Matt gapped in open fear as the metalic wolf came toward him. Frozen in place he hardly noticed as Daniela began attacking it with bolts of electricity. As Heidi grabbed him reality seemed to come crashing in on him and a visible yellow orange glow flickering as several images seemed to dance acrossed the glow. I shall not fear, fear is the mind killer... He never could remember all of that line. He threw up what little breakfast he had eaten and with that a sudden calm came over him. He was still scared terrified beyond anything he could remember but he would die if he did nothing.
Focusing on the present he took note of the situation. He still held the chain from the door. Daniela was hurting it but not enough yet. Jasper had ones and zeros moving acrossed her skin and her eyes were closed. She must be doing something and it had paused.
Then it hit him. "The doors are metal and that thing is not our objective. Daniela hit as hard as you can we need to get inside and close the doors."
He grabbed Heidi's arm. "We need to get inside." He tried to lead her around the beast. To find an angle to get inside. He only hoped she would follow. Your goal for this excercise is capture the flag. Tabitha's words ringing in his head.
"Only the flag matters!" He shouted as tried to get inside.
"The doors are metal and that thing is not our objective. Daniela hit as hard as you can we need to get inside and close the doors."
"With Pleasure." Daniela said with a faint smile as her hands began to glow even brighter as she concentrated on upping the power behind her attacks. Her eyes began to glow a bright yellow color with electrical energy and the crackling yellow sparks of electricity began to glow brighter and hotter. "You guys might want to work on the door and just an FYI, it's gonna get a bit uncomfortable temperature wise around me awhile. Don't worry though, I'll keep Snoopy here busy." Daniela growled as she launched a massive electrical blast directly at the beast's head and followed it up with another rapid series of blasts that slammed into it's front legs.
She narrowed her eyes at the Mechanical wolf and grinned mockingly at it. "Let's dance, Snoopy."
Before Ronnie made the first move, she spotted someone else step forward. Her attention twisted and viewed Matthew head to the door. He reached a hand out then hesitated. The girl scoffed under her breath at his weakness. Her arms curled into each other while she listened to his statement. The way everyone talked, this class would seriously hurt them. She found it difficult to believe a Professor had the authority to endanger her students to the point of physical injury.
From her observations, Ronnie noticed an unsettling pattern. All the students appeared to know their powers and controlled them to higher levels than herself. A spark of irritation rubbed her wrong. She swallowed down the anger and fear at her weakness.
The dark skinned girl gave Matthew an idle, sideways glance when he finally gathered the courage to touch the door.
Her jaw tightened so not to drop when a woman, someone she guessed to be Professor North, appeared. The Professor leaned over the pad lock as she spoke the combination out loud. Ronnie immediately memorized it with surprising ease.
She took a step forward to enter it, but spotted Matthew place his glove on and do it for her. Exhaustion took him down to the ground with both the pad lock and chain in his hand. A little annoyed by his recklessness, she knew the cautious route had been blown. The doors flew open. Her ears caught the sounds of whirling gears and machinery first. Followed by the heavy clicking of something rushing toward them. Two burning red eyes peered through the darkness of a hallway as a metallic wolf bolted forward.
Ronnie’s breath caught in her throat. This wasn’t real, her logic screamed over and over in her head. She stared at the beast barreling toward them. Any normal girl her age would’ve screamed and ran, but her mind already race past that reckless thought. She fought rather than run. A few pages of her notebook fluttered, but remained fixed to the spiral binding.
As she recover from her shock, things happened faster than she could react. Two students rushed into action. Electrical energy surged from taser-girl’s hands right at the metal wolf barreling down on her. Even if the girl managed to get the mechanical beast to stop, Ronnie doubted momentum would stop. If the girl wasn’t careful, it could crash her.
All the laws of nature seemed to ignore physics. When the lightning directly impacted, the wolf skidded back. The dull, blunt nails scrapped thin lines across the tiles. It twitched then continued its approach.
Meanwhile, nerd girl had gotten to Matthew and began to help him back. If it wasn’t for taser-girl in front, the wolf would’ve mauled them.
From the corner of her vision, green glowed across the last girl’s skin. Ones and zeroes appeared and reminding Ronnie of a computer screen, the type you saw in the movies. The girl rooted herself in place as she narrowed her attention onto the beast. Immediately, Ronnie knew that look. No way in hell she would get the girl to move unless binary wanted to. An action Ronnie thought was insane for obvious reasons.
Ronnie took a cleansing breath. On her release, she let it purge her of all stress and emotion. Don’t think, just do it. She wasn’t weak or helpless, so she needed to stop acting like it. Her hand tightened about her notebook like a shield, even if she didn’t know how to use it. She overheard someone puke then mention the metal doors.
