H O R I Z O N // Sci-Fi // Literate (Accepting applicants!)

[Sir Dietary Supplement]

Ｃｈｒｉｓｔｉａｎ Ａｄａｍ Ｂｅｒｎｅｔxxxxxxthe heir to GenEx


xxxxxxxweep » for yourself, my man,
xxxxxxxxx☎ You'll never be what is in your heart
xx■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
♔ x x WEEP LITTLE LION MAN
xxxxxxxxxxxxYou're not as brave as you were at the start
xx↷ *)Rate yourself and rake yourself
xxxx ● ● Tak ⊹ e all the courage you have left
xxxxxxxxxxxxxWasted on fixing all the problems that you made in your own head


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➤ phersephonexx➤ no onexx➤ recovering


Even if he wouldn't be a good shot, Christian couldn't help but draw the pistol from its holster. If anyone was close enough he couldn't miss point blank. He still was trying to reboot the PDA device to try to get some source of light for himself. Though, it seemed to be failing completely. The device might of been shot, it was hit with another EMP earlier and he never had the chance of patching it up. None the less, he stepped carefully through the dark halls. Listening to Dani as she replied to him. Alright, I'll try to head there," if he could find his way towards Dani that was. He turned in the direction he thought the armory was. Somehow, he was on the right path as well. If the lights were on it would be a different story.

He tried to focus on the sounds of the AI. He heard the distance rambling and tried to go towards it. It was hard to pinpoint where it was coming from, but Christian was doing his best. His hand gripped the pistol a little tighter to the sounds coming from around him. He let out a steady breath, focusing on keeping himself calm. He had to keep himself thinking clearly. He was somewhat relieved his father had taught him skills like that. Even if it was to train him how to remain calm if someone ever tried to ransom him. The sounds that echoed through his ship made Christian's skin crawl though.

Dani's voice cut through the eerie silence that filled the ship after a moment of noise. Skeleton Harvester? It didn't ring any bells in his head. No, never heard of anything like that, Christian replied. If that was the company, it didn't sound like very good company. He seemed to be more on edge after that little bit of news from Dani. His free hand helped guide him through the halls. His eyes were starting to get used to things. He could see a bit better now.

Turning towards another corridor, Christian tried to spot any movement as well as trying to listen for the AI, or anyone for that matter. Being by himself probably wasn't the best choice at the moment. Whatever was on the ship didn't seem all that friendly and Christian still needed to work on more skills to protect himself. His hand tightened around the pistol a bit more. How big was this ship anyways, felt even bigger in a situation like this. He would of been a lot calmer if he had a source of light.

He stopped in the hall he was in and shoved the pistol back in its holster. Pulling out the PDA device, it was showing attempts of wanting to power back on. Even in the dark he could manually reset it. It just took a bit of effort, looking down at the small device. Christian slightly prayed it would turn back on as his tinkered with it a small bit. After a moment, there was a quick flash of white from the device as it came back to life.

"Thank god," Christian muttered to himself. Well Dani, I got a source of light at least, he told her and flicked over to the small flashlight the device had. It wasn't much but it gave him a bit more light then before. Would help him figure out where he was.

Looking around where he was he knew he wasn't anywhere close the armory anymore. More importantly he probably wasn't all that close to Dani anymore either. Damn, his wandering only made things worse. He should of tried to boot the device back on first. And now to find you...or anymore for that matter.

{[ ugh. work killed my brain today. its something. ]}

[chibichick27]

Ʌℓεxεɪ Ϩαηʈɵɢɵℓ∂

"I need a FIX 'cuz I'm going down."

outfit // Masquerade
stamina // 39% and stabilizing - lightheaded, feverish, stimulated (Leon, 85% - upset, frightened)
addiction status // withdrawal (paranoia, restlessness, pain, sweating, fever)

León hated the dark. It seemed like a strange fear for someone his stature, but as soon as the lights went off, his blood turned to ice. Alexei taking the opportunity to dash off and throw their little doctor at him didn't help things, either, because between that and the few seconds of recovery time it took to push the fear back into his head, she was long gone. Nova followed shortly after, leaving the Spaniard with a few guards and the doctor. Letting out a few swears in Spanish, he glowered at a guard for letting her escape so easily. If there was one thing he learned from his years as a mercenary, it was that pirates could have legendary figures, and completely incapable crewmen to back them up. He scooted closer to Gunnar, appreciating the light his robot was streaming onto the ground.

"Luckily she's gen-modded so that stuff shouldn't stop her heart, though it probably won't have the effect she wants," León replied to his out-loud mumbling. He examined his gloved hands and curled them into a fist, feeling the fibers against his skin. They may have taken his sword, but they forgot to inspect his gloves. So, they'd have to do. "I'm going to go find her, make sure she doesn't get herself killed. You should stay here, with the guards. Don't want her trying to jump you again for a hit."

With that, he took off down the corridor, but not before equipping a flashlight for him to use. Staring down the dark halls brought anxiety into his heart, and as he listened to his footsteps click against the steel floor and echo all around him, he had a hard time keeping his breathing steady.

"Papá, por favor, ayúdame! Por favor, no me quiero morir...no quiero morir...Dios mío , ayúdame!"*
Dad, please help me! Please, I don't want to die...I don't want to die...my God, help me!

His footsteps had turned to screams in his ears. León bit his lip as he continued. Stop thinking about it. Stop it, León. This isn't the same thing. Not at all. You're not going to fail her. Not like Izzy. So stop it, and get over it!

So absorbed in his own thoughts, the Spaniard failed to notice a supply crate left haphazardly in the intersection of a corridor, and he tripped over it. His yell of surprise caught in his throat as the wind forced itself back into him from the force of the impact.

He felt a heavy kick to the stomach as he doubled over, falling forward in the absolute darkness. The blindfold squeezed at his eyelids, daring him to try and look beyond the measly cloth and into the inkiness beyond. León felt a copper taste fill his mouth, and he spat an impressive amount of blood onto the floor. The hands holding his wrists behind his back shoved his face into the small pool he had created, and it practically trickled back into his mouth.

A scream prompted him to flail angrily. Izsak's desperate wailing pounded a miserably symphony into the twenty-five year-old's ears. All he received for his efforts was his head being bashed against the floor, effectively enlarging the pool of blood. His assailants dragged him away as the screams became fainter and farther apart. Eventually, he heard nothing anymore, and a worm of horror burrowed deep into his heart. Had they decided to leave the boy alone, or...?

"Do you see now, why I'm doing this? Oh, I suppose you can't see anything at all," Driselle Arrefeld's voice replaced the wails, a sound only slightly less gut-wrenching.

"Because you're a vicious coño," he spat. Surprisingly, the assailants let his hands free, though when he attempted to lunge at the woman, a gun butt to the head got him right back down to the ground. She shook her head, though he did not see it. "You accuse ME of being vicious? ME? You are the one who did this to me. I told you what you wanted to know, and still, you took those scissors and--""I knew you were lying. I knew you were. And the information you gave me was still faulty. But I was soft, because you were a woman, I let you live. You're ungrateful for that?" Driselle let out a laugh mixed with pain and kicked him swiftly in the jaw. He fell backwards, a tooth coming loose. He spat it out as he found himself once again being escorted through the wrecked building. From the sound of the heel clicking against the floor in front of him, Driselle was leading the party. "After you mutilated me, I had nothing left to live for, anyway. But you forced me to live. You let me go. I didn't want to live anymore, and you forced this misery on me. So when I got out, I swore that the last thing I would do before I died was take away what you stole from me."

She halted, and the men pushed León to his knees.

"Reach out and comfort Izsak, you monster. Comfort your son."

León with bated breath held out his hand. He felt the warmth of skin brush against his fingers, and he smiled wretchedly despite himself. "Izzy? Estás bien, hijo mío? Puedes oírme? Estoy aquí ahora. Está bien..."*
*Izzy? Are you okay, my boy? Can you hear me? I'm here now. It's okay...

He traced his fingers over Izsak's face, noting the warmth of his cheeks and the stillness of his lips. He didn't feel breath. But that must have been because he was breathing softly, right? His hands trailed down to the boy's shoulder, to give him a reassuring squeeze.

Except, there was no shoulder.

Driselle pulled the blindfold off of him, Blinded momentarily by the darkness meeting the darkness, León shielded his eyes and reached out once again for Izsak, sure he was hallucinating. But as his vision adjusted, he saw through the piercing black, a pair of dead eyes and a fearful expression plastered onto a thirteen year-old's head. His son's head, detached from his body, and sitting crudely on a crate for his father to touch.

Alexei nearly keeled over when she heard the strange clicking get closer to her incredibly claustrophobic room. She bit her lip hard and pressed her body tight into herself, trying to make no noise and quell the shaking. Everything running through her mind was moving at simultaneously quick and slow paces, fogging up her ability to think properly or move properly, and she didn't want to fight in this condition. And though the dark was no different to her than daylight in terms of visibility, the quick glance she was able to perceive through the walls before she hid was that of an abomination.

A monster.

She'd seen creatures of horrible experimentation before. Lethe supplied anti-rejection drugs to non-ethical scientists who liked chopping up puppies and frogs and sticking them together to see what would happen. Hell, Olympians had creatures like that--crazed soldiers who voluntarily stuck their torsos onto horses and became not like the majestic Centaurs they were modeled from, but drooling and vicious beasts who looked as human as an oozing pile of fur and blood. Or men and women pumped so full of steroids they became towers of muscle, with their eyes melted together to become Cyclops. Alexei had even seen a Cerberus, though, funnily enough, it was a very friendly puppy(ies?) owned by a somewhat eccentric yet kind lady two blocks from her Grampa's house.

But this, whatever this was, it was beyond all that. As if someone had plucked a piece of every human's nightmare and melded it into one.

Alexei sucked her breath in and held it as she heard the sound stop. And she felt a warmth as the glass above her fogged. The thing was breathing two inches away from her. Her eyes widened as she saw a hand, though perhaps it could be described as a meaty paw, stretched around the door, impossibly long and thick claws. Alexei did the only thing she could think of, and that was shut her eyes and eliminate any giveaway spots of light in the room.

For a few excruciating minutes the raven-haired girl sweated and tried not to make a single sound while the monster inserted itself into the room. But, as if she had been blessed, the creature heard something else and wandered off. Alexei waited a full two minutes before letting her breath out, noises of fear escaping her lips quietly. She wiped her forehead, arm shaking even worse, and she peered out and looked through a few walls.

The creature was far away, now. She ducked out of the room and, taking her heels off, darted down the hall. Her mind had cleared a little, probably from the fear, but she still felt weak. She couldn't find Alister or anyone else in the darkness, nor did she know which way was back towards the medical bay. She attached her sights onto the nearest person she saw and wove through the halls, checking to make sure her wrist crossbow still worked.

Alexei didn't turn the corner immediately when she realized it was Christian that would be her company. She hadn't spoken to him at all during their times together, and she knew without a doubt that he hated her for hurting Daniella and taking her away. Also, shooting him a few times probably didn't help things. But she knew how much Daniella cared for Christian, and Alexei would make sure he was well protected as well. "Christian," she said softly from around the corner. "This is Alexei. I'm coming around the corner now. Please don't shoot." Waiting a moment, she decided it was safe enough and stepped out. He looked less than thrilled to see her, and she kept her eyes trained on him for any sudden movements. "I am sure you're tempted to kill me for what I did, but I promise you that I will never betray your trust again. Daniella is special to me now, and I won't let anything happen to her." She cautiously continued to watch him. "That being said, there's something roaming the ship. I think it's a monster, and I think it's what killed the power. If you stick with me, I can see in the dark. You'll be safe," she promised, though she knew she was much weaker than normal. She just hoped she could find Alister, Nova, or León even to help her.





_____________________________________



I, too, saw God through mud —
The mud that cracked on cheeks when wretches smiled.
War brought more glory to their eyes than blood,
And gave their laughs more glee than shakes a child.
Merry it was to laugh there —
Where death becomes absurd and life absurder.
For power was on us as we slashed bones bare
Not to feel sickness or remorse of murder.


