[System]
Alias - Marina Watercrest
Age - 24
Gender - Femme
Home Sea - Imperial Sea
Aether Sign - Moon (Water)

-

A Dolphin's Madness
Marina was already a girl who was… a bit bold in her academy days. She was thrill-seeking, loud, cheerful, and assertive. Her penchant for messing with people and laughing it off has not changed, though she has become blatantly less stable after all of the endeavors she has survived as a diver. After staring death in the face twice one could say Marina has lost her wavin' mind. She has become rattled and fascinated with the oblivion of death and seems obsessed with facing it again. It can be pretty unnerving.

Independent Heroine
Marina seeks to be seen as great as she feels she is. She hates comparisons to her father and mother, no matter the intention. She still has much to achieve and one day people will see her more as the spawn of her parents and the legend-in-making that she feels she has the potential to be.

The Greatest Diver on Aruth
Marina's confidence and assertions have always been encouraged. Growing up in the Imperial Sea as the daughter of one of the most prolific admirals in the world and possibly the greatest diver-adventurer of her generation, Marina's parent's pedigree has always inspired her to think like she was the greatest creation in all of the seas. This has not changed since Marina abandoned the Imperial Sea and sought to become her own woman. Actually, it's gotten worse.
 | Aether Abilities

Marina's aether abilities are enhanced by the moon. Specifically, she specializes in the manipulation of the element of water.

Marina learned to tap into her aether abilities when she was but a small child, though she was no prodigal genius. Everything she has achieved has been done with a large quantity of hard work and a small degree of talent. This hard work was supplemented by Marina's attendance as a student of the Imperial Fleet Academy based in proximity to the imperial capital. Though despite having a well-trained connection to her aether sign, Marina still tends to struggle regarding her focus and nerve. But the moon has blessed the purple-haired young adult nonetheless, enhancing Marina's abilities as a diver and combatant; she envies those who are talented artificers and aether engineers given that she lacks the patience for such things.

Marina as an aether user can be aptly described as a utility specialist, which in short means that most of Marina's combat prowess is done practically rather than magically. Aether exists to enhance Marina's skills as a diver and adventurer, though in a clutch situation she can be pushed to using her more esoteric abilities that are better suited to combat. Some common aspects and techniques she is prone to utilizing include the following:

* Fysallidakinesis: Marina tends to use Fysallidakinesis in combination with her hydrokinetic barriers. It's good to be able to breathe underwater, especially if your diving gear isn't with you or is compromised.

* Hydrokinetic Barriers: Marina's primary focus when it comes to her aether abilities is the creation of a "hard" water fields that can be used as shields, deep dive barriers, and containment fields.

* Pressure Manipulation: Manipulating the water pressure around her can aid Marina when she is surrounded by pirates, raiders, or other sorts of antagonists. Requires focus and can exhaust Marina quickly if she's not careful.

* Purification: In certain situations Marina can focus on purifying any form of liquid she comes into contact with. She's had to use this in certain parts of the ocean where ancient corruption magic has tainted the water to the point it is too dangerous to swim in.

* Regenerative Water: The most difficult aether technique that Marina knows and probably the most valuable when things look the most dark. Similar to her purification techniques, but allowing to apply a transformative water to another person to reinforce their immune system and healing faculties.

Character Conceptualization
TBD REWORK |

[User]
─────── ⥢❂⥤ ───────

Ah... the sun, the sea, the salt. All things Crus had been enjoying until the freakish storm overtook the ship. He'd seen plenty of storms in his life, from rain showers to hurricanes, but none that came on quite as fast as this. None as brutal either. Whatever was haunting this isle was really territorial. Crus had clung fast to the ship's mast, feeling every sway and lurch as the ocean and tempest did their best to pull the vessel under. During the worst of it Crus' heart felt as though it would be ejected from his throat, but was as exciting a feeling as it was terrifying. And just as quickly as the barrage of wind and rain came, it passed.

It was a couple of long moments before Crus unwrapped himself from around the mast. He shook his head in canine imitation, clearing it of sea water. Damn, what a storm!

Dark clouds and the harsh howl of the squall swirled around them on all sides, threatening to engulf them again, but here where they were it was more of less clear. Seems they'd gone right through and into the calm at the center. Without the din of the storm to compete against, Gale's voice rung loud and clear.

"Yessir," Crus chirped, raising two fingers to his forehead and then motioning them towards the Sharkfin's captain before making his way below deck. It was a little weird onboard, with people snapping to attention and practically rushing downstairs. Much different than the peaceful voyage they'd had so far. For all he knew though, maybe this kind of thing was normal. Crus was just going to pretend he knew what he was doing as he followed the flow.

It had only been days since he'd been onboard the Sharkfin. Though successful, his stowing away had not been very stealthy at all - and the crew had discovered him mere hours into setting off after stopping over at a little island for a short shore leave. They'd found Crus in the mess fixing himself a meal. The young Southerner didn't have much of a plan, and it was only with Gale's good humor and charity that the Sharkfin's crew hadn't stuck him in a rowboat and pointed him back to Ororuel.

And look at him now! On his way to become a Diver. Or so he liked to think anyway. He'd schmoozed with the crew over the last few days, made himself useful, and now he was going to prove himself in the water alongside the professionals. Oh yeah, things were going swimmingly.

One of the downsides of having stowed away was that Crus didn't bring a lot with him though. At least he wasn't bogged down with stuff, but he didn't have much gear to gather. Crewman insisted that he take a rebreather at the very least, and so he did. Maybe in the future he could buy one of those fancy suits. For now, it took him all of a couple minutes to get ready.

"Hey, Kami!" He called, craning his neck to look around for the other young man. "Last one t'make it back up on deck s'gonna cover the other's swabbing duties after this. I hope you've been practicing with your mop."

Challenge made, Crus started back towards the stairs. Now, there were plenty of people on the Sharkfin's payroll. Gloryhounds, misfits. Runaways. The nature of some eluded Crus, like those Imperial women. One such person was nearby, leaning against the cabin wall looking a bit lost all things considered. He was going to pass her on the way out, and so he flashed her a disarming smile.

"Tell me y'aren't sea sick, miss." It occurred to Crus that he hadn't spoken with the woman much, if at all, since he'd been here - so he wasn't about to guess her name and get it wrong, leaving it at 'miss.' It was an easy enough comment to brush off if she wasn't in the mood.

---

mentions: @Lemons@Taka

---

[Assistant]
---

The Sharkfin | South Seas Ocean

---

As the storm began to settle around them and the Sharkfin came to rest, Kaitha, like plenty of the other crew members, stared up at the patchy break in the clouds. Blessedly, the sun had not vanished from the sky to leave the world bleak and gray forever; the rays that touched the ship were warm and welcome. Tonight the moon would be beautiful—"dark days, bright nights," as the saying went.

Something to look forward to, anyway.

Orders were given and Kaitha made her way giddily down belowdecks. The dark here was much starker than it had been outside, even in the guts of that awful storm, and unlike the sunlight that warmed her skin and sank down, this brought her a warmth that radiated from within. She smiled, bouncing in each step with all the grace of a feather on the wind until she found the storage. Others were here, a young man and woman. Crus and Tella, who, Kaitha believed, was imperial. She hadn't been so vocal about it yet though, so for the time being she was given a pass.

"Pardon~" she hummed, slipping past them with water's own fluidity to find her things. She doffed her habit's cap and overcoat, but left the shawl and waist-coat on over the rest of the outfit. Choir habits were designed for diving, which made traveling much easier.

Well, mostly. She did have one bit of luggage that could be cumbersome now and again.

As she retrieved her Bo Saw, she couldn't help but overhear Crus and be just a little intrigued. Seasickness? A diver? Hopefully not, what a dreadful affliction to have in a profession like this. Or any profession, really. Frankly it might as well have been called 'worldsickness.'

"Think it might be more that the sea's sick of us." She flashed a grin, and tried to remember that showing too many teeth put people off. Quickly, she gave the blade a test-revving, happy to see that it hadn't been damaged in all that rattling. "Luna's luck we'll be out of here before it finds a remedy."

[User]
The sea wind rushed past Kaminari's nose, twitching in response to the breeze. Feeling the breeze was a common hobby for the son of the Captain, his body hair straightening, goosebumps forming on his arms, he loved every moment of being on the sea. Storms were part of the fun iun the case of Kami. He could enjoy the rain hitting his face and the lightning streaking through the sky. This was a love instilled in him by his real father and mother, they loved being on the sea, and the little they got to spend together resonated deep within the boy. He stared across the sea from the porthole under the deck of the ship. His mind focused on the joy of being a Diver.

Suddenly a voice broke the silence of his mind, Kami looking back to see Crus. A challenge brought to his feet, a challenge that the teens normally instigated. A friendship had spawned between the boys, regardless of the short moment that they've known each other, and Kami felt as though he could tell Crus anything. Everyone else was older with far less joy that Kami but, Crus could match his energy with ease whilst also giving Kami someone to teach since he already had years of Gale's knowledge under his belt.

"Not fair. Ya already close ta the stairs.", Kami yelled back to his friend, lifting his feet to chase behind him.

Reaching to the deck behind his friend, he embraced the feel of the sun hitting his skin. He loved it and felt as though his body was being revitalized, filling with aether. Lightning, purple in color, sparked just a bit between his fingers, Kami playing with it like a toy. His eyes scanned the deck until the landed on the man that he admired the most. Giving a few greetings to the crew that knew him, and the few that didn't, the teen made his way over to his adopted father.

"Hey Pop." Kami gave Gale a huge smile, "So what do ya want me ta do?"

[Assistant]
Marina Watercrest smiled widely at the crewmate who had challenged her to three sets of Maker's Grace. The cards on the table plain for them to see as the sound of the ocean hammered against the hull.

"This is what you get, you know." The young woman smiled, "For dueling one of the greats."

