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 Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 7:20 pm
It had been a long day. Kyn had to take her daughter to summer camp and ran errands for most of the day while her husband was at work. She was planning a nice romantic dinner at home, reminded of romance now that she knew Nate and Elle were engaged. Her heart was thrilled and it reminded her that her own marriage still took effort and surprises, even if they were little ones.
The last stop on her list was a bottle of wine from the shop on the corner. It wasn't too far out of their neighborhood and she didn't mind the walk. It gave her some time to think in the setting sun on what was supposed to be a nice summer night. A breeze felt nice as she carried her bag, the bottle light inside. Really, her heart was feeling light and happy and very much in love with her husband.
She texted him with a heart just to tell him he was loved, though she hoped he really and truly knew that without being reminded. Her mind was lost in happy thoughts as she walked, not expecting to run into any trouble.
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 7:32 pm
Crocoite was aware of where the Darrow house was. The oldest son and his girlfriend, or whatever she was to him now, had moved out, and that left fewer targets. It was just Tony, Kyndall, their yappy dogs,and their young daughter. The fact that Tony had such a happy family life was infuriating to Robert, who had not been allowed to experience a real family before he was thrown away.
Not that it mattered. Everything that was meant to be his would come to him in due time.
It was just harder for him to have the patience he needed, these days. He was an angry man, bent on a revenge that seemed so painfully close. It was so difficult, then, to watch them day to day, to bide his time and wait for the perfect moment to strike. Everything was starting to feel like that perfect moment, though he knew it was because he was becoming impatient and not because he was strong enough yet.
No, he needed it all to be perfect. To wipe everything his brother knew and loved off the face of the Earth. For now, though, he could still play.
He followed Kyn through most of her shopping trip from the background, powered down until he slipped down an alley and took to the rooftops as Crocoite to continue his hunt. Now, as she was walking away from a store and heading down the family direction toward her happy home, Crocoite moved to leap from the roof and land in front of her.
Straightening up, he leaned on his cane and regarded her with ice cold green eyes.
"Good evening, Kyndall."
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 8:03 pm
Kyn hadn't been expecting anything, least of all not for someone to leap from a roof and land nearly in front of her. He did it so neatly and straightened that she immediately knew what he was, if not who. And that bit seemed to have her at a disadvantage because he addressed her by name, her civilian name, and it made her blood run ice cold. If he knew that how much more would he know? Was her family in danger? Did he know who she was powered up? Her husband?
Oh, God, Sarah!
Before she moved into full blown panic she forced herself to stop, letting her mind run as rapidly as it wanted to while her body was forced to relax, remain calm. She brought her violet eyes up to his, studying him as best she could. If she ran across him again she wanted to know it. At least, if he was going to keep watching she wanted to know what to look out for.
"You know my name," she responded as evenly as she could. "But I don't know yours."
He was going to make her late for dinner and hoped that if Tony heard from her and didn't again he wouldn't worry.
"What do you want?"
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 8:13 pm
"I just thought I would say hello. I noticed you seemed to be getting ready for a nice night. I would hope so, anyway, with that bottle."
He smiled at her, knowing full well the things she had gathered, and putting together what kind of a night she would have. At least, what the plan was before he got involved and interrupted the whole thing. He really doubted it would be quite as magical and romantic as she might have wanted, now.
But his own night sure was looking up.
"I was by the library earlier," he continued, ignoring her question about his name and what he wanted. At least, what he really wanted, "saw your husband hard at work, as he always seems to be. How often you're home alone, just you and your precious little girl. It seems a shame, leaving such a lovely wife all on her own for so long. It must be terribly lonely."
He smiled at her without any trace of warmth. He knew bringing up her daughter would push a button or two, and just knowing that he had been watching them while they were home alone would, he hoped, scare her. That was the whole goal, after all.
And maybe steal a little energy for the trouble.
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Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 8:58 pm
Kyn couldn't keep the stricken look off her face when he mentioned her darling six year old, one of the lights of her life. It was true, she was home alone with her daughter and had been for a few years once she quit her job. She did it to keep a closer eye on her family, keep them safe while her husband worked and played protector to the innocent and the White Moon. Someone had to pick up the slack at home if their marriage was going to last and she chose him, and their love, every single time she was given a choice.
He knew about her, Tony, Sarah. He might know about Harmony, Nate, and Elle, too. She felt like they suddenly had a stalker and she had no one to turn to. The police couldn't help with something like this. She had no idea who he was so it wasn't like she could hunt him down with Camelot. She was thinking of anything she could do, wanting to get away from there so she could escape, maybe power up and get there faster. Was that worse?
"Who the hell are you?" She tried to sound demanding, but her voice was trembling. "If you know so much about me you should tell me that one thing about you."
Nothing about him looked familiar, but of course it wouldn't if he was powered up. There was nothing she could do but listen and stand there. Leading him home wouldn't do any good for her family. She felt exposed and vulnerable and wrapped her arms around her body.
"My husband is all I'll ever need," powered or not, "and you're just creepy. Who stalks people in this day and age?"
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Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2018 11:20 am
"I'm just an old friend, catching up with those that might have forgotten me, otherwise. Looking for my place in the world, like everyone else. Is that not a common concern? As a parent, with children leaving the nest to stretch their own wings, you must understand."
He smiled at her crookedly, tapping his finger on the head of his cane as he regarded her patiently. He could see why Tony would pick her, as she was beautiful despite the mixture of anger and fear on her face at the moment. Or maybe that just made her more appealing.