- "Apologia Pro Poemate Meo", Wilfred Owen


_____________________________________

[Yasha_Glory]

I'm miss autonomy, miss nowhere, I'm at the bottom of me
Miss androgyny, miss don't care, What I've done to me
¤Company: Gunnar/Alister ¤Condition: 82% ¤Location: Persephone's Engine Room
I am misused, I don't wanna do, Be not your slave
Misguided, I mind it, I'm missin' the train

Karl let out a few overjoyed squeals and beeps when Alister signed his wanted poster, even more so when he noticed that the signature had been addressed directly to him. Oh wouldn’t Róisín be surprised! Karl was proud of his collection, regardless of if it held any value to the rest of the universe. He had seen many humans get excited over acquiring the signatures of celebrities. Why was this any different? Who could say they had been adventurous as Karl? No one that was who! His tiny bubble shook as though he was about to explode, too happy to contain himself. He quickly stored the file away, as though it needed to be preserved. “Thaaaaaaaaank yoooooooooooou!” he purred with the largest of grins a tiny fish could possess. “That sounds like a good idea! They’re probably running around in the dark, hiding somewhere. Just don’t shoot them! They don’t really like that too much! It takes a long time to dig the bullets out and it makes that ugly squishing noise!!! I don’t like the ugly squishing noise,” he admitted with a comedic artificial expression of ‘x’s for eyes and an upside down ‘D’ where his mouth had been a second before. A few flickers of a squiggle flipped through his mouth’s display before returning to his usual expression of dots and smile. “How did you know her name was Róisín?!” he gasped. “Ooooooh Miiiiiiister B, you’re so smart! No wonder no one is able to catch you! You have to say it with the accents, RRRRRRRRÓÓÓÓÓÓÓIIIIIIISSSSSSSÍÍÍÍÍÍÍN. She’s really picky about that. Róisín is super smart too! I bet we’ll all be best friends when I tell her you rescued me! I was supposed to stay close and not talk to anyone but then someone got really grabby and I rooooooooolled away. I wonder what happened to them… Maybe Róisín ate them. If she did then she’ll be in a really good mood! Ahhhh this is all so electrifying!” he buzzed. It was then that he noticed Dani was missing. He hovered this way and that, shining his light around the area looking for her. “Daaaaaaaaani? Where did you go? You can’t see in the dark! Be careful you’ll fall down! Daaaaaani!” it was times like this he wished his light would shine farther into the darkness, but without larger bulbs that was impossible. He needed to tell Róisín to make him a helmet with a light and chin strap the next time she was in a tinkering mood. It got so boring doing the same thing day in and day out. Being on another ship and talking to people other than Róisín reminded the AI how much he missed having a crew. He was programmed to interact with more than one person at a time, yet that’s all he had done for what seemed like an eternity. He cared deeply for his companion, although sometimes she was a real stick in the mud, really he did, but something had to change sooner or later. He didn’t know how much longer he could take having only one person to talk to.

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Róisín crept along the floor, keeping herself as close to the ground as she could. Each pace was carefully placed with precision. She didn’t want to make any more noise and alert the crew. They had to be nearby, unless the numbers had dwindled during the attack on Dionysus’ party. Though Róisín had no reason to suspect that they had anything to do with the explosions and collapsing building, she had to admit that the craft’s inner décor did not allude to someone with infinite riches who would’ve been seen at one of the god’s fanciest parties. There was grime in the floor’s grates and a few smudges on the windows she had passed. It wasn’t a complete pigpen, although it could have been better. It was obvious they didn’t have droids dedicated to cleaning and that the streaks and residue was the result of human error in judgment. A mop and bucket, or even a wet sponge, couldn’t do as fine a job as tools specifically designed to make an environment spotless. Now wasn’t the time to inspect, however, she had a job to do. She needed to find Karl. The only way she was going to do that was to find someone and see what they knew, or go door by door until she ripped the right one open like a wet paper bag and found him herself. Either one was a good option. The latter was a last resort as she was growing antsier with each passing moment that she was without her only friend. She rather liked the option that let her chase someone down and hopefully get a good bite or two out of them. Frozen limbs were good for snacks. They didn’t, however, do as well a job as fresh warm blood straight from the source. With the bad mood she was in, pent up rage from allowing someone to throw his cigarette into her drink and insult her, and fresh injury; she needed some relief. She needed to feel soft, tender, organs between her fingers and see the fear in someone’s eyes.

Róisín froze as she heard the minute shuffling of material and the tiny squeaking of boot rubber shifting against metal. Something was moving, something was watching, something was waiting for her to move close enough to attack. Had she been watched the entire time? She was sure it was too dark for any normal person to see her, and she had not yet found the source of the noises yet. They were only getting farther and farther away from her ship’s makeshift entrance. Perhaps they were luring her towards some type of trap? Her options were limited. If she didn’t go forward she’d never find Karl, if she stayed put they would move him, and if she went back she’d have to waste more time finding her way around the ship. If she knew where she was going, if she had been able to sneak on board more quietly and learn the layouts while the crew slept, this would have been easier. She had no idea what would be around every corner or even who she was dealing with. What she did know was that she wanted Karl back and no one was going to stop her from getting to him. She saw what looked like the barrel of a gun round the corner only feet in front of her and stared intently at where she assumed the human’s face would appear. At the glint of a shiny eyeball in the darkness, she let out a quiet gurgling growling from her throat, bracing herself. All that Gunnar could see in the inky blackness of the ship’s corridor was a pair of bright white deadlights. As the creature’s dagger-mouth opened slightly, a hiss escaped and the surgeon cursed shooting a few rounds between its eyes. The creature recoiled from the force of the bullets, its head lowering to keep its eyeholes safe. Its head threw back and its growl intensified into a reverberating roar that only seemed to echo louder as it ran about the vessel into the crewmember’s eardrums.

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Karl turned in the direction he heard the gunshots, his happy expression dwindling at the sound of Róisín’s bellowing. “That doesn’t sound good. She sounds mad… Mister B, I thought you said you had no intention of hurting her?” His voice was calmer, perhaps even a little disappointed and worried for his friend. Gunshots were nothing to sneeze at. With a good number of them in the right places, she’d be a sitting duck for a barrage of attacks. With enough attacks, or even one well-placed one, Róisín would be killed, regardless of her regenerative abilities.

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The monster charged and lunged at the medical man, its forehead unscathed from the shots. He managed to scramble and roll out of the way just in time for her massive claws to miss and dig into the floor, slicing open a few six-inch holes into the level below. The scurrying indicating that there had been crewmembers underneath that were now running for their lives from whatever was strong enough to go through their ceiling. Skeleton Harvester let out another, yet smaller, screech of disapproval. While turning to relocate her shooter she felt the sting of a bullet grazing her shoulder and the whirr of one buzzing past her ear. Chasing their siblings came three more rounds through her trapezius, splattering deep Quinacridone-magenta goop onto the wall. The beast cried out, the ammunition actually doing damage this time, and glowered at the tinkering mashed metal bouncing and rolling across the ground. “b*****d,” she thought to herself, teeth grinding beneath their pseudo shields. The viscous tyrian liquid poured from the holes in her body, thousands of tiny sparkling blue lights twinkling within it like a moving galaxy. Shimmering in waves, the lights dimmed and glowed along with the monster’s breathing pattern, illuminating only small sections of its body. Seemingly sentient the goo stopped once it reached the floor and appeared to call the splatter from the wall back towards its home. The splatter converged into the puddle on the ground, and the puddle raced back, flooding into the bullet holes and beginning to bubble and pop. The doctor, while the creature was distracted, got up off the ground and stared at the almost mesmerizing sight of what should have been blood. There was no time to wonder what it was or why it lit up like a Christmas tree; he needed to find somewhere safe and fast. He put his hand against the wall and started running back towards the engines where he had originally intended to hold out and protect. It wasn’t his ship and in the darkness it was hard to know if he was going the right way. In this situation, though, the opposite way of whatever the hell that creature was, was the right way! The thick fluid filled the wounds all the way through and smoothed itself out across her skin. When it was satisfied that it had seamlessly formed a barrier between the outside world and Róisín’s tender insides it became jet black, eventually lightening to her usual pale skin tone. It snarled, baring its fangs with an angry growl. Her favorite jacket had several holes in it now.


Metal screamed as she ripped her hands out of the flooring, it bending back a bit due to the curvature of her digits. She hissed and pursued the loud clunking footsteps, no longer worried about causing noise. Gunshots and roars would have alerted the crew where she was. This man had to die for his crimes against her. He needed to pay for shooting her and possibly being an accomplice in her AI’s theft. He was still very much alone and she couldn’t risk him finding his friends and telling them exactly what he had seen. He shot behind himself, blindly, into the shadows, knowing full well that looking back wasn’t going to do any good at this point. Massive juggernaut limbs took the brunt of the shots, their surface like the monster’s mask; densely made of highly compacted nanobots, capable of sustaining a bullet so long as Róisín’s body remained intact. Her claws out, her right managing to scrape deep grooves into the wall like the scratches of a demonic entity, she was ready to tear this man limb from limb the second he messed up. In his panicked state he lost his footing, perhaps due to a pen left on the floor or a crate that was left out of place when the lights went out, and the creature saw its chance to strike. It leapt into the air and swung its talons at the man’s back, the two rolling and colliding to the ground with a loud clatter. She had him beneath her, breathing as rapidly as he was from the surges of adrenaline that was pumping through both their bodies. She closed in on him as he struggled to get away. She was too high up on his body for him to kick her off, so he did the next best thing. He reached for his trusty scalpel and stabbed it into the beast’s eye. This time she did not roar. Instead, she let out an ear piercing androgynous scream. When her head rocked back down she felt something cold and hard against her chin that prevented her from looking down. There was a click of a hammer being pulled down and a chamber rotating into place. “s**t.”

Gunnar pulled the trigger of his pistol. Click. Click. Click. Nothing happened. Click. Click. Click. There was no gunshot, there was no blood splatter, there was only the realization that he was face first with some type of murderous being that was out to eliminate his new found friends. The entity’s snarl, illuminated by the scintillating fluid oozing out of the blacked eye socket, softened and curved into an unnerving grin. It chuckled, putting one of its gargantuan claws on the man’s chest and dragging its fingers down a few inches. The digits curled and pressed down into the surgeon’s soft flesh as the beast gazed down upon his face with its single eye. ”All out of bullets? What a shame," it cockily remarked with both sets of teeth. Her head dove towards his shoulder, both jaws snapping around hunks of flesh as soon as contact was made. She bit down slowly, his clavicle cracking loudly as it was crushed by the intensity of her bite force. He yelled out in pain, even more so as her bite quickly turned into a full on gorging of his flesh and bone. Her talons, already embedded into his chest like a series of meat hooks dug deeper, fixing themselves under his ribs. Crimson vitae pooled beneath his body, though not enough to consider him dead if found. Skeleton Harvester lifted its head from its meal and let droplets drip from its bloodstained face. Someone was bound to come looking for the man now that he was starting to make pain filled sounds, she couldn’t risk another attack from her blind spots. She growled and reached up with her spare hand, haphazardly ripping out the surgical knife from her eye and tossing it. She scanned the doors and hallways around her, looking for a good place to hide the body and possibly recover for a bit without the worry of attack from behind. She got onto her toes, knees bent into the air, and dragged her prize backwards into the vast emptiness of the ship, leaving the occasional skid of blood and hand prints as he continued to make escape attempts. Someone was bound to follow the blood trail, and she needed to think fast to use it to her advantage. She dragged the still bleeding man into the engine room and quickly bit into his throat, making it harder for him to speak or scream anymore. She looked around, making sure there were no other witnesses that she needed to take care of and scrambled on top of cabinets and pipes until she was able to situate herself in the middle of the ceiling, hidden behind a large pipe that seemed cool enough to the touch to assume it wouldn’t be a problem, and would be an excellent spot to keep an eye on the entire room. The occasional drop of fresh blood still dripped from her chin, but with any luck she would be able to keep the element of surprise on her side and use the weakened man’s body as bait.