The older man groaned before nearing a laugh. He hadn't interacted with the diver much, but the girl's gall and confidence nearly set him off. That was before the cards spun off the table as a particularly strong wave had tucked itself against the ship. Were they nearing their destination? That accursed storm? Must've been. Marina could hear the yelling, faint as it were through the ship's floorboards. She supposed it was now where the real fun began. The real adventure. It would be like her travels before when she left the Imperial Sea but as a girl seeking to find her way. She had failed, triumphed, and then failed again. She was hoping in this venture it would be a return to greatness.

She smiled as she scooped up the shelma from the table, standing from her seat that she had barely kept upright when the ship braced against the waves. It was always fun for Marina to taunt and gloat, much like she had done at the academy.

She brushed off her cloak, "Alas, I would love to continue robbing you blind, but I must dive."

The crewman began to mumble unpleasantries as Marina pranced out of the room and toward her belongings and the area where she and the other divers would convene.

The thrill of the dive was something else and while Marina had not interacted with any of the other divers, with her rebreather on she could still feel a sense of camaraderie, a sense of belonging. One of the other divers in particular did remind her of someone, though she couldn't quite place it with their own rebreather on and the fact they had not run into each other during the voyage into the storm. It would be a familiarity that she would press on at another time, but for now, she was getting ready. The diving chamber was not as nice or as shoddy as other ones as she had been in, a delightful middle ground. She stretched her legs as conversation began and continued, mostly idle comments, things that weren't terribly interesting or fun. She jumped up and down, getting the blood flowing and muscles ready while smiling inanely underneath her diving gear.

One of the women talked of Luna and Luck and Marina looked slightly in her direction.

"Luck isn't in the equation, my love." Marina looked toward the diving platform that was sealed shut with a dark temptation growing in her chest. Her eyes widened and there was a glimmer in them that could be seen by anyone who looked at the purple-haired diver. "If you listen carefully, you can hear the terror of the tides. Isn't it wonderful?"


[System]
Death Korp Trooper Number:
Trooper 17431

Appearance:

Height:
5'6"

Age:
27

Sex:
Male

Class:
Death Korp Grenadier

Equipment:
- Type XIV Lasgun (Heavy) -
Also known as a Hellgun or, more rarely, a Hotshot lasgun, the Type XIV (Heavy) is the standard issue weapon for all Grenadiers serving in Death Korp regiments. They are, at least by the Grenadiers themselves, intensely disliked due to perceived unreliability in the field during extended operations and a Krieger's general preference for the default Type XIV Lasgun (More commonly known outside of Krieg as the Lucian Pattern Lasgun). However, with the proper maintence that each Grenadier performs routinely, the weapon performs its intended role as a high power Lasgun, capable of punching through heavier armor and providing, on full auto, a withering rate of fire. The Type XIV (Heavy) utilizes a backpack unit to power it, and a Quick Recharge Generator included in the backpack unit is generally overtaxed, due to the design of the weapon and its power output. Ansgar, like many Grenadiers, would have preferred a Type XIV Lasgun over the Heavy variant, but as a Grenadier, he is required to carry it.

- Grenadier Carapace Armor -
Intended for deployment where the fighting is fiercest, Death Korps Grenadiers are equipped with heavy Carapace Armour that has been integrated into the standard Krieg kit. This comprises the Mark IX helmet, a rebreather facemask, three-piece shoulder guards, a chest plate with additional abdomen plates and shin and knee guards. All are made of Plasteel and reinforced with a layer of Ceramite for additional strength, heat resistance and weight reduction. The armor, coupled with uniform and Type XIV Lasgun (Heavy) makes a very heavy loadout, adding in the miscellaneous equipment they carry as well, however, the protection is vastly appreciated by the Grenadiers in general, due to their role as the leading edge in storming trenches and hostile emplacements, needing the protection to get close enough to do their jobs, not so much concerned with survival.

- Explosives -
As his former squads Demolitions expert, Ansgar carried the standard explosives load out alongside extra tools, for when the Engineers could not keep up with the assault but were preoccupied elsewhere. Besides several Frag and Krak grenades, Ansgar also has several demolition charges, rated for taking out hardened bunkers when put in place. Ansgar modified the charges so that, in a hurry, he can pull a detonation cable and heave the charge at a target, the normally delicate and precise procedure for arming the charges ditched in favor of emergency target removal. And, as a Krieg Engineer before he was assigned as a Grenadier, he has learned to build improvised explosives that served him well in the trenches when supplies on conventional explosives were running short, as well as utilize Chemical weapons safely.

- Melee Gear -
Ansgar carries two weapons for melee combat, one obligatory and the other actually used. The obligatory is his bayonet, which the Type XIV Lasgun (Heavy) lacks a mount for, another reason it remains unpopular among Grenadiers, and typically serves as much as a tool and last resort weapon than anything else. His actual go to is a Entrenching Tool, edges sharpened to allow him to carve through hostiles as well as bludgeon them, and retain the intended purpose of digging trenches and other necessary fighting positions.

Notable Deeds:
- Tyranid Assault on Thresis IV -
Raised from birth to be a Death Korp Engineer, Ansgar Staudinger, or known by his Trooper designation 17431, will never state when he was sent to war, something that tends to bother people who ask that are outsiders to Krieg and their necessary methods of providing the Imperium the soldiers it needs. Assigned fresh to an Engineering Platoon, Ansgar would spend a great deal of time digging trenches and laying mines in the defense of a Shrine World, Thresis IV, directly in the path of a Tyranid Hive Fleet Splinter. The Tyranids, despite being vastly reduced in numbers compared to a true Hive Fleet, descended like mad locusts, slaughtering over 90% of the Death Korp forces deployed on the planet. Of that 10%, Ansgar Staudinger was one of the survivors, the only from his platoon, found near death after turning an entire trench line into a raging biochemical inferno, equal parts fire and chemical weapon that was effective on the Tyranids. Sharing the compound make up with other Death Korp Engineers, the biochemical fire was used to great extent to halt and drive back the Tyranids, making the then rookie Staudinger's trial by fire a literal, and resounding, success.

- Nightmares Beneath Thrasis II -
As part of the Thrasis campaign his regiment was assigned to, and the arrival of Tyranid complicating greatly, Ansgar Staudinger was deployed with a fresh Engineering platoon to assist in the breaking of a siege on Chaos held factories on the system's forge world, Thrasis II. Utilizing conventional tunneling and, when they detected they were almost at the entry point, Hades Breaching Drill, to punch into the Chaos held Foundry, Ansgar and his fellow Guardsmen stumbled into something straight out of the most feverish of a heretic's nightmares. The Warp had bled over into the belly of the foundry, with daemons and mutants in equal measures assaulting the woefully unprepared Krieg Guardsmen. However, they had a job to do, and they were able to hold their ground, keeping a secure tunnel long enough for support to arrive and push deep enough into the Chaos corrupted foundry, to the dark heart and plant enough explosives for the resulting explosion spotted from orbit. Whether it was the sheer amount of explosives put in place, or partially due to Chaos corruption was never decided. However, as one of the only survivors again by virtue of Luck or being Blessed, Ansgar was reassigned by a surviving Commissar to the Death Korp Grenadiers.

- Hellscape of Thrasis I -
Nearing the end of the Thrasis System Campaign, Ansgar found himself a freshly minted Grenadier, no longer an Engineer although he often worked closely with them during breaching actions against enemy defensive lines. However, upon touching down on Thrasis I, the Kriegers found something unlike anything anyone could be prepared for. The Foundry was merely a foretaste of what was to come, as planet spanning rituals had allowed the Warp to taint and corrupt great stretches of the planet, forcing Guard forces to struggle through conventional defenses one day, and make a mad dash through Daemon infested hellscapes that should not be the next. What Ansgar refuses to mention to a soul, due to an oath he was put under at the end of the conflict, was the arrival of Grey Knights, of the Emperor's most holy Ordos Malleus. Alongside Adeptus Sororitas support, which Ansgar learned to have a deep, healthy respect for, the combined arms forces stormed the capital of Thrasis I, a den of pure evil and corruption that made the rest of the planet look like a Shrine World in comparison. Once again, whether by luck or the Emperor's own intervention, Ansgar found himself as one of the only Grenadiers, and Krieger's period, to survive the assaults into the city, arriving at the Hall of Governing as it had been christened during Thrasis I's founding as a colony, only to find horrors so unspeakable even the Krieg born Grenadier refuses to speak of them now. But, between the Grey Knights and Sisters of Battle alongside his own humble contributions at that point, which mostly consisted of survival, Ansgar lived to see the end of the hellish campaign on Thrasis I. With literally no regiment to return to, and having become aware of the most secretive of Space Marine chapters, it was decided to induct him into the Inquisition, sending him to serve where needed most.

[User]
"Great... someone's sounds quite unsecure about their skills... You sure that you haven't just finished the academy or whatever it was?" Vala asked with a smirk at Adrainne's hissing comments. She sounded and looked about as intimidating as a ten year old. It made the mercenary just smile all the more, but not really enjoy the situation of having an inexperienced person requesting the reigns of the shuttle. Vala herself was on ships all her life and knew how to fly them, but then again she grew up around and on space vessels. This Adrianne woman knew nothing of it... academy... bah... just a few successful landings on a sim didn't make you a pilot no matter your fail to succes ration." Careful! Those door controls weren't covered in the sims!" Vala chirped as the psyker went ahead and closed hte door towards the cockpit.

 "Well... time for a nap." The merc suddenly said, pulling her helmet and putting it on, before relaxing her hand on the gun on her hip as her breathing calmed and slowed down, turnign more rythmic than before. She was used to ships so the sounds of the engines or idle chatter wouldn't really wake her up.

