Member
AntiRpRP
AtomicEmperor
Punished GN
Aeolian
Blizz
Atrophy
FernStone
rush99999
Creative Chaos
Fetzen
Why must pain follow me?Oh shit.
Jasper quickly followed Britney’s lead and covered his mouth and ears, but made the mistake of not taking in a breath before he did so. He felt his heartbeat slowly, but surely, increase as he fought against the surging suffocation sensation in his chest. His eyes scanned around him and noticed that Aryin was busy throwing hands with an invisible enemy, and Lynn had a smile that was filled with more life than any smile he had seen on her face before. They had already inhaled whatever the mist was and Jasper was curious as to what the effects of it were. Was it a sedative, was it a drug, would it make them all easier targets? His chest lurched as he kept trying to hold in the need to breathe, his body fighting his attempt to not breathe in at every second. His heartbeat began to sound in his ears. He did not have long, something must help. He looked at his canvas and began to paint a crude mask. He noticed that 8th Street had them on them and thus was planning to drop whatever this mist was. Jasper knew he did not have long, and every detail would matter yet needed to be done quickly. Eventually, Jasper looked over to Britney and saw that she too was holding her breath. He paused his painting as he pointed down to the canvas and then flashed two fingers to indicate he was almost done with his, and once done he would make her one. He added the final bits of details and then pulled it from the page. It looked like a modern respirator, and simply slid into place and Jasper was able to strap it behind his ears moments before his fight against his body was lost and he was forced to take in a deep breath.
Nothing happened.
Jasper took a series of sharp, quick breaths as he leaned over and placed his hand on his chest. He looked down and saw that the mask had made a good seal with his face, and the yellow lux infusion he did was withstanding the corruptive influences of the rain. It would not hold long, but it should hold long enough to get a mask made for Britney. Yet a familiar voice cut across the pink battlefield. A familiar voice. A welcome voice. The voice of his crush Luca. He called for Jasper, trying to find him through the hurricane-force winds and mist. Jasper looked to Britney and she seemed like she figured out a way to avoid the mist with her abstraction, a literal field of magically enhanced flowers were simply sucking in the mist creating a pocket for Britney to breathe freely. His eyes followed the ground and saw they stretched far away to another set of plants that was pumping the pink mist back out. She was so smart and skilled, and Jasper was incredibly impressed with her resourcefulness.
”Brit, pull everyone you can with your vines back to this spot. I hear Luca out in the midst, I will grab him and bring him back! I will make enough masks for us all to get out of here,” Jasper shouted and got a nod of acknowledgment from Britney who began to pull Aryin and Linqian into the safe bubble.
Jasper took off into the midst in search of Luca. It did not take long for him to find him. Luca was standing tall as he walked through the mist. A few zombies came up to him yet they were no match for his abstraction and they were turned to dust on the wind. He had his own gas mask on, and Jasper wondered where he found one in the middle of the battle before the obvious answer hit him in the face. Carol. After Carol was dropped Luca must’ve rushed over to check on her, and had taken her mask to be able to breathe. A look of fear fell across his face. Jasper knew very well that Carol was his close friend, and if Jasper was the one that momentarily killed her, he was worried that it would ruin any chance they had at a relationship. Luca’s eyes settled on Jaspers's face and he began to stomp his way towards him. A few more zombies tried their luck only to be sent away on the wind like all others before them. Luca was strong, Luca was intimidating, and Jasper knew that an anger that he’d never seen from Luca was heading his way.
”YOU”, Luca yelled as he walked up to Jasper and jabbed a finger into his exposed chest. Jasper winced expecting the familiar rotting sensation but instead, his breath was stolen by the lack of it. Luca was touching him once again, and there was no pain to it. Was he able to control it better when his emotions were high? Jasper took a rushed breath at the thought. Maybe if Jasper made Luca’s life filled with a different emotion, happiness maybe, he could control the Rot like this every day? ”You and I need to talk after the battle….”
