#lc hoarding bug

[nixii-sabre]

doodled some weird bugs /pos

In order;

The Explorer belongs to @varmsj

Cherry is by @dragonfiremagic

Foster and Apollo belong to @bugmatics

Vons is also by @bugmatics <3

[sammyfaeyrin]

hoarding bug just checkin out your blog for any good posts to loot

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[clanwarrior-tumbly]

could we get a little something for a friendly loot bug reader who constantly tries bring scrap to crew members? like as an offer of friendship? :0

maybe the other monsters consider them the baby of the group and have an “it’s on sight” attitude towards anyone who hurts them, accident or not?

You were a rather friendly Loot Bug who just tries to make friends no matter their species, offering scrap to the humans in orange suits and helmets who often show up.

They keep talking about finding loot, so you figured they'd appreciate your assistance!

Most are surprised bc normally your kind steals their scrap the moment their back's turned, but they're willing to trade a less valuable item to you in favor of whatever you were offering.

Some, however, get "trigger happy" with their shovels and may just start swinging it at you.

Luckily you have a tough shell, but even then...you feel sad about them attacking you for no reason :(

It happens more often when you fly, so you stopped doing that.

But one day, you're trying to offer them a gift box and they assume you stole it instead.

Next thing you know, there's a bright green laser hitting you and it was super painful, leaving you unable to move.

Meanwhile, someone back at the ship sees a shit ton of red blips on the monitor closing in on their team.

And that's when chaos ensues:

A Bracken grabs the aggressor's head, a Mimic gets ready to puke blood on them, a Jester spawns in, a Coil-Head blocks their only way out, a Thumper bursts through a vent, and a Nutcracker readies its shotgun.

The only one who doesn't threaten them is the Ghost Girl, who makes sure you're okay.

You hear the employee crying out how it was an accident and they didn't mean to fire the zap gun at you, but your friends were ready to murder them anyways.

Yet..you didn't want to see any of them die :(

So you managed to convince your buddies to spare the group as you still had your gift for them.

The employees think they're dead and buried, but are shocked when the monsters back off.

They just...stare as you happily offer the giftbox to the closest human, who nervously takes it and opens it to find something quite valuable inside--something that would set them WAY over quota.

They leave unscathed and the person left on the ship wonders how tf they all made it back alive.

But with their survival comes an important lesson: never mess with a Loot Bug's kindness.

The only reason the facility didn't become a bloodbath was because of you and you alone.

Going forward, the crew will leave all their "weapons" on the ship next time they visited you.

[windmills123]

put that down loot bup 👿

[ghostmysterlos]

Working on some lethal company sticker/keychain designs :3

My Etsy

[dragonfiremagic]

Am I safe from Lethal Company bandwagon?? Ahahahah...about that

Time to dump some OCs I made as I was dragged into this fun spooky game by my friends lmao It's sci-fi horror and I just came fresh from NMS addiction I couldn't help myself

[swampycreatures]

Lootbug STOLE my whole HEART

Let me tame one PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE 💔 I WANNA GIVE EM LITTLE TREATS 💔

[temporaltourguide]

my 2 (two) pictures i took in vrchat

[nixii-sabre]

Can I submit another one? 7.

7. Describe them in three words. Now let them describe themself in three words.

Rainworld

Endless - Pathetic, Silly, Loser. Funny, Stupid, Idiot.

Koi - Ultra Girl Boss. The Best Sister

Niche - Motherlike, Lawful, Homosexual. Enforcer, Deity, Tired

Lethal Company

Harvey - Jackass, beanpole, Headstrong. Fighter, Competent, Tough

Elle - Closed Off, Tired. Fuckin' exhausted, Boss

Theo - Depressed, alcoholic, weirdo. Charming, open, extroverted.

