O2 ★ [VIDEO; UN - SEASHELL]

[justsomeshrimp]

[The feed turns on and at first only the surface of a desk can be seen--it seems the communicator is propped up against something. There's a scuttling sound and somewhere behind the communicator, out comes a bright red shrimp to settle down in front of the camera. It only just barely manages to be an inch long and it raises its two front legs in an unmistakable wave.]

Good morning, Lunatia!

My name is Lobco and as you can see I am a shrimp! [Well. Technically it's a little more complicated than that but details aren't needed]

This is not an effect by any of the Moons, nor a curse--I am in fact a shrimp. This is my natural form. Thanks to some hereditary magic I am able to change my body to be more 'human' I suppose you can say.

The reason I am coming out today is because there's something I've been very curious about in all my time here in this world. The thing that was the most shocking for me coming here was to see how other animals here are treated and...that none of them seem to be capable of speech. Or even much critical thinking.

While not all the animal folk from my world can change as I do, all of them can speak and think so needless to say it was, and still is, a little disturbing to see how different things are here. From the little I've gleaned this seems to be the norm rather than the exception among worlds so I'm curious to know what it's like on other people's home planets. What are animal folk like where you come from? How are they treated?

I'm especially interested to hear from other people like myself.

Comments

text | un: springtime

[hopticulture]

[SHE WOULD DO A VIDEO FOR THIS BUT UH SHE IS NOT 100% herself right now.]

Your world kind sounds like mine, but most sea creatures like you only ever speak in Sea Speak and I'm pretty sure we don't have magic...

But everyone where I'm from is a normal talking, thinking animal. And predators aren't exactly eating meat as freely as they do here.

I'm Haru, by the way. I'm a dwarf rabbit, usually.

[justsomeshrimp]

[Lobco understands all too well. Reading text can be just as awkward as writing in this form, however, so she cuts the feed and transforms back so that she can text in turn]

It's nice to meet you, Haru.
When you say Sea Speak is that simply a different language that can be learned or is that because they cannot vocalize things in the same way?
I'm glad to hear they don't eat meat as much. Can they digest other foods?

[hopticulture]

It's a different language, and it's something that my school would teach to help us prepare for the real world. It's definitely complicated to speak as someone who will only live on land for her whole life.

And yeah, they have a lot of alternate proteins available, like soy and eggs and milk. Insects too. I can't really comment much on it because I'm an herbivore and don't really have to worry about it.
Is that how it is where you're from? Or do carnivores still prey on other animals openly?

[justsomeshrimp]

Is there much interaction between land and sea dwellers?

Unfortunately a lot of hunting still happens
For the most part kingdoms enforce rules that within their perimeters hunting cannot occur.
Outside of them, however, there are no laws and its not entirely looked down upon.
That said for carnivores that cannot transform as I do they have little option than to continue eating as they do.
Then there are other species that still hunt us.
It's still quite rough but I like to think that bit by bit things are getting better.

( VIDEO. ) un: AJKSHG

[boarishness]

_{[ He doesn't bother to listen to this whole feed at all. Instead, Lobco gets greeted by a loud teenager wearing a boar's head. ]}

TEMPURAAAAAAAAA..!!!!!

[justsomeshrimp]

[Lobco is pretty sure that if he had been yelling that in person she would have been blown away. Ow, her tiny ears are rining.]

I am not food!

1/2

[boarishness]

BULLSHIT. YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY FOOD. YOU ARE FOOD SHAPED.

_{[ Though he seems gruff and decided with his decision, something seems to click with him almost instantly. ]}

Ehhhh.. you are talkin' like you got a spirit though. Kinda like Hannah.

_{[ He means "Haru" but yeah. ]}

[boarishness]

Uwaaaa, she's kinda different from you though.. this is a lot'a thinking..
I guess I don't have'ta eat you.. but you'd look good deep fried, just saying.

[justsomeshrimp]

That's a pretty disturbing thing to say to someone.

[She's unfortunately sorta used to hearing that so she sounds more exasperated than angry or upset.]

[Video]

[burnt_offering]

Hey Lobco.

Animals kind of have a wide range of capability where I'm from. There are animals that just go on instinct mostly, some of 'em are really simple and some of 'em are super smart. So that's that. So I guess we have animals, and then thinking animals too? One of my crewmates back home was a big lynx. He wasn't a pet at all, he was a member of the Spade pirates and respected. But he wasn't treated great where he was before he joined my crew. People can be pretty awful. So how they're treated depends on where they are and who they're with.

[This is complicated.] But then we have animal people, the Minks. And we have the fishmen and mermaids too. They have a big range in how they look, some of 'em are pretty human looking, some really have a lot of animal traits. They can be treated really bad back home, slavery is illegal where I'm from but the government allows it anyway. The mermaids get hit the hardest I think, but anyone interesting or strong has a big risk.