The bot looked like a Terminator version of a wolf. She held doubts about the effectiveness of the doors keeping that thing out. Especially if it had no locks on the inside. With no better solution, Ronnie dashed for the door behind vomit boy and nerd girl.
She timed her run when taser girl zapped her target again. Her attention caught the wolf’s junky movements as it stuttered and twitched. It appeared to be struggling with some unseen force, but Ronnie couldn’t tell where it originated from. She put it out of her mind for now.
When she heard vomit boy state the obvious, she couldn’t help commenting. “No shit, Sherlock. The doors aren’t going to do us much good unless we can lock them.”
Leaving nerd girl to help him, Ronnie took matters in her own hands to reach the door first. She paused long enough to grab the chain from Matt's grasp and scoop up the padlock. Thank god vomit boy didn’t spill his breakfast all over either one. After entering the doorway, she tossed her notebook onto the floor. She struggled to jerk one door closed then wrapped the chain around the handle and prepared the padlock. Her mind scrambled for the numbers in her memory.
“Yo, get your ass in here while taser girl keeps it distracted. Now!” Ronnie didn’t have time to explain the orders she barked.
They either listened or become dog food thanks to their stupidity. As each person came through the door, she assigned more tasks.
“Get the other door ready to shut it. Someone look for all the exits out of this room and find the best one.”
“I know who you are, Una,” Sena replied cordially. Her eyes scanned from behind her glasses at the young redhead. The styling choices were almost hard to look at and the girl’s sudden embarrassment was apparent. Still, it was the closest they had been to one another in her time at the school and the augury sense of familiarity permeated. The touch of their hands affirmed the feeling and while Sena fully expected it, she knew it would take time for Una to understand: It was kinship. However, the mystery would have to be enough for the moment. “Dr. Ashford talks about you all the time.” She said, letting go of her hand gently. “I’m Sena,” She spoke with a crisp professionalism, but the tone in her words was alluring and personable. “I work with him in his pharmaceutical business.” She patted the side of her bag, displaying polished nails as finely well kept as the rest of her ensemble. “I had a few things to drop off for him while he was away, maybe you’d like to join me?”
As Uná shook Sena's hand a feeling came over her. That's odd… Do I know her? Her hand tightened around Sena's as if squeezing a close friend's, firmly saying "Glad to see you here.".
Uná tilted her head. "I could swear…" She shook her head. "Never mind. Poke around in the cottage? Uh yeah!" Trouble followed Uná where she went but she'd been good at avoiding the worst of it in her nearly sixteen years. She nodded looking excited.
They were only a few steps away and Sena’s heels clicked smartly on the stone pathway leading up to the small porch where she unlocked the door with her own key and motioned for Una to follow.
Turning towards the office, the smell of aging books and sandalwood permeated as usual, even without Ashford’s presence. Sena flipped her sunglasses up while her steps reverberated through the property and she nonchalantly dropped her bag on the Dean’s desk as if she owned it. “How are your classes going?” She asked, picking up a small binder at the corner of the desk, thumbing through it briefly as she listened.
Eyes zeroing in on the door the anticipation nearly killed Uná as curiosity as to what was behind it. She was soon rewarded by Sena opening the door and Uná kept her manners and didn't push past. It smells like a posh library! Bet there's books in here that would make Heidi squee.
Turning round Uná saw a very masculine decor and color scheme. Dark woods and rich colors all seemed to flow from room to room. She almost missed Sena's question. "Classes are going well. I started a study group with my bo- my friend. So I've been keeping a 4.0 average." Uná blushed as she said friend.
I almost said boyfriend about Nikki. I don't know if he wants that kept secret or not. Better ask next time. I just kinda thought it was obvious. Uná's eyes brightened as she remembered Sena worked with Ashford. She smiled brightly. "Ms. Sena since you work with Dean Ashford may I ask a pharmaceutical question? Unless you don't 'shop talk' while you're off work."
Sena’s eyes lifted from the page slightly and she smirked at the mention of a “boyfriend” before glancing back down as Una spoke. Like everything that Ashford kept as physical documentation, everything was in a sort of code that only he could read. She wasn’t sure how it was generated or why, but her attention was diverted by Una’s unexpected question and she looked up again slightly quizzically. “You can ask whatever you want.”
Uná started to look around the room, the wealth of information overwhelming so she wasn't concentrating on what she was seeing. At Sena's affirmation to ask, Uná turned toward the woman. "I was given an enhancement to allow me to control my powers while conscious. I wanted to know if it had any side effects and I was hoping maybe you knew since you and Dean Ashford work together… maybe you know about it?" Uná looked hopeful that Sena would know about the drug and that she'd be willing to share her knowledge.
Sena’s eyes narrowed a bit, “It’s an enhancer, but it’s supposed to help you control?” She tossed the binder back on the desk and crossed her arms. “Do you have it with you?”