[Assistant]
The shuttles cockpit lit up with soft azure lights as Celestian Andromedai's hands traveled across its numerous controls and interfaces, preparing it for immediate departure. The doors to the shuttle quickly shut themselves and with in a moment's notice, they were airborne.

Peering through her visors HUD that had now connected itself to the shuttle, Celestian Andromedai responded to Adrianne's request to fly with a simple but stern sounding "No." followed by her flipping a switch next to her that opened the door that lead from the cockpit into the passenger compartment. "Don't cause me any trouble Adrianne, just stay seated and do your job as the co-pilot." By now, the shuttle was heading towards the large city in the distance.

"Attention retinue, once we arrive at Valencia, your orders are to depart from the shuttle immediately and follow behind me. Keep your conversations and the volume of your voice at a bare minimum, I won't suffer fools or stupidity while at the chapel."

Suddenly, the voice of yet another Sister of Battle came over the shuttles coms inside of the cockpit. "Inquisitorial shuttle number three eighty three, you are clear to land at pad (C-21) Crews are standing by for your arrival." Celestian Andromedai spoke into the microphone that was built into her helmet and responded, acknowledging the information that she had just been given. "Affirmative, will arrive in thirty seconds at designated docking pad."

The shuttle would drive sharply into the city before leveling itself out and coming to an abrupt but gentle stop upon pad (C-21) The doors to the shuttle would open with a soft hissing sound as Celestian Andromedai unbuckled herself from her seat and quickly made her way out of the shuttle and onto the metal floor.

Around them was the massive, lavishly decorated Sister of Battle structure known as the chapel. From where they had landed, the retinue could see a large number of other aircraft parked around them in the hanger, as well as an incredible amount of personnel going about their own business.

As Celestian Andromeai departed from the shuttle, another high ranking Adepta Sororitas swiftly made her way to Andromedai, giving her a crisp salute. The first thing the retinue would notice about this newcomer would be that her armors shading and coloring matched Andromedais but the armor itself was quite different. "Sister Seraphim Superior Solares, it is good to see you again. I am glad you will be joining us on our assignment." Solares nodded her head and motioned for all of them to follow her with three words, "Same, follow me."

As the group walked, Celestian Andromedai noticed they were heading towards a large elevator that would bring them down to where ground vehicles were stored. The large glowing sign that hanged above the entrance to the elevator gave that away. "I have acquired a Rhino for us that we can use in the city, it's not a rare sight to see them driving through the streets at times so we should be able to move about with little suspicion." Said Solares as she stepped onto the elevator and waited for the rest of the group to join her. Once they had, the elevator quickly descended to the designated floor where their transport was waiting for them. "Alright, everyone get in, someone take the armored turret position on top while Solares and myself handle its controls."


[System]
Gender: Male

Age: 23

Birthday: December 7

Blood type: O-

Height: 6'4

Weight: 170 Ibs.

Likes: Fellow Black Egrets, proving himself to those who doubted him, the Canopy Kingdom and it's royal family, guns, women that are way out of his league, rock and roll music.

Dislikes: Criminals, people with a lack of respect, anyone who shows him up, anything sticky.

Parasite/living weapon: None. Just uses the Black Egret standard issue MP40, Luger P08, and Model 24 grenade.

Appearance:

Blockbusters:
1. Boom Baby - Scott throws one of his grenades after shouting "Boom baby!". Does mild amount of damage, stuns opponent for one second, and throws them back a few feet.

2. Hasta la vista, baby - A fellow Black Egret pulls up in a motorcycle and gives it to Scott before running off. Scott then drives towards his opponent and grabs them by their collar before throwing them in the air and unleashing an entire magazine from his MP40 on them. He then drives away before turning back around and crashing the motorcycle into them. Does moderate amount of damage.

3. Overkill - Scott calls in a squad of fighter planes to make five strafing runs toward his opponent. Each strafing run will also throw his enemy into the air. Does extreme amounts of damage.

Bio: Scott's parents both worked for the Black Egrets, so it was only natural that he would join them himself. As soon as he turned eighteen, Scott volunteered for service. It was during his first few days at boot camp that he met his best friend Liam MacTaggart. The pair became fast friends, as they shared very similar interests and world views. The only difference between the two was their confidence. Scott often second-guessed every decision he made, even though it more-often-than-not the right decision. Liam, on the other hand, would be able to quickly figure out what needed to be done and then do it. This allowed Liam to ascend in rank with less struggle than Scott.

Rumors have spread from the intelligence division of the Black Egrets that the Skull Heart might have resurfaced. Seeing this as the perfect opportunity for them to gain recognition among the higher-ups, if the rumors are true of course, Scott has talked Liam into teaming up to search for the weapon of mass destruction.

Currently, both Liam and Scott are the Black Egret's equivalent to the rank of Sergeant. While Scott is single, he helped play wingman for Liam several months ago and is proud to have helped his friend meet the woman that Liam now calls his fiancée.

[User] Ash perks up, having been absent mindedly eating for Gale's explanation "Yeah, although I've never really met another Gigan myself, I've mostly been around Ferals and Elves," the Gigan explains "I think I've never actually seen a fellow Gigan before."

[Assistant]
Gale nodded before wrinkling her nose, the sudden smell of new people within the restaurant causing her stomach to do flips. She bit her purple lower lip and tugged on her bat ears angrily. "That smells like..." she snarled to herself, tapping her nails on the table almost in a frenzied manner. "That can't be!" she screeched angrily inside of her head, feeling like she was about to go over the edge. It was the exact same smell from so long ago, the exact same one. He knocked, she opened, her parents were dead, he said. "It's...city scum," she growled harshly, ripping her bandana off so that she could direct her red pupil in the newcomers' exact direction. Though she was blind, the restaurant was already mapped out in her mind, and due to how long she'd been here to experience the obstacles, the obstacles around her had already been mapped as well. These two entering the area stuck out like a pair of sore thumbs to her, so it was easy to pinpoint where in the room they were.

"Ash," she hissed, almost clawing at her friend's shirt sleeve, "we have company." Gale took another sniff as her blind eyes stared at the door for a few moments, flattening her ears just like before. "Not only is it city scum," she began silently, "but they're Egrets. That smell is all too familiar, I know who they are." As she struggled to contain her contempt, a soft voice echoed inside her head, "Your blood is boiling."

That was a voice she hadn't heard in a few days. "Brandy, is that you?" she wondered, smoothing her purple pompadour as she did so. "It's me," he replied back in a monotonous tone, filling her head with a jarring static. "Don't do that static noise, it's hurting my ears," she snapped through her mind, to which the sword responded by turning down the noise. "Now?" it questioned, and she visibly winced as the weapon's connections became almost overwhelming. "Stop!" she ordered, and Brandy obeyed. "Not yet, I can't rush out right now," she explained, feeling bad for how rude her last remark sounded. "I'll be here," it replied calmly, the static growing softer and softer. "Sorry for the noise," it replied in an apologetic but soothing tone. Gale had relaxed a bit hearing her weapon's reassurance of its presence, but she had most certainly not forgotten what riled her up in the first place. She had to think of a way to chase them out, but this was not her family's house from all those years ago in which they chased out whomever they pleased.

No, it'd probably be much more complicated than that.

[User]
"WE ARE BEING WATCHED."

"Shush Marionette, no one could really see us, or even bother to look up."

Reaching the alleyway, she quickly slid down a fire escape ladder to the pavement below, landing just behind the couple with nary a sound. It helps that the din from the main road still reached here, masking any noise her good leather shoes made. Taking out one of those expandable police baton from her belt, Juno walked leisurely to the bodyguard's back, and gave him a solid whack on the nape with the baton. The lady looked upon her bodyguard collapsing with surprise, barely able to register that he had collapsed, before she too was knocked out cold.

Juno raised her baton for a moment, eyeing the both of them to make sure they were really unconscious. Satisfied that it was so, she started rummaging through their person. Judging from that man, he would have given her a fair amount of trouble had he put up a fight; more trouble than the mugging was worth.

"And done. We can't have the steak-"

"WHY WON'T YOU LET ME EAT STEAK?" came Marionette's muffled voice from the bandaged hand.

"-but we certainly can have the cheesecake in one of the cafe nearby."

"THAT PLEASES ME."

[Assistant]
As Scott and Liam waited for the waitress to return to take their orders, Scott noticed through his peripheral vision that one of the other diners was staring at the two of them. He started searching through the several pouches on his uniform and pulled out three t-shirts, each with the Black Egret logo on them, and leaned over to the girls. "Here ya go, miss," he said as he placed the shirts on the corner of their table. Usually, just giving citizens a souvenir would get admirers to stop gawking at him. He didn't give enough attention to the girl to notice that her look was not of admiration, but of hate. Liam hadn't even noticed the other diners though as he was paying too much attention to the menu, something Scott always found strange since Liam always ordered the same thing every time.

"Alright, Scott. Seriously, what's the plan?" Liam said without even looking up from the menu.

"Plan? We don't need a plan. We're us. We just wait for more information. Keep our ears to the ground and all that. I'm sure we'll find a lead or something soon," Scott responded.

Liam sighed with disappointment. "You know what's going to happen if you don't come up with a plan. You'll start second-guessing yourself at the most inopportune time and our chance will pass us by."

"Well do you have anything in mind? All we have to go on is confirmation of its existence."

Liam gave Scott a questioning look that said everything Liam was thinking: "Confirmation? Really?"

"Fine, not exact confirmation, but my point still stands. You can't think of anything better."

Liam sighed in defeat before rising out of his seat a bit to look for the waitress. Scott did the same. Still, neither seemed to notice the enraged teenager only a table away from them.