[justsomeshrimp]

That does sound pretty diverse---but not unlike what I have back in my home. There are those categorized as animal folk, but then also those who just happen to have similar traits to animals but are their own species, like mermaids.

We're generally all....seen as lesser. Particularly compared to the dominant species of the world.

[She gives a small sigh]

It's...odd how prevalent certain things are even across worlds. Or maybe not so odd.

[burnt_offering]

In our world, a lot of the humans are treated the same way. It's kind of tricky, our system works with the World Nobles at the top, the World Government below, and it just goes down from there.

[Ace signs too, nearly at the same time Lobco does.]

No, it's a lot of the same bad no matter where people come from. I keep hearin' bad stuff that sounds way too familiar.

text | un: no

[terribletwos]

[ Talking animals are actually sort of normal for Roxas. Though he doesn't have much experience with shrimp. Either the animal or the food. ]

it mostly depends on the world. some places animals talks just like everyone else. other places only certain people can understand them

[ Like what he assumes is the case between Abu and Aladdin, but he's never personally spent enough time around either of them to know for sure. And his memories of Sora and them are spotty. ]

text | un: seashell

[justsomeshrimp]

[Lobco will respond via text in kind, so she switches of the feed and changes to her more human form to be able to write back]

It sounds like you have visited a lot of worlds.
Are they able to understand them due to learning the language or simply by some magical means?
Or something else entirely?

[terribletwos]

not as many as some of my friends. but i had missions in a few.

i think it has to do something with being able to understand each other's heart. it's not so much the actual words but the meaning behind them. i think that's what some of them share.

video

[peacewithouttyranny]

Generally, talking animals are not the norm for most planets in my universe, but there do exist worlds with them. I know one populated with talking animals.

In my home planet, there exist both. Wild animals acting purely on their instincts and those born with animal-shaped bodies but are capable of speech and critical thinking like you. My close friends were the latter.

However, despite their sapience, they were second-class citizens. Treated as nothing more than beasts and faced discrimination for what they are. [...] But that was a problem in the past, Cybertron is no longer a world like that.

[Before it was destroyed, but that's not the story for today.]

[justsomeshrimp]

That seems to be the most common case, from what I've spoken of to people here and outside of this post.

[Saddening but hardly surprising. Her world is no better.]

I'm glad to hear that it did get better. What would you say were the biggest factors in that change?

[peacewithouttyranny]

A revolution.

[Which Soundwave was a part of.]

The Functionist government was the main reason our kind was divided and categorized... They weren't willing to give up their powers over the populace willingly, so a forced removal was needed.

[resenting]

Yeah, talking animals sure isn't a thing where I'm from. I'm sorry to say, you'd probably be on the menu.

Well, the fact that you can talk probably means you'd be an exception. Probably.

Having gone to other worlds, demi-humans- er, animal-people seem common enough. I'd probably say I get along better with them than anyone else, at this point.

[justsomeshrimp]

On those other worlds that you have been to would you say that are treated equally to other species?

[resenting]

Not in the slightest. The country I was summoned to was human-supremecist, demi-humans are bought and sold there.

I guess there's other countries there where it's the opposite, so I guess that's a kind of equality, but I don't think that's what you have in mind.

video; un: xunxian

[topoiran]

Oh, animals are capable of speech. It is that most people do not understand them. I can, and I suspect I might not be the only one.

But what you describe is similar to my world, yes. Most animals stay what they are, and most people do not understand them.

[ He tilts his head, then raises a hand, and a small bird lands on his finger, chirps at him, and makes him smile, before flying away again. ]

Ah... were you concerned about specific ways in which animals are treated here? I can talk with them and help out, if the situation seems bad.

[justsomeshrimp]

Someone did say something similar. If I may ask, is it that you understand their language or is it by some magical means? Or understanding their hearts?

[She watches curiously as the bird calmly lands on his finger.]

Not anyone specifically, but just in general. It's a little relieving to hear that they can think and speak here--but then that also brings up concerns about how they are amassed for food.

[But...while upsetting it's something that happened back home where everyone can understand them, so she knows that particular part might be a futile battle]

video, un: thereth

[unholy_rebirth]

[Oh goodness. This is weird. Not in a bad way, though - Thereth loves meeting new people. She's not sure she's quite as much an "animal folk" as she is, but she'll respond anyway.]

Well met, Lobco. I am Thereth. And this is what I normally look like. [ :3 ]

On my world, we have many different types of people...although I am not certain that there are any quite like you.

[...I mean. She's eaten shrimp. But...]

[justsomeshrimp]

[Thereth most certainly counts in Lobco's book.]

Hello Thereth. It's a pleasure to meet you.

Would you say everyone is treated about the same?