Uná actually had them on her. She kept them on her because she didn't know what she should have done to dispose of them. Uná nodded and pulled out a plastic sandwich bag from her bra. "Sorry. Safest place for them. I didn't want to flush them just in case." Uná handed over the baggie with about a full week's worth left of the pills.
A look of concentration came over Uná's face. "I stopped taking them recently but...I don't remember why. I just don't know that I want to keep taking them. There has to be a way for me to access my powers without being on meds." Uná looked very determined about accessing her powers.
Some amusement went over the dark haired woman’s face as she watched Una retrieve her medication wrapped in plastic like trash that she carried around. Just looking at the pills daintily aligned at the bottom of the bag caused her to shake her head slightly and she gave a small sigh. “Who prescribed them to you?” She asked, taking the bag in her hand, not even examining them that closely.
Looking over Sena as she examined the last of the pills. Uná still couldn't seem to quite remember why she didn't want them. "Dean Ashford." She remembered that they had worked quite well.
“And you feel better without it?”
"I feel the same. No that's not true. I… something happened to make my mind change in a big way but…" Uná rubbed her head.
Sena pursed her lips and tossed the bag in the waste bin. The same one that Ashford had used when she had confronted him Sunday morning. A place where she knew he would find it. Acting was not her strong suit, but the truth in her position made the words come easier. What she wanted to say, she knew Una wasn’t ready for, however the opportunity that had been offered up was one that could not be refused. “You don’t need them,” She said plainly, looking the younger girl in the eyes, “If I tell you something, can you keep it a secret between us?”
"Two hallways either side of reception," Heidi answered to Ronnie's commands, letting go of Matthew's arm as they slipped into the building and guiding him towards the direction of the reception desk at the back, where it's safest. His power usage had drained him, and if he used it again so soon, it might drain him more, and it wasn't very appropriate in this situation. Besides, they'd very likely need such a useful power later on. Right now, he needed to keep himself safe and recover a little.
Looking back at the door, Heidi shook her head. "Can't lock it in a way that'll keep it out forever, and this room has enough space to fight. I'd rather take the robot out now then get caught off guard on a stairwell." For a split-second pause, she began cycling through plans in her head, given what she actually knew about the powers of everybody in this group. She finally settled on a simple (to her) but effective one. She turned to Jasper.
"Back then, you stopped it by getting into its head, right? Do you think you could find out where exactly its CPU is located?
She then turned her head slightly to Ronnie, making sure both girls were in her field of view. "I'm not sure how good you are at control yet but how well can you accurately aim paper? I think I have a plan but it's going to need all of us, Daniela included. And we'll need to be fast."
With every glitch of the mainframe came another step. Jasper's eyes opened, the irises and pupils blown so wide her sclera didn't exist. Her heels touched the ground, rubber against concrete. Mind still firmly lodged inside the codex of the robotic animal that intended to assault her temporary team, her used it's moments of weakness and allotted enough focus to her body to move. The closer she got the easier it was to stay connected, until she was standing in the first doorway leading into the room. Dark bangs hung in her face, half obscuring inky black pupils. A hand flexed at her side, the other touched the doorframe beside her.
Flickers of images. Matthew with Heidi. Daniela. Electricity. Anger. Herself.
One virus after another. Intrusion after intrusion. It took little of her concentration to move and to listen, record everything she saw and heard for review. The majority of her processing power was thrown into combat with the AI. Foreign programming that worked just as fast as she did, adapted. Jasper took to repetitive patterns for several repetitions before changing her attack pattern so drastically it should have been someone else. Computers were her life; there wasn't one she couldn't master.
Her gaze lifted from the dog when Heidi shouted, the robot leaving her vision for half a moment while she looked at her room mate. The girl was the only one at the table who knew what she could do. The task given to her was a simple enough one, which could be more complicated with how hard the Danger Room fought against her. The only outward acknowledgement of Heidi was a single blink and an almost imperceptible nod of her head. Jasper continued to violate the system before her, now searching for information she knew it had. A proper tracker, a radio. The signal that moved the fabricated machine in front of her. As far as it was aware thus far she wasn't even there while it faced her temporary team.
Sparks flew off of it as it was blasted again. If it was thrown or destroyed, great. If not, it didn't matter. Any stray offshoots of electricity that would have landed near her were instead dragged towards her. They dissolved into her skin, adding to the growing store of power within her. Daniela would make for a good power supply if she ever needed it, though she could just as easily rob the power from a local transformer.
It had been an interesting few days for Cleo to say the least, Sunday and Monday had the teen mostly sitting in the infirmary recovering from her injuries and the constant headaches she was getting from her new developing abilities. Later on that night, Cleo had met Jasper in the early hours and spent a short time conversing while stargazing, it was a nice enjoyable moment of peace. Tuesday found herself back in class and although she didn’t feel herself many thought she was back to her old self when blamed for a classroom prank that had everyone sounding like chipmunks.