And I don't know where I've been, And I don't know what I'm into, And I don't know what I've done to me
And as I watch you disappear into the ground, My one mistake was that I never let you down
So I'll waste my time and I'll burn my mind, On miss nothing, miss everything

[Lysander the Poet]

Refraining from giving the little AI a flabbergasted look of disbelief was challenging. Crediting Alister for his ‘intelligence’, when it was he who had revealed his companion’s name in the first place. Whatever floated the little fish’s ball, he supposed. He seemed to be reasonable enough, and took to Alister’s little plan. To his credit as an outlaw and scumbag, Alister genuinely wanted to try and negotiate with the Skeleton Harvester. For once, it was actually a misunderstanding of sorts, instead of something far more sinister. Still, he wasn’t looking forward to the negotiations with the beast. Even if she was just a woman with a fancy name and a sickeningly adorable AI as a friend. And then Karl noticed Daniella had gone, and Alister almost bolted through the halls to find her. Daniella wandering around the ship was hardly a good idea, but then again, she had her telepathy. She’d be able to know where this Roisin was before she got the drop on Dani. And perhaps she’d be able to find the others, who could, for the most part, protect her. Knowing the girl, however, it was more probable that she was going off to find Christian. The Skeleton Harvester would have a great time devouring that one, probably. Who knows what rich people tasted like? Alister stepped back mentally from where his thought process had gone. Considering a woman actually going around devouring people? That was a dark place, and Alister wouldn’t believe it until he saw it. He didn’t want to believe that something that horrifying was real. It had to be some sort of weapon, or machinery. There had to be a rational explanation, right? Right, he reassured himself. The little AI had mentioned her eating someone, but he was more fanatical and downright crazy than he was a reliable source of information. ”Come on, Karl. Let’s go see if we can find your friend, shall we?” He didn’t make a move to grab the AI. He didn’t want to burden himself, or make it look like he was holding Karl hostage, in case Roisin caught sight of them together. She was here to retrieve him, after all, from what Dani had told him.

And then the sounds. Gunshots were obvious, and the monstrous roar was a portent of things that lurked in nightmare. It was as if the entire ship reverberated with the rage and agony of the creature, and Alister beckoned to Karl, and took off towards the noises. ”I don’t. But someone isn’t following my orders. Got a couple strangers on my ship besides your friend, and not all of them are as big of a fan of me as you are. Whoever they are...they must have felt in danger, or they just wanted to piss me off. I said don’t shoot unless they had no other choice. And from the sounds, it was a pistol of some sort. Everyone on the crew should be equipped with assault rifles. More shots would have been fired in succession. Faster rate of fire. Also would have torn a hole in the damn ship if they weren’t careful. Gunnar should be taking care of Alexei and watching Leon...Rhia is still in the medical bay…” His mind ran through the various personalities aboard the ship. Daniella, to his knowledge, had not been equipped with a weapon as she wandered the halls. Nova would have probably reacted more intelligently than firing on the creature. Devaro had been in his room, with no access to a weapon, save the pistol Nova had given him, but he had left that in the med bay. As he ticked off the boxes in his brain, his mind came to a conclusion. He had no idea it was the wrong one. Christian...the boy had a pistol, was a poor shot, and was unaccounted for as far as Alister was aware. Dani had gone to look for him, but neither of them could reliably navigate the ship. He was slightly horrified, as he imagined the mangled form of the silver-haired young man splayed out across the deck of his ship, in a puddle of crimson. Thinking about the layout of the Persephone, the sound of the shots, and the direction they had come from, he surmised that it was towards the rear center of the ship. Probably towards the engine room. Alister sped up, checking to make sure Karl was still on his tail. ”Come on, Karl. We have to go make sure Róisín isn’t hurt.” Hopefully that would be enough to convince the little bubble-fish that he really didn’t want to hurt her, though he was more concerned about her victim now. His feet were heavy against the metal deck of the ship, as his boots pounded down with each step. He rounded each corner, clutching his knife in hand, ready for something to jump out of the shadows at him.

Liam grinned sheepishly at Nova, and her witty remark. Always quick and sharp tongued, it seemed, he mused to himself. Rhia regarded Liam with a mere nod, obviously not impressed by his flirtatious words. She gripped her rifle tightly, wondering if he had been followed by whatever was roaming the ship. Judging by his carefree attitude, he hadn’t seen anything...but that didn’t mean they’d be alive for much longer. What you don’t know could tear out your heart, after all. Liam sighed, lowering his rifle to a non-threatening posture. ”No idea.” He replied when Nova asked if he knew what was lurking in the deep black darkness outside. ”And don’t you worry about me being soft. Just because I decided to adopt a more civil line of business, doesn’t mean I didn’t have to crack a few skulls to get the project going. Quite literally, in fact. Nothing makes you a Dominion or Olympian target more than trying to create a full scale mining and manufacturing operation right under their collective noses. And then there were those who didn’t quite ‘agree’ with how I ran Calypso Station. Though, you would know about that, wouldn’t you?” He was obviously referencing her treatment of his traitorous Lieutenants, with a note of gratitude in his voice. Examining the room, he set himself up as close to the back as possible, between the two other combatants, raising his rifle to the door. ”Let us not dwell on such things, though. If I remember correctly, Nova, that drink we were having in The Bloodhound was rudely interrupted. Maybe if we get through this, you and I can continue from there, and see if we can take that drink anywhere...interested?” His attempt at a proposition. What a ******** idiot that man was, Rhia thought as she looked down at him from her makeshift sniper perch.

Both Liam and Rhia’s gazes shot up when they heard the distant sound of gunshots. Liam reacted by checking his rifle, and Rhia thought along similar lines as Alister. ”Sounded like...rear center of the ship. Probably somewhere near the engineering section, and the engine room. Pistol shots. An entire magazine. Who ever that was, they better have been carrying some extra ammo. No return fire, so that would mean we aren’t dealing with soldiers.” Her thoughts were mostly analytical. She hadn’t even approached what the roar might mean. Mostly because she was a bit too nervous to begin with the implications of the sound, and didn’t want to unnecessarily worry the other two with whatever wild imaginings she could haul out of her a**. ”No worries, though. Captain Blood would be thinking the same thing. He’s probably already on his way down there, to take care of the problem. If wish SOMEONE would get their asses down to engineering and fix the god damned power while they’re at it.” The Persephone was drifting through space, right now, without any engines or shields. They were still close to Phobos, and Mars, and that meant they could be picked off with ease. And that would not be healthy for any of them, crew, guests, or psychotic monsters trying to kill them all. It made no difference once you were space junk.

Alister slowed down as he came to the scene of the initial firefight. Lack of corpses meant that whatever fight had unfolded here probably moved down even further into the bowels of ship. At least Christian hadn’t died here, and that gave Alister a little more hope than he had previously. But there wasn’t any blood or anything at all...which would mean, at least conventionally, that nobody had been hit by his shots. Once he inspected the nearby bulkhead, however, he found a different story. The remainder of a shot or two had lodged themselves into metal. The sufficient velocity to penetrate at least one layer of inner-plating was definitely a lot lower than that of a bullet fired from a pistol. That meant that these bullets met with resistance that had terminated most of their velocity. Which meant they passed through solid matter...a body. Inspecting what was left of the shots, there didn’t seem to be any organic matter, and that merely worried Alister more. So they were dealing with a creature that roared like an animal, but didn’t bleed like one, and very possibly devoured its prey. Next, he spotted the sizeable claw marks, carved into the deck of his ship. Kneeling down to the floor, he could clearly see the deck below. Once again, no blood or any sort of organic matter remained on the jagged metal, that she had most likely torn apart without any kind of effort. The image of the dead man’s torso came back into his mind, but instead he saw Christian, mangled almost beyond recognition. Alister turned to look at Karl, trying not to let any fear show in his face. Instead, he smiled at the little fish. ”Well, look at this. She’s not here, which probably means she’s still doing alright. Let’s keep looking.” When he stepped off next, it was with a slower, more deliberate cadence, the sound of his footfalls greatly reduced. His fingers were still wrapped around the hilt of his knife as he maneuvered the corridors.

And then he heard screaming. Horrible sounds of agony. It didn’t take a genius to know that these screams were human ones. Alister had caused similar, but maybe less desperate, cries of horror and pain from his own victims. He couldn’t make a positive determination of who it was that was screaming, but his mind still told him that Christian was in danger, as he could at least tell they were the sounds of a male. Alister moved as quick as he could without making much sound, continuing through the maze of passages that led to the engine room. Usually, the dull hum of the engine and the rumble of its might would course through every fiber of his being, this close to the drive core. Now it was silent, and haunting. Alister’s eyes, guided by the small amount of light put out by Karl, noticed the blood quite quickly. The shimmering of light reflecting off of some metal caught his gaze as well, and he bent down to pick up a discarded scalpel. Gunnar. His mind screamed. Gunnar, who should have been with Alexei...so, that meant that...the traitor and the Olympian a*****e that came with her were probably unaccounted for. He had left the door open...another lapse in judgement, as he trusted them merely because Gunnar was trying to save Alexei from herself, and figured that would take priority over her and Leon breaking free. Alister would follow the trail of blood. She had tried to hide the body, perhaps? Or take it somewhere better suited for feeding. She was obviously a predator...a predator, in unknown territory, hunting any lone member of the crew. She was smart, smart enough to know the noises would have drawn attention. That meant that she probably wouldn’t have gone far. She would know that the blood could lead them right to her. She was here somewhere, then...time to try and appeal to the nature of the beast, and hope it wasn’t all monstrous and murderous.

”Róisín? I know you’re here somewhere. My name is Alister Blood. Captain of the ship that you’ve...boarded. I have your friend Karl here, safe and sound. I think...we may have had a little misunderstanding. My friend Daniella, sweet girl that she is, grabbed your little friend from Dionysus’ Mansion when it was falling apart. She was trying to rescue him, from the danger, and the soldiers. I can tell from the way he talks about you...the two of you are quite fond of each other. He also says you’re incredibly smart, which I can definitely see. I’m going to ask you, make another smart move. Just take your friend Karl, and go. The man who shot you...the one that you killed. He wasn’t one of mine. Just a passenger, an acquaintance. Temporary ship’s Doctor, till I could offload him somewhere, or blow him out the airlock. He was only here to help one of my dear friends, who has been hurt. Someone I don’t want to lose. We’re not so different, see? You don’t want to lose Karl, either, right? And I don’t plan on taking him...or hurting you. We’re both reasonable, intelligent, and dangerous outlaws. I think we can work this out without anyone else having to die.” He spoke into the blackness, continuing to move carefully, rounding one last corner, following the blood, only to find a corpse. You could barely tell who it was, huge chunks of flesh ripped away. Alister approached it, and knelt down, reaching out to pull away Gunnar’s dog tags, and tuck them into his pocket. He then rose back up, and was about to continue, when there was the ever so subtle drip, drip, drip of something wet on the floor. Alister shifted his weight, a few droplets of blood landing on his shoulder. He slowly turned his gaze upwards, holding his knife down low, to look non-threatening...it was here.

[Space Candy]

xxxx"Speech."xxxxx"Thoughts."xxxxx"Others."

XXXXXXXX Alister's response to Karl was....much calmer than Daniella had expected. He spoke to him in an easy tone, and Daniella listened as he tried to tell Karl to reason with the Skeleton Harvester. Alister seemed set that the Harvester was a woman, and with a name like Roisin it wasn't hard for Daniella to agree with him. She didn't voice this though, and instead went back to paying attention to Christian. She didn't like being separated from him. She needed to protect him, along with everyone else...Him wandering around alone was dangerous. With her back still to Alister, she took a few more steps into the darkness. The green glow Karl emitted only went so far, and she past the edge of his illumination. Daniella bit the inside of her cheek and stared into the inky darkness. Christian responded to her, but unfortunately he didn't seem to know anything about Miss Roisin or her Skeleton Harvester identity. The blonde moved through the darkness, and its wasn't long before Christian spoke to her again. He find a light, which was good, but it didn't make Dani feel much better.

Christian mentioned he was going to try and fine her. Surely he had some sort of weapon...Or maybe Dani was just saying that to reassure herself. "Are you armed?" She asked him in an urgent tone. She could still hear Karl talking from the direction she had come from, talking to Alister about Róisin. The blonde walked quietly down the hallway, and soon enough Karl was calling after her asking where she went. He also warned her to be careful and not fall down. Daniella shook her head, more concerned about finding Christian than falling down and scraping her knee.
The sound of fire, followed by a horrifying roar echoed through the ship. It was a faint sound, meaning it was probably happening at another end of the ship. Dani's stomach twisted and her heart rate increased. Her mind immediately went to Christian, and then to Rhia---and anyone else really. That roar made Dani certain that death by Skeleton Harvester was not a great way to go. She started running down the hall, trying to keep her steps quiet and her mind open. Dani searched around, not able to hear anyone's thoughts but Alister's. No one else was within forty feet of this part of the ship. Daniella stopped in her tracks, able to hear Karl comment on the situation from behind her.

Daniella reached out to Alister. "I can't hear anyone else...They're too far away." She turned down a hall. "I'm going to find Christian...I may loose contact with you. But I will be fine." She reassured him silently. With that, Daniella turned and took to wandering further into the bowels of the ship. The darkness was overwhelming, but worse than that were the horrifying screams of whoever had been unfortunate enough to be taken out by the Skeleton Harvester. Daniella did her best to navigate the halls, maybe she could even make a pit stop at the armory, since that was near where she was...
Maybe.
Really she wasn't sure. The thin woman continued, her mind receptive to anyone's thoughts that were within her reach. After a bit of wandering she found someone. A crew member. They were barely within her reach, but Daniella used that to locate them, which she should have done with Christian when she had the chance. "Stupid." She scolded herself as she neared the man. He was frightened, his thoughts a continuous stream of curse words and plans for attack.