Jasper knew the conversation would be rough, and that he had a lot to make up for, but in this moment Jasper was once again with Luca, and touching did not hurt. Jasper quickly threw his arms around Luca and pulled him into a hug, careful not to hug him too hard to hurt the body where pain was the only feeling Luca felt. ”Okay…Okay, after the battle. We will talk. I am just so glad you’re okay.” Jasper felt Luca wrap his arms around his waist and he felt Luca put all his strength into the hug. Jasper was surprised because the hug felt strong, much stronger than he thought Luca was. Something felt different in this moment, in this hug. Jasper pushed these thoughts to the side. ”My mask won't last long, Britney has created a safe spot for us. Follow me,” Jasper reached down and grabbed Luca’s hand and his stomach erupted with the sensation of butterflies once more. Suddenly, the pain and destruction that was brought to his dead friend's home was gone. He was with the one he wanted to be with, he was able to hold hands with Luca without pain once again, and Luca felt like he was stronger and healthier than he thought he was. This day had gotten infinitely better and if Jasper did not have a mask on, everyone would see he was smiling.
A few moments later the duo found their way back to the safe spot. Britney, Aryin, and Linqian were all together now and it seemed like they were all safe and back from whatever high the mist gave them. They all saw that Jasper was holding Luca’s hand and smiled. A new realization set in. Jasper realized that he was finally truly safe to bring out that other side that he had repressed for so long, his chosen family would accept him for his more queer side. Hell, it felt like the coven just had a token straight member so he wondered why he still chose to hide that side of himself from them. He could be with Luca and be accepted without worry of his parents' wrath, and he could be happy with a man for the first time in his life. He was pulled from these thoughts by Britney asking him to make more masks. He looked down at his own and saw it was still standing strong. Jasper knew he was about to busy, and he loved it. He loved supporting the coven like this, providing them with tools to succeed and providing them with his constructs to help them win a fight. Jasper quickly pulled Luca over to a spot away from Britney, Linqian, and Aryin and began to paint.
”I don’t know how the battle will end,” Luca started as he ran his fingers across Jasper’s free palm, ”and I don’t want to wait to say something I have been meaning to say.”
Jasper’s head tilted as he looked away from the painting and to Luca’s. Jasper noticed how perfect his skin looked. It was like there was never a blemish, nor any signs that pointed to a war against acne long since fought. His smile was radiant, and his eyes filled with a life he had never seen before.
”This battle put things in perspective. I know you're straight but I have to tell you that I have had a huge crush on you for a while now and I wanted to know if you felt the same. I know it is putting you on the spot in the midst of a-,”
”YES” Jasper shouted without control, ”sorry. Yes, yes I feel the same…I feel the same,” Jasper took a deep breath as he looked over the Luca in front of him once again. There were no scars. No blood, his clothes were perfect and there was nary a sign of the rots presence. Hell, if Luca had not killed those zombies he would’ve thought that the Rot was already gone. Suddenly, the realization hit. This was not his Luca. His eyes drifted down to his mask. He knew he infused it with his yellow Lux to try and strengthen it against the rain, but what if it failed? What if.. Jasper paused the thought as he smiled. Would it be so bad if this was fake? Luca was healthy, and happy, and had told him that he had a crush on him. Would it be selfish if he chose to stay in this dream if it meant ignoring the nightmare of reality right now? Jasper pondered the question for a minute before his eyes slowly shifted to Britney, Linqian, and Aryin. They were all looking at the two and smiling, yet they were not doing much else. The rest of the coven was in danger, and those three were simply so happy for Jasper finding his happiness and strength to be himself. They were so happy that he was able to find someone as amazing as Luca. How egotistical was that?
”This isn’t real, is it Luca?”
”It could be,” Luca said as he leaned his body into Jasper’s. His fingers twirled Jasper’s chest hair as Luca smiled up at him, ”all you have to do is stay.”
Jasper smiled as he put his painting down. He used his free hand and cupped Luca’s face with his hand. How small his face looked in his hands, how cute, and how perfect this would be. Jasper leaned forward and kissed Luca on the forehead and smiled. Jasper then took a finger and booped Luca on the nose. ”No.”
