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 Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 12:11 pm
 Mikree settled down where he had sat after Morrison left, not wanting to get too close to Reyes who seemed to be comfortable for the first time in a while. Merci would be here soon and she would start patching him up, but for now he had a moment of rest. The older lion pausing by his side had made his fur stand on end a bit. There had been something sort of final about the unspoken exchange, something weary and tired and resigned. He hadn't liked it, but he hadn't said anything to the other lion, either. He had turned to watch Morrison go, a little confused but almost desperate for orders now after going it alone for so long and being the one to call the shots. How he and Reyes did it day in and day out astounded the younger lion. He let out a slow breath as he lowered his head to his paws, letting them rest. His wounds burned but not as badly as they had while he had been half leading, half dragging Reyes through the open savannah back to their base. Now he was just exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep for ten years. Not until Merci arrived, though. Once she had eyes on Reyes then he could relax.
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 12:27 pm
There was an unfamiliar sound, completely alien from any that Reyes made on any sense of what was normal for him: a whimper. The sleeping lion's brows were knit so furiously tight together, his face tightened until fangs were visible, still bloody from a previous brawl. Without even thinking about it, still completely out of it, the dark body pressed against Mikree's, desperate for any shard of comfort as the burning sensations that riddled his wounded body began to flash white behind his eyes as Reyes began to come to.
The small, fragile sounds faded in favor of hissing through clenched teeth as the commander's body stiffened, muscles contracting, moving in an effort to try and seek relief from the pain that was flooding his senses, only to be given more in return. Reyes' mouth fell open, silently screaming as every nerve seemed to be on fire. Desperate for something, he reached out, claws extended, grasping for something to ground himself despite everything telling him to stop.
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 12:30 pm
The noise caused Mikree to lift his head in surprise. Reyes had been fine a moment ago but now he was whimpering and moving around as if something unseen was prodding him to do so. He did a quick once-over of the area, looking for any bugs or vermin that might have been drawn to the bloody wounds, but there was nothing.
Silver claws flashed dangerously close to his head, which had been lowered a bit to inspect Reyes' face. He jerked away before reaching out to press his paw lightly on Reyes', trying to push them back to the ground.
"Easy, Reyes," he said quietly. "Merci'll be here soon, she'll get you sorted out right quick. Just hang on a little longer, all right?"
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 12:46 pm
The paws on his, the gentle, yet firm pressure pushing them down was the final straw that broke Reyes as he suddenly hauled himself onto his paws, ignoring his wounds entirely, ignoring his subordinate's words to wait, to hold on, to relax. Orders, suggestions, the words from days ago echoed within his mind, egging him on, moving him as if he was no longer in control, but he was. Those blood red eyes saw exactly what he was doing as he lunged at Mikree, his body pushing him to the cold ground with such force that the wounded lion shouldn't have.
In a moment a clarity, the fog lifted enough his eyes to find himself staring down at Mikree. "Leave." Reyes hissed through teeth that were obviously threatening to open, to devour the other wounded Blackwatch agent and there was no one else around to stop him from doing that just that. An agonizing roar ripped through Reyes' sore throat, his teeth coming apart and threatening to tear into his trusted agent as his wounds reopened, blood beginning to bubble up from underneath the scabs that had begun forming.
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 9:43 pm
The reaction was quick. Too quick for Mikree to do anything about it. He hadn't been expecting Reyes to move with such speed or ferocity, and he found himself pinned to the ground by the dark male. The force knocked the wind out of him and stared up in fear and surprise, his mind trying to figure out what was happening. Why was Reyes attacking him?
The command snapped him back into focus just in time for the other lion to let out an ear splitting roar. Mikree took advantage of the moment of hesitation to kick with his hind legs, paws catching Reyes in the stomach. He pushed as hard as he could, tossing enough of the weight off him to roll aside. Those massive claws dug into his shoulders on the way to freedom, though, opening up old wounds and making new ones in the process.
"Reyes, what the ********?" he said as he got to his feet, staring the other lion down. "I'm not leavin', lay down and be calm! You're gonna pass out if you lose any more blood."
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 10:01 pm
Angry snarls. Airy hisses. Every sound of torture made its way through Reyes' throat as he found himself recovering from being tossed aside only to forcefully back himself up against a wall, his legs sliding out from under his body, struggling to keep himself standing. It failed time and time again as Reyes scrambled on the ground, throwing himself against the wall, against anything that could keep him away from Mikree.
Thud. Again. AGAIN. It was soon clear what he was trying to do as his head hit the stone wall: he was trying to down himself or kill himself trying. "Stay away from me!" He snapped, the words coming from Reyes' like they were made of fire, eyes burning as he snapped to look to Mikree. "That witch," it came from him more like a curse, but it was an explanation that no one would understand. They couldn't. No one knew what had happened. The moments of clarity were fading. The will to fight whatever she had done to him was strong, but blood. So much blood. He couldn't.