[User]
In that very moment, something snapped inside of Gale. "A t-shirt," she echoed in her mind, her entire body filling with a surreal rage. That deafening static had returned, indicating that Brandy Station was most certainly ready to take over. "Are you sure you want me to go on?" he whispered, and she felt her impaired eyes burning from the intense, burning light that was finding its way through her pupils. "Do it," she replied, relinquishing all control over her actions and her body to let Brandy take over. While Brandy slowly began to take control, he reached up using her delicate, thin fingers and opened her eyelids manually, revealing that her entire eye had been submerged in a ghostly yellow light. "I'll keep you safe, you just watch," he breathed softly to her despite the fact that she was too disoriented to properly reply.

After he had complete control over her mind and body, he slipped the obsidian sword out of its polished sheath, pointing it directly in the Egrets' direction. "Hello, all," he announced in a voice that sounded vaguely like Gale's, but it had a twist of a garbled male voice and a roaring static accent. "On Gale's judgement, I have been commanded to take over from here," he explained to the soldiers, increasing the light coming from her wide yellow eyes to a blinding intensity. "You may leave peacefully, and I will do no harm," Brandy remarked, tilting Gale's head to the side, "but if you stay and put this girl's life in danger, I will stop your actions indefinitely. An eye for an eye." He turned to Ash and pointed the feral's free hand in her direction. "Stay put," he whispered to her, making sure that it was in a language that only her hidden parasite would understand. He adjusted his host's iron grip on the sabre's handle, raising it in the air. "And don't you dare think of using your filthy guns and tear gas on me," he snarled through her closed teeth, swiping the air with such force that it caused a surprisingly strong wind to blow in the men's direction. "An entity such as me is still affected, but I recover much faster than your average opponent. The repercussions will be great if you dare do so."

Gale's being, entrapped within her own mind, watched through blind eyes and listened to her weapon's words. "Them's fighting words," she echoed through his control, causing her feminine voice to be projected through her own throat. "Please keep quiet, Gale," he warned mentally, "if you distract me at the wrong time, our lives will be in danger. Keep in mind that while I am in your body, I, too, can be killed." Curling up on the floor and hugging her knees against her chest, she slowly replied with a delicate, "Okay," to reassure him that she understood the urgency of the situation.

[Assistant]
Scoot and Liam were just taking a sip of the coffee the waitress had put down before them, when the bat feral from earlier stood up and began threatening them with violence. Not only that, but she showed the sure signs of having a parasite. In unison, Scott and Liam let out a disappointed sigh before taking another sip of their drinks. Scott was the first to speak.

"Miss, you do realize that parasites are illegal don't you?" He pulled out a small notepad from another pouch on his uniform and began asking questions while quickly reading several pages in the notepad. "I'm just going to assume right off the bat that this parasite has not been approved by the Renoir family." Scott looked up from the notepad just to see if she had any reaction to his absolute disregard for her earlier threats. "I'm going to have to ask you a few questions ma'am. First off, I'm going to need your name. Then I need to know what type of parasite it is that you are currently hosting: natural or synthetic. And finally, I'm going to have to ask your friends if they knew of your parasite before now and if they have ones of their own." Scott closed the notepad and returned it to it's pouch. "If we can settle this without violence, I'd much appreciate it. Your actions so far will definitely get you a few years in juvie and I'd hate for them to have to send a young girl like you to prison because of your actions here today."


[System]
S02 - Scott Riley (MercuryHg34) [Sabre Squad Leader / Jack-of-all-Trades]
S03 - Rory Phayne (Rhymer) [Heavy Weapons / Assault Combat]
S04 - Seth Garron (Dragonite777) [Stealth / Reconnaissance]
S05 - James Alexander (Shadowman215) [Decoy / Scout]
S06 - Jax Orion (GhostReaper) [Precision Combat / Survival]
S07 - Jackson Indar (nk1506) [Medic / Tactician]
S08 - Cyprian Sigmund (Light) [Information / Technology]
S09 - Saffron Bridges (SimplyJhon) [Tank / CQC]

[User] Jackson was excited to test his new equipment. He had seen some of the other walk off to test area to try out their suits and equipment. "Ok Jackson, we're ready to test now" A voice said through a helmet mounted microphone. Jackson walked out of the armoury and towards the designated testing area, ready for what they would throw at him. Needless to say, he was disappointed at the small room with a small pile of assorted scrap objects. "What the f...." Jackson began, but the helmet mic cut him off. "Ahem, Jackson Indar, are you ready to commence training?" The feminine voice asked. "Uh, I guess" Jackson said as he retrieved his assault rifle. "Ah, there's no need for that Indar. We know you can shoot a gun. But do take your sidearm and reload it please, just to show you understand it" Jackson obeyed and put his assault rifle back on his back, and instead took the revolver off of his leg. There were two buttons, one on either side. Jackson pressed one of the buttons and half of the barrel pushed out, revealing three chambers for cartridges. Loading them up, he did the same for the other side. "Good. Now I'd like you to use a medikit on yourself. Simply pla-" The pretentious voice began again, and Indar simple rolled his eyes and obeyed. "Yeah, yeah, I know what I'm doing" Jackson said dryly. He placed the tube against his upper arm and pressed the button on top. He felt a small prick as the microscopic needles punctured both skin and clothing, filling him with medical nanites. "Ahem, well then. For your information, medikits can also be used on others, and even through heavy armour. Now they are typically one use only, so used them wisely. But, if necessary, you, and only you, can refill them with your nanites. There will be a replacement waiting for you outside the door. Now, as you probably know, you can change scrap metals into more useful objects. Try making some of your revolver cartridges with the scrap over there. Three will do" The pretentious woman continued. Jackson sighed and approached the scrap, picking up a piece of metal. With a small bit of effort, the metal scrap turned into a battle ready cartridge. "Good job. I'm sure you've been informed of your other abilities. Underwater breathing, healing nanites. You're ready to fight Jackson" The voice finally stopped and Indar was free to leave the room. He picked up the replacement medkit and navigated back to the armoury where he came from.

[Assistant]
James sighed as the others proceeded through their respective training courses, then the female voice popped in his earpiece that linked to his optic. "Alright James, you're up." He nodded quietly and stood up, proceeding to his respective training area.

First off there was your basic firing range, simple enough, he strode to a booth and slapped a mag into his SMG, grasping the foregrip and pressing the stock into his shoulder. "The SMG is calibrated already, just need to get data on you." After that, targets began popping up, each one taken down with tight focused bursts. Some targets moved slightly, some dived for cover. Each one got picked off quick, and soon the range was empty, his clip included. "Grab your shotgun, that needs to be tested." He nodded and strode back to the door, then turned toward the next range, only to see a holo jump out at him. Quick as a wink he flicked his shotgun up and squeezed the trigger, blasting the target with buckshot, though when it hit the wall, it burned through the metal. "Thermite ammo...Nice." He said quietly, the voice popped up again, with a cockier tone. "Like my trick?" He shook his head and sighed, this one thought they were witty? "Not really, pretty boring." He smiled in his rebuttal, waiting for her to be offended, but she didn't. Instead she ushered him to a room with drones and stationary targets. "Take a charge and jack one of the drone turrets here, then order it to take out a target, then make it destroy itself." He nodded and slapped a charge on the closest turret, stepping back as he remotely detonated it, and watched as nanites seep into the machinery, slowly taking it over as the info of the turret popped into his HUD. "Freaky shit.." He thought aloud as he watched the final processes be under his command. "Alright, lets do this shit." He ordered it to destroy the targets, which it did, but when it shot the turret.

The turret registered as friendly after the first shot, the nanites had coated the ammo and now act as a virus, infecting the machine it attacks. "Impressed?" the female voice asked, rather proud of herself. He nodded and chuckled "Color me impressed miss, that's fucking amazing. Even in college this shit was just a theory." She replied smoothly with a curt "Yes, but now we need to see how it works on moving units, don't worry, nothing will try and kill you." In his thoughts were the words: 'That is reassuring..' he sighed and proceeded forward as he saw a large tank-like drone (envision one of the drones from Black Ops 2). "Just place a charge." He did so, placed a charge, detonated it, soon he had control of this as well. He then ordered it to move, he had to sigh of boredom. Primarily since he was used to thick jungles and every day being a risk. "Soon you'll be in-field 05, just be patient, now command the drone to move and shoot." Using the interface he had in his optic, he did so. Though the machine didn't fire, instead in informed him it lacked ammo. The voice came up again. "Alright, thats good on interface testing, your personal drone is in the next room, use your retinal interface to take over the drone and see the room." She lied, he was watching the armory, everyone registered as friendlies on the drones FFID software. Then he heard the sound of holo footsteps, and immediately hid behind his larger drone. "Use one of your Seeker Mines to handle these holograms." He nodded and rolled it towards the noise, only hearing the thump of it launching, and the miniature explosions from its cluster bombs hitting the ground. "Alright James, you're good. All data calibrated." He nodded and returned to his allies, impressed with what was available, and how quick his interface went on and off.

[User]
Walking back down to her locker after finishing her training session Saf almost bumped into Sgt. Garron. "Whoa, sorry I didn't..." She started to say, holding her hand up by way of apology. Immediately her suit took over, projecting a shield wall forwards and pinning Seth back against the rack of guns behind him. For a moment Saf didn't know what was happening, before recognising the golden yellow glow which surrounded her own suit being created in front of her.

Gentle lowering her hand she watched the wall fade into nonexistence before bending down towards where Seth lay crumpled on the floor, "Sorry about that too... I guess these suits will take a little getting used to." She said with as friendly a tone as she could, holding her hand out and offering to help her teammate back up onto his feet.