Today however; Cleo found herself at odds with everything going on in her mind. She remembers a conversation she had with Heidi, Kaylee and Cole on Saturday, it’s gritty details of a night before, but one she can not recall, it’s like the memories of the night have faded away, like they never happened and it left her confused, worried. How could she have a graphical conversation like that and not remember it happen? Cleo didn’t know but as she sat alone at the fountain, her words of Ashford and this inner conflict had convinced her of one thing. She had to get out and dodge.
The days that followed Saturday night reminded Cole of how bad a decision it was to stretch his rule of no working relationships. Granted, there wasn’t truly a relationship per se; they had been out a few times and that was all. He felt like he was the one pumping the brakes more than her and while the resulting silence from the confessional with Heidi and Cleo had probably put the brake pedal firmly on the floorboard, he didn’t feel bad about it. The vision that he gained when the time called was so clear that there was no dispute. He could feel it in his soul, like he could see the world as it was truly made without influence or suggestion. When he looked on Una in the midst of the burning building, he knew with certainty he wasn’t looking at a mutant. The fog that clustered around her had reacted to his sense of discernment as if it was curious and afraid at the same time that it had been recognized. The image played behind his eyes as he sat in front of a laptop at a high table in the large campus dining area.
The food was surprisingly good, though he rarely indulged for lunch, instead only a couple protein bars and coffee sat next to his fingers as he worked. The office would have been quieter, but he needed some fresh air and a change of scenery. As it were, Ashford was making a serious investment in the protection of the campus and while Cole understood the significance of the work they were involved in, the level of expenditure seemed a little grandiose even for those standards. There were competing bids for the work, however the leading quote came from Senturion, a European firm with which the Dean had stated he was familiar and had done business with in the past. They specialized in a mechanized drone line referred to as Sentinels that worked within a network based around the objective they were meant to protect. There were some that resembled standard, quad-rotor drones, but the ground units were completely bizarre. Cole’s hands worked over the keys as he made some notes. Other sizable upgrades would come with the plan, many of which would be extremely useful so he couldn’t be too skeptical.
Running a hand over his face, he looked over an email before firing it away and reached for his coffee, taking a sip and sitting back in the chair for a moment, he crossed his other arm over his chest and immediately reread what he had just sent. Like everything else about the Ashford Institute that he had encountered thus far, there seemed to be a pervading sense of compartmentalization. The detective in him also couldn’t help but be curious, though his gut instinct quietly whispered for him to be suspicious. He rubbed at the stubble on his chin for a moment and finally closed the window, though sensing someone approaching he turned his glance away from the screen.
Cleo had since made her way in, as much as she loved the peace she was enjoying within the rays of sunshine. The teen decided she wanted to calm her nerves with some coffee and made her way to the diner area of the school, there were many students going about their business, and the usual crop she found herself in weren’t around probably attending to their own devices of course. Cleo had got herself a cappuccino, like most coffee it was her kryptonite and most likely have her bouncing off walls later, but for now it will help calm her nerves.
Turning around and leaning against the wall, Cleo took in her surroundings while taking in the scent of the coffee, this made her want to simply sink into a chair and vanish for a while and enjoy this moment of bliss. With happiness on her face for a moment as she blew at the hot liquid before taking a sip, she saw one face that she most certainly wouldn’t forget in anytime soon. Cole was sitting by his lonesome and working on something, She would end up staring at the guy longer than she would admit, he was present during her whole blurt out session from saturday and he came out with some interesting revelations too. After a moment of thought, Cleo would go and approach him.
Walking up to the table the guy was sitting at, Cleo approached his side, taking another sip of coffee to keep her nerves calm. “Excuse me Mr Cole, Sorry if you are busy, but is it okay to join you? I kinda feel the need to talk to someone.” Cleo shyly smiled. After a moment, she sat down across from Cole, shifting a little until she was comfortable, again taking another sip from her coffee. “So like, I am trying to figure out how to put this, Things have not been the same since Saturday, I got this feeling later into the night that i can’t explain, like a sense. not to mention our conversation.” She paused as she sighed. “I can’t even remember why we had it”
Uná smiled, seems Sena felt the same about the meds as Uná herself did. "I can keep a secret...between friends of course." Uná blinked rapidly confused as to why she exactly said that. That's weird. I mean not that it wouldn't be nice to have an adult to really talk to but why'd I even say it like that?