"Put me down!" It was an order. A plea. Bloody eyes stared at Mikree's while the last bit of light left him, letting the tawny Blackwatch agent see something change in him, leaving him feral and unresponsive to words. Skin pulled up revealing those fangs again.
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 10:09 pm
Mikree watched as Reyes stumbled away from him, moving over to the wall to try to...do something. But the repeated slamming against the wall finally made him try to speak up and get him to stop.
"Reyes. Reyes! Reyes, ********' stop!" But the commander continued, speaking without making sense and leaving Mikree completely in the dark. Where the hell was Merci? Then those red eyes turned back to him, focused on him...and he was staring at a stranger.
Sure, it looked like Reyes. That much was obvious. But there was nothing in the eyes looking at him, nothing at all. No life, no fear, no pain. And he knew he was going to be in deep trouble if he didn't do something and fast. The whole of Overwatch would be in trouble.
"s**t...Reyes, you better survive this you sunovabitch," he growled under his breath. He lowered his head and gave one warning growl before charging forward. This underground office was no space for two large lions to do battle, but he hoped he could use that to his advantage. He charged headfirst into Reyes' chest, slamming him back into the wall harder than the lion had been able to toss himself. He was hoping, praying for Reyes to knock his head against the wall and fall unconscious. Otherwise he was going to have a very pissed off lion on his hands. He'd cross that bridge when he came to it, though. He had always been a live in the moment kind of guy.
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 10:32 pm
Falling. Scrambling. Nothing. He was thrust sideways, head hitting against the wall as he fell and found himself laying underneath Mikree's body. It wasn't over yet though. Paws pushed against the other body, trying find an advantage, but there was nothing but flesh to tear into. 'Not good enough.' Reyes' mouth was open wide, teeth sinking into whatever he could find purchase in. Shoulder, leg, paws, whatever bled, it didn't matter to him. He fought like a wild animal, feral and too far gone with the death of the other lion his only concern.
"Mikree?!" It was Morrison's voice. "What the hell is going on?!"
'Please, no.'
Red eyes widened, nostrils flaring as the owner of the voice registered in his god-addled brain. "No." The single word was a whisper, only audible to Mikree of all of those present. The struggle the tortured body gave became more intense. It seemed that whatever this 'witch' had done would either kill him or see him succeed. Overgrown claws tore at the stone, pulling, muscles straining as he managed to pull himself away from Mikree's hold. In a moment he was on top of the Strike Commander before Morrison could even join into the battle in these tight quarters.
The pair tumbled to the ground, all roars and fur ended with Reyes on top. Those same bloody claws tore into Morrison's shoulders. This was it. The Strike Commander would die underneath him and there was nothing Reyes could do about it. No matter what he thought, how he fought, nothing worked now. He was too tired, too gone, too torn down by this foul magic to succeed.
Feral eyes stared down at him and for the first time since the fray between the two Blackwatch members, he paused. Staring back up were those familiar eyes, those damn bright blue eyes that had made him so ******** mad way back. Those damn eyes twitched rapidly, searching for something.
Something clicked. The ferocity fled and control slowly returned to the dark lion. Last thing he remembers was falling on top of the lion beneath him.
"It's okay, it's okay..." Morrison cooed, letting himself become a pillow for the dead weight that was currently crushing him. Both of his forearms wrapped around the larger body, keeping him close as Reyes' breathing began to even out. The Strike Commander's eyes frantically looked between the other two present. "Will someone tell me what the ******** is going on here?"
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Posted: Sat Oct 01, 2016 10:42 pm
Mikree had him for a second. He had him pinned and he was getting clawed to hell and back, but he didn't care. He just needed whatever was happening to pass, and they could deal with it later. Hopefully that hit had jostled Reyes' brain around enough to shake whatever this was, but so far nothing.
Then Morrison came back, just as powerful jaws clamped down on his marked leg, the force hard enough to make Mikree roar in pain as he tried to tug away, fearing a broken bone.
The younger lion could feel the shift in Reyes. Suddenly his leg was released from the vice-like grip, flesh torn and blood welling up in the deep wounds. The dark lion was gone and Mikree tried to follow, but putting weight on the injured leg made him cry out as it gave out under him. He collapsed to the dirt floor just as Reyes fell on top of Morrison and the office went silent, save for Morrison's hushing and Mikree's heavy panting.
The question made him groan. "Like hell if I know," he said, grimacing as he tried to get up again. "One second he...he's talkin' in his sleep and wavin' his paws around, the next he's attackin' me and throwin' himself at the walls. Then you came in and he just..."
Well. Morrison had seen.
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Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2016 12:52 am
With a nod from the paler commander, Merci entered the room and was quickly by Mikree's side, helping him back down to the ground.