In an instant, Luca faded back into the mist, and Aryin, Linqian, and Britney did the same. Instead, they were where they were just a few moments ago. Aryin now was celebrating something, both arms up in the air as she danced around and Britney was still struggling to breathe. Jasper looked down at his mouth and saw that the mask had melted a long time ago and the bottom half of his face and the top of his chest were covered in his art. Jasper looked back up at Britney and he ran over.
”Can you make plants that act as a filter for the air? Suck away the mist, it’s so intoxicating.”
“Aryin, what do you say to the critics who feel that you haven’t earned your spot at the top,” a reporter asked from the crowded room in front of her, and Aryin couldn’t help but chuckle. Aryin knew that they deserved to be here and that anyone who said otherwise was simply delusional. She had fought her way to an 18-0 record over her career thus far and she had done so without the use of her durability. Thanks to the marvelous gift that Stormy gave her after they solved those pesky murders all those years ago she was able to compete as Aryin, without worry of tainting her skill by using her inbuilt cheat code.
”I’d tell them to watch the tape. I’d tell my opponent to do the same, she’s weak and I look forward to knocking her ass out within the first fucking round,” Aryin finished as the reporters all broke into a shouting match asking a million questions she knew she would not answer. Her job here was done. People would want to tune in to watch Aryin back up her words in the ring, and that would mean that everyone would know that she was the real deal. That she should be paid fairly for her skill, that she should be the face of this industry, and that she should already be in the discussion for the greatest of all time.
“Are you claiming that you will knock out your opponent in the first round?”
”Oh, you’re right. Let me dumb it down for her. I will fucking knock you out in round one you weak bitch,” Aryin slammed her palm on the table to make the point extra clear.
Once again, the room erupted with conversation and Aryin leaned back in her chair. The road to this point was hard. That much she knew. What exactly was hard about it again? Aryin’s eyes looked up, around to the side, before they fell down to the ground. That was weird, she couldn’t remember any of the struggles that she endured on her way to the top of the ladder. She knew she struggled, her early career was fraught with many nights where she had to sleep for dinner. But she did not remember much more than that. She would need to double-check her posts online, and in her diary. If it was important to remember she would be able to find a way to remember, and right now what was important was being ready for her fight tomorrow. Aryin answered several questions in rapid succession, and she smiled more with each answer.
The press conference was over soon thereafter and Aryin retreated away from the cameras to her hotel room where a good night awaited her. There was nothing that got her pumped for a fight more than a handsome man in bed the night before, and she had found the perfect subject to give her that extra motivation in the fight to come.
Lila felt Vashti’s grasp on her wings tighten as she began to try and rip them from her back. The problem was, as Lila had realized, that the wings were attached very snugly to her back somehow. Instead of feeling like the wings were being pulled out, it felt like Vashti tugged at the entirety of her back. Something was being pulled out and Lila screamed at the pain of it. She needed to find a way to break free of her grasp. Even the two shots fired by Amara did little to push Vashti off her back. Lila knew there was only one way to free herself. She screamed in pain as claws pushed their way through her toes, longer and sharper than the ones on her hand. Lila knew she was the only one who could save herself at this moment. Her wings flashed green several times in a single second before they fully turned on and shone a consistent, vivid, and alluring.
Even through the pouring rain, the green light would be a very visible sight on the battlefield. Anyone who even looked in their general direction would become compelled to grab a feather. Lila knew, somehow, that this glow would be nearly impossible to resist, and emotional fields could only resist the allure for so long. Lila did not know how long it would take for Vashti to break, and she did not know if she had enough time before something terrible happened to her back. Lila began to kick back with her now-clawed feet, cutting and gouging wherever she could reach.
Suddenly, an explosive expansion of pink gas was spotted behind her thanks to her crows. Some form of a gas was coming her way, and she did not know what to expect with it. What she did know was Vashti had a gas mask on her, a gas mask to no doubt make her killing that much easier when everyone could not fight back, and a gas mask that Lila needed to escape this situation. Faster and faster the gas moved towards them, and faster and faster did the urgency of the situation grow. Eventually, Lila knew she had to try and get the mask from her. Lila readied a kick, used a nearby crow to line up the shot, and sent it back towards the gas mask. She grabbed it away from Vashti and pulled it to her front, trying to grab it with her hand as she took in a deep breath of the pink mist.
