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 Posted: Fri Jun 15, 2012 9:59 pm
"Just tell us where the lizards are, lady," Harrison said.
He half expected the grey-haired woman to erupt in bugs and teeth.
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 2:56 am
Jerry didn't like this. He didn't like the jungle. It was dark and full of polin and things that wanted to eat you. With a fresh sneeze, he limped along after the others, looking increasingly more nervous, "We should at least report where we're going..." He started, but hesitated at the sight of the little old lady and her domain. What was this place?
Where were the creatures? Who was this woman and why didn't she seem phased?
At Rep's threat, his face paled, and he hurried forward to Rep's side, anxiously putting a hand on his arm, "Just relax. We'll... track them down, but this nice lady isn't hurting anyone."
That you know of, Roar rumbled, stirring anxiously in the back of his head. I smell somefin'. Somefin' delicious. It's coming from somewhere.
He glanced to the counter, spotting the black ichor again. "She could be someone's grandmother," He whispered irritably to both Rep and his weapon.
Clearing his throat, hoping Rep would keep his head this trip as he edged forward to examine the ichor on the handle, touching it with a gloved hand experimentally before turning it to take a look behind it.
I smell it, I smell it's stronger here, it's got to be something good...
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 5:59 am
Ferros?
Not her, the weapon said, short and dismissive. Human.
The woman was afraid. It was in her eyes and her posture, determined and anxious. She had something to lose, something she wanted to protect. She was hiding the freaks, that was obvious. But why? Something was wrong here.
"You don't have to obey the freaks," he said, his tone gentle. "If they've hurt you, that's over now."
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 11:55 am
Slowly, very slowly she shook her head.
There was no terror in her eyes, not from her. "You mistake my, our intentions. We are not fighters or warriors, simply healers and those who take care of travellers like yourself."
Upon seeing Jerry and Rep advance towards her, she backed up a step firmly placing herself between the two and the counter. She was frail even, tanned skin covered with poignant sunspots, she could have been a normal anyone, a teacher, a caretaker, a nurse-
-But the Hunters had long forgotten what it was like to be normal.
"I think you and I both know what exactly I am afraid of here." This was addressed to Jordan's request, one frail hand clenching and unclenching. Stress. "I will not move, not until we at least talk. You are all still young, the age of my niece and nephew: many of you should still be learning, this is not your fight or responsibility. I promise not to tell anyone, please walk away."
And then something else, behind that resolved expression. Desperation. "Please."
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 12:54 pm
"It's our job," Harrison said, a little peeved at the age comment. "So you can talk while we work. Didn't anybody warn you about what happens when you pick up hitchhikers? Especially ones that look like they crawled out of a sewer."
Harrison jerked one sword towards the side of the hut.
"Both hands on the wall, where we can see them." He looked over to where Jerry was rolling black ichor between his fingers. "That goes for you too, dumbasses, while you still got claws. He already gave you fair warning."
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 1:16 pm
Rin set her jaw, she was starting to look more and more uncomfortable the longer they lingered, "Guys, let's just go. If they were a threat they would have attacked us by now."
She frowned scoping their surroundings a bit more carefully, some of the plants were ones she personally recognized from a few of her favorite books. Books which she was very certain labeled such plants as medicinal or at the very least believed to be medicinal. It made things feel even more... wrong.
Her frown contorted into something far uglier as she noted Rep's stance again - it spelled horrible things for this situation, "We're wayyyy off course, we might get in deep s**t. We can just... go back and tell Allan what we saw... epic spy job, right?"
"You don't want in more trouble... right William?" she hoped his self-preservation instinct at the very least might intervene.
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 1:54 pm
It was clear to all of them Rep wasn't listening. Even Jerry's hand on his arm didn't elicit the usual flinch response physical contact generally did. She could certainly be someone's grandmother. But no one human. Jordan took the sympathetic approach and he narrowed his eyes, a rare anger fuelled rush of resentment bubbling to the surface. Always making him look like the bad guy. It wouldn't work today, today the glory was his.
There was almost a doubt, almost a worry that maybe she was being coerced. And then she moved to block them.
How very touching.
It was a rerun of every animal planet documentary he had ever watched, hungover, surrounded by beer cans. Pack stands up to predator. Mother sacrifices self for baby. That unmistakable body language. His smirk turned toothier. It was the body language of prey.
There was an undercurrent of raw unchecked fury at her pleas. No one had ever stood up for him when people threatened him, his mother had lay there and watched as he had fallen to the aggressive whims of her suitors, too drugged to move. She had never pleaded for them to walk away.
She wanted them to learn. But he'd teach her instead. He'd teach her the most potent lesson he'd ever had to learn.
The world wasn't ******** fair.
He laughed. It was nothing like his usual one, devoid of mirth - all cruelty. "You can't say I didn't ******** warn you." He moved right into her personal space, almost nose to nose. "Anything with these monsters involved is, you'll find, very much our fight." He harshly shoved her aside, under his hands she was light, nothing but frail skin and bones.
