Remove ads

A Worm in the Gulch (Worm/Red vs. Blue)

Reader mode
Okay before anyone gets mad, if it was the 7th of February, or 6th if you want to classify the 31st as a day that decreases the total count, then it would be a month, but it's the 1st of February, a little under a month. I am not breaking any guidelines.

Anyway, I really like this concept and I know that when Taylor gets back to Brockton Bay she is going to be so used to weird shit and might actually figure out Dragon is an A.I., but might be under the impression that Dragon doesn't know she is like Church was. Because really she has met various A.I., and is friends with both López and Church, up to this point so really it wouldn't be a stretch of the imagination to think that Taylor wouldn't realize that, oh hey, Dragon is actually an A.I.!
 
Doccer said:
I wonder how Taylor will take to the Church being a ghost thing?
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Taylor: That's not even-! How?! I thought you said there are no parahumans!

Church: What's so hard to accept about me being a ghost?

Taylor: EVERYTHING! GHOSTS AREN'T REAL UNLESS ITS PROJECTION BULLSHIT!
 
I can't see Church indulging the word 'parahuman', massive asshole that he is.

"What's wrong with calling them super heroes and super villains? Is it like those zombie movies that call the zombies 'Infected' or bullshit like that? Everyone knows what they fucking are, assholes."
 
Nottheunmaker said:
I can't see Church indulging the word 'parahuman', massive asshole that he is.

"What's wrong with calling them super heroes and super villains? Is it like those zombie movies that call the zombies 'Infected' or bullshit like that? Everyone knows what they fucking are, assholes."
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Yeah, he probably would.

On another note, while I've already told everyone that Adapt and Phantom will be co-written at the same time, this story will be on hold until both have been sufficiently updated. And by that, I mean until the current arcs for each story has been finished. Once that's done, I will return to A Worm in the Gulch and all the insanity that awaits Taylor.
 
Ş̶̢̡̱͚͍̗̫̈́͂̌͒͗̀̈́͌͜͠t̵͉̹̭̤̜̞͋́̓a̸̲̔̉͊̿̕̚r̴̛̛̝̬͈̈̽͐e̸̯̩̪̾̇̃͆̈́̚̕͜
 
Nottheunmaker said:
I can't see Church indulging the word 'parahuman', massive asshole that he is.

"What's wrong with calling them super heroes and super villains? Is it like those zombie movies that call the zombies 'Infected' or bullshit like that? Everyone knows what they fucking are, assholes."
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I mean, to be fair, the term "parahuman" is meant for general purposes, and they do use the terms "hero" and "villain" as appropriate. It's like how we have individual names for every finger on the hand, including the thumb, but we have a general term "fingers" for them as well. So yeah, at most I see him insisting on using a more popular fiction term, like "metahuman", instead.
 
Keeward said:
I mean, to be fair, the term "parahuman" is meant for general purposes, and they do use the terms "hero" and "villain" as appropriate. It's like how we have individual names for every finger on the hand, including the thumb, but we have a general term "fingers" for them as well. So yeah, at most I see him insisting on using a more popular fiction term, like "metahuman", instead.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
That would require him to be less of a bored petty asshole who is arguing for the sake of arguing. It's not so much that he thinks the term is dumb, though he probably would, its just how they do conversations in Blood Gulch.

Now Simons, there's the guy who'd be willing to list out more general and more specific terms to find the one that lines up most with what Taylor tells him about parahumans until Sarge tells him to shut up.
 
Church would definitely be an ass and just tell Taylor to stick with calling parahumans mutants, meta humans, freaks, etc and what have you.
 
Remove ads
I am a legit author!
  • Informational
    • Hey everyone. SkyRig...or rather T.J. Howard here, as you'll soon find out. This is...holy freaking shit, this is amazing.

    So, as some of you may know, I went totally radio-silent except to give you updates, like announcing a fanfic was going on hiatus or was being removed or it was still in the works, but I also reminded you guys that I was also writing my very own book.

    Well, I am proud to say that, yes, I am now a legit author.

    "Chase Ryder and the City of Lost Memories - Part 1: War" is my first entry in the Chase Ryder book series, and my very first book. I am currently self-published on Amazon, which I found to be the easiest way to go (and also the most stressful. Formatting cover art on that place is a goddamn nightmare and I was having so many troubles...just, for the love of god). While I cannot say the book will be to everyone's taste as it is entirely original content, I am hoping I at least score a hundred readers and buyers. Currently, only the kindle version of the book is available (it is currently up for pre-order and will be released on May 20), but a paperback and hardcover versions are also available. When those versions will be released, I do not know. The kindle version is up for pre-order and costs 8.99. The paperback and hardcover versions will rock you 12.99 and 26.99 respectively. In regards to the ridiculous hardcover price...yeeeaaah, minimum was apparently 26.08, when I wanted to go for a more feasible but still slightly expensive 15.99.