Baron - Loot Bug Lover. For both.

mrrow

[etheluu]

more rambling about Estera and To because they make me insane an unhealthy amount + general description of my lethal company AU thingy

(all under the cut because it's a bit lengthy)

Hii welcome, if it's the first time you're hearing about these two then don't worry, I'll be writing out basically their whole lore here. It's not finished but that's just how creating ocs goes for me, the lore never stops expanding.

Here are the said freaks, Estera on the left and To on the right.

( render on the left / render on the right )

This AU of mine revolves around Estera, ~35 year old polish person that decided to work for The Company, mostly due to wanting to get away from their religious family.

(more about their name + some other facts in this post/reblog)

Days go by with nothing unusual happening, working to feed the company monster :) meet the quotas. They have been a member of many teams, as they have been working in that place for about 10 years now. Many workers come and go for many different reasons, so the team rarely ever stays consistent for more than a couple of weeks. Although the most recent one and the one relevant in this story consist of: Estera, Amelia, Miikka and Kasper. (link)

It's all fine and dandy, until the things go wrong because of course they do.

One day, the aforementioned team goes for an expedition to Titan, one of LC's in-game moons. All goes as it usually does. Amelia stays in the ship for the camera duty, while the others go inside the massive facility. This time they intend to delve deeper in search of any remaining loot that might be hidden in the deepest parts of this colossal building.

There are currently no specific details about this, but in one moment Estera gets attacked by one of the monsters, leading another team member, that have witnessed it, to think that they have fallen due to this. Estera has fallen unconscious too, so looking through the ship terminal, their team couldn't see any signs of life from them. And, well, having a teammate get killed is not that unusual in this work, so it wasn't that difficult of a decision to leave Estera behind.

Estera, after waking up, realizes what had happened when after leaving the facility, the ship is nowhere to be seen. That sends them into a teeny tiny panic.

Although with nothing else to possibly do about this situation, Estera tries to adapt to this new situation. They look for any food and water left behind to survive, as well as rationing the oxygen left in the tanks.

So, Titan kinda became a new home for Estera. A bit dangerous with all the monsters, yes, but they managed to survive, somehow.

The previously thought to be impossible happens, when Estera manages to form a sort of friendly connection with a hoarding bug! After giving them some leftover scrap from time to time, the monster didn't seem to react negatively to the human's presence. Yeah, they still acted defensive when getting close to their nest but that's what happens for any living being there.

So now Estera had a little friend. It felt wrong to be a friend with a monster but beggars can't be choosers in a solitary situation like theirs.

From that point on, Estera managed to form some sort of connection with other types of monsters. They didn't truly gained their trust, but they sure could understand them more than before.

After going deeper into the building, they finally meet them.

At first, the being that Estera saw, looked a lot like one of the company's workers, aside from their suit being black than the usual orange. The being acted reluctant towards Estera, seemingly trying to get away even. But with some convincing from Estera, the other has accepted the company of the human.

The one that Estera would later name "To", had hid themselves in the deepest parts of Titan's facility, away from any other living being. They never spoke in a traditional way. They were seemingly mute so they would only convey messages through body movements.

(some more about To and how they came to be)

And the adventure of Estera and To begins! The two main characters basically, yay!! They get to be silly together!! Yippee!!

But, another bad thing happens to Estera, i.e.: they get attacked again. This time more fatally. Yeah they're not getting a break in that company.

Estera gets seriously injured and it was clear that they would not get out of it. As they laid there, surrounded by many different scrap items and the ever so growing pool of their blood, an idea flashed in their mind.

They knew it wasn't a good idea but they had to try. The survival instincts were lounder than any rational thoughts.

A mask. Estera knew what it could do. Estera saw what it could do.

They put it on either way.

It happened pretty much in an instant. It was like roots spread out from it, gnawing itself into their body. And it was like an ice-cold water was flushed onto them. Estera immediately tried to take it off in a panic but they quickly realized it was to no avail. So, they switched to a different method. They took the nearest object and bashed it intensely into the mask on their face, repeatedly. All until they heard a crack.

