Al gave a cool smile and shrugged at Zorish, "Even if you're not gonna get excited about the whole 'long dead sister' thing, you could always just do what I do and take it as an excuse for having some fun." He smirked, "Am I gonna have to teach all you Yeerks how to enjoy yourselves? Besides," he shrugged and gave a look of innocence, "if your host really wants to speak with her, how much harm could it do?"
Al laughed in response to Keshin, "Y'know, I think Salem might take offense to that assessment of his... business, or whatever he wants to call it, but yeah, that's pretty accurate. As for the new crowd..." he laughed again, "I might not be the best person to ask about that kind of thing. Your business isn't really something I'm used to dealing with. There are some interesting characters, but I'd have no idea how to tell if there are potential... like, clients, or whatever it is you hunty-types call them." He shrugged apologetically.
He turned to the Andalite and nodded, "Yeah, I agree, better safe than sorry." He shook Jade's and smiled, "Pleasure to meet you. Did you two want to try the magical healing thing first, or should I grab some medical supplies now just in case?"
He smiled at Eshen, "Yeah, I get that reaction a lot. Actually, you're one of the less crazy ones about it. I get stuff thrown at me all the time." He shrugged, "Apparently we robots are something of a novelty in this area. Once the novelty wears off, though, we're really not much different from you squishy organic things." He laughed and gave a grin that said he was only joking.
He looked from Eshen to Zorish, "'May the Kandrona shine and strenthen you' is a greeting of yours?" He grinned, "I like it. I might have to start using that. Think it'd catch on with non-Yeerks?"
Salem nodded and watched as the shape... it could represent Mar, he supposed, in a fuzzy, surreal kind of way he wasn't really used to seeing yet... was manipulated by some of the tendrils. He opened his eyes for a moment and noted Mar actually floating off the ground. Amazing how unsurprised he was by that.
He nodded, "Alright, so I just need to move these things and pick myself up. You make it look so easy, Highest."
He closed his eyes again- this new world, these new sensations... they'd still been there with his eyes open, he realized with a start. It was just that closing his eyes allowed him to block out the distraction of sight. That was probably Mar's reasoning behind that. He wondered if he'd be able to feel this without Mar's help... or if he'd be able to stop feeling it. He'd have to ask the Highest about it.
He picked one tendril and concentrated on it, willing it to slow and to stop. It slowed, but in only a moment he lost it, and it went back to doing its own thing. He tried again, and managed to hold one in check for a few moments before again losing it. He tried once more, trying to really want the tendril to behave as he willed. Success, it seemed. It slowed and stopped, and seemed, with some hesitation, to move back and forth where he wanted it to. He experimented with waving it slightly, afraid to make big movements lest he lose it again. He tried to get it to bend, willing it to as if it were his own limb. To his surprise, it did. Sort of. It curled around itself, flexing and undulating slightly. Not quite like the elbow he'd been intending, but at least he'd managed to get it to do something.
Now to find himself... doing his best to keep control over the 'tendril,' he started to look around for the glowing shape... 'mana-based soul,' Mar had called it... that he had to pick up and move. With surprising difficulty, he managed to find it, a glowing shape in the dark... his mind was beginning to get used to seeing things this way- it almost seemed to have form now. So now all he had to do was wrap the tendril around it and lift it into the air. Easy enough, right?
The tendril! He'd been distracted enough by his thoughts about the 'light' that he'd lost track of it. Damn it! Trying to keep the light in sight, he grasped wildly for another tendril, and managed to bring it under his control... but nearly lost sight of the light as he did so. No! He reached wildly for the light with his mind, this time determined to keep a grip on the shape in the darkness as well... but he could feel that grip slipping. On impulse, he mentally tightened his control over the tendril, and swung it quickly towards the light...
And suddenly, he was thrown sideways, towards the wall of the ship. His eyes opened wide in surprise just in time to register Mar's receding face, and he had just enough time to think Yes! before his back smashed into the wall with a sickening Thud. A second later, he found himself lying, dazed, on the floor, all the air knocked from his lungs and a throbbing pain in the back of his skull. He coughed violently for a few moments and pressed his hands to the back of his head, lying face-down on the floor of the ship. Soon, the pain had died down a bit and he sat up, hand still pressed to the back of his head. His hair was now a wild mess, and he could see his hat tucked neatly under one of the shelves that he'd narrowly avoided hitting.
"That felt like progress," he said hoarsely to Mar with a weak smile.