    Amazon, you suck.

    I'd be happy if you bought the hardcover version, but if you feel the price is too much, please stick to paperback. Or hell, just buy the kindle version.

    I realize this sounds like shameless advertisement, but I want to make something clear here. I'm not looking to make this into a best-seller or anything. Or hell, anything that would warrant it getting into, say, the New York Times. All I want is to make books and provide a steady source of income for myself and my family, and this, I feel, is the best way for me to do so. Especially since our financial situation as of recently is looking heavily uncertain for reasons I will not disclose. Private matters, you understand.

    That's it for now. To assauge some fears some of you might have, no, just because I'm a legit author does not mean I will be abandoning writing fanfiction. I will still do my best to get content out to you guys, maybe post a new story when I've made decent progress and finished a story or two, but I will likely still devote my time to writing other books. I'm already working on Part 2 of Chase Ryder, as well as a trilogy series that, in my opinion, you guys may enjoy more.

    Who doesn't love medieval fantasy?

    Before I cap this off, I want to give two huge, massive thank yous and shout-outs to TheStrangerThatCameFromNowhere, who commissioned DeviantArtist Alex-kellar to create the cover art illustration you'll see soon enough, and to Alex-kellar himself who created the wonderful piece you'll all will be seeing eventually enough. Speaking of, Alex, if you see this and the cover art, I apologize in advance. I wanted to use the other version of the cover art you sent me, but Amazon kept fucking it up so I had to stick with the version you made for kindle. Which sucks because I really liked the one you came up with.

    Of course, the ones who deserve the biggest thanks is YOU GUYS. Yes, you, the guy or girl sitting behind your computer screen or phone who gave me support and feedback and continued to give me the push I needed to pursue this career. For someone like me, who started off writing stories based off manga, anime, TV shows, and video games, people like you guys are the ones who made this possible for me.

    Thank you all so much.

    Cheers.
     
  • Informational
    • Yobikir said:
    Great, now even Authors do Advertisment-spam.:( And here i was hoping for some news about this fic.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Oh, relax, I'll get around to doing this again at some point. Besides, Taylor should be thankful for the delay, considering all the shit she'll have to deal with in regards to the goddamn Blood Gulch Crew.

    I just need to finish the current arc for Devil Trigger first.
     
    Remove ads
    #4 - Workplace Difficulties (AKA Taylor Hates Her Job)
  • Threadmarks
    • #4: Workplace Difficulties
    (AKA Taylor Hates Her Job)

    ​
    Have you ever hated someone? I don't mean 'hate' as in "oh god that person is a bitch I hate her fucking guts". I mean hate as in total, blinding, massive rage towards someone where you want to hurt them so, so bad in unimaginable ways.

    I didn't feel that way about the Trio…okay, that's a lie. I did have the occasional thoughts about how satisfying it would feel to break Sophia's nose or give Emma a swirlie.

    But, my point stands. I didn't hate the Trio that way. If I did, I found someone who eclipsed my rage.

    Specifically, the raging jackass who, for some ungodly reason, I came to see as my second father. Who also shanghaied me into working for Blue Team.

    Did I mention Church's a fucking asshole?



    Thirty days.

    That was how long it had been since I found myself in this position. Thirty days of what can only be described as menial and boring labor despite the absurdity and confusion of my being here. To make a long story short, I was not in lala land or someplace like that. Oh no, it was worse. It turns out I was on an alternate Earth.

    Well, I say Earth, but really, I'm living the George Lucas life under duress.

    Leonard L. Church, or simply Church, was the apparent man in charge of Blue Base here in Blood Gulch. He was rude, and most importantly, the biggest fucking jackass in the short time I've been in this canyon. I tried to make my case with him, I really did. I told him I wasn't from here, may possibly have been kidnapped, and wanted to go home. He told me he'd try to rig up a plan or something along those lines, get in contact with Command, and get me on a shuttle back to home.

    In the meantime, however… I was to work here on Blue Base.

    I never thought I could hate someone more than I did the Trio, but here we are.

    "Uh, you okay, dude?"

    I sighed. "I'm fine, Vic. Just…give me the test results, will you?"

    "Your wish is my command, dudette. Let's see, let's see…" The Smiling Guy, or Vic as he introduced himself to me when we became acquainted not long after my 'assignment' here, moved his hands along a keyboard or something as I heard rapid clicking. "Huh. Well, I'll be damned. You score a 92/100."

    I practically melted in my seat with relief. After spending a week trying to sort through so much information about this world, including how to handle things like broken arms, gunshot wounds, and so on. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention you can actually apply for a medical license even if you never went to medical school? Yeah, weird.

    "So, I did good?"