Estera wasn't sure if it was them or the mask who shrieked from the pain caused from that action, but it was enough to put them out of consciousness.

(more about Estera getting masked and its results + explaining of some important related stuff) (you might want to read it to understand the mask thing better)

So now there is Estera and this mask sharing Estera's body. In short: without the mask, Estera dies so they're stuck together. At least they still have To with them. But uh oh, To turns out to be not-a-human. Who could have guessed that the bracken-like leaves would mean that they're also a monster.

To, Estera's best friend, is also a monster. A bracken-like entity, too alien for other monsterous beings, too alien for humans. (link)

Well, that is surely shocking to Estera. It does take them a moment to accept, but they eventually do.

It is a huge thing for them though. Yeah, they were friendly with some monsters before and everything, but they were always monsters to them. To felt much more similar to Estera, like a human. But now that line is blurred.

Is To nothing like Estera? Is Estera like To? What is Estera now?

Are they still human? The mask made them a "living corpse", the undead. Alive only because this thing needs a host. They shouldn't be alive at this point. It's not supposed to be like this.

Are they a monster? There's still Estera's consciousness inside that body, there is still them inside. Their soul is still in that body.

What is To? They look like a monster to Estera, yet even the monsters don't see them as one of their own. They act like a human, with human emotions, with human humor. Yet humans hunt them down, not seeing them as equals.

What makes a monster, a monster?

Will they both be monsters if they don't see each other as such?

Maybe they're not monsters that everyone thought they were. Not if they have each other.

As Estera ponders on this dilemma, they eventually get closer to the parasite controlling their body, the mask. It was pretty much a matter of time for that to happen. After all, they're with each other almost 24/7 (I say almost because sometimes the mask goes "offline"). At one point, Estera begins to call it "Maska", giving it its own name pretty much. The walls that they built between each other, lessen day by day.

One day, Maska decides to tell the truth to Estera. A mask needs a host to live, even one that is half-dead will do. They will keep their host in such a state because there's genuinely no point in doing anything more. But, they can also revert damage done to the body if they want to, bringing it back to life and setting the host free if they so choose.

Maska says that to Estera, expecting them to demand to heal them as such, but they hesitate.

Estera hesitates. Because what else is there for them in the "normal" world? If they went with parting with Maska and went back to their home, would the world see them as a human or as a monster? Will others accept them? They want to go back to the way things were before, but it just might be a better choice for them to stay the way they are now. They might be just fine with things being like this.

But things never stay the same forever.

Their team, the same one that had left them, had returned for another expedition. Safe to say it wasn't a nice reunion.

Amelia, upon seeing masked Estera, had pointed a shotgun towards them. To her, they were just a monster. Estera pleaded with them, trying to explain that they're still there, but it was to no avail. Amelia shot at them, piercing them through their chest. This made Estera go "offline" for a moment, letting Maska take full control over the body. Amelia only stared at them in horror, as Maska tried to attack them, but ultimately ended up running away.

On the other side, a different part of the team was met with To in their usual suit. Them, thinking they were some lost member of a crew, got them on their ship and took them to Gordion in hopes that somebody could help them.

To is not pleased with this to say the least. Some try but nobody can understand what they're trying to convey.

They're also having an one-sided beef with the company monster and they're hissing at it.

So, To decides to take stuff into their own tentacles hands and straight up steals a ship and routes it back to Titan. Upon arrival, they don't even bother with stairs, they leave behind their suit and just climb up them. To searches through the facility and when they find Estera, they hug around them as the other reciprocates it.

Aaaand that would be the story for now. A rough outline of it, written when I should be going to sleep because I have work tomorrow morning.

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

I don’t know a lot about Lethal Company.

Can I request a Reader who’s eerily good at imitating the “Yippee!” sound the Hoarding Bugs make? To the point, they can almost have full blown conversations by simply saying Yippee at different tones and volumes. And, their (crewmates, fellow employees?) are just wondering how the Reader is still freaking alive. Maybe they start branching out to try and replicate the sounds the other monsters make too. (Secretly, they have been designated the Hoarding Bug… Ruler from the sheer “negotiations” they have said without meaning too.)

