Reply With a Character and Number Question Game V2

A7. How do they behave when drunk. Honestly, it could go either way depending on his initial pre-drunk state. He either becomes the merriest, most joyous senior citizen known to mankind and gets up to some absolutely bizarre shit just for the sake of getting his sweet thrill (and his car/house/office completely thrased), or he just sits there in the dark of his office/apartment Pal style, hands on his head while listening to "Hurt" by Johnny Cash for the 9th time in a row. He then begins to cry silently, gripping his revolver really tight. Eventually, he collapses on the floor and starts weeping, utterly crushed by the weight of his regrets and desolate thoughts of his ex-wife. Perhaps he could use some alcohol counseling, and therapy.

A8. Their worst failures/screw-ups. Since I've just recently brought up his remarkably devastating divorce experience, let's address something less severe emotional impact-wise, yet absolutely crucial in terms of actual Screwed Upness factor! This silly failed to dispatch/deliver the order, that being a MASSIVE illegal firearms cargo, to THIS LADY. That's how the whole story takes off, actually; his major L was the catalyst that finally made shit hit the fan. He forgor because, lemme squeeze in a bit of meta talk, I was ultimately going for the "retired big boss" trope with him; Arkadiy is getting old, more numb to everything that ever mattered to him, and less efficient. He's also depressed as fuck, and he inevitably starts losing his grip on things; such attitude leading to especially catastrophic results when it comes to his business. He lets himself get far too comfortable being lost in his Old Man's Misery; and he pays a high price for this mistake.

A13. How they behave when angry. He gets so absurdly butthurt at times it's both terrifying and hilarious to witness. He's perfectly capable of bottling it up for quite a period of time, but the second he snaps it gets Real Ugly. There's shouting, – which, taking into consideration his raspy ahh chainsmoker voice, sounds more like a prehistoric beast roaring in agony rather than actual shouting; there's this absolutely menacing look on his face, his remaining eye twitching violently and there's also an ungodly amount of spit getting everywhere. He also really likes to punch things while he's at it; his go-to choice tends to be either the nearest desk/table or a wall. Something like this.

B2. Things they're proud of. Uh, I mean, isn't this one obvious? You know, his unmatched wit and erudition; his terrific looks; last but not least, his amazing personality. In all seriousness; that'd undeniably be his company, "Arbalet". It's his most prominent lifetime achievement; his very own Magnum Opus, his chaos-woven work of art. Arkadiy has chewed his way up in the most relentless way in order to establish this business; he's sabotaged relationships and sacrificed people so that he could keep pursuing his ultimate goal. And he succeeded. "Arbalet" is thriving, and it is everything Arkadiy stands for; he is "Arbalet", each never-ending corridor and each firearm forged being a part of him in the most unsettling way. Strip him of this, and he'd end up either a miserable drunkard or, you know, would probably cease to exist altogether. There is way too much at stake, and this captain is indeed willing to go down with his ship, if need be.

B11. Pet peeves. He gets all dramatic when people happen to be severely undereducated in regards to firearms, because he is absolutely not normal about these. Arkadiy knows his gunsmithing ABCs, therefore he cannot stand even the slightest inaccuracies when it comes to depiction of firearm mechanisms/firearm handling, both in real life and in media; he will NOT shut up if this B movie protagonist's trigger discipline happens to be off. He also gets remarkably annoyed when people interrupt him; doesn't like to be brushed aside like that, because he's important, you know.

B13. Your favourite thing(s) about them as a character. Bitch nothing. Nah I'm kiddin', he's my main girl and my all-time favorite 49 yo boyfailure. Personally, I'm inclined to say that the most admirable aspect of his character would be this not-so-slight subversion of expectations when it comes to him being the "Violent, Bloodthirsty, Gun-Obsessed Guy Who Likes Murder". Because he is – or at the very least, was – so, so far from being one. So much for flanderizing him to oblivion on them FGs LMFAO now people think he's Cortés or something. He isn't fond of the bloodshed; while he does romanticize the concept of weapon in of itself, he does not like killing people. He's just your entitled, self-absorbed yet fairly normal civilian man who eventually gets thrown into the grinder and is forced to get acquainted with this drastically different, law-defying world of violence and death; one he's been indirectly helping to bloom – because weapons kill people and cause mayhem, duh. He does get his psyche horrendously skewed, sure; and he ultimately does indulge in the act of shooting another man down once he gets a taste. But he's still far from being a homicidal maniac who takes pride in being one. Post-epilogue Arkadiy is traumatized and is scared of his newly-formed self more than anything. If given the chance, he would push that "GO BACK" button with immense force, multiple times. And I really like this about him. At the end of the day, he is human, just like me and you. He just happens to be fucked up beyond all repair.