"Hello?" Daniella called to him out loud, not wanting to freak him out by speaking to him mentally.

There was a moment of silence before the man responded. "Who's there?!" He demanded.
Daniella took a breath and walked towards him. "Daniella." As she came closer, a small light appeared in the darkness.
"Ah, Little Miss Trouble-Maker." He teased, trying to hide his fear. Daniella came to a halt about five feet away from the man as he lowered his gun. "Don't believe I've had the pleasure of meetin' ya. I'm Watts."

Dani nodded to him calmly, but wasn't in the mood to make new friends. "The armory is near here correct?" Her tone was even.
Watts nodded. "Yeah. Figured this was the best place to set up camp---I won't be runnin' out of bullets anytime soon."
"Can you take me there?"
Her newest companion nodded, and the two set off to find the armory. It wasn't far, just as he had said. Once there, Watts helped Daniella find a flashlight and a handgun. It wasn't much, but taking an assault rifle would have knocked Daniella on her a**, and she wasn't the best of shots---tearing a hole in the side of the ship wouldn't have been hard for her to do...

Now equipped, Daniella set off into the ship again. She was still searching for Christian, and Watts disappeared from her mind as she moved further and further away. At least now she had a light. One hand gripped her gun, and the other aimed the beam of light down the hallway. Dani's wide eyes peered around, taking in ever detail and every turn she came upon.
Eventually, she heard some thoughts.

Alexei first, and then Christian. She felt some weight lift from her shoulders. He was alive, and since his thoughts weren't 'oh s**t I'm bleeding everywhere' Dani also assumed he was unharmed. Daniella took off in a sprint, but slowed as she came closer to Alexei and Christian. Again, she didn't want to scare the crap out of anyone. Everyone on board was on edge.
"Alexei, Christian. It's Dani...I'm so happy I found the both of you." She smiled as she spoke, shining her light into the area. Daniella focused her light on Christian, and then to Alexei. It was tense between the two of them, but that was nothing that couldn't be fixed. Her eyes inspected Alexei for a moment before she spoke again.
"It's okay Christian. I trust her." Daniella supplied, trying to make things easier. "Even if you don't, I think we have more important things to focus on...I'm just glad you're alright."

xxxxLocation :: Persephone - Hallway
xxxxCompany :: Christian & Alexei
xxxxHealth :: 85% - Relieved
xxxxTunes ::In Every Dreamhome A Heartache - Talk Normal
xxxxAttire ::Simple

[The Smut Peddler]

ⓒⓞⓜⓜⓐⓝⓓⓔⓡ ⓝⓞⓥⓐ ⓥⓔⓖⓐⓢ

╰☆╮░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░╭☆╯

╭☆╯░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░╰☆╮

❝As long as a word remains unspoken, you are it's master...❞

╔══════════════════════════════╗


This shattered dream you cannot justify
We're gonna scream until we're satisfied
What are we running for? We've got the right to be angry.



╚══════════════════════════════╝

Devaro's words were not comforting in the slightest, not knowing what was out there really didn't sit well with the young woman. But without skipping a beat the spry red head got right back into the game and started in on his flirtations. Nova smirked at the 'good ole boy' routine and shook her head. Never a dull moment with Liam. That she could always remember from any prior encounter. His words regarding his two Lieutenants wiped the smile right off her face as he spoke on them. While there seemed to be less malice in his tone than in the one she perceived, it had still been quite a situation to her. She killed two men with her own hands to keep Liam alive, and still she was unsure how she felt about that.

It wouldn't be long before Liam wanted to cash in on the rain check the Commander had offered him earlier on Calypso. Nova smiled softly as she nodded to him.

"We'll see where the night takes us." She smiled over coyly, but she'd feel a pang in her chest as she said it, and she'd sigh before continuing. "Liam, I've really needed to talk to you, since we ran into each other on Calypso... but, it's just been so crazy there's been no time."

There was a pause as she swallowed hard the lump in her throat and continued to cast her gaze out the window.

"I just believe you deserve the truth. Liam. Before you're unwilling to ever look me in the eye again..." She'd absentmindedly spin the barrel of her revolver, the hum of the rose gold so different than that of stainless steel. Her hands quivered as she stopped her fidgeting and turned back. "Tiberius is alive. I've known for, Hell, several months now. He was kidnapped when our ship was breached. Olympians, I found out. We made some trades, they wanted money at first, but the ransom always multiplied. Until his finances dried up, and I had nothing left to bargain with."

Her breaths become more shaky, as she was afraid that going any further would end up lodging a bullet in her head. Less afraid of Liam, and more terrified of Rhia. She was in it now, there was no sense in back peddling. With little more than a whisper, her voice cracked as she pushed herself to continue.

"And then the torture started." Nova would crash to the ground, falling to her knees as the tears finally fell from her eyes. Trying to get a grip she was just unable, she shook her head, remembering back on the torture. Less to get anything out of him of course, but more to break Nova, which it did. She'd remember the skinning of his forearm, the pliers trying to force out his molars, the simulation device that put him through torment after torment until the moment he'd finally beg, plead to die. The psychological torture, had broken her. "I did, what they wanted. I gave them whatever they wanted."

Nova's breaths were hard, labored, and she appeared greatly haggard and distraught.

"I wanted him to die." It broke her to admit it. Shattering the decorated decaying wall of her last remnants of sanity. "I love him, but I don't want him to take another breath. I just don't want to see him in pain anymore. And so I did exactly what they wanted of me. I sold the micro chipped guns to the men back on Kessel. I'm the one who ******** the Alliance over back there. I'm so sorry... I'm the one who did it."

She held her eyes tightly shut as a shiver ran through her whole body.

"I've accepted my fate Liam, I will happy go with you to the Alliance and be sentenced to death for treason. But first I have to get him out of there. Alive... or dead." Her eyes peered out from behind the fragmented chucks of pink hair that shielded her face. "I wish I were the better person, stronger, but they wore me down. I couldn't take anymore. I couldn't handle seeing the pain. I couldn't- I just couldn't..."

Not long after there were shots fired, and that broke the young woman from her dark confession. Rhia defined the shots and their location, and Nova would agree. Though she was not nearly as trained, she could certainly get a good idea from the shots themselves. Then an ungodly roar bellowed through the hallways and Nova pressed her fingers tightly against the floor, the sound wormed its way into her head, and burrowed deep down into her psyche. A panic stricken state, her heart pounding out of her chest and finally filing with an all over sensation of numbness, deafened by the fear, blinded by the guilt. That sound was inhuman in every way possible. It was like a demon coming to collect its dues.

She'd close her eyes tightly as she murmured only to herself quietly barely audible over and over some sort of mantra.

"Oh Saint Jude patron saint of lost causes...hear me."

Nova would turn to hear the words Rhia stated about the engineering room, and she couldn't agree more. She just wished she herself wasn't so consumed by her own fears, or she would have gone. She'd think on it. She was alone now, emotionally. Hiding, that was how her lasts moments would be, held up in a med bay. It felt like waiting to die in foxhole. She shook her head, she couldn't undo the past, but she sure as Hell didn't have to accept that everyone on the ship was going to die today.

"I'll go. We need power before the fail safes run out and we have no oxygen in here..." She said shakily. "I'll go."

╔══════════════════════════════╗


We can't afford to be innocent
Stand up and face the enemy
It's a do or die situation; we will be invincible



╚══════════════════════════════╝

❝...once you utter it, you are it's slave.❞

xxxx┇ ✦ Med Bay
xxxx┇ ♢ 70%
xxxx┇ ✦ Guilt Ridden // Breaking
xxxx┇ ✦ Evil Angel

[Sir Dietary Supplement]

Ｃｈｒｉｓｔｉａｎ Ａｄａｍ Ｂｅｒｎｅｔxxxxxxthe heir to GenEx


xxxxxxxweep » for yourself, my man,
xxxxxxxxx☎ You'll never be what is in your heart
xx■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■
♔ x x WEEP LITTLE LION MAN
xxxxxxxxxxxxYou're not as brave as you were at the start
xx↷ *)Rate yourself and rake yourself
xxxx ● ● Tak ⊹ e all the courage you have left
xxxxxxxxxxxxxWasted on fixing all the problems that you made in your own head


████████████████████████████████████████████████████████



➤ phersephonexx➤ alexei, danixx➤ worried/slightly relieved


Christian was happy to have a device for light. Made him feel a little more at ease. Though, he couldn't hear Dani anymore. She must of been too far away at this point. One of them were heading in the wrong direction. Christian turned on his heel and started to head back in the direction he had been coming. Though, he wasn't alone for long. As he heard someone coming towards him, he raised the pistol. It was close quarters and thanks to the small lessons from Devaro, Christian would have a better chance of hitting anything now. He would of been happy if it were anyone else by Alexei. Even if he didn't trust Alexei, she was better then traveling around on his own. He lowered his weapon. "Trust isn't earned back so easily. You can say all you want, but there is no trust. Only a mutual amount to not be alone on the ship at the current moment," the tone was unusually cold for Christian. But, it had been used on Alexei or even just mentioning her since she aided Ben.

"I have a light device as well, and there is something roaming the ship. I got that much. Just don't know wh-" Christian was interrupted by gunshots and then an inhuman sound. It made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He tried his best not to show the fear that crawled up his spine. Rather, his hand gripped the pistol even tighter and he absently took a step closer to Alexei. He didn't trust her, but at the moment he had to work with her. Whatever was in the ship it was something else, Dani mentioned the Skeleton Harvester. It seemed it might of found a victim as well.

"Come on, I'm trying to find Dani," Christian started forward again. He could kill the light and have Alexei lead, but he figured that his creature was accustomed to seeing in the dark. He didn't want to be led blindly by a woman he barely trusted. There wasn't much conversation between Christian and Alexei, wasn't much to say. For the time being they were on the same page. Trying to survive and find Dani. Then hopefully find some of the others. Figure out what was all going on. How much danger they were in.

Christian turned his head as he heard a familiar voice. Dani. A relieved sigh left Christian's lips and his shoulders weren't as tense anymore. He shook his head as Dani tried to reassure him with feelings towards Alexei. "I may not trust her, but that doesn't mean I don't see the fact its better to be in a group at the moment. Can't make any promises for after this though," Christian admitted.

The ship was quiet again. It was unnerving. There was hardly any noise. "You know Alister went, or find anyone else for that matter. Grouping up is probably the best point. If this thing is just hunting. Groups would be more difficult for it, power in numbers. We should look for Nova, she might of headed for the medical bay to check on Rhia. It might be a good place to good, she can't do much if anything came for her..." and it was a good place to bunker down. It had one main entrance and the others could be blocked off. Christian had read enough on war tactics to understand a few things to do in situations like that. "Just gotta head there. Alexei, think you could help out with that much."

[Yasha_Glory]

I'm miss autonomy, miss nowhere, I'm at the bottom of me
Miss androgyny, miss don't care, What I've done to me
¤Company: Alister & Karl ¤Condition: 81% ¤Location: Persephone's Engine Room
I am misused, I don't wanna do, Be not your slave
Misguided, I mind it, I'm missin' the train

Turning off his light and following the captain, the little fish sped off with only his glow to light Alister’s path. When the terrain was his own ship, however, the captain likely had no need for light. He could most likely tell what any door held behind it and which winding hallway led to what part of the ship, all while blindfolded and drunk off his a**. “Are those the people that came from the party with you and Dani? IS THE FLYING MAN YOUR FRIEND?! HOW DID HE DO THAT?!” exclaimed the fish, obviously in a much better mood now that his mind wasn’t on whether or not Róisín was hurt. There was no time for questions, unfortunately. Well, that might’ve been half true. There was plenty of time to spout out question after question; there just wasn’t any time to answer them when someone was bleeding to death. “Well if Róisín didn’t get to eat like I told her to, they might not have had a choice. She gets really cranky when—well—all the time really,” admitted her most loyal companion. “You’re not going to let the strangers kill her are you? I know she’s mean and kind of scary, but she’s my best friend. It’s only been the two of us for a loooong time. She didn’t used to be this way.” The little fish thought back to when they had first met in the cold dark dump of wasteland that Pluto had become over the years. He remembered how nice it felt to finally be picked up by someone again. He remembered how scared Róisín was that day and how she dreaded each time she grew hungry. She was so shaky at first; simply using her innocent looks to lure people in and picking them off one by one through a series of ‘accidents’. She had come a long way from simply stealing medical supplies to full on hunts for certain people throughout their galaxy. She was nothing before. She was a medical droid, reduced to a maid with benefits to help the crew relieve their stress. She was tossed aside and replaced when her services became obsolete, just as Karl had been when his personality became too much for anyone to control. Róisín had found him, broken and on the verge of blipping completely out of existence, and taken the time to fix him. She had spoken to him, questioning the strange world she was forced into just as Dani had done when she discovered him at the party. Perhaps that was why he was so fond of Dani despite knowing her for only a few hours. She reminded him of the good old days.