This cracked me up ghshfh the "yippee" thing is from a mod but I love the idea of it being accepted as canon

.......

"Yippee!"

"Yippee?"

"Ah, Yip-Yippeeee!!!!"

"What in god's name are you doing?"

"I'm uh...communicating with the local bug population?" Turning around, you looked at your fellow employee, flask in-hand.

It was an utterly worthless item compared to the fancy lamp the hoarding bug in front of you was hanging onto.

You were determined to return to the ship with it by any means...and you may have just discovered the most unconventional way of doing so.

One that didn't involve getting blood on your hands, nor on the bug's hands

"That lamp can set us well above quota!" You exclaimed. "Just give me a moment and I'll secure it. We're working on negotiations."

"...you're gonna get yourself killed." They shook their head, frowning underneath their helmet at your "plan". "If you really think that thing will understand anything you say-"

*clunk*

You both jumped a little, seeing that the creature dropped the lamp at your feet, before it looked back up at you.

It held its arms up, clearly waiting for you to honor your part of this negotiation.

"Yippee!"

"Yippee? Yippee!" With a small laugh, you handed it the flask before it scurried back into the darkness, cradling it.

"See? Easy does it." You picked up the lamp with two hands, sighing at your shocked crewmate's expression. "What? I'm just doing whatever it takes to meet the quota. That's our job, right?"

"I'm starting to think you're actually a hoarding bug in disguise." They muttered, turning on their flashlight as they checked the ceilings for snare fleas.

"Well luckily I'm not. Let's go. It must be close to midnight."

"As you wish....'o'mighty Hoarding Bug Ruler.."

"What was that?

"....nothing."

"Next time maybe I can imitate a Bracken by shaking around one of our plants-"

"Please don't."

[corruptimles]

disclaimer in advance that there's a lot of bug and ghost, because there's a lot of bugs in LC, BUT, consider that you are exploring abandoned locations it makes sense to find a lot of bugs and ghosts

this is also a no normal and mono-type slander zone. sometimes things are normal and mono-types, they don't always have to be fancy

Barber - Ghost/Steel yes it's a 'clay' surgeon but we're emphasizing the fact it vanishes and reappears + scissors as a main weapon/threat

Bracken - Grass/Dark it's a plant creature and applies dirty tactics of stalking, sneaking, tricking you into looking, and attacking when your back is turned

Bunker Spider- Bug it's a bug. It doesn't have any specific abilities or tactics that stand out for a typing. It could even be Normal as well for how neutral it is as a creature

Butler - Ghost/Bug it's reminiscent to a rotting corpse, full of bugs. In a Pokemon AU, it'd probably look more stylized rather than human, like a Mr.Mime. Maybe Bug/Dark because of its antics??

Coil-head - ??? this thing is organic with inorganic pieces and radioactive and explodes if pierced but kills through bludgeoning and isn't particularly cunning and no ties to a specific element. it's just scary and possibly unidentifiable + incredibly artificial creature. why does it replace your head.

Hoarding Bug - Bug/Flying its behaviour is still very simply animal-like, just collecting and building nests out of scrap. It attacks specifically when flying though, so it gets the typing for that focus

Ghost Girl - Ghost Again nothing too stand-out that isn't very Ghost-type-like, could be Psychic too if you want to focus on mind-games and the head exploding. Again in a Pokemon AU would probably be stylized to be non-human instead, or is something adjacent to a Phantump, depending on how interpret its manifestation.