Lila coughed as she suddenly fell to the ground. The coughing continued for just a second before she rose to her feet, and turned around to watch as the entirety of St. Portwell burned in front of her. It was dark out, and the vivid colors of the fire shined brightly into the surrounding area. The sound of distant gunfire could be heard, and Lila could see her crow swarms above the city. Occasionally, a crow would use their abstractions sending fire, water, and lightning onto the streets below. The more they used their abstractions, the less gunfire could be heard. Lila chuckled as she looked around the area. There were several bodies on the ground and she could no longer recognize who they were after the battle. Were they members of her old coven? Did that matter?
Lila knew that after her friends were murdered one year ago today she would make the world regret it. Lila knew that after she fully embraced her power she would become a target unlike any before, and so she did something that no one expected. She struck first. The first to fall was the local PRA, she knew it would be easy to take out the rest after she turned Max. Then, she destroyed 8th street and added their strengths to her murder. And now, only Greenwood and the 317 stood between her and the rest of the world. Something was intoxicating about the power she now wielded. Everyone who was converted to a life of pure bliss as a Crow had added their abstractions to her massive arsenal. Tens of thousands of souls, tens of thousands of abstractions, and that number would grow tonight, tomorrow, and every day to come. Lila looked over to the bodies once more and wondered who they were. Were they members of her old coven? Some of them looked like members of her old coven.
An explosion in the center of the city caught her attention. It was massive, and she quickly pulled all of her crows away from the expanding shockwave. The explosion was magical, someone had used their abstraction to try and slow down her horde. It would only delay the inevitable by a few minutes. Whomever they were trying to protect would soon be brought to their knees. Lila looked up to the sky and smiled as a thousand crows began to descend on the city below in a long, tendril-like structure. She kept her eye on it as second, and then third mass descended from the night sky. A hundred thousand crows finally entered the battle. She wanted the defenders to think they had a chance, it made it much easier to turn them after their spirits were broken.
A headache suddenly appeared and Lila keeled over. Her talons gripped her skull and she nearly screamed but the bright light of the day helped coax the headache away. The Maiden must be trying to break free again. It had been so long since she put a muzzle on the bitch that she forgot what it was like when her icy talons gripped her mind. She looked up and saw that the meadow she was camping in had an unexpected visitor. It was her former coven, coming to check in on her.
“Lila, it’s been too long. You know how hard it is to track you down nowadays,” Jasper asked as he put down a cooler filled with beer.
“The future is ever in doubt, but one thing is for certain. I missed you girl,” Lynn said as ran over and hugged Lila. Lila returned it with both hands and wings.
“I missed you too,” Lila said as she spotted Luca sneaking up behind her thanks to her crows. She let him tackle hug her, his warm hug was amazing after the Rot was taken care of. The small gathering quickly grew in size as the rest of the coven, their partners, and a small army of children belonging to the various members of the coven filled the campsite. Today was a celebration for Lila. Today was the anniversary of when they subjugated The Maiden and freed Lila from her corruptive grasp. It was a long struggle to get to this point, and some days are better than others, but Lila knew that she wouldn’t have to deal with that voice in her head forever more. Still, she wished she could turn her body back to normal. Her hands, chest, and feet were still feathered and clawed and that made existing in the city pretty difficult. And the PRA made it clear that they would take her in if she so much as breathed at them wrong after what she did. It made her weekly checkup with the leader of the PRA a delicate balance for Lila.
Lila looked to the ground and saw the bodies once again as the night sky started to dim as her murder departed from St. Portwell. They were tasked with softening up the cities around them before Lila arrived. Lila knew she needed to move into the city to start the conversion of everyone and anyone still alive there. Lila’s eyes could not be pulled away from the ground this time. She was sure that these bodies were someone she knew.