Karl continued to follow Alister, providing light whenever he stopped as though he were curious as to the discovery. Karl had likely seen Róisín’s calling cards time and time again, and knew she was still close by. The little fish nodded in approval at Alister’s assumptions. Any option that left Róisín alive and well was a good one in Karl’s book. They needed to find her fast before she got pumped up with enough lead to bring down a bull elephant. She had already been hurt, and it was likely she hadn’t gotten out of the collapsing building without a scratch. Zipping after the Persephone’s captain as he ran towards the screams of agony, Karl began to think about just how Róisín would react to having her dinner interrupted. She wouldn’t be happy, although she never was, and if Alister wasn’t careful he’d be next on the menu. Karl suddenly realized what a horrible idea this was. He stopped outside the doorway that the drag marks had led to. “W-wait--!” he exclaimed as Alister started to follow the blood inside, but it was too late. He quickly followed inside and flashed his light around the room.

There were plenty of places to hide; however, without all the noise to cover her movements, Róisín was reduced to playing the waiting game. It wasn’t the worst option she had. It gave her a chance to recover and catch her breath from the ordeal. When was the last time she had slept? When was the last time she had the chance to rest? If she couldn’t remember, then it was likely the time to rest was fast approaching. She needed Karl before she could do that. No amount of bloodletting was going to fix a depleted energy source that struggled to keep a charge. It was one down and several, possibly hundreds more, to go. It would be a miracle finding Karl before meeting each and every crew member. They had no idea how deadly of a weapon they were messing with. Left to his own devices, the ship would have crash landed into the nearest meteorite. Róisín was the only one able to keep him in line and even she had difficulty getting him to cooperate.

She didn’t need to wait very long for someone to come sniffing around her trap. The loud thumping of heavy boots traveled throughout the engine room. Then something peculiar and unexpected happened. She heard her name being called out by a man, a man that was quite obviously not her hyper little companion. Her eyes narrowed into a glare. How did he have that sort of information? Her eyes rolled, knowing exactly how he knew. Karl. Karl was terrible at keeping secrets. He was so friendly and blissfully unaware that what they did was taboo. He wasn’t hard to get along with and likely had made fast friends with his captors, spilling every bean and then some. She let a sigh escape her nostrils. Knowing her name made it that much more difficult to rely on fear to cripple her enemies. The less they knew the better. As Alister went on with his explanation of what had happened on the ship, Róisín prepared herself for his approach. She could see bits and pieces of him as Karl buzzed by and searched under every box and inside every closet for her. What reason had she to believe him? Was he seriously patronizing the Skeleton Harvester in the midst of his pleading lament? It had been small, a tiny harmless comment, that sewed a seed of wrath in her soul. ‘…make another smart move…’ Did he not understand the predicament he was in? What his whole crew was in? Was he really insinuating that he was in any position to give her a warning? What did he know about what humans were really like? He only had an inside perspective to look at. What right did any of them have to live after what they had done?! She remained quiet, lurking in the shadows as her target came closer to the fresh body she had placed. It was deep enough in the engine room’s bowels that there would be no surprise shots from the door and numerous places to scramble away to while her enemy contemplated what to do next. The tinkering of dog tags was like a dinner bell ringing in the beast. With one hand and her body anchored firmly against the pipe, she lowered herself as slowly as she could like a spider ready to pounce on its prey. Her free claw flexed open and closed, crimson liquid dribbling down its hard surface and landing on the man’s shoulder. It cradled around the back of his head, not touching, though it was ready to hook onto whatever flesh it could and hold the man in place while twin pairs of bloody jaws gnashed away at body. An abysmal rumbling vibrated in her throat, like the grumbling of a hellhound at the beck and call of its master. All that shone in the darkness above the man’s head was a pair of circular white orbs refracting what little light Karl was supplying the room. She was about to strike when Karl’s green glow blinded her. She froze, claws nearly scraping the man’s fabric as the AI shouted, “RÓISÍN NO!” Her masked head craned over, rows of metal glinting against her neck and jaws, stacked to the nines with teeth, became sharply defined in the gentle glow. “He’s telling the truth! I—“ “Karl,” the creature stated as it pulled back its massive claws and retracted back up into the pitch blackness of the pipework above. “He’s going to tell you exactly what you want to hear.” Its voice sounded neither male nor female, and often switched into different keys and pitches as it reverberated about its armored throat. “No! I have ninety-seven programs dedicated to truth extractions and I thi--” “Karl, I just had my hands blown off, had to chew off what was left of my own arm, had an entire round of bullets shot at me, and on top of that I GOT STABBED IN THE ******** EYEBALL! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE?! SLOWLY SEEING IT GO IN AND THEN HAVING TO WATCH MYSELF RIP IT OUT?! THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I TOLD YOU TO STAY ON THE SHIP! I DIDN’T COME ALL THIS WAY TO FIND YOU AND HAV—“ “Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…” the AI interrupted, floating directly up to the beast’s monstrous face and nuzzling its cheek and clenched set of snarling fangs. “Don’t be mad, everyone makes mistakes.” The monster let out another bellowing roar, this one far more aggressive, albeit significantly shorter than her first few. “Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawwwwwwwrrrrrrr,” Karl mimicked back, though far cuter and less intimidating than Róisín’s. “Shhhhh… Róisín they rescued me.” “STOLE!” “Nooooo. That’s not how you say the word Róisín. Reeeeeeeeeessssssccccccccuuuuuueeeeeedddd. After you lost—“ “I DIDN’T LOSE YOU!” “Then how did I end up here?” sassed the fish, resulting in another deep guttural growling from the monster. “Now it’s only fair that you fix their ship.” “WHAT?!” the beast exclaimed. “You broke it. You have to fix what you break. AND!” he added, “You owe them a favor for returning me safely to you and killing one of their passengers.” “I didn’t kill him. The blood loss did.” “Oh that reminds me; the favor can’t be that you won’t kill them. You can’t kill them because they’re my friends now.”


Róisín muttered and rubbed the spot between her eyes, a quiet hissing slithering between her sharpened teeth. “Karl,” the beast spoke with the calmer tone it had originally started with. “You know we can’t do that.” “Just this once? Please?! Róisín I’m tired of having nowhere to go!” “We don’t have that luxury Karl. This isn’t playtime or a fairytale where everyone gets a happily ever after. They know too much and what do you think will happen when they find out exactly what you can do? Do I have to remind you what it was like on Pluto? They’re humans, Karl. HUMANS! All they care about is the latest and greatest model, the most expensive brand, and how soon the next big thing is coming out to replace all the things they just bought. They want to USE you Karl! They’ll keep using you for their own greed until they find something that does the exact same thing, minus the free will. That’s just the way things are.” Karl’s happy little smirk slowly descended into a crestfallen sulk. “But… I really like them,” he muttered. “Then stay with them if you want, but I have my next target to track down and you know exactly what’s going to happen when my ship disengages,” she said matter-o-factly as she jumped down from the pipework to the ground below. Her head tilted this way and that, popping the bones in her neck with sickening cracks that took advantage of the vessel’s silent atmosphere. Karl quickly followed her, his voice panicked, “No no no! Róisín, I want to stay with you! But—I--I also don’t want them to run out of air! They’re nice! One of them knows how to fly!” he buzzed as he looked through his video files for the appropriate clip to show his friend. Her attention was dwindling. Twin pairs of flickering white orbs rolled from the floating AI to the barely illuminated figure across from her. The element of surprise had left the room with both the man’s knowledge of her true name and Karl’s brattish outburst. Now that she had Karl, it was only a matter of reaching her ship. Even if they managed to restore the power grid and get the engines running again, there was still a massive hole in the side of their ship that was only being corked up by her modified ambulance. “Got it!” yelled the little floating fish as he displayed a small video, obviously shot from his perspective, from Dionysus’ private chambers. Alister was holding up Alexei up against a wall, Dani was between them, and there was a very familiar man holding a blade to Alister’s neck. Skeleton Harvester’s head spun around, her snarl becoming an all-out display of fangs and her irises trembling with the intensity of her fury. “HIM?! HE’S HERE?!” she thundered with instant recognition of the white mask and salted hair. Her massive claws flexed as wide as they could, splattering the last of Gunnar’s blood against the pipe system and readying themselves for another attack.

And I don't know where I've been, And I don't know what I'm into, And I don't know what I've done to me
And as I watch you disappear into the ground, My one mistake was that I never let you down
So I'll waste my time and I'll burn my mind, On miss nothing, miss everything

[chibichick27]

Ʌℓεxεɪ Ϩαηʈɵɢɵℓ∂

"I need a FIX 'cuz I'm going down."

outfit // Masquerade
stamina // 47% and stabilizing - lightheaded, feverish, stimulated (Leon, 85% - upset, frightened)
addiction status // withdrawal (paranoia, restlessness, pain, sweating, fever)

Thankfully, Christian didn't have a trigger finger, but his stare was acid against Alexei's skin. She could feel the burning dislike. "Trust isn't earned back so easily. You can say all you want, but there is no trust. Only a mutual amount to not be alone on the ship at the current moment," he told her as he lowered his gun. Alexei thought along the same lines. Having been a bodyguard for four years, she knew how to protect someone when they needed it. However, most of the people she protected also had years of combat experience to their name, whereas this kid was probably more fatal behind a desk than behind a firearm. Also, it didn't help that her vision swam whenever she moved too quickly. Speed was her ally, but it wasn't being a very good friend at the moment. "I have a light device as well, and there is something roaming the ship. I got that much. Just don't know wh-" his words were interrupted by a horrible noise coupled with gunshots. Alexei, from what she had seen of the creature, knew that the noise must have come from it, and the shots from whichever unfortunate soul ran into it. She felt Christian move closer towards her, and she took a protective stance, her wrist crossbow powered up.

Alexei turned her gaze towards the noise, but another image through the wall stopped her--an approaching figure. It was Dani. A smile of relief crossed her face and she let her guard down as the blonde entered their vision. Words of confidence went between the two, and Alexei was glad to know that Daniella still trusted her. She would never betray the young Goddess, after all. Never. But when Christian suggested banding together and looking for Rhia, Alexei tightened up a little. She had never had to face a person she had nearly killed. "Just gotta head there. Alexei, think you could help out with that much." Alexei let out a small sigh. "Rhia is not going to want to see me. Though I know it's unavoidable, since we're on the same ship, she's going to want to kill me. I don't blame her, of course," she said. " I will do everything in my power to protect her, because I know she is your friend, Daniella, but...if you can keep her gun away from me, that would be appreciated," the raven-haired woman added.

With that, Alexei made her way to the medical bay, keeping her vision sharp for any sign of the monster. It clearly wasn't close enough to register body heat, which she took as a good sign. They passed crew members; Alexei kept a protective stride, her crossbow pointing down every hall and her hand poised to stop Daniella and Christian from advancing at a moment's notice--she didn't want them hurt, after all. Finally, when the medical bay came into sight, Alexei saw several shapes in the room. The people they were looking for. Swallowing a nervous breath, she walked in, lowering her weapon.

Something had happened. Nova was crying, and it didn't look like it was out of fear from the monster, either. Captain Devaro, the man Alexei had only seen briefly on Calypso before she went about her business, had an indescribable look, and Rhia seemed furious. It didn't help when the Scot set her eyes on her would-be killer. She looked terrible, and while Alexei admittedly was impressed with her number on the woman, a pit of guilt grew in her stomach. Alexei braced herself for a scuffle, hoping Daniella would stay the woman's hand. Words wouldn't help the situation, at the moment.