Sena relaxed a bit and leaned back on the desk running a finger over her lips for a moment and crossing her other arm. “Most of what people see and expect in medicine is wrong.” She said with a pause, considering her words. “Mutants by extension, have a similar expectation, but the truth is that what we call ‘mutations’ or even ‘powers’ as some of you like to say, is a method nature uses to overcome what’s been suppressed for a very long time.” She looked back at Una carefully. “I’ll give you an example, have you ever wondered why certain colors automatically trigger certain emotions?” She let the question hang in the air briefly, but she was feeling more in her element. “Red associates with power, green with wealth, blue with healing and so on. Everyone understands, but where did it come from?”
Debating if she'd actually learned about this in History at some point Uná mentality shook off that perception. "Red is probably from blood. Green probably replaced gold since the invention of paper money. Blue? Maybe water? Water is essential to life and maybe that's why. But none of it is really grounded in History. Most things like colors and the meanings of flowers are really more of a society ideal than a grounded reason."
“You have some professors here that will tell you all about their grounded reasons,” She couldn’t hide a growing smirk as she spoke. “Is it true because they say so, or because it really is?” She looked at Una matter-of-factly, “The science that they believe in is only a part of this reality, but there’s much more that has been hidden from you- and you know it’s there, you just said so yourself.”
Pausing Uná frowned. "I… yes. I mean it's theoretical. But you're not speaking theoretically. You make it sound like myth could be real. And I guess you can say there's a seed of truth in them. But then what's truth or fiction? That's a deep rabbit hole. But I'll bite, there's always more than one side."
Sena smiled at her skepticism. “I’ll prove it to you,” She said and walked over towards one the shelves aligned with books and other items from Ashford’s travels. There was an ornate porcelain vase in it’s own stand that she casually removed and held in front of her turning it in her hand slowly for Una to observe the hand painted details. Without warning she dropped it; looking at Una with complete composure as it shattered across the hardwood. “Watch.” She said, rotating the same hand that had just released the vase.
A neon blue and violet hue formed around the broken pieces and the air stirred slightly. Almost as fast as it had hit the floor, the pieces drew back together and reformed in her hand as if nothing had happened. She raised an eyebrow with a sly smirk, looking at Una. “Now is it still pieces or is it whole?”
Uná blinked. "Both. Technically it's both. Or it could be. Unless you never dropped it." This was starting to get all theory of reality in here.
“You’re right, the pieces are still there, but your mind makes it whole.” She said with emphasis. “Just like your mind tells you that you don’t need those pills.”
Uná's eyes snapped to Sena. "You're not making this conversation easy Sena. It's like you're trying to tell me that reality is what you make of it. Trust me I know that better than most. I hate it when someone holds a truth behind a curtain and describes it to make you guess. Professor Everose does that and it pisses me off." Uná's eyes narrowed slightly and shifted black then back to blue as she blinked.
“I know it does,” Sena said calmingly in agreement. The familiarity that flashed across the young girl’s eyes was what she was looking to find and she touched her shoulder firmly looking into her blue irises. “I’m telling you that when you understand how the universe really works, they won’t be able to hide it... and it will be what you make of it.”
The electricity blasted against the mechanical wolf's head as it was sent tumbling backwards once again. Electricity seemed to surge through ever fiber of its being, causing it to stutter and slow. At the same time, it's eyes returned to their original red... and even brighter than before. It's face was beyond charred, with half the metal practically melting and drooping down its face before it hardened once again. Regardless of the state of the metal housing, the red eyes seemed to glow with malicious intent in the direction of Daniela. And despite being injured severely, it was ready to keep fighting.
The front doors did not, in fact, have a lock. At least, not until Ronnie began her process of getting the doors ready to chain up and lock. The wolf was outside of the building as the students had entered inside, and it looked ready to charge. Jasper's fight with the Danger Room would be, to an extent, taxing. Despite the majority of her efforts, the Danger Room seemed just as adaptable and quick to Jasper's probes as she was. The sudden shift in tactics and attack, however, seemed to proverbially throw it off guard. As she reached out into the simulation with her powers, she was able to track rough radio signals. The signals were scattered. The first signal came from the direction of the beast outside the building. It was fairly weak, as was another similar signal from the second floor. The strongest signal came from the third floor, and given Jasper's familiarity with traditional electronic signals... she would be certain this is the transmitter controlling the mechanical beast.
Just as Jasper got a good read on the signals, the Danger Room seemed to shift and do its best to kick her out. For a moment, all the lights and holographic projections seemed to flicker. A quick system reset was enough to hide the signals from Jasper once again. At the same moment, the mechanical beast began making its charge towards the front doors. More specifically... it was running towards Daniela.
It didn't take Aya as long to find this time, now that she knew what to look for - that stillness at the center of her mind, the indefinable point that let the rest of the world melt away. Her body was unimportant. Sensation was still there - the weighty envelope in her hand, the tickle of her hair against her face, lightly blown by the AC, the smell of espresso and sugar, the dull mechanical screech of the coffee grinder underneath a singer's falsetto. But it was all as distant as the stars, faint against the light of a full moon.