Hygrodere - Water/Poison Water-like body and some focus on the corrosive/acidic aspects

Jester - Fairy this thing whimsical

Maneater - Bug/Ground That's a little bug, but also possibly specifically an underground and/or burrowing species due to the cave system

Masked - Ghost Possession. Possibly convergent species to a Yamask? We also debated Poison, for its blood spitting tendencies. You can argue Dark for its deceptive nature of purposely pretending to be an employee, but that could also still be considered Ghost-type mischief

Nutcracker - Fairy/Fighting It's a soldier/made for combat, but also has a fairy-tale aspect in its design

Snare Flea - Bug Bug

Spore Lizard - Normal/Poison It has a gas attack but doesn't damage with it. Possibly could have the option to do so, or risk of just choking and you're fine because you have a gas mask in-game anyway.

Thumper - Normal more or less just an animal that attacks like a territorial animal, no abilities

Baboon Hawk - Normal/Dark also an animal and not always the biggest threat, but tendency to attempt stealing, and resorting to ganging up on victims with its flock

Earth Leviathan - Ground/Dragon It's an underground dwelling creature that probably senses through vibrations. Huge and called a Leviathan.

Eyeless Dogs - Normal also just an animal, no abilities

Forest Keeper - Grass It's made of wood

Old Bird - Steel/Fighting It's made of metal. Also produced for war, parallels Nutcrackers in a way?

Circuit Bees - Bug/Electric Bugs that electrocute you

Tulip Snake - Normal/Dragon The vibes to me are like distant relatives to Drampa. Friend says Flying/Dragon because they drop you from heights.

Kidnapper Fox - Dark Kidnapping and dragging away its victim into its nest to kill later is kinda fricked so it gets pure Dark-typing

Lasso Man.

put that fucker in lethal company. it's who he is. /silly

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Could you do a lethal company fic where the reader has a pet hoarding bug dressed up to the nines with a little bow tie. Because we got to pick him out from the crowd right. The team is wary of the bug and wants it gone but the reader is like “No that’s my buddy, my little guy :(”.

When the team lands on a planet the little man searches the facility to find items and returns them to the front. To reinforce good behavior the reader gives them some shiny coins like pennies.

Everyone is happy the crew meets quota and the bug gets a nice hoard of shiny things.

"There you go, welcome to your first day on the job!"

Taking your hands away, you stepped back to admire your work on the hoarding bug you just brought aboard the ship, having dressed it in a simple orange vest with a bowtie and its own employee nametag.

You picked up this guy on Experimentation, and it seemed to become quite attached to you (and not because of the scrap you were carrying). Considering how docile it behaved while helping you transport items to the facility's entrance, you got an idea.

It's a crazy one, for sure..but you believed it could help your crew make the next quota.

You intended to surprise them after they came back just after sundown--yet when you opened the doors, one intern already had their shovel-in hand, ready to swing.

So to see you then stand in front of the alien had them all bewildered.

"Boss?! What are you doing?! That's-!"

"It's okay! He's friendly. Just...relax, everyone." You put your hands up, refusing to let any of them get one step closer. "He's not gonna attack us. So please, put the shovel away. You're scaring him."

The hoarding bug chittered nervously, creeping up to hug your leg as it shyly stared at the three other humans in suits just like you.

But unlike them, you didn't wear a helmet. All it could see was your stern expression, your eyes sharp and focused, and your forehead only slightly damp with sweat.

It knew you were only trying to protect it..yet it couldn't tell what the others were thinking, making it all the more anxious.

"Scaring him?!" The shovel-wielding employee scoffed loudly, not loosening their grip on their weapon for a moment. "It's us who should be scared, if anything.."

"C-Can we ask why you brought a hoarding bug onboard, boss?" An intern meekly interrupted.

Your eyes lit up as you smiled, patting the spot between the Hoarding Bug's antennae. "From what I observed..he wants to help us transport scrap. And he hasn't attacked me once, nor has he tried ripping anything out of my hands. So I deem him to be our fifth crew member. And his name will be....Buddy."

He perked up at the name, and you laughed. "I take it you like that name, huh?"