León stumbled through the darkness, cursing his luck and nursing a bloody nose from falling right on his face. He didn't like the memories lurking around each corner, and he didn't like the noises that he heard that reminded him of particularly gory horror movies. But the Commander in him willed him to keep going, and as he turned a final corner, he saw something green in the engine room. Frowning, he tightened his fists and peeked in. Alister was there, as was that weird little fish ball the blonde had carried onto the ship with her.

So was that doctor's mangled body. It was ripped to pieces. León's heart followed suit as flashes of that horrible night once again assaulted his skull. His son's body, mutilated and scattered about the dark warehouse like a gruesome hide-and-seek. The fury in which he carved Driselle and her lackeys to pieces and wept for an hour covered in their blood and clutching Izcak's headless body to him, hoping that whatever the hell was waiting for them after death was worth the misery he must have felt in his last moments. So affected was the normally detached Commander that he let out a loud shriek of horror and sadness, alerting everyone in the room to his presence.

The inhumanity of whatever was peeking out of the piping dripped blood. It had a gruesome shape, but León saw Driselle and all her evil in its face. He had no blade or gun, but he gritted his teeth and held his fists up.



_____________________________________



I, too, saw God through mud —
The mud that cracked on cheeks when wretches smiled.
War brought more glory to their eyes than blood,
And gave their laughs more glee than shakes a child.
Merry it was to laugh there —
Where death becomes absurd and life absurder.
For power was on us as we slashed bones bare
Not to feel sickness or remorse of murder.


- "Apologia Pro Poemate Meo", Wilfred Owen


_____________________________________

[Lysander the Poet]

Liam Devaro had been doing this pirate thing for a long time. He knew the big players, he knew how quickly things could go from bad to worse, and he knew, deep down, that his ideals were foolish ones. The Independent Alliance of Humanity was more of a dream than it was a stable body of governance. Whomever thought that pirates could learn to run a free society seemed to put too much stock in their ability to understand freedom. They were already free, and so what did they need government for? What was the need for rules, and laws, and ethics, and democracy, if they were already the people in the system that had the most of that precious commodity; freedom. The Alliance was humanity’s only chance at regaining any semblance of its old glory, with the previous society being crushed under the weight of the Dominion. It was just a shame that it was run by a bunch of savages and cutthroats, only half of which actually took the ideals to heart. All that being said, Liam also had a certain trust for his fellows scallywags that was uncharacteristic of most. He wasn’t ready to hear what Nova was about to tell him. He trusted her, and was somewhat fond of the idea of having a little bit of fun with her. And then she started talking. Just hearing the words ‘deserve the truth’ sent a chill up Liam’s spine, and he felt a reflex, his finger pulling towards the trigger. What could she possibly have to tell him, here, now, in the dark abyss that they could possibly never escape from. ”I’m not sure now is the best time for a confessional…” He started, but it seemed Nova would proceed regardless. The spinning of the barrel, it made him nervous. Just the slight quiver of Nova’s hand was a bad signal.

Rumors of Tiberius’ death were greatly exaggerated. Liam wasn’t really surprised. Rhia, who was a tad less familiar with the King of Pirates seemed a little less interested, and less impressed. ”And you thought you could negotiate with them? They’re religious fanatics, Nova. They’re borderline terrorists.” The shock in Liam’s voice was indicative that he was taking this situation about as well as Nova imagined. He didn’t see it yet, tried to maintain in his mind that wherever this was going, it couldn’t be as bad as she had made it out to be. Rhia was more perceptive. She was familiar with the concept of negotiation...of affection...and of betrayal. Her rifle, which she had trained on the door in case of a breach, slowly readjusted, aiming right between Nova’s eyes. What more could the Olympians have wanted? What did Nova have to give them when she ran out of money? They had just crashed a huge Olympian party. They had a traitorous Olympian on their ship, and a higher ranked goon that just happened to be brought aboard in the chaos of the moment. And it seemed that they had Nova, who was making deals with them for her little love boy, her Captain. As the pink haired woman began to cry, Liam moved to comfort her, but Rhia was cautious. ”Back away from her, Liam.” She warned, coldly. ”Keep talking, Nova.” Liam looked back at the Scot with a glare, and wondered if Rhia would seriously considering shooting either of them at a time like this. ”What did you give them, Nova?” Maybe she didn’t hear him...maybe she didn’t care, but she continued on, her breathing pattern becoming more heinous. Devaro was starting to fear for her health now...just thinking about it seemed to be breaking her. He made another attempt to comfort her as she continued, as she talked about how she wanted the man she loved to die, but still, Rhia was ready, her finger sliding down to the trigger of her rifle, shaking her head at him.

And then she revealed her treachery. It seemed like a simple thing; a set of micro-chipped weapons, in the wrong hands. The consequences of the action, however, were catastrophic. Ideology aside, Nova had betrayed more than just their silly little experiment as unity and freedom...she had betrayed her own. Murders and scum they were, but pirates had a code, they had some sort of honor, and she had broken even that most despicable of vows, the one thing that barely bound them together. After the gunshots had detracted from the conversation, Liam have moved away from Nova, and he and Rhia both had their weapons aiming right for her. Liam scowled at the woman, and nodded. ”You really should,” He said, making an almost threatening gesture with his rifle. ”It’s not my ship, so I’m not gonna say let’s hang you. I don’t know what you think of us, but we don’t really hang people for treason like the Dominion goons. Oh no, we’ll have something much worse for you. We’re a bunch of scoundrels, playing at government, after all. Not like any of it matters though, right? It’s just so easy to throw it all away for one man. Once we’re free and clear, I’ll see what Captain Blood thinks we should do with you. It’s his ship, and as long as you’re on it, you’re his to punish as he sees fit, at least until we can reorganize the Alliance, and gather as many Captains as support our cause. But I suppose you can start off paying for all the lives you caused to end by risking your own. Hopefully, you either get the power back on, or at least find out what the hell is going on...and if you die in the process, it might be enough.”

Seconds away from death...whoever told you that your life flashes before your eyes was a filthy liar. Alister didn’t have much of an expectation for an afterlife, but he at least hoped for a nice little epilogue moment where he looked back at his whole life, and realized that his entire life had been complete s**t. He heard Karl’s voice cry out, and his light reflected off the monstrous visage of the one and only, The Skeleton Harvester. Alister had to force himself, through every fiber of his being, to stay absolutely calm. If it weren’t for Karl’s timely interruption...well, it was doubtful he would have survived, and even if he could have, he would not have made it far, or made it away unscathed. The temporary stay of execution was supplemented with a very in depth argument between the monstrous woman and her fishy companion. He knew better than to speak up at any point, but he did manage to step away slightly, as to not be directly underneath Roisin, in case she decided the she really wanted to ******** murder him still. Listening to Karl, it was actually a bit flattering. The little AI was committed to saving all their lives, it seemed, over this perception of friendship. If he succeeded, Alister swore that the little fish would be his best goddamned friend until the universe collapsed. Alright, maybe not something that serious, but he still appreciated the effort Karl was going through.

It hadn’t been going very well, and Alister listened intently as Roisin spouted her reasoning, her justification. They were humans, she said, as if they were the vilest thing to ever roam the stars. The way she spoke about greed, it was confusing to say the least. It confirmed for him that this monster wasn’t human, but her resentment of the species had to be reminiscent of foul treatment at human hands. And with the way she told Karl that they would just use him, replace him...she spoke with an ‘intimate knowledge’ on the human tendency to want the best, highest quality technology, before they just threw the older models aside. Who was she? What could she possibly have been through to have such an outlook on life, on the human race...and what could make her so willing to kill all of them just for this little AI? Karl made one last statement in their defense, and referenced one among them that could fly. Seems the little AI had finally lost his ******** mind. Alister spun through a hundred different thoughts. He could run, re-engage the engines, bring down the full force of the crew and gun this monster down. But, just like forcing himself to rescue Daniella because of their damned contract, he had promised Karl that he didn’t intend to hurt his friend, this Roisin. And he truly didn’t, unless he had no other choice. As Karl switched to the footage from the party, it clicked in his head what he had mentioned earlier. He hadn’t seen it from this angle, but he watched as Leon was disarmed and flew back. And he saw the way Daniella looked at him. It didn’t quite connect, but it was odd. Had Dani done that? What kind of freakish powers did she have? More than just telepathy, perhaps. Roisin, however, reacted to the footage quite differently. So, she didn’t enjoy their new guest either? Finally, something the two of them had in common. And speak of the devil, the older Olympian came around the corner, letting out his own ungodly shriek. Alister stepped to the side, looking back at Roisin. ”He’s all yours. I would have preferred to keep him alive, for information, but I’m not sure he’d be too cooperative...maybe this can be a show of good faith. I’m sure the surgeon didn’t quite fill you up…” And now he was bargaining with a man’s life, for the crew’s. He didn’t feel bad, even for a moment. Maybe he was just as much a monster as Roisin was.

Alexei...that ********' whore. As she entered the medical bay, even with Daniella and Christian in tow, Rhia shifted her rifle from Nova to the raven-haired slut. "You ******** b***h. I heard they let you on the ship...but I didn't think Captain Blood would let you prance around all free and clear...did you have to ******** him a couple times, just for your freedom? Nah, I doubt he'd let you off for just that. But a good blow would certain leave him in a good mood, maybe let you stretch your legs a bit before tossing you back in the cell. Wouldn't want you to get any cramps before rolling you over and-" Liam looked back at Rhia, who looked back at him, and scowled. She still had a few more lines about how Alexei was a dumb whore, after all. But now she had the advantage. She could, feasibly from this distance, blow a few sizable holes in Alexei before she could get anywhere near her. Then again, that'd be a waste of bullets. She still had the rifle aimed at Alexei, and was quite intent on pulling the trigger, until she thought back on her little conversation with Dani. Her finger hovered over the trigger for a few moments, as if she wanted Alexei to know that she could have shot her right then and there, but didn't, as she moved her finger away. But she was not happy about it, and merely nodded at the young blonde. "This is for her. Not you, whore."

[The Smut Peddler]

ⓒⓞⓜⓜⓐⓝⓓⓔⓡ ⓝⓞⓥⓐ ⓥⓔⓖⓐⓢ

╰☆╮░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░╭☆╯

╭☆╯░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░╰☆╮

❝As long as a word remains unspoken, you are it's master...❞

╔══════════════════════════════╗


This shattered dream you cannot justify
We're gonna scream until we're satisfied
What are we running for? We've got the right to be angry.



╚══════════════════════════════╝

"It's fine Liam, I don't want you getting hit too..." Nova pulled away any time that Liam had made a motion to get closer as she could feel Rhia's aim on her. She needed none of his comfort, especially when the gesture was so fickle, insincere, and conditional. The finite bond they had shared for quite some time as comrades was as delicate and fragile as spun glass, shattered, everywhere and permanently beyond repair. On the path that she now walked there was no reconciliation. There was no hope, and in her bright green eyes that concept was very clear. Lifeless, was the best way to describe them, dull and lifeless. "I thought I could keep the maiming and skinning from continuing. I'm not... strong enough to just sit there and watch them mutilate and torture someone like that... not like that."

She watched as her words fell on deaf ears. It didn't matter anymore, no one was listening anyway. Nova watched as the fine thread that bore the entirety of trust the pirates had for one another snapped, much like she assumed it would. The worst thing about having a tactical mind was being able to predict quite a lot about other people. She couldn't blame either one of them for despising her. She betrayed the most sacred of pirate pacts. But she couldn't handle the disappointment in Liam's eyes after a night in the sack, the thought was too much to bare. Sex was not a tool to the young pink haired woman, neither was it when she had found time to be intimate with the Persephone's Captain. But it was about respect that Liam would hear before Alister about her treacherous actions. In Nova's eyes Alister was a half assed committed man to the cause, and thus had no business in the matter until after Liam had heard it from her own mouth and no one else's.

As the man moved himself over to the platinum blonde's side Nova felt her heart freeze. She couldn't feel a beat for several long seconds, but finally as reality sunk in and her body fueled itself with numbness that absorbed the pain. She stood and turned as she was coaxed to leave, risk her life and die if that was what was necessary to remedy their predicament. She was sentenced to death anyway, so what did it matter? Dead man walking. That's all she was now to all of them.

Nova turned to see Alexei enter the room, and Rhia went off on the young black haired woman. She couldn't blame the blonde, not in the least. Nova brushed past with her head full of conflict for Rhia's hate against her. How hypocritical was it to aim a gun on someone who had neglected the needs of the many versus the needs of the few, when she and her Captain had done the exact same thing for a young blonde girl. What a shame that the young pink haired woman's Captain was born with the wrong set of gentiles to be a damsel in distress...