[Assistant]
Seth didn't notice 09 walk by, but was going to wave off her apology. He wasn't able to due to the wall of energy her outstretched hand created, which, due to the force of its creation, pinned Seth against the weapons rack with his feet an inch or two off the ground. Once the female teammate realized it was her suit that had created the hard place that pinned Seth between it and the rock that was the weapons rack, she made it disappear with a releasing gesture. Once gone, Seth fell to the ground, catching himself on one foot and one knee. He was still getting used to the lack of nerve endings on his feet bottoms, or he would have stayed up on his feet.
 Interesting, gesture-based restricted energy fields. Useful for defensive and offensive tactics. Exponentially so for defensive, yet innovative uses may create more offensive possibilities. Note made. 09 seems to offer help and friendliness, which may just due to the fact that I haven't said anything towards her, forcing paranoia of possible negative feelings. Previously noted to keep her in a positive mood while outside combat to avoid possible battlefield quarrels; therefore, accepting her help and reciprocating positive attitude towards her would be most beneficial to avoiding possible future volatility.
 After deliberating and rationalizing, while feigning impact shock, Seth clasped his hand on the woman's forearm and used his own strength to get up, releasing once he regained balance. "Agreed." Nodding with a slight, forced smile, Seth checked his person to make sure nothing fell out, namely his boot-knife. That's all he saw as necessary to reply to 09's talk of the calibration of the self-to-suit integration. Small talk didn't interest him, but analysing the rest of the team's post-calibration conditions would seem to be priority, as there would be hurdles to overcome with having suits that acted as though they were exoskeletons for each person, enhancing their natural abilities further than the augmentations done on them have. Remembering the pores on his neck and the fact that they'd put a gauze pad over them post-operation, Seth lowered his suit's neck line to take off the gauze and test out his new breathing abilities. After sliding the neck line up, he was able to breathe without inhaling from his nose or mouth. After a few moments of consciously switching breathing patterns around, he was able to balance the pore-breathing and nostril breathing, causing almost no noticeable breathing noise from him. Almost completely silent when standing still and moving, with his feet made to make as close to no noise as possible.

[User]
After helping Sgt. Garron to his feet Saf was a little unnerved by his unnatural smile and quickly turned her gaze away glancing down the row of lockers at the other Sabers before turning back to the strong silent one in front of her, "So, what toys did they give you?" She asked as Sgt. Garron picked at something on his neck.

As she waited for a response something seemed... wrong with the former sergeant, and for a moment Saf couldn't quite place her finger on what it was, but suddenly it dawned on her. "Hey, are you alright?" She asked, her voice worried as she reached forwards and took hold of Sgt. Garron's arm, "Did you stop breathing or something?"

[Assistant]
Seth cocked an eyebrow and pulled his arm from 09's grasp. "Breathing pores: allows near-silent breathing." Deciding that it's courteous to continue to answer her question, Seth adds, "synthetic foot pads: silent steps when barefoot. Seventy-percent nightvision mode. Chameleon camo function in suit. ... Yours?" Getting through everything with minimal wording, Seth figures it's customary in conversation to ask the other about a subject with which each can describe, list, or otherwise talk about. This is the most interaction Seth has had with a live female since before his right brain shut down.
 Interesting. Compassionate towards teammates, even though volatile. Not afraid to cause pain nor relieve it. Very interesting dynamic. Or simply trying to gain favor after the events in the briefing room. Should keep an eye on emotional levels throughout the training mission. Find high and low points and their causes. Seth nods at 09 before turning and joining the others who have finished their self-suit integration calibration.

[User]
Lifting her arms Saf activated her shielding and her blades, giving Sgt. Garron the full light show. "Protective shields and what I think are variable-yield emitters in the gauntlets. I'm still getting a hang on those." As she explained the Warrant Officer tried imagining different sized blades and to her delight the long sharp beams shortened and widened, changing from what she thought of as lances to machetes and finally to shovels.

When she tried to pull them back further a gauge suddenly appeared on her HUD and the gauntlets whined for a moment before sending a wave of force up into the ceiling, leaving a noticeable dent in the armoured plating there. "Okay, and they can be overcharged to act as some sort of recharging ranged attack." She said, watching as the gauge slowly began to shrink.

Saf tried to activate her blades again but the emitters just glowed weakly for a moment before cutting out. "Gotta be careful with that though, seems it breaks the blade emitters at least for a short while, there's a gauge here that seems to be indicating the recovery time." Saf tapped at her faceplate to indicate to Sgt. Garron what she was talking about, as she knew the HUD was probably an internal projection not visible to others. "There's also some sort of rainbow strength gauge over here," She continued, moving her hand to the other side of her helmet, "Which I think is something to do with the shielding. It flickered slightly while under constant attack by six training turrets, but I've no idea how much of an indication of actual shield strength."

Turning to look over Sgt. Garron's shoulder Saf called down the room to the Sabre standing at the locker beside hers. "Hey, Dr. Sigmund? You said earlier you were involved with the creation of these... systems," She said, waving her hand down the front of the top-of-the-line, form-fitting, technological marvel of a cybersuit, "I was just wondering what the maximum protective power the shielding on my suit could withstand? In terms a soldier could understand, if you can."

[Assistant] "Well, the short answer is 'a lot.' More so than the rest of us, actually." The doctor responded from the front of the testing course. He, alongside Scott, were already used to the suits. His voice echoed through the helms of all the Sabres as he spoke through radio. "Each suit was designed to compliment your strengths while covering your weaknesses. The capabilities of offense, defense, mobility and utility appropriately vary among all of us to begin with, and so too should any equipment you use."


[System]
Appearance:
Size: 5'10", 140
Physical Shape: Athletic. Brian isn't fat, but he isn't skinny either. While he is muscular he isn't bulky, nor is he in anyway top heavy(infact he has more lower body strength). After years of running from trouble, navigating through alleys and across roofs, he has developed the perfect flexible body for parkour style movement and the occasional gymnastic feat of luck.
Age: 27
Personality: Prefering to keep things low key Brian hates any kind of bully. He doesnt get overly emotional about much, except seeing others get hurt in which case he will usually drop all sense of logic to try and help. Always approaching zombies with patience and precision Brian has a tendency to take his time, making sure to be as quiet as possible.For example: if there was a building to clear Brian would go in from the roof first, climbing the fire escape to the top and slowly making his way down room by room. This way only he was in danger. He likes to think of himself as a good samaritan - a gentleman.
Occupation: Criminal, Brian was a small time thief who stole from rich families homes and gave the money/valuables to the kids of the orphanage he grew up in. He was in prison when it began, a guard he had come to be friends with set him free.
Equipment:
Sweats and trainers.[hider]  Black trainers, grey sweats.
Semi-elastic long sleeve shirt.[hider]
Grey hoodie [hider]
Pocket bandolier around left side chest [hider]

Inventory:
Water proof Sleeping Bag strapped to back-pack.
One small cooking pan, two 1/2litre water bottles, spare clothes and a hatchet.
A Map of the city and a few packets of food (imperishable).
A toothbrush and towel.Crystaline anti-perspirent.
A wallet with a no money in it, only an old picture of himself and friends.
Assortment of various stolen jewelry.
Weapons:
Pistol with 3 extra magazines.
[hider]
Improvised spear.
[hider]
Concealed flip knife
[hider]
Background: Growing up an orphan was hard for Brian. While he made some close friends he was also bullied persistantly at his school which would lead to fights. This went on for years until one day (after he heard that his friend had just been adopted) Brian had had enough and didnt even give the bullies a chance to throw their first insult before he threw his first punch. After knocking one clean out and leaving the other two bruised and bloody Brian was given a weeks detention, which gave him time to 'think' and to heal his own wounds.

Realising the system was against him already, he set out to balance the odds, and began to find other bullies from other schools - teaching them a lesson. Finding that the rich were too rich, Brian would steal from various houses around his area, minor things at first. All through his life he moved from place to place stealing as he went. He fell into a dark circle for a few years, a group of less than kind men, who didnt just steal but killed. Brian has nothing to thank them for except a generally good knowledge of fire arms and blades.

With that behind him Brian had returned to his home, settling down in a hotel room which he kept modest and clean, paying his rent on time so as not to be suspicious; giving what he didn't need to the orphanage he had grown up in. When he was pulling a second job on the first house he had ever hit, (thinking they were still as easy a target as they were) turns out the sneaky shits had installed a fancy security system. After a close escape and an over-roofs chase Brian had no where else to run, so snuck the jewelry he had stolen into the hidden section of his bag and gave himself up.

He had been in prison for around 5 months when it all began, after a few days some of the policeman along with some civilians barricaded themselves into the station. Freddie, a guard he had become friendly with set him free to go and find the group some food and water. When Brian returned the whole place was empty with no sign of a struggle except for a few drops of blooding leading into the jail cells. There he found Freddie, a zombie, feasting on one of the inmates Jake. Taking the gun from the compartment under the main desk, Brian shot Freddie pointblank and then Jake for safety. Quickly taking the flip knife he knew Jake had hidden on him, he escaped just in time, before the zombies the shots had attracted fell upon the station.

[User]
Metropolitan,
Atlanta, Georgia
United States of America

Tori had woken up early in the morning, a habit she had picked up after Ben woke her up so often in the morning. Though she felt exhausted from hours of walking the day before, Tori knew that the New World had no place for exhaustion. Exhaustion was the thing of the past now like refrigeration, microwaves, and even printed news. Tori couldn't even remember the last time she heated food up over something which wasn't a fire. Hot water was also something she missed on a day to day basis. Tori and Ben had been lucky that the water was still running, at least for now. Then again, in the boiling heat of summer cold water was better than nothing. If only they could find a supply of water which could be trusted to be pure then they could have enough water to stay in a single area.

Ever since the infection had arrived Tori had doubted that any open source of water, including opened bottles she didn't open, could have been contaminated by a corpse or an infected which had been dumped there after being believed dead. One could never be too careful when it came to the spread of a virus. Bottles of water were rare to find since the majority of them were looted by those looking to get the upper hand when it came to survival. In the end, Tori decided to play it on the safe side rather than risking an infection from open bottles. She had even decided to bursh her teeth only one a week to save water.