The dark of her mind wrapped itself around her. She wore it like a shroud.
Hiding in shadows.
The pen slid across the paper, crisp Japanese characters forming. Aya laid in wait. There was that prickling at the back of her mind again - a misplaced familiarity. It was a different texture though. While with the last one it'd been all coal dust and smoke blackening her lungs, this one was smoother… sharp and precise, like the burn of ginger or a single, high note of a violin. It was in front of her - but there was something else too.
It was so vast as to be meaningless - like the ocean, or the sky, or time itself. Aya was nothing compared to it. She was a single candle, burnt out in an instant. She was atoms of stardust, floating through space. The universe carelessly breathed life into her, only to discard her a moment later.
She’d be dead for eons longer than she’d ever be alive.
A nebula pulsed into existence, throwing stardust against suddenly visible shapes - a man and a woman. Dense stars outlined them, contouring their forms, giving them color, life. There was an air of intimacy. The two fit together like a tree grown around a forgotten skeleton, her head against his chest. Aya’s mind sparked in recognition.
Finvarra and Sena, someone else's thoughts supplied. She felt her eyes narrow as she watched them, muscles coiled like a jungle predator.
Aya didn’t know when it began, but a slow iciness crept its way through her body. It started as pinpricks in the tips of her fingers, in the pads of her toes and the back curve of her heel. It spread like frost, seeping into her skin, crawling up her wrists and ankles like a reminder.
Finvarra and Sena, a tear between realms.
The nebula spasmed behind Finvarra, blindingly bright. For a moment, the two were gone. Finvarra was unseeable, but Sena -
Wings flashed in her mind. The sleek feathers rippled with color, shining under their own light. A bird flew, too quick to grasp, regal and mythical, vibrant motes of light lingering in its wake.
Finvarra’s eyes didn’t leave Sena’s face as two serpents like golden tattoos curled their way up his arms. They drew him back towards the increasingly frantic nebula. They warred for his attention, serpents and phoenix, both pulling at him in their own way.
The chill snaked its way up her own limbs. It was deeper than physical cold - it slowed her very soul, coaxing, whispering.
Golden snakes pull him away from her.
The nebula grew, writhing, throwing more and more stardust through the air. Just as it had made Finvarra and Sena visible, it seemed to outline their voices, snippets of words carrying over to Aya.
"Two more… Farplane."
For the briefest moment, before the nebula swallowed him whole, Finvarra finally looked away from Sena - to look directly at her.
Aya suddenly realized what the darkness surrounding her truly was: a death shroud. She was already cold and stiff, wrapped in her shroud with gentle hands, and encased in her coffin. All that was left was the steady march towards her grave.
All that was left was to seal her away under the earth.
Aya strode forward with sure steps. Her chin was high. She had a job to do - orders to fulfill.
The iciness had nearly reached her heart, claiming her fully.
Sena watched her, expressionless save for her eyes. They watched Aya with disdain. Unconcerned.
Iridescent embers, the colors of an oil slick on sitting water, erupted around them. There was the sharp call of a falcon, piercing like a dagger.
Sena. A flash of color and a raptor's screech.
Sena was gone. Aya was gone. There was that solid whiteness again, that’d met her with the last envelope. Instinctively she knew she wouldn’t be able to see anything more.
But one fact rang clear and somber as a church bell in her mind.
Listening to nerd girl reveal the two exits, Ronnie made a note of them. It would prove useful if the group had to split up or distract the wolf. She hoped the doors could hold it off, but her confidence in that started to waver. Especially with Heidi’s follow-up observation.
“Have you really looked at that thing? Its face is nearly melted off and it is still ticking. I don’t think we’re supposed to beat it, but avoid it.” Ronnie decided to point out that their current efforts weren’t doing much to beat the creature.
She gritted her teeth as the girl spoke loudly to numbers. Ronnie had managed to slip the chain about the handle and close half of the doors when something came into her peripheral vision. She promptly glanced up then jumped in place. Jasper’s figure stood just within the doorway and continued to focus on the terminator wolf. A soft, subtle growl emitted from Ronnie as she turned back to the padlock. She remembered the combination digits easily, but the order proved to be harder.
Ronnie paused when Heidi asked about her powers.
“Of course you would ask that question.” She snapped.
Her back pressed against the door and held it in place. Ronnie’s expression took on a painful one as she struggled not to choke. Every inner instinct screamed at her to shut up, but she knew lying wouldn’t help the situation. It would be obvious to everyone at some point.
“I’ve only used my powers once and that was before I came here. I haven’t figure out how to activate it, let alone how to control or aim it. So you better have a plan B.” Every word left a sour taste on her tongue after it was voiced.
