippets of conversation as they passed by administrators' offices. A containment unit had been opened. No sign of the creature breaking out had been found. No footprints leading away from the unit, no broken glass, no record of there even having been a nagaline in that unit, but every single person in the lab knew that there was supposed to be a massive male nagaline in that unit. So where had he gone? That's what Ginger and the crew were going to find out.
Ginger was a master at getting places she should not be. She was easily an extremely intelligent nagaline, and she knew that the main genetics lab was overviewed by the security room, where monitors also showed camera feeds from around the labs. The gold naga led her two partners in crime sleuthing up to the security room and had them wait by the door while she hopped up onto the desks and carefully walked around the keyboards. She looked at each screen carefully, scowling when she found no indication of the escapee being in the lab. Well, they'd just have to look out of the lab.
Ginger hopped down and began to head for the outdoor fields where the nagalines were released sometimes to play or exercise. The area was fenced, but this big, missing naga could have wormed his way out. The three of them headed out through the doors that let roaming specimens like themselves go in and out as they pleased. Minnie argued weakly against the idea. The brightness of the sun made it even harder for her to see through her goo-producing eyes. Moira assured her gently that they wouldn't be out too long, just to search the perimeter. Ginger touched her forehead to Minnie's, confirming Moira's words. Just a little bit. Once reassured, they headed outside with Minnie and began to trot along the border of the area.
They walked for about fifteen minutes along the edge before discovering a mangled hole in the fencing at the southwest corner. Ginger investigated the broken wires, picking up traces of the big male nagaline's scent. They agreed to alert the scientists, but they would have to split up. Ginger would stay at the fence in case anything tried to get through. Moira would go back and bring someone to see what they'd found. And poor Minnie's tiny, tired legs weren't going to make it back and forth all those times again, so she stayed with Ginger, curled up with her eyes closed in her friend's shadow.
The problem would be solved soon, Ginger assured her as Moira hurried to get help. The missing naga would be found and brought back.
Random Prompt AnswerUsername: ThatPinkThing
# of Nagalines you own: 6
Prompt:
Enigmatic.
The intimidatingly large nagaline contained inside the forgotten unit glowed like the moon on a starless night. It's fur was slick and short, nothing like the soft nagas that other units had contained. The short fur was pale pink, a color that should invoke some sort of affection, but instead it only reminded the attending scientist of the dress Carrie wore before being doused in blood. The darker flecks and streaks across the fur and richly colored scales on the creature's underbelly only stood out as more unnatural. The attending scientist began to wonder if tampering with life had been a mistake.
Aside from the naga's coloration, it only moved when scientists weren't looking. It kept its eyes closed, but the lids had dots on them which often fooled the scientists into thinking they were open. Starlike markings around the face and paws glowed even during the day, in broad light. Its mouth was always slightly open, and when scientists tried to peek at its teeth to check for venom, the bright red tongue startled them each time, thinking it could be blood. But the nagaline remained still and blind.
Every day when people arrived, it would be in a different position. Upright. Back turned. In a cat's pounce stance. Contorted into a bizarre shape. And they held this position without opening their eyes to check if people were watching. The lab techs began to assume it could hear extremely well, and they would talk to the naga as they worked, despite knowing it would never respond.
One technician refused to speak to the contained creature, though. Its enigmatic existence not only unnerved, but kind of scared her. She always kept an eye on the creature, and always stayed quiet, talking as little as possible when in that room. She refused to come close to the unit after she had dared to once. She swore its eyes opened for a split second, and that they were pitch black.