“Honey,” a voice called to Lynn as she suddenly awoke from her nap.
“What,” Lynn said through a yawn as she pulled herself up from her desk. Her eyes caught the sight of her one year sober chip that she was given last night, and she smiled at the sight. Her body ached, and her mind was still a battleground of emotions but she knew that it was all worth it.
“You ready to head out? Jasper and Sloane are going to be expecting us soon,” the familiar voice responded.
Jasper and Sloane? Something felt off about that still. Lila swore that Jasper was into Luca, but throughout the fight to save Kari from the grasp of the monstrous entity Lynn began to see the chemistry between the two grow. And as it grew, Lynn looked to the future and saw that they actually would end up together. Order and chaos were always a precarious balancing act for a relationship, and thus far they did it with grace. Tonight was the opening night of a new art exhibit that Jasper and Sloane made together, and everyone in the coven was excited to see what new wonders they came up with together. “Yeah, yeah I am. I just dozed off writing in my journal.”
“You’re fine babe, just be down in fifteen okay?” The voice was much clearer now that Lynn was more awake. She knew it very well but the name escaped her lips.
“Of course my love,” Lynn responded back as she stretched. Today was going to be a good day. As Lynn finished her stretch she smiled as she looked down at her engagement ring. The rest of the coven did not know yet, and she wanted to keep it that way for a day or two longer. The last thing she wanted to do was upstage Jasper and Sloane on their big day. As such, she took the ring off her finger and found a chain necklace she could run through the middle. As she finished, she put it on and tucked the ring down into her sweater. Lynn got up from her seat and walked downstairs and spotted Kari putting her earrings in by looking in a mirror. “You look stunning,” Lynn nearly stuttered with her words. Kari was gorgeous, her outfit was gorgeous, and her smile was as well.
“You don’t think it’s too much,” Kari asked as she gave Lynn a quick twirl.
“No, no not at all,” Lynn responded as she walked over and kissed her. Lynn caught her reflection in the mirror and saw just how much she smiled. She was the happiest she had ever been. She was the strongest she had ever been. And she was ready for the uncertainty that her future brought her and embraced her role as the Coven’s first line of defense against possible threats. The so-called ‘Father Wolf’ had made it clear that they lacked an early warning ability as a group, and Lynn quickly developed her skills further once Kari was returned to her. As her powers grew, so too did the accuracy of the future. She had helped the coven thwart several dangerous situations simply by constantly looking forward for them. This was perfect, this life was perfect, and Lynn would not change anything about it.
But she knew it was wrong.
Her smile never faded in the mirror as she hugged Kari even tighter. There was something about this reality that felt fake to her from the moment she stepped foot into it. Her time in the possible futures over the years taught her much about seeing through the lines of a fake reality, and this one was no different.
“What’s wrong babe?” Kari asked as she tried to push herself out of the hug but Lynn held her in tight as tears began to stream down from her eyes. Lynn did not want to leave whatever this was, she wanted to stay in it forever more and live perfect life she’s wanted forever. Just her, her soon to be wife, her friends, and safety.
“Babe, talk to me,” Kari said as she leaned back and looked at Lynn.
“I wish I could,” Lila said as her tears gave way to sobbing, “but I can’t stay here.”
“Why not,” Kari asked with a sad tone, “why don’t you just talk to me?”
“Because they still need me,” Lynn said as she broke down completely. This was everything she ever wanted. And it was a lie. Lynn’s wails began to fill the house. “Because if I talk to you I’ll stay, if I tell you how I’ve been feeling finally I’d stay, and if I stay my friends will all die,” Lynn paused her crying reached a higher point, “the last time you asked me to just talk to you I told you to fuck off and I fucking left and I have regretted it for every second, why the fuck do I have to go through with this again?”
In an instant the illusion broke and Kari, the house, and the ring quickly faded from view as Lynn collapsed onto the ground below. Her wails were loud, but not everyone could hear it over the hurricane that raged around her as she fell to her side and curled herself into a ball on the muddy ground.