Daniela was busy pouring the electrical attacks on the mechanical wolf as the rest of the team worked on getting the door open. Her eyes were blazing yellow as she continued throwing blast after blast at it. She was about to ask about the status of how her teammates were handling the situation when she realized it was just her and Jasper outside.
She looked over at Jasper and noticed that the Wolf was still coming after them and it seemed somewhat fixated on her for the moment. Okay, it's pissed. I guess it has the right to be a bit angry after what I did to it.
"Okay Snoopy...I think we got off on the wrong foot. I didn't really want to melt your face but you were chasing us." Daniela held her hands up in a sign of surrender as she inched closer closer to Jasper. "Nice mechanical doggy...Good mechanical doggy...I'm pretty sure we can fix your face. All we need is some electrical tape."
She immediately sprang into action as she pushed Jasper towards the door and tried reaching the relative safety of the inside as well. She was prepared to grab Jasper and pull her along if she had to do so. She fired a last rather intense blast at the wolf.
Location: Ashford Institute. Interacting/Mention: Cassandra. @KatKook
The last few days have not been anything to shout about for Oriana, she had mostly kept to herself and observed. There had been some interesting moments, only for it to disappoint and fizzle out. She took advantage of the weekend of to look and around and gather as much of the surroundings as possible before all the boring lessons where to come. Why on earth did she promise to give this place a chance.
The evenings back in her room were quiet enough to get away from the weird ass things that seem to be happening, less and less she noticed people talking about the mess of Friday. It was like the drunken idiots had forgotten all about it. Still she had got some information, she was just careful not to be speaking about it from potential prying eyes. Still she saw Ronnie mostly still looking up demons and studying, Oriana would still need to see it to believe it though.
The lessons themselves where pretty much what she expected them to be, boring but necessary. Monday was just that a typical Monday, Tuesday someone filled a class with helium, Majority of the students seemed to blame some blonde girl. If she found out who was truly responsible for making herself sound like a chipmunk was going to get a neck wringing. But all that had brought Ori to this day. Again it seemed pretty mundane, it sucked she missed out on the danger room as just the sound of it excited her and she was at least curious about that place. But at the same time maybe it was the safer option considering the potential she was capable of.
For now, as it is break time between lessons, Oriana was texting her brother. Leaning against the wall round the back of the main building, the texting war was mostly about what had her make a promise to come to such an institute, that things didn’t really impress her enough so far to stay. But her brother always had a knack for getting in the last word, plus he had helped her in so many ways to. Her concentration was taken of the screen though as she backs out the messages and locked up the screen, looking up the day seemed perfectly fine. So why could she sense a strong wind…. Like a tornado? Oriana had since stood upright and backed away from the building a little to look at the structure.
A moment later and a chair smashed out of a class room window and crashed into the ground near to Oriana, she had side stepped it a little just in case as she looked at the remained of the trashed piece of furniture. To say the teen was pissed off would be an understatement as she looked back up from where it originated from, a low growl sounding of in her throat as she suddenly stormed off towards the nearest door. “Out of my way!” Oriana demanded as she shouted at some students blocking the door, she didn’t need to ask them twice. Oriana made her way through the building, running upstairs to the correct floor, shoving her way past other students on her way to the correct floor, coming round the corner it did not take her long to figure out where this particular disturbance originated from.
Oriana was just in time to witness some girl she did not recognise appearing to be laughing to herself and putting her hood up, no doubt the culprit, and one she would have missed if she got here a few moment later, no one seemed to notice she was responsible and Oriana could only tip her head to the side a little as she sighed. Still her features showed she was not a happy chick as she shook her head and walked towards the unknown girl. As they began walking past one another Oriana took a firm grip on the woman’s arm enough to spin her round to face her. “What in the bloody hell do you think you are doing?!”
Oriana took a moment to look over at the classroom before turning back again to the girl in her grasp, she could probably pull herself out of Oriana’s hold, not that she really cared about that. “Really…. A fucking classroom?”
Matt watched as everyone came into the room. Daniela hurt the wolf but it seemed to at least partially repair itself. From what Heidi had said Jasper could do some remote computer stuff. I can only hope whatever she did worked. Heidi is still hard to figure out but she seemed to be observing everything. Then there is the other one who's name I never heard. Heidi asked her something about controlling paper but she replied that she had only done it once. Come to think of it she did look like that girl from the "Paper Tantrum" video on Youtube. Matt doubted that was the original video but it was the one he recalled. Quickly looking around the room Matt tried the light switches but they seemed to do nothing. He left them on and tried the television sets. Even if they did come on, if there was no signal they might provide a faint glow once the doors were shut. The Exit sign over the left hallway suggested another way into the building. Matt pulled a coffee table over in front of it. "If you cannot stop your enemy, slow them down. Don't know who said it, but it seemed relevant. To be honest if that robot thing comes this way I don't think that will slow it down much, but it will make some noise." What was that the paper girl almost did? Did she know she was doing it or did the papers react to her without her knowing?