Tori had taken to working out twice a week, mostly doing squats, leg lifts, push ups, and sit ups. A weak survivor was a dead survivor Tori told herself every time she began her work out. If you can't run from the infected, then you would die. Strength is key in securing one's own hideout or protecting yourself. Tori's workout wasn't as intensive as Ben's was, considering he was more use to a constant workout than she was. But, Tori had been improving since she started three weeks back. Now she was sure she could run a mile in under ten minutes and life at least fifty pounds. For Tori that was a good enough improvement but that didn't stop her from working out. She couldn't let herself rely solely on Ben for protection and carrying heavy items any more. She wanted to pull her own weight and Tori sort of meant it literally, though that would be difficult.

The apartment's central room gave off a dull light,what light came through the blinds that is, from the early morning sun and Tori could tell that Ben had still been awake before her. The sound of the shower ending meant that it was safe enough to enter so Tori crossed the room and opened the door to where Ben had decided to sleep. Tori was astonished to find a shirtless Ben standing in the middle of the room. She stood still in the doorway and Ben mentioned several areas where they could look for some supplies. "Uh, yeah. All of those places seem like good places to scavenge. If we find anything in the McDonald's, it is likely to just be water and spoiled for so we shouldn't stay there too long. The convinence store probably still has something but we should be careful going there. Gotta make sure nobody's living there. The pharmacy probably had all the basic things looted such as bandaids, pain pills, and et cetera. But we need to get medical supplies anyway." Tori said to Ben as she focused her thoughts on looting.

"Actually, now that you bring it up, that map and key I found the other night when we came here probably would provide some supplies but we gotta be careful there. It's a long walk up to the area indicated on the map and we would have to pass through some formerly populated areas. Plus, it might already be looted for all we know. If we ever find more people that we trust we should go there and check though." Tori said as she pulled the map out of her pocket and laid it down on the table. The circled street was north of where the pair was now and, though going further north would probably allow them to find supplies, it would also pass them through some serious areas where infected probably roamed. Plus their food supplies were running low so leaving the area could be dangerous. Tori folded up the map and stuffed it back into her pocket before leaving Ben's room to grab her bag and weapons. "I'll be waiting for you at the bottom of the stairs Ben so hurry up!" Tori called out after having moved the dresser out from in front of the door. She walked silently through the hallway with her machete in hand and went down the stair well where she waited for her partner.

[Assistant]
Olivia was at the lobby of her condominium complex when she came across a rather startling scene. She heard the throaty roar of a powerful engine, and vehicles meant people. Moving towards the glass windows, she saw the source of the commotion. The engine belonged to a luxury sedan, which she recognised as an Audi, from the logo on its rear. The car was black, with its windows tinted. The sound of brakes being applied suddenly drew her attention to the obstructions that lay on the road, several derelict cars and a whole mess of the infected. These were the common slow bunch, which she referred to as the walkers. The car stood there for a short pause, before one of the front passenger door opens, and a rather burly sized man stepped out of the car. He was dressed in a fancy suit and tie, complete with a black trench coat. He walked over to the part of a car blocking the road, and began pushing it away.

Unfortunately, the loud hi-pitched protest by the offending car drew a lot of unwanted attention from the walkers. In response, he pulled out a silenced carbine from his coat, and starts planting head shots in them one by one. But the commotion of thuds brought on by the walkers hitting the ground, soon brought along more of the infected in the road. Sensing that their friend needed help, the rest of the doors of the car opened, and more men exited from the vehicle, all dressed identically like the first men. Two of them took out silenced rifles, while the third one took out a silenced pistol.

In hardly any time at all, the entire street was cleared of infected, and the men pushed the car out of their way, heading back to the car and it sped away, leaving the corpses of the dead in their wake. That was great, she thought to herself, at least she had a safer route to the supermarket now. Exiting the complex, she began the trek towards the boarded-up supermarket a short distance away. Hopefully she would be able to find something of use there.

Upon reaching the location of the supermarket, she noticed that it was a lot larger than she remembered. Olivia then went around scouting around the perimeter of the building for another point of exit. You never knew when they would come into handy, especially with possibility of encountering the infected everywhere. She noticed that most, if not all of the windows were boarded up, with the exception of the main door. Eventually, she found another exit at the far right side of the building, with a ramp leading up what was possibly the delivery bay, where vans and trucks had delivered the goods when the world was still normal. Any presence of boarding was absent as well. Satisfied that they were more than one places to escape from, she unsheathed her machete and open the grimy and dusty doors to the abandoned supermarket, stepping into the premises.


[System]
Age: 21

Race: Human

Sex: Female

Appearance: Brandy has lightly tanned skin, dark brown hair just below her shoulders. She is about 5'5" tall, slender build, green eyes and a scar above her left eye. She is book smart, but lacks the necessary survival skills to travel the Wasteland on her own. Even though she is good at constructing and creating things, she's accident prone.

Skills: Moonshiner and a handywoman/carpenter

Personality: Brandy is friendly, and kind. She tends to blab about the things that she has read in her pre-war books. She is a big dreamer, fueled by the books she reads. She has been relatively coddled, therefore leaving her naive to many things, and also because she longs to see the new world to resemble what she has seen in books and other prewar literature so she overlooks many negative things if the wasteland.

Weapons & armor/clothing:  .22 pistol, 12 gauge pump shotgun. No armor, Brandy wears summer dresses or tan work boots, khaki shorts, pants and various tops and a dirty red baseball cap. She wears black framed reading glasses the majority of the time, though she is only slightly farsighted.

Occupation: Brandy has a small copper still that she uses to brew her Papa's Potion moonshine. She had a toolbelt filled with various tools for handy work.

Faction: None, but she has done odd jobs for the Minutemen and their communities in order to get by.

Backstory: Brandy and her brother Ricky were raised by their grandparents, Bob and Cathy, in northern Michigan.

Brandy and Ricky grew up in the family business of distilling their own alcohol, better known as Papa's Potion. Cathy taught Brandy from mostly pre-war books, as she was the homemaker and didn't venture out to much. During the warmer months, Brandy enjoyed working with her Papa repairing and or building new structures around the settlement and surrounding areas.

When Brandy turned 18, her inquisitive nature had her yearning to explore the Wasteland. She had never been far from home at all. Ricky, now 21, had traveled with his buddies and the stories they told only made Brandy long to experience it even more for herself.

At 19 Brandy's grandfather passed away, and her grandmother Cathy told her to follow her heart. Cathy convinced Ricky to let Brandy tag along on their next expedition. Reluctantly, Ricky said he would take her.

When she was 20 years old, it was Brandy's job to set up camp and prepare meals. Other than traveling during the day, Ricky wouldn't let her do much else. He told Brandy when they started getting closer to D.C. That he would let her scavenge with them.

Her lack of knowledge and clumsiness drove Ricky and his friends crazy. One day they tried to teach her to shoot a .22 pistol. Brandy was so jittery wanting to impress him that she accidentally squeezed off a round grazing his leg. Ricky automatically reacted by swinging a tire iron at her. It nailed on the left side of her forehead leaving a large gash and rendered her unconscious. Ever since that day the guys wouldn't let her touch a loaded gun.

Stuck with setting up camp, and bored out of her mind, Brandy would drink the whiskey they had made. Only wrecking her relationship with her brother even more. Eventually Ricky left Brandy in the Boston Commonwealth to fend for herself. She wandered into The Sanctuary and helped the Minutemen fix up the settlement. She was told of an up and coming settlement, Salem, and a couple of the Minutemen traveled with her to Salem so she could rebuild her life, and the new settlement.

[User]
CELESTE BROWN -- Salem Diner - mid-morning

Betty didn't seem to be much for chatting. The young woman had taken to fussing over her hair, leaving Celeste to tap her fingers on the counter and quietly finish her cup of coffee. "I should probably get going, I have an inn to run, after all."

Betty muttered something. Celeste sighed, slid off the bar stool to the floor, and picked up her mug to bus it herself. Just as she plunked the mug into the sink, thundering and shrieking could be heard outside, and getting louder. Celeste pressed herself against the edge of the counter, her eyes widening as she watched a huge deathclaw cross past the diner, chasing something she couldn't see. Betty tore out of the diner, leaving Celeste alone. She thought she heard gunshots and yelling. Suddenly, Betty tore in just about as fast as she'd left, with Steve and a deathclaw on her heels.

Celeste shrieked and wasted no time bolting from behind the bar and further into the diner. She hauled the cellar door open with all her strength and flew down to the floor. "Betty!" Celeste shrieked. "Betty, come on!"

"Go hide!" Steve bellowed from the front of the store.

"BETTY!"

Suddenly a pair of feet appeared at the cellar door. Betty stooped and made her way down.

"Help me shut the door," Celeste called frantically. Betty just stood there, staring at Celeste. "Please! I...I can't reach it and pull at the same time."

Betty turned her gaze to Celeste, her mouth gaping open.

"Come on!" Celeste pleaded, her voice shrill.

"R...right," Betty replied, reaching up and over Celeste's head and easily pulling the door shut. Celeste swallowed and said nothing more. She stood and strained her ears. Sounds of a struggle could be heard just above her head. Thudding, gunshots, snapping. She cringed after every sound.

The fight seemed to be outside the diner, or at least, it sounded more distant. Celeste was not at judge of such things by any means. The sounds seemed to go on for an eternity. Suddenly there was a loud crash above her head, some kind of dull, repetitive noise. Then, full quiet.

Celeste looked at Betty, who still seemed frozen in her fear. She swallowed. "You think it's safe?" she whispered. Betty shook her head, then shrugged. "It sounds quiet. Let's just check it out, and if it's still unsafe, we'll just come back down here. I need to check if I can leave, I need to go back to the inn."

Betty took a breath. "Fine. I'll open the door, but I ain't going out there."