"...seriously?" The employee grumbled. "No offense, but I'd like to remember "Buddy" as my dog's name, not the name of this...pest. Is it even legal to domesticate these things?"

"Well..we have Trent." You pointed to the fishbowl resting on the filing cabinet. "And I don't see you complaining about-"

"It's a damn goldfish! A common pet back on Earth. We know next to nothing about hoarding bugs!" They snapped, frustrated. "How can you be so sure it's not gonna just steal our stuff and....and...."

However, they trailed off as they noticed your gaze become harsher. And the others in the crew knew that you meant serious business.

"I'm just saying..you're putting us at-"

"We may not know much about hoarding bugs, but we can learn from this one if we allow him to stay. I have a way to keep him in line and help maximize our quota. So have a little trust in me, okay?" You huffed. "If it's gonna be a problem..then I'll have to reassign you."

"What?! But I-"

"You're great with keeping spiders and snare fleas off our backs, Employee..I would like to keep you onboard. Just..let me prove Buddy to you. Don't make me the bad guy."

All you got was silence and a small nod from the disgruntled employee, who finally decided to put their shovel away in the cupboard.

Only then did your bright smile return. "Thank you." You clapped your hands with glee.

"So um..how will you train it--I mean him?" The other intern inquired, tilting their head.

"Two words...positive reinforcement." Deciding to demonstrate, you dug a quarter out of your pocket and knelt down beside Buddy, tapping him on the shoulder. "Hey. I got something for you as thanks for getting that rubber duck safely to our ship."

His red eyes seemed to shimmer at the little trinket you were bestowing to him, as he took it right away and stared for a few good seconds...before scuttling over to his corner of the ship. Then he placed the coin on the floor and sat there, content.

"Ohh..so you'll let him keep some things? Like he'll get his own nest?"

"I've conditioned him to admire currency more than weddings rings." You chuckled, standing back up before you headed to the terminal. "And they're intelligent enough to understand trading, so..if he does get ahold of one, we can easily negotiate."

"And I guess the clothes are self-explanatory."

"Right, gotta pick him out from the crowd." You booted up the system, checking to see which moons had clear weather for your final day for this quota.

Then you noticed one that was never there before.

"Huh..Adamance. That's a new one. It's grouped with March and Vow, so I guess it's a forest moon."

"Wouldn't hurt to venture there." The Employee remarked. "Is it free?"

"Yep. Let's go." You launched the ship and set course for Adamance, smiling back at the group--plus Buddy, who seemed startled by the suddenly jolting of the ship as its autopilot took over.

..........

"A register?! How did he manage to find that?!"

"What can I say? Hoarding bugs have their ways." With a proud smile, you patted Buddy on the head for yet another successful scrap hunt on Adamance.

He looked down at the heavy cash register in his arms, pulling the lever. He was surprised at first, but a moment later chittered with apparent delight at the dinging noise it made.

You could only grin. "See? I taught him to do that, too! Now he's officially just like us. Go put it with your collection, Buddy."

Nodding obediently, he scurried over to his "nest", dropping the register alongside some other shiny trinkets it found within the facility: a brass bell, some bolts, a cookie pan, and even a golden cup.

It seems visiting Adamance was the right decision, although the absurd amount off baboon hawks outside spelled trouble for you and your crew despite being outnumbered. During one transport trip, a few tried to wrangle a piece of scrap away from Buddy, who fought fiercely to keep it safe.

Suddenly, it dawned on you that hoarding bugs and baboon hawks never had any reported encounters with each other...so you feared the worst when you realized Buddy would be seeing them for the first time and not know what to do-

Until he managed to make himself look big by simply hovering in the air and buzzing angrily--which apparently scared off the entire horde.

The tulip snakes were another nuisance, but luckily none made him nor you (or anyone in the crew) get any airtime.

On the final trip back to the ship, you noticed he was distracted by the large inactive robot that stood by the cabin, and you had to whistle to help him regain focus..to which you rewarded him with a dime for a good job.