"And we don't ******** negotiate with sympathisers." he said, eyeing the cabinet.
If there was one thing he was good at, it was furniture. Tracey was brought around in an arch that cleaved the counter wide open. The cries of surprise from within along with pain as he knicked one of them with the blade were satisfying, he hauled the massive axe with a crunch, ready to swing again, a decidedly mad intensity in his eyes. He was prepared to hack the whole thing up, captives and all.
Until desperate frail hands closed on his arm and made his skin crawl, the woman had picked herself up from the floor where his shove had sprawled her.
"Please" she repeated with that same desperate edge.
Another half crazed snarl and, the cracked open counter forgotten, he was back in her face, hauling her away from the counter, throwing her to reel back against a wall.
"TEAM." he growled. "******** neutralise those monsters. Kill them or get them the ******** out of here and then kill them."
His smirk iced over. "I'll deal with grandma."
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 2:05 pm
"REP!" Jerry suddenly snapped, when to his horror the little old lady was tossed to the side.
His stomach twisted, flashes, memories of the dark shadows creeping into the edges of his grandmother's room, amongst the machines keeping her frail form alive and well, and only his diligence and high electric bills seemed to keep the threatening shadows away.
Before he could even think, he was dodging forward to put himself between the fallen woman and the maddened Rep, Roar materializing in his arms in a burst of light, aimed at their so-called leader, "REP. Leave her ALONE! Roar says she's HUMAN, you c-can't just... just hurt innocent bystanders!"
His face was trembling as he glanced down to the woman behind him, his expression melting with guilt and shock and worry, "Are you alright, Gram?"
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 2:46 pm
Rin attempted to also wedge herself in Rep's way, "I'm not sure what she ******** is William but I sure as ******** know she isn't attacking or threatening you so no-I-will-not 'take care of the others'."
She turned her gaze on Jerry, "Help her out." she was hopeful she could still REASON with Rep. Something Jerry definitely could not do since he had to summon Roar against him at this point, "We don't need to blow up this ladies hut either."
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 4:04 pm
Crash.
The hut seemed to explode as Rep pushed past the elderly woman, the counters made only of simple, pliant bamboo, the weapon easily cleaving through half the thin-wood wall as well, windchimes jangling in protest at the ugly gash torn through the hut.
The blade barely missed something else, two something else's that squealed and scurried, clawed feet scrambling against the dry wood mat as they tried to seek solace somewhere else. Right behind the woman. The woman who had pushed herself up, despite one leg charred and blistering, where she had mis-stepped, where Rep had shoved her right into the center of the burning fireplace, where she had pulled herself out, both gnarled hands stretched out -
- She was not begging. She was still offering protection. And the two, the creatures that looked smaller now, barely children, younger than even the students the Hunters occasionally encountered cried out as they ran straight into her arms, as she curled her arms around their reptilian skin, offering them solace-
- And she faced the Hunters. Faced against [Rep. "We mean you no harm." She remained steady, the parent the Sun trainee would never have or hope of having, the mother who would sacrifice everything for children-
- Even abominations.
"You can come back, I promise, I will not leave here, not with what everything means to me. Come back, you have a choice. It is okay to question your job, that is what it means to be responsible." And then there was that word again, as the two creatures trembled in both of her hands, as she held them and did not for a second let go or give in, as she looked desperately at Rin and Jerry. "Please."
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 6:58 pm
"Rep. She's human. They're children. Noncombatants." Jordan moved forward, trying to catch Rep's eye. "We don't have the seniority to make this call. We need to contact base and request further instructions."
Rep wasn't going to like this. But this was more important than personal pride. This was not part of the assigned mission; they'd already broken away from the orders Allan had given, and a group of trainees was definitely not ranked high enough to make the decision on what to do about this unusual situation. They might be assigned to stand guard until a more senior hunter could arrive; in any case, the wisest choice would be to draw back and assess the situation more fully.
If the eventual decision was to exterminate the settlement ... Jordan would worry about that then.
"Rin," he said. "Contact Allan. Tell him we've encountered an unexpected situation."
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 7:31 pm
Rep didn't move an inch as Jerry put himself between him and his target. Instead he merely eyed Roar distantly, eyes almost glazed. There was no fear or hesitation, merely a very far away irritation that dissent in the ranks was going to make things that much more complicated. He wasn't thinking logically any longer, everything was riding on the pulse and thrum of something much more brutal. All his focus was on his quarry.
Tracey's voice was strained, a charge carried too long to be comfortable.
<>
He hesitated for a moment before adding <>
As Rin joined against him, there was an acute sense of disappointment and betrayal. Of course she would side with Jerry. No one wanted him to succeed, they were all such ******** bleeding hearts. Such was the power of women, a bit of simpering and cowering and you could have the mercy of your enemies in your hands. They were lucky they had him as their leader, he'd seen this game before, he could see right through the ploy, they wouldn't walk into another ambush with him at the helm.