Celeste poked her head out the door and looked around. Shrapnel from broken furniture and fixtures littered the floor from her perspective. She slowly crawled out and kept herself low as she poked her way through the kitchen and to the main room of the diner. She continued to advance slowly. There sounded like there was some activity outside, but nothing like the fighting from before. She crept past the edge of the counter. First, she saw the dead deathclaw. Then, she saw the crumpled form of Steve in a pile against the bar stools.

She started screaming.

[Assistant]
Rick Noel – Salem – Noon

Rick headed towards the museum, where the deathclaw had emerged. It was foolish of him to do so; after all there could be other lingering creatures. Nevertheless, he needed to make sure no more danger emerged from the building. He rounded the corner with his gun ready, thought with a broken stock, and turned into the gaping hole of the old museum. He turned away in disgust, as a foul stench emanated from the building.

He covered his nose with his shirt, but even that was too much. The pack of deathclaws had done a number in there, and it reeked. He leaned against the wall, but from the quick view he got, there was no movement, not that he wanted to double check. However his stomach turned as he say the mutilated super mutant dropped by the deathclaw, with its missing had.

However, the weapon next to it highly interested him. The Gatling laser dropped by this mutie would prove invaluable. After all, this town lacked in defenses and this gun could be converted into a powerful turret to defend the town, or at least an area of it. He went o grab it but the muties hand was tightly wrapped around it.

He tried to loosen its grip but no good. He thought for a bit, and then began to stomp on the hand, over and over again, bones crunched and blood splattered, but soon the weapon was free. He did his best to pick it up but it was heavy. He pulled the fusion core out, and placed that in his pack, and then continued to drag the weapon next to him towards the town. He stopped part way, as he came about a dead mutie holding a combat rifle, with the same stock he used to have. He grabbed it, planning to replace the one on his broken rifle.

The fighting in town had subsided, it sounded as if the turrets in town had been activated. Why they took so long, was another matter. He dragged the gatling laser and placed it next to the diner. He looked at the dead deathclaw that lay there at the old intersection, and rick slowly walked over to it. He checked the rifle he had grabbed from the mutie, and made sure it was loaded as he approached.

He had never seen a deathclaw up front, and this was a rare opportunity to miss. His natural curiosity took hold of him, and he needed to check it out up close. Even as it lay dead on the ground, it possessed a menacing look. He looked at its claw, and squatted to take a closer look. He pushed his glasses and slowly reached for the creature and touched the claw. It was solid, and sharp; felt like sharpened combat knife made of fine steel.

He looked at its horn and how it spiraled up. It sort of reminded him of a drill bit, in this case a highly sharpened drill bit. What terrified him though was its teeth. How many it possessed, all finely sharpened, almost looked like a bunch of knives coming out of its mouth. How in nature such a creature came to be, was beyond him. It seemed like a sick experiment by a twisted scientist, unleashed upon the wastes.

Rick turned towards the diner, when he heard a loud scream. He readied the gun and made his way over but stopped as he saw ace laying in front of church with a pile of wood on top of him, along with the earlier armored mutie he had seen before. He stood there, but decided to check diner first as that's where screaming came from, it could mean there was another small deathclaw running about. He pushed open the door as it lay on its hinges, and it crumpled to the ground. There stood a short woman, Celeste if he wasn't mistaken screaming. Rick looked down and there lay a dead young deathclaw, and another man crumpled on the ground.

He looked at Celeste, and made motion for her to quiet down. He went over to the man, Rick looked around and grabbed a piece of broken glass and placed it by the man's mouth and nose. He watched it fog up, telling him he was still alive. He looked over at Celeste, "we need a plank or something to move him, don't want to pick him up in case he broke anything.


[System]
Call Sign
New Castle.

Age
Thirty-two.

Gender
Male.

Personnel Description
He is focused and listens to other team mates, since he is the leader of the group. He is also knowledgeable of New York City since he was born and rise in it. Javier is a outgoing and humorous guy, but he is also a team player (when it's necessary). His honesty and honour is dependable on the person, if he likes the person he would tell the truth and be honour to him; but if he hates the person, he would lie and dishonour him. Even known he is a outgoing and humorous guy, he cares about people's emotion even if the person was trying to kill him; he knows that we all were human once before the virus came.

Backstory Description
Born and rise in New York City to a second-class family living in the Bronx, Javier always had a hard life with the gangs and drug dealers living in the Bronx. His mother and father wanted to moved somewhere safer but they couldn't found a place. The family was surviving the job losses in the seventies but then at the age of three, his family found an apartment within East Village and moved away from the Bronx. They knew that East Village was where that Stonewall riots happened and the gay community lived, but they didn't care about as it was a lot safer than living in the Bronx again. But then in two thousand one, the September 11, 2001 attacks and he saw the World Trade Center on fire and couldn't think about his mother. Thankfully, she worked on the thirty floor and got out safely hours before the town collapsed. After the attacks, his father and oldest son decided to join the army to fight those who dare to attack America.

At the age of eighteen, he decided to join the army as well, due to her wanting to protect his hometown and follow in his father and oldest brother's steps. He trained for four years until he sent to the Middle East, to join the others in the war against terrorism. He fought within the hot deserts for eight years until one day, his captain and the others were in a small town and they were ambushed. His captain laid dead on the ground and the others were too afraid to take the role of captain, so Javier decided to take the place. He told his men to get out of the town, by going in each building, that would lead to the hills nearby. The men followed Javier as if he was the captain and they got out of the town with only two dead, it was good for someone that didn't train to become a captain. After his actions, the higher ranks took notice of Javier's action and trained him to become a captain and for three years, he was trained to become a captain. But then, he was put in the Strategic Homeland Division (or The Division) as a leader of a group.

Inventory
- Extra rounds for his MP5 and M9.
- Two flashbang grenades.
- Rations and a water supply.
- Standard military equipment.

Unique Item
- Amour, that could bend with the darkness or the night time. Useful only in the night time or in a dark place, if the amour gets touch by water, it will shut down until it's repair.

Weapons
- MP5 with suppressor.
- Beretta M9.

Talents
Javier has the ability to be a leader, with his speeches and his experience in strategy, and he is stealthy person, who likes the silence of the night time and the darkness of space.

Addition Information
His mother, father, oldest brother, and youngest brother were still in New York City, when the virus began to spread.

[User]
Red rubbed her nose on the sleeves of her jacket, the cold making it run. She pulled the slide back on her handgun and confirmed that it was, indeed, still loaded - a process she had repeated at least 18 times while walking down the tunnel. If asked, she would have said it paid to be safe, but in reality it was just a mixture of boredom and minor anxiety that was making her nervous and a little on edge, and the familiarity of the routine calmed her down. Her rifle stayed slung around her back at the time; while it would have been perfectly serviceable in the subway tunnels, she simply preferred her handgun in areas like this, especially since her rifle didn't have a flashlight attached, as it would've weighted the end down and bothered Red to no end. Also, carrying her handgun was easier than the rifle.

Her ears started to feel the sting of a cold draft lazily breezing through the tunnels, even underneath her hat. Eventually, Javiar stopped the group and started to rebrief them on the situation. It wasn't anything she hadn't heard before; New York fell into the shitter and now they're going in alone to pull it back out of the shitter.

Once he had finished and started looking around, a sudden light appeared from within the subway car. Red, following protocol, levelled her handgun at the source of the light and flicked the safety off, but kept her finger off the trigger for now. A soldier appeared, one that looked as though she'd been here for a while already. She took a cue from everyone else lowering her guns and took her aim off the soldier as well, popping the magazine of her handgun out and making sure it was loaded for the 19th time.

The new soldier - whose name was Armond, if her uniform's nametag was to be believed - casually walked into the midst of the group as if she had always belonged, which confused Red. Were they supposed to meet a contact? She didn't quite remember from the original briefings; but then again, that might have been because she fell asleep while they were explaining the mission back at base camp.

"Howdy, y'all," the female soldier said in a noticeable accent, before proceeding to ask for some gum. Red, meanwhile, was still staring at the woman quizzically, confused by her presence, before eventually just shaking her head and heading up onto the subway platform, mostly ignoring the new arrival and expecting Javiar to brief her or something. Up until now, they had been upwind (well, updraft) of the platform, but upon getting closer to the tents she noticed an utterly rank smell emenating from within. Having known what a corpse smells like, she pulled her mask on quickly, breathing a deep breath of the stale but breathable recycled air, and opened the tent flaps; surely enough, inside this particular tent was a half-rotted corpse of a man, his clothes in tatters and his scraggly beard somehow managing to hang onto his partially decomposed face.

"We got a dead one. No wounds; looks like a plague victim," she said to no one in particular, her voice coming out ever-so-slightly garbled due to her mask. A cursory pat-down on the corpse showed he wasn't carrying anything on him, not even a wallet. Red mentally lamented the fact that the first thing she saw on the mission was a corpse - it certainly was an ominous omen she wasn't quite happy with.

[Assistant]
"Gum? Yeah, hold on a second," Warren said as he eyed the figure standing before their squad. Command had told them they were going to meet someone on the inside, and unless they were getting the wrong end of a stick, this was their ma- woman. Digging a hand into one of his many pouches, of which already open MRE was pulled out. "It'll cost you though. I'll be taking your hot sauce next time we dig down for chow, ma'am." He threw her the small packet of 'Beechies Spearmint', grinning slightly.

Tracie caught the packet mid air, crunching the half used cardboard wrapping in her fist. She slid the candy into one of her utility pockets. "Thanks, Darling." Tracie breathed behind her, keeping up with the pointman. "If it were five years ago, I might make you call me 'sir'." she mumbled to herself.