    "Better than your co-workers, that's all I can say," Vic said. "Not bad, dude. Not bad at all. Congrats, Ensign Hebert. You are now eligible for the advanced class courses. Let me know when you're ready to hit it up and I'll send you the deets."

    "Thanks, Vic."

    "Anytime, dude. Anytime."

    Before Vic could leave, I asked a question that had been nagging on me for the last two days. "Um, hey. Any word on… you know?"

    Vic's smile dimmed somewhat. "Ah, right. That. Well, turns out there's about twenty-five thousand different Taylor Heberts scattered across the universe. Five hundred of 'em live on the floatilas and Earth back home, the rest on colony planets, including Planet Florida."

    "Wait, Florida's a planet here?"

    "Named after the state when it sank, actually."

    I blinked. He stared. "…okaaay," I said slowly, wisely moving on. "So, then… No luck?"

    "Well, unless you and every other person named Taylor Hebert are related by way of a great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather… Yeah, sorry, no luck here. We'll, uh, we'll keep trying, though. Just sit tight. Oh, and try not to kill anyone on your team, alright? Your last talk kinda worried me, you know. Especially the part about how you were gonna shove Church's sniper rifle up his—"

    "Good talking to you, Vic."

    I scrambled to end the vid-call, hoping no one overheard. Sadly, someone did. "Wow. Anger issues much?" I sighed and looked over my shoulder. Thankfully, the one who overheard the tail-end of the call was Tucker, who was staring at me with what I assume was a smirk under that helmet. "I mean, not that I don't blame you. Church is an asshole."

    Lavernius Tucker was more or less Church's second-in-command and self-proclaimed ladies man. He was actually one of the first people I met back when I ran into Red Team, as in one of the people who shot me. He made it a point to apologize to me and pin the blame on Caboose…who, I came to learn, was not the brightest tool in the shed. To say the least.

    While Church more or less left me alone to my devices except when he decided to actually act like a commander and tell me to do some chores around the base, Tucker was more understanding and helped me adjust to life here at Blue Base. He gave me some warnings about Caboose's mood swings and increasingly frequent "team-killing incidents". Admittedly, I was more than a little concerned when Church told me Tucker fancied himself a ladies man, but at the same time, I doubted he'd ever make a move on me. There was nothing remotely attractive about me, after all.

    Unsurprisingly, Tucker made no such moves on me. Instead, he acted like a worrywart, or a big brother, or something along those lines.

    "So, how'd it go?"

    I managed to smile as I stood up and grabbed my helmet, fastening it over my head. "Good. I'll be taking advanced courses pretty soon."

    "Nice. I'll tell Church we can actually get treated for wounds and shit instead of slapping on some duct-tape and calling it a day."

    …I had so many things to say to that. So many things.



    When I wasn't busy working on getting a medical license so I could actually be useful and not be a glorified secretary, I did basic chores around the base. As to be expected from a military encampment, it had basic utilities like showers and toilets. Lockers contained equipment and there were at least six rooms with bunk beds going unused. That part always confused me since, as far as I knew, there was only me, Church, Caboose, and Tucker here. There should have been more people if there were that many beds, but the place was barely staffed. Tucker mentioned it was the same over by Red Base, which more or less had the same amount of soldiers there until I came along.

    It made me curious, wondering if Blue Team was maybe some kind of skeleton crew. I was equally curious about the flag, but I barely paid any attention to that.

    At any rate, since there wasn't very many people, cleaning the place wasn't too difficult. Except when Caboose was helping.

    "Oh for—how?!" I demanded as I grabbed the blue-colored soldier by the waist and pulled, grinding my feet against the wall for leverage. "Come! On!"

    "Um, Miss Taylor? I think my helmet spring a leak. The water tastes really gross."

    "Don't swallow it! Why did you even stick your head in the toilet bowl?!"

    Believe it or not, this was one of the tamer incidents involving Caboose. The other day, he nearly caused the entire armory to explode when he somehow managed to unpin not one, not two, but all the grenades. It was unanimous that we were not going to be storing grenades in cardboard boxes anymore, even though we got lucky and disposed of all the grenades at once before they could go off.

    "Did Caboose get his head stuck in the toilet again?" Tucker asked blandly. I poignantly ignored the word 'again'.

    "Come here and help me before he drowns, please?!"

    "Why would I do that?"

    "Tucker!"

    "Sheesh, okay, fine…"



    Aside from stuff involving Caboose and his tendency to somehow get stuck almost everywhere, my other chores involved cleaning the base. Which turned out to be a task in of itself, given A) Blood Gulch was a dustbowl, and B) these boys had no sense of hygiene. Seriously, if you think the bathroom was bad…

    Anyway, one of my daily routines saw me cleaning the outside of the base. To reiterate, Blood Gulch was a dustbin in the middle of galactic nowhere as far as I know, so the walls are caked with dust and grime no matter how hard I scrub or wash. I was actually fairly used to it and often let the dirt build up for a few days since it never got really heinous. Sometimes though, like today…

    "…children," I bit out. "This place is filled with juvenile children in the body of space marines."

