Working hard as usual

[imported_Altered Beast]

The alpha beast left to proceed in the wake of Armaiil Kryatir is busy, as per the norm, scouring over the data left by its master. The pages of notes all concern the doctor's hypothetical "masterwork" experiment, made possible by the fortunate capture of one Lillian Snow. It's stomach gurgles loudly for the fifteenth time this hour, and it decides at last that it can no longer ignore the need for food.

"Char!"

[Char]

A head topped with twin feline-sque ears popped up from behind a counter. Tilted to the side, dull blue eyes centered on the beast before she stood to her full height. It had been many days since he last called on her in such a tone.

"Yes, Master?"

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Asssside from yhhhour dhhhutiesssss cleaning the lhhaboratoriessss and ssssating my ssssadissstic whhhims, yhhhou are alssssso required to prepare mhhhealssss...bring me sssomethhhing."

[Char]

Char's head tilted in a nod, turning briskly on her bare heel. As an afterthought, she replied; "Do you want anything specific?"

Not waiting for a answer, or rather dismissnig the answer. The fridge wasn't very well stocked, the other little beasts scurrying about haven't gone out and raided anyplace. Finding a still-good slab of meat, she still couldn't tell what beast, if any, it came from.

On a clean tray, she used a nearby scaple to slice herself a sliver from the chuck, slipping it between her teeth with a slight shiver, before carrying it to the large beast. "Will this do..?"

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Yhhhesss, thank yhhhou," it mutters absently, paging slowly down database and tearing into the offered meat. The claw tapping the keyboard slows idly before coming to a stop, eyeing the entry it has selected. "Char....whhhhat would yhhhou ssssay to...going up top and rhhhhunning a fhhhhew errandsssss?" The rest of the meat disappears down it's throat. "Ihhf you do particuhharly well, I shhhhall refrhhain from taking the fhhhhood you deprived me of from yhhhour body."

[Char]

Her eyes turned torward the exit, "That would be marvelous, master."

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Thhhen, choossse your misssssion well, Char. You musssst perfhhhhorm your chosssssen tasssk to the letter. If I fhhhind anything unssssatissssfactory in your whhhork, you know how dire the conssssequencesss will be."

The girl nods, and it continues.

"Yhhhhour choicessss are the fhhhollowing. Either find the Jedi Padawan, Lillian Snow, or sssseek the child ninja, Kwiet Ideya. Whhhhich do you fhhhheel would be the eassssiesssssst to perfhhhorm?"

[Char]

Her eyes moved back up to him, "The child," She responded, then glanced down at her clothes; A worn maid's dress. She grasped the fabric lightly between her fingers, then back to the Altered, "May I have new clothes, master... to be.. uhm... inconspicuous to the others..."

[imported_Altered Beast]

"I hhhhave inhhherited the geniussss of the universssse'ssss greatesssssst genetic scientissst. I hhhhave alrhhheady consssssidered thissss problhhhem. I ssssshall send a beasssst to ssssteal approprhhhhiate clothing for you. In the mhhheantime, I will brief you."

Using the computer, it types a command to the loudspeaker in the horde's nest In the distant halls, the voice of Armaiil Kryatir roars the entered command: Go out into the world and steal a set of women's clothing!

"Ssssit dhhhown, and pay clossse attention."

[Char]

Char nodded, moving around the desk and sitting across from the beast. Her ears perked forward and eyes locked onto the beast, in the back of her mind she wondered what the little beasts would bring back... hopefully nothing too... damaged.

"I am listening, master.."

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Thhhe boy you ssseek goesss by the nhhame of Kwiet Ideya. Yhhhou should hhhave no trouble brhhhinging him to me once you have fhhhound him; hhhe is obsssesssssed with having a mother, asssss he lackssss one of hissss own. Tracking hhhim down, hhhowever, may prhhhove to be a diffficult chhhore indeed."

It turns the monitor of the computer around, leaping atop the desk and perching upon it, craning its neck in a method not possible for normal creatures, and indicating various points of data as the explanation ensues.

"Hhhhe wasss lasssst ssseeen in the company of an imbecile named 'Anssssatsssssu'. My sssssourcessss tell me thhhhat thhhisssss is no longer the casssse. I expect he issss hhhhere on Corusssscant, in the vicinity of the Jhhhedi compound."

[Char]

Char glanced over to him, pointing out the obvious, "Jedi compound... I can't be caught by them.."

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Whhhy sssshhhould you fhhear being caught by Jhhhedi? The purposssse issss that thhhhey ssshould be the mossst inclined to hhhelp you sssearch for him, in the evhhent that hhhe isss not there amongsssst them."

[Char]

Her ear twitched, "If they suspect something... what am I to give them, master?" She shook her head, "They will catch a lie.."

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Hhhmm....your featuressss are not too disssimilar, ssssave for your felinoid earsss and tail. I dare sssay you could passssss as hissss mhhhother...hhhhe will not objhhhect to it, I assssure you."

[Char]

"Do you believe so?" She responded, curling her tail around to her hands, thumbs casually stroking through the soft fur. She could do the parental figure, easy stat. She stuck a finger at the photo on the pad, "Is that the child?"

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Nhhhho, this isssss a picture of mhhhhyssself at age fhhhive," it mutters sarcastically. "Of coursssse it is! If you thhhink it would be of ussse, I can hhhhave a copy made for yhhhou to keep. Knhhhow thisss, alssso: if hhhhe believesssss yhhhou willl be hhhissss 'mommy', he whhhhill defhhhend you from anyhhhone and anythhhhing. Thhhe onlhhhyyy obsstacle is whhhether or nhhhot you can ssssucceed in fhhinding him."