Lowering his Benelli, Warren hefted it over his shoulder in a relaxed position as the robotic drone whirred to a halt several feet behind him. He tossed the rest of the MRE back into his pouch as he pulled out the bulky radio off of his back. "I'll go ahead and tell command that you've arrived ma'am. You're Sergeant Tracie Armond, correct? How is it in the city? Is it as bad as they said it was in briefing? Ah, hold on, gimme a moment," he said, triggering a few buttons on the device.

"Command, this is Delta India Victor India Sierra India Oscar November Dash Niner Niner Zero. Yes. Yes, we've established contact with Momma Bear. We're converging on the train platform to enter the city proper. Virgin out." He hung up the call, leaning back and sighing. "Can you believe they make me say out the whole thing? Can't I just say Division proper?" He looked up as Red called out a corpse. Warren felt a little eager to see the first sign of a dead man on the mission, at least to see what the infection did to someone.

Tracie watched as the boy radioed in to command, the march seemed to have stopped, or at least slowed. When he was done on the radio Tracie decided she could answer his questions. "I generally go by Special Agent Armond these days." She trailed off ahead a bit and leaned against the grimy wall. "The city's about as bad as it could get. The civies that weren't killed in the initial backlash either joined street gangs or live like mice. The disease is changing these people, and not just the ones infected with it. The streets ahead are mostly cleared, though. I've been keeping tabs on it for a couple of days. There's an exit up ahead even though the subway entrance is blocked." Tracie's attention turned on the others in the group, she was tired of thinking about the city, and any respite was valuable to her. Unfortuanely, all she found was more reminders of the horrors of the city.

Warren nodded as he pulled the mask on, breathing in the filtered air and walking over to Red once he was satisfied, staring down at the body through the tent. Howard closely followed, sensors on the lookout for anything that moved. "Damn. Poor bastard, you think he was a hobo? Judging by his rot, he probably died quick. Within' a day of it starting. Lucky bastard." Warren nudged the dead man with his boot. "You think we should take a skin sample or wait for someone a little less... oozing?"

Tracie watched the body from behind the young man's frame. "I doubt you'll be able to get anything out of a sample that command doesn't already know. Might as well leave it, kid." She walked ahead, rifle held confidently in her grasp. "Let's get out of these fucking tunnels. Exit's up ahead." she said to the group as she approached the platform edge.

"Good idea. Couldn't have said anything wiser, ma'am," Warren said, in a rather sarcastic tone.


[System]
Nickname: None.
Age: 24
Gender: Male
Appearance: Tall, about 6"3, African American with a strong jaw and dark brown eyes. Always with five o'clock shadow. Has dreadlocks that come to just below his shoulders, which he intends to cut off once he graduates. Full lips, easy grin, muscular. Usually wears a close fitting black tshirt and jeans, and white Jordans.
Ex: Adelisa Davis
Favourite Color: Grey
Favourite music: Rap, Rock, Indie, Classical. He's into nearly everything but death metal and pop.
Hobbies: Reading, drawing and painting, swimming, hiking, video games.
Animals: Great Dane called Merlin
Personality: Charismatic, good at starting conversation and keeping it going. He makes people feel at ease, and is always up to try new things as long as it doesn't jeopardize his chances of graduating law school and going to work at one of the top law firms in New York. Can be impatient at times.
Car: Doesn't have one. He's saving for one, but most of his money goes into rent and the like. This vacation is probably the only one he'll have for a while.
Major: Is in law school, intends to go into corporate law.
Tattoos: None. No piercings, either.
Other: Is so careful about the impression he gives off because prejudice puts him at the disadvantage, he feels. That's why he doesn't have any tattoos or piercings.

[User]
Amelia smiled, happy she could help her friend. The smile on her face was real until Hunter faced her once again. It was heart breaking to stand here before him and her heart and mind pulling her two different ways. Her heart wanted to kiss him, to tell him she still loved him and she forgave him. Her mind reminded her of the pain she went through and that she was best off putting up her wall that she was so good at utilizing to protect herself from hurt. Amelia watched Lila walking toward her room and called out, "Lila, I'll meet you at the lounge chairs. Okay?" And walked out the door after Hunter. Once in the hallway he took a deep breath and let out a soft sigh. "Hunter? Wait, please," She said in a soft, sweet voice.

She waited until he stopped then walked up to him. She stood close to him, closer to him then she had been since before their split. The small of his cologne filled her senses. He was still wearing the same cologne as when they were dating. She would never forget it. She use to steal one of his shirts that smelt like him to sleep in at night. She stood there for a moment with her eyes cast downward, collecting her thoughts. She had so much she wanted to say, but she needed to be careful and not hurt him or her in the process. She let out a sigh and looked up to connect her hazel eyes with his and lost her train of thought again. Suddenly they were so close she could smell the champagne on his breath. Her thoughts melted away and suddenly they were back at the college's winter banquet- dancing slowly hand-in-hand to classic songs, looking into each other's eyes like they were the only ones in the room.

Amelia snapped back to reality, standing in the hallway of a condo, the smell of his cologne and champagne, and tears staining both of their faces. How did everything go so wrong?

[Assistant]
Jareth paced back and forth in his room, shirtless and dripping seawater everywhere, but he didn't care. Out of anxiety, he chewed the already chipped black polish off of his fingernails on one hand while he held his phone in the other. Depression, anxiety, those and a host of many other things came along for a lifelong ride after a childhood spent in the foster system.

High,
 high,
 he would feel so much better if he was high.

No, he couldn't, not now. Instead, he spun around and began digging through his duffle bag until he found his benzos, one of the only drugs in the bag that was actually prescribed to him. He had already popped back two Xanax when the buzzing of his phone caused another wave of panic and anxiety to crash over him. Not only did she read the message, but she responded to it. It was right there, all he had to do was open it, but his fingers shook over the button. This was stupid, he was stupid. It had been two months, they agreed everything would get better if they just moved on.

So just pick your head up boy, and
Walk away
Walk the coolest walk that you know
Cause in a month or two she'll call you
You gotta hang up the phone

But he couldn't ignore the phone, not when he was the weak one that reached out in the first place. She was like a drug to him, and he never could resist a drug that made him feel that good, regardless of the side effects. So, he opened the message and read it. Her words rang truth that spoke directly to his soul, they never could do what was best for them... but it was the last sentence that really had him hung up.

I need to see you.

With trembling fingers, he typed in the address of his condo suite, not knowing that she was only a few walls away. It was a bold move - a foolish, stupid move - but bold none-the-less. But the message was sent. Nothing good come of her coming over here. Not while he was alone. Not if she came alone.

Stupid.

Stupid...

[User]
Lila jumped in surprise when her phone chimed again, and let out a gasp when she read the address to where he was staying. And here again, were the odds playing against her. Out of all the places to stay in this town, out of all the rooms in this condo, and the boys had been assigned 724, the one across from their own. She stood up and was ready to go before hesitated for a moment, knowing that she was probably about to make a big mistake. But it was now or never: here was a chance to shed her pride and bare her soul to the man she so loved.

Lila dropped her phone on top of the bed, slammed the door open and rushed out of the room, but stopped short at the sight of the kitchen counter. Milli and Hunter were gone. Not only had Hunter left behind the champagne bottle, but he'd also left his room key. With a swift movement, Lila snatched the room key and sprinted to the room across the hall from hers, failing to notice anything going on around her. Her nervous fingers trembled as she tried to open the suite's door, making the task somewhat difficult. It was only on the third try when she gained access to the suite 724.

She found Jareth in the only room who'd had the door closed, his back to her. She noticed that he was shaking and holding his prescription bottle in the hand that wasn't holding his cellphone. The sign was obvious: he was having a relapse of his mental illnesses, all because of Lila's impulsive actions. I'm such a monster, Lila thought with tearful eyes. What kind of woman caused more pain to an already broken soul?

Lila ran the short steps separating them and hugged him tightly from behind, pressing the side of his face to his bare back. "JarBear, I'm so sorry!" she told him, her voice cracking. "I'm so sorry for everything. You deserve so much better than me. I'm a heartless, cold-blooded monster. But, I swear to you, no one will love you more than I do. I'm here for you, sweetheart. I'm not going to hurt you. Put the pills down, baby. I need you, Jareth, and I'm so terribly lost without you. I love you so much, more than you can ever imagine."

[Assistant]
Adelisa heard the door slam shut and she jumped from the couch, falling onto the ground. Her eyes were wide and reddened, looking around for the source of the slam. She was now alone. She was always… alone. Adelisa stood up and shook her head, almost like it was easier to just shake off the self-hate than to wallow in it as she had done just minutes ago. She stood up silently and walked into her room, not caring to shut the door.

She had to leave. If she stayed, she would probably try to drown herself in alcohol. Her eyes went to the window and she sighed. The only place she could see herself was travelling the world and creating smiles all around the world, even if she does not smile as much as everyone around her. She softly hummed a song as she started collecting her clothes and packing. All she had to pack were her clothes she changed out of, but she was in a slow mood so it took long enough for her to stop and start singing.

 pulled away to face the pain.
I close my eyes and drift away.
Over the fear that I will never find
A way to heal my soul.
And I will wander 'til the end of time
Torn away from you.

The song was meant for sorrow. It was her way of release, if she couldn't drink she'd sing. Adelisa closed her eyes and swayed.

My heart is broken
Sweet sleep, my dark angel
Deliver us from sorrow's hold
(Over my heart)

Tears fell as the song continued, but it was almost a relief. Her heart fell into the lyrics like a lover losing her other half. In which, it was sort of true. Adelisa lost her lover to his own thought process. She lost him to other people's thoughts. If Adelisa were to sail the same boat he was on, she'd surely jump.

I can't go on living this way
But I can't go back the way I came
Chained to this fear that I will never find
A way to heal my soul
And I will wander 'til the end of time
Half alive without you

She stopped and fell onto her bed. It was the lyrics that made her feel better, but the tone fell into her heart and sank it with it's heavy anchor. She looked out of the window and took in a deep breath.