A3 - She's pretty stoned face and doesn't cry too much? (Moreso just gets sorrowful or like, not mad but like disappointed dad) I think old writings from her robots during the war are enough to make her furrow her brow and frown, espically if they're romantic. Nothing is worse than having a robot ask over and over if you've found another robot that they deeply care about, and when you do all there is , is a heap of rubble and then having to tell them that. Tragic romance like that really pulls at her motherboard, whether it's real or fictional (It may or may not remind her of herself and Bucket so.). Documentaries about the war and just like poetry, art, etc made from robots about or during the war make her really emotional. The war in general is just really emotional for her despite being the one who led it. 

A6 - Despite how she was during her war and post war days, currently she really doesn't like talking about the war. She'll boast about it and reminisce with her closer friends that were actually there, but present day she's pretty quiet about it. If somebot brings it up that she isn't super tight with she'll awkwardly laugh it off or go "Yeah, the glory days." in a half hearted voice or something. She's pretty private about it now, not because she's regretful though.  Also she won't admit it but her own feelings concerning the war is a tough subject, her n her wife are trynna work through it #whenyourwifeworksinmentalhealth

A8 - she's made a lot of decisions that backfired and caused backlash but what she would deem her worst mistakes were of course during the war, leaving behind soldiers of her own especially if it was just to get at more humans without thinking. Normally she was pretty calculated but occasionally on hunts she'd lead she would end up having her soldiers walk right into traps. Doesn't feel too good when you see your troops as ones you take care of. She was sure bloodthirsty back then but she cared about her troops like she built them with her own hands. They come back to haunt her thoughts every so often. Having a database that stores memories perfectly is sometimes a curse. 

B1 - A good oil soak (think hot tub but for robots) always helps her, but that's kinda like the norm for any bot. More specific stuff is her silly little ABBA albums and just being near or in the vicinity of her wife. On the topic of that cuddling does help her de-stress, only with her wife though. She's not touchy with anyone else. Also taking care of plants and gardening is pretty relaxing for her. me, my wife, and her 50 carnivorous plants . 

B5 - platonically she expresses affection through words more? She's professional but she will very much compliment & I guess 'hype' up whoever she's talking about whether it's directly to them or about them. Her words are kinda weird though so it's hard to tell when she's doing it. A good, firm handshake is also a way to let you know that she approves of you. okay now onto romantic bc i love pal and bucket . Pal is ! very touchy ! when alone with her wife ! she still has a way with words but she's much more of a "open arms and then pull my wife close to me" or "hug wife from behind" type of person then just words. Also purring, can techically go for both but her inner fans will kick off if she's feeling affectionate and it sounds like weird purring. Also can be platonic or romantic but her tail language. Wrapping her tail around people, putting it in front of them, wagging it, all of that jazz is a telling sign that she's being affectionate. So long as it isn't pointed at you with the sharp end and you aren't impaled on it, then uh, yeah ! fun fact she is so lovesick/blinded by love when around her wife 

B12 - okay so like, obviously PAL from TMVTM is a big inspo for her, but really they only share a name and similar goal. I was actually so annoyed PAL didn't win so I just decided that "au where she did aha" and now look where i am, worldbuilding my own robot world with PAL at the helm, look at you go girl ! Also like, the whole robots vs humans trope . it's like okay I ghuess, BUT IM SICK OF SEEING IT FROM THE HUMANS POV !! esp if we always win ?? Also ngl half the time the robots have a super valid reason to be fighting back. I wanted that but without the sci-fiy part? Obviously it is sci-fi since . sentient robots. But during the war it was like the 2000s and 2010s? Humans really didn't have anything super advanced and when their advanced techonlogy turned against them they couldn't really use them . that's more a general thing though and not just PAL. But yeah, I wanted to see the robots win and actually form a society (not a fan of cyberpunk or apocalypse settinbgs that are just metal and gray. give them some damn plants or scenery god damn it !!) like yeah, big war and all that but PAL didn't just kill the humans and go "ok everything done" she spent years reforming and rebuilding the planet so that robots could LIVE LAUGH LOVE !! ! sorry tangent i just grrgrgrghrghrgharghrharahgh foams at the mouth !