Her eyes would clench tightly together as she rested her sights on Dani, the girl the Dominion had wiped out two colonies for just to get their hands on, with no signs of relent. With the broadcasts and wanted posters, it would be hard to say the Dominion wasn't out looking for her in this cat and mouse chase they were on. While Dani herself was certainly not the one she was upset with, she was upset with the hypocrisy in the room that saw no wrong in their own doing. Everywhere they went, they were leaving death and destruction in their wake, protecting someone, but at the costs or hundreds, possibly even thousands. It was unsettling how the lives of the innocent were of lesser value than those of pirates. It was the betrayal, that got them, not the lives lost, but the fact that she had betrayed her honor and her people. And that was an incorrigible offense that would be met by death.

As she existed she said nothing. Devaro's words merited no response. If it wasn't bad enough to be emotionally crippled with split personalities clamoring away at one another as she thought, the self-loathing, and being so guilt ridden for protecting those she loved, she had the burning stares of those around her that wanted her six feet under. She'd exit the medical bay the light tap of her heels echoing down the hall as she faded off into the distance. She made no eye contact to anyone else as she left, she wanted nothing more to do with their judging eyes.

It was interesting, how when death is removed from the table a person can become quite fearless. Numb to the concern for her own life she walked down the hallways at a steady pace, the lights flickering about as crew members ran in all directions. Finally Nova reached the engine room from the far entry, with tunnel vision she hardly noticed the ship's Captain, the prisoner, or the horrifying monster that was having words with the floating fish bubble AI. She was running on auto-pilot. Ignoring every distraction she reached the engine panel and began clicking away. It was a long crazy sequence of pressing buttons, but eventually lights would turn on as the backup generators kicked over the engine and power was restored. She would sit down on the swivel style bar stool that rested nearby. She'd turn, looking on at the disaster that was about to unfold. Was it really wise to help? If the creature killed every last person on the ship, she still had the chance to rescue Ti so long as she grabbed an escape pod before the creature killed her too. A chance at protecting her Captain. But what would that leave her to become? A murderous killing machine. The very thing she had always fought so hard to avoid becoming. She contemplated on what was best to do. But in the end, her bleeding heart took hold.

Standing up, she walked down the steps to reach the area that the beast was standing, without any sign of concern she clutched tightly to her revolver, keeping it down, unwilling to aim until prompted. She'd nod to Alister, ready to shoot at his very command. But there seemed to be a negotiation underway the bargaining chip being the salt and pepper haired gentleman. If it had been her way, she'd have shot him down the moment he came into focus. Less because of the man himself and more that he was a representation on the damnation that had befell her, robbing her of her captain, her future, and her sanity. She really had nothing left to be taken. And in that moment, she was a pinnacle of courage.

╔══════════════════════════════╗


We can't afford to be innocent
Stand up and face the enemy
It's a do or die situation; we will be invincible



╚══════════════════════════════╝

❝...once you utter it, you are it's slave.❞

xxxx┇ ✦ Med Bay // Engine Room
xxxx┇ ♢ 60%
xxxx┇ ✦ Broken
xxxx┇ ✦ Beauty from Pain

[Space Candy]

xxxx"Speech."xxxxx"Thoughts."xxxxx"Others."

XXXXXXXX Daniella's eyes lifted to focus on Christian. "Alister went to find the source of the gunshots. I can't hear him anymore." She said to him quietly. But heading to find Rhia was a good start in Daniella's eyes. She mostly just wanted everyone safe---though she probably wouldn't have been too worried if Ben somehow got into the clutches of the Skeleton Harvester. She looked over to Alexei as she responded to Christian's request and voiced her concerns about Rhia.
The blonde nodded to Alexei firmly, resting her light on her. "I'll do my best." She assured.

And then they were off. Alexei's eyes made it easy for her to navigate, which Daniella was thankful for. After this she would make it a point to learn the layout of this ship. She'd manage to make a mental map of the GenEx complex without even seeing it, so figuring out the layout of a ship she had more or less free reign on wouldn't be too difficult comparatively...she just needed the time to do it. And some lights.
Eventually they came to the medical bay, but when they arrived there things were far less than calm. Daniella was quick to invade the personal thoughts of those in the room to gather what exactly had gone down. Without a word, Daniella stared at Nova. She didn't bother to say anything to the pink haired girl though. Dani knew she felt bad enough already, and reiterating her betrayal would only make matters worse. Instead, Daniella stuck close to Christian and kept her mouth shut...

Well, until Rhia started pointing her gun at Alexei anyway. It didn't take long for the light haired woman to start off on a tangent filled with all sorts of colorful language and imagery. Daniella stepped away from Christian and put herself in front of Alexei. She looked at Rhia gently, and eventually she lowered her weapon. "Thank you, Rhia." Daniella said calmly. She looked over her shoulder at Alexei and then to Christian. Well, most everyone was in this room...save for Alister, Karl, and Gunnar. He had been with Alexei last right? So where did he go? Also, Alexei seemed in a far better state than before. Perhaps she had got her hands on something. Her stomach knotted slightly as she thought of Gunnar again though. Daniella had a feeling that he could have been the source of the shots fired not too long ago.
Daniella put her attention on Nova. Her expression paired with her flow of thoughts allowed Dani to learn a bit about how she really felt. The blond looked down at her feet as Nova passed. She was right after all. Daniella brought chaos wherever she went---she had already figured that out on her own. But the question of wether or not her life was worth those of the innocents killed in leu of her escape...Daniella frowned. Maybe without Nova's hand in things on Kessel Station, Dani's escape could have gone more smoothly. Nova now being gone from the room didn't make things any less tense.

Dani cleared her throat, figuring it would be best to inform the other about what had boarded the ship. "The person attacking our ship is known as the Skeleton Harvester." Dani stated, looking from Rhia to Devaro, and then to Alexei. "Do you know anything about them?" She figured she may as well ask. Any information about the Skeleton Harvester was probably best shared aloud. In Daniella's mind it was important to keep everyone on the same page. Silently, she worried about Alister. He'd gone off on his own to look for the monster, and now she was feeling guilty for not following him. Dani bit her lip and looked down to the gun in her hand. After a few more moments, the lights came back on. Daniella had never been so relieved. WIth a small smile she turned her flashlight off and set it down on one of the cots.
"At least now we have power..." The woman thought to herself.

Maybe this could all work out after all...

xxxxLocation :: Persephone - Medical Bay
xxxxCompany :: Christian, Alexei, Rhia, Devaro
xxxxHealth :: 85% - Relieved
xxxxTunes ::In Every Dreamhome A Heartache - Talk Normal
xxxxAttire ::Simple

[Yasha_Glory]

I'm miss autonomy, miss nowhere, I'm at the bottom of me
Miss androgyny, miss don't care, What I've done to me
¤Company: Alister, Nova, Karl, & Leon ¤Condition: 73% ¤Location: Persephone's Engine Room
I am misused, I don't wanna do, Be not your slave
Misguided, I mind it, I'm missin' the train

Róisín’s head flung to the side when she heard the terrified shriek tumble through the engine room. There he was, standing in the bloody doorway with his fists held out before him in a display of strength. So it was true! The man she had chosen to hunt down was aboard the very vessel that had stolen Karl. Had he not been buzzing about her head, she might’ve lost all control and simply began ripping whomever she could find to ribbons. She came very close, however, to simply forgetting the finer details she had picked up in her short conversation with the ship’s captain and the video file Karl had on record. The man, whom she loathed most at this particular point in time, had held a blade to the very captain’s neck that stood before her. Why then was he still on board? Even if he was a member of the crew, surely he would have been left somewhere to die for raising a finger against the most powerful position the vessel had to offer. Her answer to that came very quickly when she saw Alister side-step and he explained. He also seemed to be giving her permission to do as she wished with the prisoner. This, unlike before, wasn’t so much an order as it was an offer. It was a much more effective way of maneuvering around Róisín’s dangerous bite. Her growling died down to a very low rumble, her shoulders easing to downward slopes; a slight huff of air escaped her nostrils. Things seemed to work out in her favor. She looked at Karl out of the corner of her eye, contemplating her options on the table. Even if she managed to escape she’d have to come back for the man aboard their spacecraft, and they would be waiting for her. It was time to strike while the iron was hot. Just low enough for Alister to hear in the deadly silence, she spoke, “Consider yourself lucky, Blood. The enemy of the enemy is my friend. I’ll see what I can do about the man’s dying breaths.” Róisín wanted them both to feel the weight of their words. She wanted to drag out the nightmare as long as she needed to in order for its full force to take effect. She had what she wanted. Karl was safe and sound, and her next target was being served to her on a silver platter. All she needed to do was leave and get some well-deserved rest when all was said and done, and even that had already been assured. They didn’t want her on the ship and quite frankly, Karl was the only one keeping her there. It was one of those situations that had to be taken step by step in order to survive. Right now, she had a target that needed tending to.

The creature’s body began to move, turning away from the captain and the floating fish towards the engine room’s entrance. It started slow, the occasional thump of a boot and scrape of a razor sharp claw against the floor resonating through the chambers, until the being disappeared from Karl’s dim glow. There was a fluttering of material and the tap tap tap of footsteps as Róisín charged the man, leaping at him out of the cover of darkness. Both bodies tumbled to the ground, the struggle still very much alive as her prey did everything in his power to try and kick her off. Her crouch and position left his kicks to batter the air and her coat tails. He was much stronger than her, so her only chance was to either pin down his arms or cut them off completely. That proved a little more difficult in practice than theory. The man below her, unbeknownst to her, was a seasoned commander. Even if he was writhing in fear, his instincts were strong. When Róisín’s jaws wrapped around his bicep, a swift punch to the side of her face prevented her from ripping any chunks of flesh from his bones. Blades swished from his hand, stabbing into her eyeball and gouging it beyond recognition. The beast let go and bent back, its claws freeing the man so they could nurse the fresh wound. She hissed, knowing that although her brain hadn’t been punctured, it had been the second close call of the night. She felt the mass between her thighs slip away, scrambling in the small window of opportunity that had been opened to him. She was not going to let him get away! Blindly she swatted in front of her, catching the man’s calf on her hooked fingers and sending him back down to her level. She removed her opposite hand from her face and reached forward as her catch was reeled back in, slowly pressing her claws into the muscles of his shoulder blades. The more he tried to drag himself forward, the longer the cuts on his back became.

It was then that the lights came back on and flooded the entire ship, exposing the gruesome scene for all to see. The blood spatters, the drag marks, the lifeless corpse, and now the monster responsible for the entire thing. She hissed at the ceiling, only her muzzle poking out from the fur-trimmed hood. Time was running out. Pressure was pushed down on the man’s back as she crept forward, craning her head over towards his face with an empty socket where her eye had been. “Ah, there’s the delicious fear I smelled the first time we met,” cooed the androgynous voice from between the rows of sharp teeth. The man stared back at her, as wide eyed and confused as a deer in the headlights. “You don’t remember me do you? Or rather, you don’t remember the skin I stole and wore. You escaped death’s will that time, but you should take our second meeting as a sign that it’s simply meant to be.” Her hooks, which had been dug into the man’s calf slid out and over towards her face, digging into the crease about her jawline. Sickening crunches and squishes of noise began to leak from her face as the mask peeled away. Black viscous fluid poured from her eye socket, cascading down the scratches and over the lumps of weathered metal towards her chin. Deep magenta liquid began to pour out beneath her fingers as the mask slowly popped and lifted from each nerve ending beneath it. Tiny blue sparkles, as fine as glitter, twinkled in the molten goop threatening to touch the man’s face. The mask hung half hinged onto the monster’s face, exposing teeth and muscle ridden meat. Skin still clung to the innards of the mask, and the black liquid began to mix with the creature’s odd-colored blood as it trickled into her deadly jaws. “I think with time you’ve gotten flavorsome,” it said, “You’ve allowed your terror to fester, now it’s time to pay your dues and repent.” She let out a low hiss, her half exposed face twitching as blood ran through its veins and nerves fired for the mask to return back to them. She was having far too much fun to notice the pink-haired woman with a gun in her hand.