    I glared at the red graffiti spray painted on the side of Blue Base. Actually, calling it graffiti was being generous. It was more like a children's doodle. As for what it said… Well, I'd rather not get the author flagged for this, thank you very much.

    "Wait, what?"



    On the rare occasion I was not around Blue Base to do menial tasks, I was asked with perhaps, according to Church, the most important job in the base.

    Babysitting Caboose.

    …it's harder than it sounds, to be frank.

    "Tucker, have you seen Caboose?" I asked, poking my head into the aqua-colored soldier's room.

    Tucker looked up from the book he was reading. "Babysitting duty?"

    "Babysitting duty," I affirmed. "Church said he was by the mess hall, but I couldn't find him."

    "If he's not there, he's probably over by Sheila."

    "Sheila?"

    "You don't—" Tucker caught himself and shook his head. "Right, forgot, civvie. Sheila's our tank. She got blown up a couple months back, and the only guy who might be able to fix her up is the robot Church's possessing, but…"

    "I'm sorry, what?"

    "Long story," he shrugged. "Anyway, he should be where Sheila is. You can't miss her. Just, ah, be ready for waterworks. Me and Church think he miiight have developed a crush on it for some reason."

    I stared at Tucker, sorely wishing I misheard what he said. "A crush."

    "Yep."

    "On a tank."

    "Yeeep."

    I stared a little harder before sighing, shaking my head. Given the city I used to live in – don't think about it, Taylor, you know how things get when you think about it – I really shouldn't have been so surprised to hear something so outrageous. Actually, thinking about it now, these people would fit right in with Uber and Leet.

    I left Blue Base behind and went searching for Caboose. True to Tucker's word, I found the tank easy enough by heading up top. I did end up having to walk a little ways further into the canyon, which made me nervous. I hadn't forgotten Sarge's accusations that I might be a spy for Blue Team during our first meeting, and given how much of a hair trigger he had, I was almost certain he'd shoot me the second he saw me again. Or maybe he'd shoot me anyway regardless. I still had no idea whether I could trust anyone in this place.

    Tucker was pleasant enough, Caboose was…special, and Church was an asshole, but it didn't change the fact that they were soldiers clad in highly advanced armor. Soldiers who, according to Church, were at war with Red Team. Which meant that fighting could start at any moment. Life in Brockton Bay was tough, but normal once you got used to hearing gunshots and explosions and gang members walking around in broad daylight.

    This was not my home. This was a canyon with dimwitted, idiotic soldiers. Idiotic soldiers with armor and guns.

    The realization of my situation sunk in just then. My feet came to a stop, rooted in place as a cold, sinking feeling formed in my stomach. I wanted to cry, scream, shout about how unfair this was. Part of me wondered if I was still dreaming and trapped in that damn locker. This prank was right up Sophia's alley.

    But, that's all just wishful thinking. I could deny it all I want, but the reality wasn't going to change at all.

    "…so fucking unfair," I bit out.

    "What is?"

    I yelped and whipped around, nearly falling flat on my ass. At some point without me noticing, Caboose had shown up out of nowhere. "What—how did—"

    "Were you looking for me? Ooh, was Church asking for me?" Caboose asked excitedly.

    I glared at him for a moment longer before sighing. "N-no, but it's my turn to make sure you don't go and blow yourself up, no matter how much Church might like that. So, what are you doing out here?"

    "Oh, I was trying to fix Sheila!" Caboose said happily. "It's slow going, to be honest. I, um, don't know how to fix machines and stuff. Plus, I'm running out of duct-tape."

    "…Caboose," I said slowly. "Duct-tape isn't the solution to everything. You have got to stop following Church and Tucker's examples."

    "You think so?" The blue-colored soldier looked up at the sky thoughtfully. "I mean, Tucker's advice is kinda lame, but Church means well."

    I resisted the urge to sigh. I had no idea why Caboose thought so highly of Church or why he hung on to his every word, and to be honest, I was too tired to care. Honestly, dealing with Caboose was like trying to take care of a child with…special needs. I don't hate Caboose, but he could be so difficult at times. Not helped by his mood swings.

    "Your soul is a cavern of lies," Caboose growled.

    I glared and dope-slapped the back of his helmet. "Stop that."

    "Sorry, mom."

    "And don't call me that!"

    "Okay, mom!"



    The madness continues!

    On a side note, the timeskip was somewhat intentional? I did originally plan on having Taylor have a proper talk with Church, but I couldn't figure out how to make it go. So the scene was instead replaced by the timeskip, which has Taylor showing how she's acclimated to Blue Base.

    Which is to say…mixed.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Reader mode
    You must login or register to reply here.
    Remove ads
    Back
    Top