Her ministrations were precise as always, paws moving quickly to remove a mash of herbs and leather bandages, wrapping them around the wounded body until Mikree nearly looked like a mummy from the sheer amount of wrappings on him. There were small words exchanged, normally about what hurt and where, how long something had been bleeding or if he was allergic to anything.
It was the heavy, crushed sigh that came from the direction of the two commanders that broke her absolute attention.
"That..somehow sounds like him but doesn't at the same time." Reyes was crushing his lungs, but it wasn't threatening, just made it a little hard to breathe. Something Morrison was fine with all things considered. With the shape Mikree was in, he could have ended up much, much worse. "He'll need to stay under observation and, s**t..." Would he need to report this? How would that even go? 'Why yes, Commander Reyes lost his mind, attacked his subordinate and then turned on me. Why yes, you want to terminate his involvement in Overwatch?' Morrison couldn't help but shake his head at how absurd it all sounded.
"I'll have to report something. I doubt that word won't spread. It's just a matter of how quickly. Merci," the cheetah straightened at her name being spoken. "Take care of Reyes after Mikree's stable. He seems to be coming down from whatever happened to him." As if on queue, the Blackwatch commander groaned and shifted slightly against the body beneath him before quickly being stilled by Morrison's tightening grip. His wounds were just starting to slow their flow and even show signs of beginning to scab.
"He'll need fluids, a change of beddings, extended leave..." At this point, Morrison was just rambling. Not to mention the thoughts racing through his head. What would happen with Overwatch, with Reyes? Was this a one-time thing or would it persist? What caused it in the first place?!
"Breathe, Morrison. I don't want a third patient." The stern tone in Merci's words were enough to bring the Strike Commander back to his senses.
"He'll need to stay with me."
That earned him a stern look of concern. "He tried to kill you, Morrison."
"I know that. I'm telling you, he'll need to stay with me. Besides Mikree, who needs to focus on recovering from not only retrieving Commander Reyes, but also from defending himself from him, who do you think is the most capable to take care of him?"
The medic's mouth formed into a firm line. He was right, but that didn't mean that she liked it. "You know I'd advise against it."
"I know that too."
The cheetah sighed, taking a minor amount of the frustration being caused her out on a small scratch she was rubbing ointment over on Mikree's shoulder by pressing a little harder than everywhere else. There was really nothing she or anyone else could do, especially not when Commander Morrison made up his mind. "You're all patched up, Agent Mikree. Rest and fluids. Be sure to eat regularly and no strenuous exercises. Doctor's orders. Come back for me to change your bandages every other day to keep them from festering."
Of course, the wounds would still hurt like a b***h for a while after and while she had things that could numb the pain when applied topically, but the effects were minimal at best. "If the pain worsens or you suspect they may be infected; pus is present, excessive swelling, reddening or changing to another color, come see me immeadiately."
By the time Merci had finished with Mikree, Reyes was fast asleep on the Strike Commander's chest. His ribs were rising and falling at an even pace, which was a good sign as far as the head of medicine was concerned. And while she wanted to teld to the wounded commander, she opted to not. "Call for me as soon as he wakes up. I'd rather let him rest than risk waking him now."
A silent nod from Morrison as all she needed before seeing herself out.
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Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2016 3:34 pm
Mikree held still as the medic patched him up, growling quietly in pain as Merci prodded and poked his wounds. He didn't say anything, though, knowing full well she wouldn't put up with his complaining. Once she was done patching him up and giving him instructions on what to do, he got to his feet and limped over to stand beside Morrison and Reyes. He looked down at the two, a frown on his face as his brown eyes settled on the darker of the males.
"Somethin's not right with him," he said very quietly. "His eyes were all wrong. Like I was lookin' at a corpse that'd been layin' in the sun for two days." He glanced at Morrison again, his normally happy and carefree face worried.
"You gotta watch your back, Morrison. He's not himself. Somethin' happened in that cave, mark my words."
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Posted: Mon Oct 03, 2016 8:43 pm
Rage flared internally at the suggestion that the lion currently sleeping relatively soundly on his chest was anyone but the friend he had known for the better half of his life. Mikree was right. Something had been different, but maybe it had just been stress that had reached a boiling point, a dangerous flashback to the worst days of their lives, something more easily explainable than what the Blackwatch agent seemed to imply. It was something Merci would have to look into, and he could only imagine the fight Reyes would put up, oh how he hated visiting with her...
Bright eyes kept fixated on Reyes' resting body. It was strange, being this close to him again. When was the last time they had just relaxed like this? Days, months...years? '<********>,' It had been years. Between their horrendous scheduling, tearing at each other's throats, you would have thought they would make time to just chill in between their life-threatening missions.
There would be time to make up for it later.
An exasperated sigh. "That's sir to you."
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