One of your interns opted to investigate the structure, and on the inside they discovered writing on the wall that spelled "68-ART".

As it turns out, that's a route to the moon called Artifice, with a description mentioning active "machinery", which you can only assume meant the big robot standing outside.

At the moment it was too expensive to visit, but you kept the name in your notes and praised your intern for finding it--alongside Buddy, who drew your attention to the cabin to begin with.

For now, though, you were ready to lift off from Adamance before any earth worms or eyeless dogs woke up. You definitely didn't wanna run into any of those when you collected so much scrap already.

Now all you had to do was head to the Company Building and drop off how ever much was necessary to meet this quota.

And thanks to the help of your fifth crew member, you were able to make it without losing a limb..or a life, for that matter.

[nixii-sabre]

Alright, fine. 20 for the ask questionnaire.

20. What do they like that nobody else does?

I'm just gonna do the LC blorbos because if I do the RW and Downfall idiots this post will be very, very long.

Harvey - Warm milk. For no reason. Probably because he works at a coffee shop, that may have a hand in it but he does like drinking warm milk before sleep especially

Baron - Hoarding Bugs, I think that's a given. The others may think loot bugs are scary, ugly, annoying, or perhaps all of the above, but Baron just loves them. He thinks they're cute!

Elle - Ship duty. Baron will stay at the ship occasionally but even he admits to wanting to go to the facility, gather some loot, find a hoarding bug, you know, the norm. Elle enjoys being at the ship and actually prefers it. The others don't recall her ever actually going in the facility with them-?

Theo - Alcohol, apparently. Harvey's very anti-alcohol. Baron's not a fan, he likes tea better. Elle doesn't have an opinion. Richard's a lightweight. I doubt Orion would.

Kachiri - th eo

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hi! I have been reading you for a long time and would like to ask you something for the first time… The last message flow to the Lethal Company from the Nutcracker was WILDLY SWEET, however, it hurt me from the bracken that was shot through the lytic…. May I ask the bracken and the reader where the bracken constantly goes behind the reader's back…. JUST TO HUG! Someone from the team warns about the danger and the bracken gently takes the reader in his arms to his lair for even bigger hugs!

Bruh you have no idea how soft i am for brackens hfghhs (when I first started playing LC, they were ALWAYS killing me...but now they just like to pop out and scurry away when I look at them, so I consider us to be pretty chill)

Anyways woe Bracken fluff be upon ye <3

.....

Of all the creatures you've encountered during your time with the Company, Brackens were certainly the most complicated.

Even though there's been countless documents and reports of employees scanning, studying, and dying to these aliens...they were still seldom understood. The data on the terminal said so.

There was one in particular who had such a unique behavior pattern that remained a mystery to you.

And he lived on Experimentation, which was supposedly the "safest" moon to land on and gather scrap from.

Most of the time, however, that was a load of bullshit...as you and your crew had many encounters with aggressive lifeforms such as hoarding bugs, Thumpers, spiders, and turrets that were placed in the most inconvenient spots...

Hell, even an Earth Leviathan showed up and nearly consumed your entire ship.

As of right now, though, you were on-track to making the third profit quota's deadline. So a trip to Experimentation was an order, as you could grab minimal loot and still gain enough leftover money to buy some much-needed ship upgrades and tools.

Or maybe new suits or jack o'lanterns.

None of you were good at managing your budget.

But during this trip, you were less focused on getting loot and more eager to see....a certain someone.

Hopefully, he hasn't forgotten about you or mistook you for another random employee.

While two of your coworkers headed into the facility's main entrance and one stayed behind on the ship, you ascended the stairs leading up to the fire exit--armed with nothing but a flashlight and a walkie-talkie.

[Nearby activity detected!]

"Oh come on...can you be anymore vague?" You huffed, slightly annoyed that your scanner displayed the message before you could even touch the damn door.