[Char]

She nodded, "If I find him, and become his... mother... what am I to do then?"

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Brhhhing him here. Hhhhe will jhhhoin our little fhhhamily for a while. I nhheed--"

But before the alpha beast can continue, a loud, shrill screech enters their ears.

"Blasssst, whhhhhat have they brought bhhhack that could make ssssuch a noissse?"

It gets down and stalks out and down the corridor, gesturing quickly for Char to follow. The source of the noise is the cargo turbolift in the horde's nest. The beasts are shoving a dumpster out through the doors,rending them asunder and streaming past it, hooting and crying with triumphant glee. The alpha lifts Char into its arms and approaches to investigate. The beasts' cheering grows louder as they spy Char, but quickly fades as they realize she is not their prize for a job well done. The beast pitches her into the dumpster and climbs up after her.

"Whhhhat in...?"

The dumpster is full of miscellaneous items. A naked mannequin, half-shattered, lies at the top of the garbage. Beneath it is found clothes and accessories for a line of children's dolls. The beast begins to climb in when it's foot encounters something soft and warm. It screams loudly, and the beast's supple tail withdraws a baby girl from the pile of panties it has been buried in. Her diaper smells absolutely foul, and bulges out in the back. Quickly it hands her off to Char and continues to root around in the contents of the dumpster.

"Dissspense with the ssssoiled diaper. I whilll run a DNA tesssst on the chhhhild sssso you can return it whhhen you leave to find the boy. And hhhelp me find ssssomething you can wear!"

The creature has never been so vexed in its life.

[Char]

Char grimaced when the baby was passed to her, holding it up by the arms. The lesser beasts hooted and howled, and Char was tempted to throw the child to them.

"Very well..."

She swung on her heel, leaping out of the container into the middle of a group of the lessers. She hissed loudly at them, erecting and moving through the swarm until she reached the closest table. Moments later, along with a disgusted growl from Char, she returned with the babe cradled in her arms, half of her skirt torn and wrapped around the babe in a makeshift daiper.

"What do humans feed these children. Aweful, I tell you... pure aweful." She muttered, bounding up into the can next to the alpha beast...

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Thhhey feed thessse children artifhhhicial saucessss flavored after rhhheal food. The composssition of thhhhessse unplatable colloidssss is atrociousssss. Sssssuch young sssstomachssss cannot processs them efficiently at all."

It flings a pair of random panties at her, sifting through the garbage for the scrap of cloth that it can see burying itself towards the bottom.

"That'ssss a ssstart, at leasssst."

[Char]

Char's face soured as she held up the black mesh v-string thong, sending a look at the beast before setting them neatly onto one of the garbage lids. Seeing the beast having no good luck, she dove in herself, muttering her own thoughts as she shifted through the clothes.

After a few minutes, a few ignored throws from the beast, she had a neat pile of clothes stacked; the v-string thong, a turtle-necked halter-top without sleeves, hip-rider denim jeans and a rather militiaristic pair of boots.

She held the garments in her arms, regarding the beast softly. "Do you think these picks will make me stand out... too much?"

[imported_Altered Beast]

It eyes the pile it found that she rejected: a number of tanktops, a faded, stained set of coveralls, bike shorts, and a worn out old ballroom gown.

"You'll do fhhhine..." it mutters, slightly miffed. One would think that as the most intelligent creature on this planet, it would have had better luck with finding suitable clothing..."Now get dressed," is snaps, taking the baby girl from Char. "You will find me back in the office. I am going to identify this child's parents."

And with that it storms out, tearing the head from an unlucky beast in its rage, muttering indignantly in low tones about the results of the dumpster search.

[Char]

Char giggled lightly, setting the clothes down before noticing the lesser beasts' watching she gave them a rather rude sign message before stripping down to her bare skin and donning the new garments.

Hopping out of the garbage bin with a thud, her new boots taking the shock wonderfully, she adjusted the top once more before walking torward the office. She rubbed her backside, her tail painfully cramped in the jeans. On the way, she borrowed another scaple and cut herself a tail-hole in the rear of her pants. Pulling her tail through the hole, she brushed her bum lightly before continuing on.

Decked out in all black, save her mid-drift showing, she examined herself in a mirror before rapping lightly on the office door.

"I'm dressed, master.."

[imported_Altered Beast]

"Well come in then!" it snaps. "I hhhhhave possssssitively idhhhentified this chhhhild'sssss parentssssss." It flings a scrap of paper with an address, as well as a photo of Kwiet. It pitches the baby as well in its anger, which Char manages to just barely catch. It stalks over and claps a metal collar around her neck and shoves her towards the door. "Nhhhow get lossssst! Elsssse I'll sssskin you alhhhive and throw you into a tank of sssssalt water!"

[Char]

Char huffed lightly, pushing the babe to her hip before heading to the exit lift. With the child in one hand, the picture and address in the other, she moved through the hordes of lesser beasts again and hit the lift, growling at two who flanked her on the ride up.

The collar was a little tight, and be babe kept insisting her ear was something to be tugged on. Eventually the lift struck the upper-most platform and the quadtro spilled out, the two altered watching her most attentively.

"wHAAAA!" The babe began to scream, loudly, into Char's ear. Anger got the best of her at last, pent up from hours of cruel torture, and she chunked the human offspring to the beasts, watching with maleviolent emotion as the child bounced once, then rolled to the feet of the two altered.

'Good-bye, annoying-child....' She mouthed, turned, and planned her next move..