His glazed and distant expression gave way to a flicker of focus as the two scarelings ran to her. He was tempted to attack them simply for moving, his every instinct firmly on edge. Only curiosity stayed his hand, he wanted to see if they would try and escape, to give them the chance to seal their fate. They did not. Instead they chose to up the sympathy stakes. Cunning, but again, he saw through it. She had the gall to insist they meant no harm and his anger spiked. He knew his team would fall for it, morality was a crippling weakness to be exploited, and so many of them were still bound by it. He would save them.
There was an aching familiarity to the scene before him, it struck deep into the heart of him. Envy rapidly took root and he felt like he couldn't breathe as the flames of hatred fanned out of all control. It was heinous mockery of what he'd always wanted and craved. Monsters didn't deserve protection. How could they be allowed to have what he had not?
Everything was fractured and broken, thoughts were disconnected and logic no longer held together in the face of that hate. Toxic jealousy slithered in and skewed perceptions. It felt like his mind was short circuiting, overwhelmed by stress, adrenaline and the raw power of the charge he was saving to end this standoff.
No one had ever protected him. He'd learned to protect himself.
He'd just wanted her love
Did that make him less than these creatures?
It was just such a pity his comrades weren't going to make this easy for him. But nothing had ever been easy, he would survive.
Jordan stepped up as effortlessly as always, challenging him, questioning his orders. And giving his own. How dare he give orders on a mission that wasn't his own.
Jordan who he loved dearly, but who right now was unquestionably wrong. What did he know about proving oneself? Command came to him as easily as breathing.
"NO." he said.
"No you ******** don't! NO ORDERS. This is MY MISSION.", his rage was incandescent "This is my call! You don't get to ******** decide for me. ! I'm the leader."
There was a frantic moment where tears threatened at the frustration, pain and knotted fear, his voice cracking, "Can't you ******** give me this? You can't lead everything."
He had been handed a solution in the form of the test weapon, the orange runic glow still in his peripheral vision. In his petulant tantrum, it was a viable one.
He raised the trap gun blankly but quickly. It was experimental, he wasn't sure what it would do. But he needed to assert himself.
He couldn't think too long about it or he'd hesitate.
"I'm sorry." he said. He was sorry they didn't support him.
And he fired. Once, twice three times. Jerry, Rin, Jordan, it was all the power the thing had. Even as the nets launched he didn't wait to see what they did. He snapped into motion.
The charge ached to be released. He let it guide his hand.
The axe swung as if it weighed nothing at all, unexpected, too quick for the woman and the scarelings to react. The massive blade crackled with crimson energy. It was practically point blank, he couldn't- and didn't miss.
Humans, as it turned out, were much easier to break than furniture.
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 7:44 pm
Jerry's heart was in his throat, trembling as he watched the old woman hold the creatures...
Not just creatures.
Children. Baby creatures.
He hated them, he hated the monsters that had, he always considered, ruined his life. But this? This wasn't... they weren't hurting anyone, as far as they knew- "We... we should contact Allan. Tell him what we found, get orders," He murmured, but he knew what it was like, to be terrified, with only an old woman to stand between him and his own terrors. But now they were the attackers, the dangerous creatures come to destroy them. "Rep, call Allan," He snarled, grip on Roar tightening as he moved to try to help the old woman up but never once took the weapon's aim off of the creature that called himself a man.
"Rep-" He started, but it was already too late, with a yelp, the net knocked him back, Roar pinned to his chest as he felt his Fear Shield crackle and diminish. "STOP!" He wheezed, managing to open his eyes to try to struggle.
The ginger closed in on the old woman beside him.
Her blood splashed across his glasses.
Jerry screamed.
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Posted: Sat Jun 16, 2012 8:10 pm
Rin still held out hope. They could discuss this. They could come to an agreement. They could...
Jerry flew past her with a loud bang. It was so quick, abrupt, there was no time to react. Not even as that same gun was aimed at her and went off in her face. BANG.
She was sent backwards too, flat on her back with her head turned awkwardly. The action left her stunned and unable to move. Byr's screams in her thoughts were unintelligible but their meaning clear, he was hurting too. A lot more than she was.
There was a third and very distant bang, it forced her fearful gaze upwards. Rep was moving closer, his shadow cast over her form as he simply stepped over her. Like she was nothing, absolutely nothing to him. She was just an obstacle, in his ******** way. She realized this far too late.
Her eyes tracked his movement further and further along his trek. She tried to call out for him one last time to stop, no lips moved, no voice came - not that one would have helped. He was far gone. He was broken far beyond her fixing.
Her gaze flinched as blood splattered across part of her face and most of her hair. She snapped her eyes as tightly closed as possible, this wasn't happening. It was just a nightmare. She'll wake up any moment now...
...she felt something land on her stomach with a wet thunk... there was no way she was going to look.
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