DYNOS WINTER TRIP TO IBEA
Winter was tougher than he had expected. Dyno was aware of how difficult surviving through the season on his own could be, and he was certain he prepared himself well enough. Yes, his cabin was still be missing half a roof, but that's a minor issue... He was certain he could finish it before it gets too cold, and that for now he'd have to shiver himself to sleep in his very summer-oriented tent.
At least he had plenty of preserves, probably enough to last him until next winter, and he even managed to "borrow" a pretty snazzy ice drill from a passer-by. He really doesn't like inconveniencing other people, but he had a good enough excuse. Also, most of their supplies were incredibly cheap (classic spending mistake for first-time fishermen). Him scaring them half to death in the middle of the night was basically a favor. Who knows where they would've gotten stranded without him. Better to lose all your gear than starve in the middle of the wilderness, probably.
And then, one morning in early December, he awoke to his worst nightmares coming true. Despite the fact that no forecast predicted it, it had snowed a massive amount overnight, and all the logs he was going to use to keep himself warm had completely soaked through. That... was pretty bad. His pathetic carapace was useless for keeping him warm, and he already felt the warmth slowly leaving his body. If he didn't find something to keep him warm soon it'll be "crab wading through the snow" again. He knew what this meant, but he really didn't want to resort to this...
It meant...
It meant he had to...
It meant he had go into society and buy a heater. Horrifying. Awful. He had been avoiding this for months. He thought he could make it on his own. He was certain of it. And now he has fallen. The lowest of the low. He just hoped no other mignyan would be there to see him half-heartedly wandering the halls of IBEA. At least he could get some beatballs while he's there.
It's not that he hated snow, it's just that it's... inconvenient. When he was younger, living his pampered yet depressing life, he used to love gazing out of the window at the snow covered plains and imagining all the cool adventures he could be doing. He just happened to be doing that in a well-heated room, not realizing just how damned cold that soft, fluffy and adventurous snow actually was. Endless space was like a warm bath compared to this.
Well, standing there and thinking won't get him a heater. He dressed himself as warmly as he could, triple checked that he got his wallet and everything necessary in it, placed the bear trap on its designated "snooping wanderer" spot, and went on his way. Despite the fact he acted as if he lives in the middle of nowhere, he actually wasn't that far away from society. He might be a hermit, but other living creatures can be useful to have nearby in case of emergency.
All it took was a relatively short hike, and he reached the closest not-village-but-not-quite-city. He never knew what to call those. You know, when they have several bigger shops, bus station and necessities, but you still had to go to the next town over to get gas? Anyway. The bus wasn't going to come for a few hours, so he ended up getting his first non-fish-related meal in quite some time and sitting down for a drink at the warmest looking local bar. He ended up spending those hours slowly sipping his coffee, downloading some new games on his phone and trying to avoid eye contact with the barista. At least they seemed pretty disinterested in him.
The bus was mostly empty, as those usually tend to be, so his ride was pretty uneventful. He simply gazed out of the window at the snowstorm that was slowly picking up. At least he tried to. Most of what he saw was his own bland expression. It always fascinated him how quickly he could go back to blending in with society after being away for so long. Like the first time in a year you put on your big winter boots, feeling heavy and awkward for all of five minutes before settling in for the boring comfort of it all.
And there's his stop. The fact this IBEA in the middle of a shopping center desert was one of the major bus stop locations, but several large neighborhoods aren't, made him feel a certain type of way. He shuffled inside, trying not to seem too rushed or too hesitant. The store seemed mostly abandoned, probably due to the fact that there's a snowstorm raging outside, but it could be for any other reason, really.
... This IBEA was huge. He has no clue where anything is. He looked in the electronics section but there were no heaters there. Are heaters not electronics? Is he going mad? Why can't this be organized in a sensible manner? OK. Maybe it's in the furniture section. He has no clue why it would be in the furniture section, but it's a type of furniture right? Probably.
On his way to the furniture section, his worst nightmare came true... for the second time that day. Scratch the first worst nightmare, this is the definite worst nightmare. He ran into another mignyan. He still doesn't fully understand how spotting other mignyans works, like some sort of sixth sense. Or is it seventh? He's pretty sure there's actually more than five senses. He can just tell if someone is a mignyan, even if they just look like a completely normal person. This one didn't exactly, somehow managing to be even less inconspicuous than Dyno, which was an accomplishment of some sort. He was dressed in a full-length doctor's coat and looked as if he forgot what the purpose of sleep is. For extra weird points he was also in the middle of measuring several different types of jars, seemingly trying to find one with the perfect proportions for... something. Probably not any Dyno wanted to be involved in.
Oh shit, he got spotted.
"Oh, hello. I didn't expect to see one of our kind here.", the other mignyan said.
"H-heya." Heya? Really? That's the best you've got? "Ha, ha. Same."
"Do you need help? You look like you're new to this store. I consider myself a sort of expert in it, having spent some time wandering these halls. Ha ha." Ha, ha, what? "By the way, my name is Gates. Who are you?"
Oh god. Dyno knew this guy. Well, knew of this guy at least. Didn't he get accused of selling taxidermied mignyans recently? Why would someone even do that? That has to be mignyan illegal.
Oh god. Is he in danger. Oh no. He has to get out of here as fast as possible.
"Dyno. N-nice to meet you." He stammered. "Uh. I think I'm ok?"
"I see. I don't think I've heard of you before, unfortunately. Maybe we can get to know each other, or even expand our personal networks. You seem like you're new here and need some help getting involved into our... community. I have quite a few acquaintances who might be interested in meeting such an energetic young mignyan such as you, you know how the older ones can get invested in their own business and forget about the aims of the invasion. I might even find someone looking for henchmen, uh, I mean..."
This was definitely a plot to get him dissected. Dyno had to RUN.
"Um actually sorry but I have to go I am in a hurry ok bye."
Dyno ran away as fast as possible. He ran, and ran, and ran directly into the heater section. Wait, a heater SECTION? How did he miss this on the IBEA directions? He quickly turned around and saw the other mignyan... Gates... wasn't following him. Maybe he slipped on his coat and fell on the jars and is now being forced to pay for all of them by a disgruntled employee. Maybe he can finish his shopping trip in peace after all. But he isn't staying here for longer than he has to.
He grabbed the first heater he could semi-comfortably carry and half-jogged to the checkout section, looking around for the other mignyan as if he is Solid Snabe in Metal Bear Solid. Luckily, he didn't appear, and everything passed smoothly apart from a very intense and awkward stare from the clerk. People usually bring a shopping cart with them, apparently. He paid in cash, earning another weird look, shoved the heater in a bag and continued his awkwardly fast shuffle to the bus stop.
As luck would have it, he got there just in time for the bus he arrived on to have made a full trip around the city. He rushed onto it, earning a nod from the driver who remembered him, and sat back on the exact spot he took on his way there. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. Other mignyans were terrifying. He doesn't want to see another one in his life. He almost became a crab shaped decoration in someones home because of this. Next time he's just building his own heater. It can't be that hard.
The rest of the trip was fairly uneventful and almost the same as his journey there, beside the thick layer of snow that's now covering everything. He barely noticed it, his leftover adrenaline making him oblivious to all the obstacles in his path. If he was measuring, he would've learned that he got from the town to his home in the fastest time yet, which is a huge accomplishment considering the fact he was both walking through deep snow and carrying an entire heater. In his haze, he almost forgot to deactivate the bear trap before getting close to his house. That would've been awkward.
He plugged the heater into one of the sockets from his generator, turned it to the highest setting, covered himself with all the blankets he could find, and fell asleep in his clothes, finally truly warm for the first time in weeks.