A3: Despite his tenderheartedness, Elroy does not cry often. It's more of a straw that breaks the camel's back situation for him; he internalises his emotions up to a point until he releases everything he has pent up. Usually, these are things that violate his moral code.

A4: He's afraid of large bodies of water. He can't swim and he knows he can't swim, which is why he avoids swimming pools entirely. He's not opposed to fishing on the side of a lake/large watering hole, or sailing in the middle of the ocean, or playing by the coast, but he will not go anywhere near a pool. Considering how his father is a marine biologist, this may seem ironic at first, but his father met his demise by supposedly drowning at sea.

A9: He used to look up to his father at first until he realised a few uncomfortable truths regarding how he and his mother has met. Aside from that, he looks up to philosophers like Søren Kierkegaard, as well as authors such as Antoine de Saint-Exupéry.

B12: Okay, hear me out, this is going to sound really dumb. But he and the rest of the Paraffins are inspired by Dibo the Gift Dragon, and he is based on the titular gift dragon himself. He's also inspired by Barney the Dinosaur and my secondary school economics teacher.

A5: His kind doesn't scars, and that includes Shanti. Their skin tissue are able to heal instantaneously, leaving no time for a wound to fester and form into a scar. But if he does scars, there would be a lot of old ones littered across his body and face. While he has ‘settled down’ and hunt humans for its ease, Shanti was much more ambitious back then with his hunts.

A7: They are much more cheerful when they are drunk. Laughing at the slightest things, and more physically affectionate as well. He will cuddle everything and anything he can sink claws on. When he's in this state however, it won't be long before he knocked himself out cold. It's a good thing that he recovers from hangover quickly, the morning afterward won't be pretty for him, suffice to say.

A10: He would become flustered real quick if you called him out on being kind to someone else. Shanti sees himself as a no-good, flippant bastard and relish in it; and he is, but he would sometimes help someone in need unconciously, especially his ‘fellow’ pet turned humans. To be seen doing something good that doesn't benefits him in any way will raise his furs and make him lash out. A scratch in your face, then he would flee immediately to wallow in shame. Usually it would take days before he regained his cockiness, or a decent meal offering.

B4: He is a sucker for buffed folks. Muscles show strength and that's one thing he find the most attractive in someone. His current mate, Jules, fit that criteria to the tee.

B7: A lot of his habits are similar to cats, including purring, kneading, scratching his nails over couches, etc. But some habits are notably ‘non-cat’; one of these habits is that while he can drinks with straw, Jules would avoid them when he could as Shanti will always munch on them as he takes a sip of his drink. It's one thing if it's a plastic or paper straw, these are steel straws that he's chewing through. He's not even teething, so Jules is particularly baffled by this habit of his.

B10: Definitely brain. He likes the chewy, but not too hard texture of a brain, including brains of other animals, but especially cow.

A6: They avoid emotionally-charged discussions. They're not attuned to others' emotions, let alone their own, so they make jokes to deflect. They also avoid topics pertaining to romance entirely as they find the subject completely alien.

A11: To add to the above, being pushed to express their emotions will stress them out. They're also stressed out when they're forced to take on more responsibilities than they're capable of, or when they're asked to follow social norms that they find nonsensical.

B3: They value intellectual curiosity the most. Since they're always in pursuit of intellectual stimulation, they value those who they can have a stimulating discussion with. They also admire ambition and the ability to value art in others.

B6: For all their complaining about having to land on Earth, they're grateful to land on a planet where organic life can flourish and build societies. They're grateful for their position in said society, and they're grateful for the people they meet, however fleeting their lives may be.

B11: They dislike having to talk to people who can't see reason the most. Since they're a creature of logic, people who rely on emotional appeals annoy them. They don't particularly enjoy people intruding on their privacy or touching their property. Aside from that, though, little else pisses them off.