Karl waited beside Alister, watching what Róisín would do in case she got a little too ‘playful’. She had seemed to calm down for a moment or two, even leaving Alister alone despite having him within a few feet of her grasp. In the dark, it would have been easy for her to swing her limb around and hook him from behind. She chose not to and instead attacked the flying man. How did she ever expect to learn how to fly like him if she killed him? There was only so much someone could learn from cadavers. Róisín really needed to think things through more, thought the fish. Still, it was better that man than his new friends. With all the guns, knives, and who knows what else attacking her, she needed a good meal to recover. If fighting with the flying man got rid of her frustration and pent up anger, then maybe he could actually convince her to stay and be nice to them. It was already a good start that they had agreed the flying man needed to be eaten. There had to be more! When the lights came back on and the two of them were joined by a pink haired lady, all Karl could think to say was, “Hello, friend!” and smile. He looked down at her pistol and his smile lessened a bit. Alister had said Róisín wasn’t going to get hurt, right? So then, why did this lady have a weapon? The fish looked from the captain to his crew member, slightly puzzled. “Pssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssst,” he chimed, “You should put that away. My friend doesn’t like guns.”

And I don't know where I've been, And I don't know what I'm into, And I don't know what I've done to me
And as I watch you disappear into the ground, My one mistake was that I never let you down
So I'll waste my time and I'll burn my mind, On miss nothing, miss everything

[chibichick27]

Ʌℓεxεɪ Ϩαηʈɵɢɵℓ∂

"I need a FIX 'cuz I'm going down."

outfit // Masquerade
stamina // 74% and stabilizing - stimulated, focused, nervous (León, 46% - resigned, contemplative, pained, afraid)
addiction status // delayed withdrawal (symptoms will come back soon)

For some reason, the heathen beast regarded León with familiarity in its movements, though the commander was quite sure he had never gone up against such a monstrosity as this in his life. It spoke in decibels lower than normality, which rang uncomfortably in his ears. He had no time to consider this, however, as the monster charged at him from the darkness, taking him by surprise. Perhaps it was a side effect of his horrible memories, but León's eyes never adjusted to the dark properly, and so before he could really make a move, he felt the weight of the terrible monster on top of him.

Knowing that he would receive no help from Alister, León immediately drove a spiked fist into the monster's body, unable to distinguish what part he had struck, but really just trying to get the thing off of him. He felt an advantage in the lightness of the best, but its movements were quick and precise, and he found himself unable to kick it off. He realized as their struggle continued that the monster seemed intent on eating him, and this turned his strategy into one of protection rather than an offensive lashing. He didn't want the monster to catch one of him limbs off guard and rip it off. Its massive jaws closed around his bicep at one point, but he dizzied it with a powerful punch to the face, and he freed himself from it. He took that opportunity to drive a spike right into its eye, the eyeball bursting into a viscous fluid. Fortunately, this seemed to weaken the beast, and as it withdrew, León wrenched himself from its grasp and hit the floor.

Being a larger man, he didn't take to falling down well. While someone smaller and thinner could pop back up in an instant, the lower León was, the longer it took for him to recover. As he planted a foot under him and scrambled up to put some distance between himself and the monster, he felt knives cut deep into the flesh of his calf. It took him a moment to realize that the horrid sharpness tearing at him were claws, not knives, but nonetheless, he fell anyway, and the searing pain traveled to his back as he felt the beast's claws sink into it. He was caught.

[********] he swore loudly, the pain tearing through his muscles and the struggle becoming more and more chaotic, thrashing about to try and rip himself from its grip. Unfortunately, this only succeeded in deeper cuts that blinded him in pain. The lights burst back on, and he saw the blood everywhere, mostly from the dead doctor and new crimson spots from himself. Staring at the lifeless eyes of the doctor after his vision adjusted, he thought of Izcak. He wondered if this pain he felt was similar as that b***h of a woman cut the head from his shoulders...but he had to push those ugly memories aside.

The monster twisted its face to look upon León's, and his breath caught in his throat. Surprisingly, it spoke. "Ah, there’s the delicious fear I smelled the first time we met. You don’t remember me do you? Or rather, you don’t remember the skin I stole and wore. You escaped death’s will that time, but you should take our second meeting as a sign that it’s simply meant to be." It spoke poetically, displaced from the inhumanity of its terrible face. León didn't grasp its meaning. When had he seen this beast before? He grinned, the muscles in his face tight with pain and deception, for he really just wanted to scream again. "'Meant to be', huh? Well, look at this. You're a soft soul. How about we stop with the foreplay then and just get straight to the dirty business?"

That's when the monster began to tear its own face away. León watched in horror as an unnatural color of blood poured from the torn flesh that popped away from its muscles like a hideous mask. He saw muscle, and teeth, and nearly vomited from the fear and pain. Some thick black sludge began to drip from its insides, and he felt his stomach turn wildly. "I think with time you’ve gotten flavorsome. You’ve allowed your terror to fester, now it’s time to pay your dues and repent." An odd sound came from the monster's face as the torn face jostled and began to stitch itself back to 'normal'. León let out a small sound of fear, but he didn't close his eyes. He wasn't about to die in the darkness, like his son.

“Hello, friend!” That ******** fish. Hearing its chipper voice nearly sent León out of his skin, no pun intended. He dared look away from his death and saw the AI circling Nova Vegas of all people, who looked half-suicidal and half-courageous as she aimed a pistol at the monster. He found the will to chuckle about the whole thing. Would this woman save his life? Even if she allowed him to die, he had nothing to lose, really. So many questions still circled his brain about the past few days. An investigation that would be left undiscovered, one concerning the nineteen-year old slave a few rooms over. A man who would continue to rot in a cell until they were done playing with his lover. León liked this man, this Tiberius Pierce, so much because of the little change in his voice whenever he mentioned Nova. Amid the misplaced bravado and sex jokes, love bloomed. León had only loved one person, his son, but he had never felt romantic love, and he was sure he would never find it as long as he continued to torture, to rob people of their happiness. Izcak was dead. Those who killed him, dead. The world governed on a cycle of death and decay. That was all. The only other factor was love, and that was consumed by death eventually.

Still, he had nothing to lose. León craned his head and looked at Nova, a weak and defeated grin plastered on his face, though it also contained a hint of peace. "Don't be stupid, Nova," he said, her name so familiar on his tongue, but his face a stranger's to her. "Your Captain won't want to hear that his beloved was ripped to pieces by Frankenstein's monster's ugly little brother."

Alexei knew that Rhia's reception would be lukewarm at best, but the vitriol spewing from her lips actually bothered her a little. A whore? Alexei had slept with Alister once. She certainly wouldn't say no to a few more tumbles with the captain, but that wasn't a concern right now. Ignoring the woman's comment, and the gun trained on her, she turned to Daniella as she mentioned the 'Skeleton Harvester'. The lights coming back on switched Alexei's sight back to normal, so she scanned the other rooms for a sign of the monster. "That name sounds familiar, actually," she said, racking her brain to remember. "About six months ago, a Lethe group went on an expedition to a moon near Saturn--can't remember the name of it--and only two came back. Apparently, a monster had torn their group to pieces. I think it was the Skeleton Harvester. It eats people, but I don't think that's the whole story." Alexei grew nervous. "If that's what is on the ship, we need to find Alister and Gunnar, now."

She kept her vision trained on Nova's body heat as it went further away. Knowing of the Kessel betrayal, Alexei thought of Dominick, and a vicious anger lit up in her heart. He might still be alive, that terrible man that she loved. It had only been two days, and so much had happened, that Alexei still hadn't had time to process that Dominick was gone. Her insides tightened with a sort of displaced emptiness. Suddenly the world felt colder. Alexei procured the stimulant from earlier and checked it--there was still a small amount left, if any. She plunged it into her arm and squeezed out every last drop until the cold was replaced with a fire that pushed Dominick's face from her mind and she only thought of Daniella, and the situation they were now in.

Looking back for Nova's heat signature, she found it flickering at the end of her vision. And that's when she saw the outline of the beast. Its color was odd, black rather than red, but that meant it was there, and Nova was facing it. Two more outlines--Alister and Gunnar probably, focused in her vision. She readied her crossbow. "I found them," she said. She looked back at Daniella. "The monster's attacking someone. I'm going over there to check it out. You shouldn't come with me." The heat from the stim restarted the energy throughout her body. "Daniella, Christian, stay with Rhia and Captain Devaro. You'll be safer here." Now that she knew the exact location of the beast, she wasn't worried about leaving them.

Without waiting for an answer, Alexei took off down the hall, her steps quiet and her movements calculated. She didn't want to alert the beast to any incoming forces. If anyone followed her, she made no effort to stop them, but the prospect of protecting someone while facing the beast unnerved her a little.




_____________________________________



I, too, saw God through mud —
The mud that cracked on cheeks when wretches smiled.
War brought more glory to their eyes than blood,
And gave their laughs more glee than shakes a child.
Merry it was to laugh there —
Where death becomes absurd and life absurder.
For power was on us as we slashed bones bare
Not to feel sickness or remorse of murder.


- "Apologia Pro Poemate Meo", Wilfred Owen


_____________________________________

[The Smut Peddler]

ⓒⓞⓜⓜⓐⓝⓓⓔⓡ ⓝⓞⓥⓐ ⓥⓔⓖⓐⓢ

╰☆╮░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░╭☆╯

╭☆╯░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░╰☆╮

❝As long as a word remains unspoken, you are it's master...❞

╔══════════════════════════════╗


This shattered dream you cannot justify
We're gonna scream until we're satisfied
What are we running for? We've got the right to be angry.



╚══════════════════════════════╝

Nova waited for Alister's order, but only for a brief moment. There wasn't time for waiting. It took some thought, but Nova was still herself enough to care about the well being of those passengers on the ship. Regardless of Devaro's ill wishes, regardless of the stares at her down the long barrels she'd received from the two pirates, regardless what she deserved... there were still people on that floating heap of metal who deserved being protected. The decorated pistol still rested at her hip as she held tightly the grip. Did she really care? Or was this simply reflex by now?

Working through the motions, were these the acts of a humanitarian, or the acts of some self instilled moral code that she'd clung to for so long that it had completely lost its value. She cared about her captain, and she knew her journey was coming to a slamming halt the moment Devaro had the chance to inform Blood. Did she really care about the others? So quick to judge, was that really what she was risking herself for? Risking Pierce's rescue for? The more she though, the more dark her conclusions would become.

There had to be escape pods on the ship, and in the commotion no one would be the wiser to her making a break for it. So long as she didn't run into the telepath she'd be in the clear. She could run, save her captain, and the rest would be for her to decide.

The pink haired woman contemplated as she watched the fight underway. She would stare intently much like someone staring through a bonfire. Why did her conscience get in the way? Why couldn't she have just kept her big mouth shut? Perhaps she just wanted the punishment, to be caught, to be damned. The guilt had gotten to her. It was a great deal for one person to bear. Perhaps Max was right, maybe she should have cried out for help. But she was muted by her own grief. Muted much like she was now.

She would stare as the Harvester pulled away its mask to expose something much more terrifying. Nothing would faze her. She was too far gone. That was, until out of what seemed like no where she heard someone speak to her. An unfamiliar voice with the audacity to call her by her first name, now that was something to worry about. Green eyes would shoot up from their frozen stare, a scowl on her face as she focused her sights solely on the older man.

Finally too she would acknowledge the small floating orb, which took her out of her trance like state. She noted his mention that his friend did not like guns, and thus opted to holster her weapon. She would watch as his "friend" played with the mysterious older man much like a cat plays with its dying prey. This being... enjoyed it. It both sickened Nova and terrified her, the fight she had to keep from teetering down that very same path. This being reveled in its destruction, its harm, in killing. It appeared delighted by its own retched path of tyranny. The feeling grew until finally it spilled over and Nova turned her attention to the attacker.

"That's enough!" She'd bark, the beep of her tractor beam as it powered back to full energy as she set its grasp on this 'Skeleton Harvester.' She still cared, no one deserved to be killed. And no matter what happened, what she'd be charged with, these people did not deserve to die. Not even the damned Olympian.

Swallowing the fear that crept inside while she focused on the beast of a person, she would force herself to move. With a fluid twirl of her hips the attacker would be pinned firmly, but still carefully against the nearest wall. Nova would approach closer, introducing herself with her unusual appearance. "We've had enough bloodshed for one night. Please, I ask that you cooperate with us. I don't want to hurt you."

Her eyes would close as she felt the room around her and the other presences that remained. She'd recall back on the Spaniard's words and shake her head, curious just how much he knew. "My captain is dead. He will hear none of this..."

╔══════════════════════════════╗


We can't afford to be innocent
Stand up and face the enemy
It's a do or die situation; we will be invincible



╚══════════════════════════════╝

❝...once you utter it, you are it's slave.❞

xxxx┇ ✦ -
xxxx┇ ♢ 60%
xxxx┇ ✦ Afraid
xxxx┇ ✦ Meant to Live