"Activity" was awfully broad and could mean literally anything was waiting for you on the other side..

It could be a bunker spider or snare flea waiting to drop down on you and catch you by surprise.

It could be a Hygrodere spreading itself all over the floor, anticipating you setting one foot into it before drowning in its slimy body.

It could even be a simple turret ready to turn you into swiss cheese.

However, there's the possibility that it could also be the one entity here who didn't wanna give you a painful death, and you hoped to god you were right.

So you took a leap of faith and entered.

Surprisingly no danger was immediately present, although you did find a lot of good loot inside the room and smiled. "Oh sweet!" You grabbed the rubber ducky and Rubik's cube in the nearest corner, pocketing them. "This should set us way above-"

"Something's behind you!"

"Huh-?!"

All of the sudden, a pair of large arms wrapped around you from behind, pulling you back and causing your oxygen tanks to be pressed against the creature's chest-

Wait.

You only knew one Bracken that did that, and you couldn't help but laugh. "Oh my gosh, you scared me! You know you can't keep doing that!"

"Krrrrrr.." The entity purred softly, nuzzling his face against your neck as its leaves rustled with happiness.

With a chuckle, you patted his arm affectionately. "I've missed you, too, buddy. I told you I'd be back."

Knowing it was this Bracken, you felt safer than ever. He had a habit of greeting you this way: by sneaking up behind you like the rest of his species typically did, and attacking you.....not by snapping your neck like a twig, but by embracing and nuzzling you.

Of course, nobody in your crew believed that you've got a dangerous alien predator on Experimentation who always waited for you. Who loved you like a dog and would kill a Thumper for you.

If only they could meet him...but then again, he was shy.

"Don't tell me it's that damn Bracken again...did you tame it or something?"

The staticky voice of your coworker over the walkie-talkie startled the poor Bracken out of the hug, as it dropped you and flared its leaves out, wondering where they were.

"Relax, we're cool." You huffed, annoyed that they spooked your friend. "I gotta conserve my battery so...signal me when it gets close to midnight."

"....fine. Just don't die. Over and out."

After switching off the device, you turned back to him and smiled apologetically. "Don't worry. They're far away, so they won't bother us." You removed your helmet for the moment.

He nodded in understanding, crouching down to get a better look at your human features.

For some reason he never minded prolonged eye contact with you--and that was a good thing....otherwise, you would've been dead a long time ago.

You smiled and patted the top of his head, before he suddenly sprung up and scooped you up into his arms, lifting you completely off the ground. "Woah! Hey! Where are we going?" You asked as he carried you out of the room, taking you somewhere further within the facility.

Considering the Bracken knew his way around, you weren't too concerned with getting lost.

On your way to this unknown destination, you spotted a hoarding bug skittering down the hallway, eyeing the brass bell attached to your belt.....only to freeze as the leafy entity glared at it.

Luckily it understood the appropriate time to make eye contact with a Bracken, as it eventually looked away from him and decided to leave for another part of the facility.

It seems most of the creatures were knew who was the alpha.

'Man, whoever's tracking me must be so confused right now..' You thought to yourself as he continued walking.

Eventually you both arrived at a place many employees dubbed the "Bracken Room": a large open illuminated space with yellowish walls that looked out of place in the facility.

After setting you down on the floor, you looked at the Bracken with confusion, wondering why he decided to bring you here....until he brought you into another hug, wanting to sit down and have you in his lap.

You just smiled and wrapped your arms around him, giggling as he tucked his head underneath your chin, wanting to listen to the sound of a human's heartbeat.

Now you understood.

All he wanted was to take you to a quiet, safe place away from all the other monsters and employees. A place where he could have you to himself...at least for a couple more hours, anyways.

You knew the ship wasn't leaving anytime soon, so you didn't mind keeping him company.

While other Brackens are among the top three reasons employees hated their job...this one made you love it.

You feel so lucky, you'll consider buying a lottery ticket if you ever returned to Earth.