Crocoite was not sure he wanted to share his name with a civilian, even if it was one he was tormenting. Civilians could do very silly things, like call the cops or make some other unnecessary trouble that he would have to deal with.
"It's so easy to learn about people these days. In fact, it's easier than ever to 'stalk' anyone. Don't you watch the news? Technology can do so many things. Though I rely on other means. Maybe I am a little more old fashioned, though not quite as archaic as your husband."
He took a step toward her, thinking that draining her energy and leaving her somewhere for Tony to find would be a lovely little treat for his brother.
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Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2018 11:49 am
He wasn't going to tell her who he was and he spoke as if he knew her. God, he mentioned children moving out and she knew he meant Nate and Elle. Her heart dropped to her shoes but she tried to clear any emotion except determination. She slipped a hand unobtrusively into the bag, gripping the neck of the bottle of wine. Cornered, there was little else for her to do but try to get away.
She let the bag drop and whipped the bottle at the Negaverser, hoping to distract him long enough to run. She dropped the bottle as she took off, hearing it splinter on the sidewalk. It was a waste of money and a good vintage but she could hardly be bothered with that now. Instead, she took out her cell phone and texted her husband taking great, panicked breaths. Home. She needed to get home and protect Sarah or else, figure out what to do. The text was simple but he'd understand perfectly what it meant.
Danger at home - need Camelot.
She wasn't particularly strong but she was fast. Keeping up with a six year old did that. She turned up her street, seeing home in sight. If he really wanted to, nothing in home could stop him and it was enough to make her hesitate. She stood in front of her home, tempted to power up to be able to fight back and knowing even as she daydreamed it she knew that the thought would lead to more harm than good. It would put her family at even more risk.
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Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2018 12:24 pm
The Negaverse soldier watched as she ran from him, grinning and shaking his head. They always ran, as if it would do some good. Granted, he assumed she was like every other civilian he had menaced so far, and had no idea just what she was dealing with.
Being powered up had many advantages. His speed was one of the top among those.
He ran after her after a moment, letting her think she was getting some distance on him. She was easy to find, since he knew her most likely path. At least, he knew her destination, and would have been able to just meet her there if she had managed to duck him. Thankfully, no extra effort was needed, and he spotted her running as fast as she could toward her home.
As if he couldn't reach her there.
Catching up to her, he stopped her escape attempt by putting a firm hand on her shoulder and arresting her in her steps. He used the contact to start drawing energy from her, chuckling.
"Oh, don't be afraid," he said softly, growling, "I have so much more in store for you all. Just consider this my way of saying hello."
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Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2018 12:43 pm
She stood frozen when he caught her, taking a deep breath as she raised her eyes to look at him. How sad to have such poison in his body that chaos could take hold. Hell, chaos was it's own poison, potent as they came. She felt her body being drained and could do nothing about it. Nothing. Shalott would never have let this happen, especially not so close to home. Kyndall had no choice in the matter.
"You are not going to hurt my family," she promised. "I won't let you."
She may not have had a name but she sure as hell knew what he looked like and she'd make it her business to track down every lead until she had a name and she had a rank. When it came to her family she was fierce as a lioness and would sharpen her claws if she needed to.
First Painite and now him. Trouble seemed attracted to their family like a magnet. She was determined to do more of the fighting this time, wanting to take a more active role in their protection.
"I'd leave now if I were you. One way or another I'll find a way to stop you."
Whether it was five minutes from now or five weeks, she knew she'd figure something out
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Posted: Thu Jul 19, 2018 12:53 pm
He had to admire her spirit, though he would not let that stop him. Still, at least she had the courage to stand up to him and not turn into a quivering ball of patheticness like some of the other useless civilians he encountered had been. Most of the ones that had not impressed him were little starseeds on his shelf in the shop at this point.
"That's the fun of being evil," he said, as he focused on drawing her energy so she would drop and, at last, stop arguing with him. How could his brother deal with someone so stubborn?
"I don't really need you to let me do anything."
In the distance, he felt a powerful aura blazing to life. One he was familiar with, but had no idea he was actually related to. He also had not seen her text him for help, or he would have gotten a real shock to learn his brother was the Royal Knight his General hated so much.
Or at least, she used to hate. Now she was a little quiet about everything, and he had not spoken to her in a little while.
In any case, he imagined that the Royal Knight could feel his energy, and would probably head over to investigate. That was fine, Crocoite would be gone in a moment. He helped his sleepy victim to the front step, making sure she was at least comfortable.
It was only polite.
"Sleep well, and be thankful I showed you some mercy. At least your husband won't find a dead body when he gets home. Not yet, anyway."
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Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2018 8:36 am
Fun and evil were generally not two words she associated with one another. That he thought they belonged in the same sentence was completely disheartening. She was about to protest when she wavered, dropping to her knees quickly to avoid falling face first into their front lawn. Words were harder to search for and though it terrified her, she couldn't fight the sleep that was threatening to overtake her. She barely had the will to stay awake, let alone continue to argue.
One thing was for certain: he was a threat and she needed to contain it.
He helped her toward the steps, confused but in no real position to refuse.
Waiting for Tony felt like it was taking forever and his last threat made her shudder. If it came to that, him trying to kill her, she'd have no choice but to power up and fight for her life. There were complications with that and possibly she'd need to send Harmony and Sarah far away to protect them, or else kill him to prevent harm to her family. That line of thought scared her so it was a mercy for him not to push her that far.
"You..."
She didn't get to finish her sentence before she was fast asleep.
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