Looking at Ronnie."Actually, I think you almost did something out there. The paper in your notebook ruffled briefly. I don't know if it was from fear or anger but it's a start. Strength can come from recognizing your fear; or something like that, I think that one was Budha. Anyway it seems that this scenario may have been catered to us. You may have to use your ability sooner or later. It's best we work as a team from here on out." Making sure Heidi could see him, Matt went on. "Heidi has at least an idea of our abilities if not more than we realise. She should coordinate unless we plan on continuing blindly." His voice gave no hint of comfort or disparagement. His comments simply were as if fact. Matts face gave one a sense of focused calm.
Matt looked down the right hand hallway eager to be moving on. After that last door, he had no intention of opening the next door.
"And who might you be?" —————————————————— Ashford Institute
Cassandra continued to walk down the halls watching people come to see and possibly help the situation. Things started flying out the door as soon as it got a little too out of control, even causing the door itself to warp and bend a few times. She kept her head down and made it look like she was going to call for help but she noticed this woman noticing her from a bit more down the hall, she knew it was trouble and if she has trouble, she may as well go all the way. As soon as she was grabbed by the arm, she pivoted and spun around the girl with her arm still on hers using her abilities. She gave that girl a small taste of who she was and why she does not want to have people touch her.
"You want me to do that to the principals office then? Alright, weirdo." Said Jett in her German accent, obviously trying to provoke this girl, this girl had as much as a resting bitch face as Cass did and she knew this was going to be one hell of a conversation. Before she could say something she looked at this girl and thought that maybe this could be who she was looking for. She looked the girl up and down and felt the girl's grip get warmer in her hands and she immediately knew this girl was not it. She pulled the girl's arm away and prompted her to follow if she wanted to keep talking.
"I don't like standing, if you want to talk, walk." Cass stated as she started walking, assuming the girl followed she continued, "Look, I don't know who you are but I know for a fact you're not what I'm looking for, so-" She quickly glanced back towards the direction of the classroom and shook her head, "You know you gotta do something grand to draw something out." And without even realising they were outside, Jett's lifestyle of never not moving has definitely given her quite the advantage.
"So," Her tone moved from condescending to mocking, "To whom do I owe the pleasure?" Asked Jett.
The slightest start of a headache throbbed at the back of her head. The dull pain radiated around to behind her eyes, temporarily blurring her vision. Regardless of the stress she managed to find what she was looking for and memorize the origin location before she was kicked from the system. The coding that had risen on her skin flickered, dimmed, then vanished altogether, leaving the girl looking like little more than the average troublemaker. Her gaze flicked over the situation half a moment later, the electromancer engaged with the mechanical dog inching closer to her. Inside the others rushed about the room, with only her room mate stilled. The girl was likely still thinking.
Jasper liked Heidi because she didn't bother her, thus leaving the technopath to do what it was she did best.
A hand raised to her face, brushed over her cheek and her forehead only to come to rest with the heel against her temple. Fingers curled slightly, one foot moved and she turned to step inside the lobby. Another half turn and she put her back against the wall beside the still-closed door. Daniela wasn't far behind her and she could only assume they busied themselves shutting the door behind them. A moment of disorientation later and Jasper lifted her head to look over at Heidi.
"Third floor. Something else on second."
The least amount of words possible to get the point across, in typical Jasper fashion. Her gaze flicked away from the genius again to move to Mathew and Veronica interacting not too far away from her. There wasn't much to be gleamed from the conversation from what she'd heard so far, but it was the spark of recognition on Mathew's face that she found most amusing. She made a point to scan for mutant incidents at least once a week but she remembered seeing this one within minutes of it going online. It took long enough for someone else to clue in just who this newcomer was - assuming that was what the boy was thinking about.
"Just get really pissed off at the thing that tried to kill you. Should work by the sounds of it."
Should she be antagonizing someone? Probably not. Would that stop her? Not even a little bit.
"I have a plan b," Heidi answered, a tiny bit of panic starting to show on her face. "I have so many plans, but they're all complicated and unformed and I need to pick one." She turned to look at the rest and saw Matt looking at her. He was telling the group that Heidi should be the one to coordinate them! Heidi was starting to sweat now. Her position right now was like one of somebody who never learned to drive being asked to taxi some people in a rocket car just because she happens to own a rocket car. And she'd better not crash. And she can't say no. And she can't take it slow and careful because they're in a hurry. She'd had these powers for just over a month now. She still wasn't entirely used to using them normally, let alone under pressure and with this much responsibility riding on her shoulders. If her plan went wrong, or didn't work, or worked but they lost anyway, she knew that they'd all lay the blame squarely on her shoulders. "You're supposed to be smart!" they'd say.
Heidi cleared her mind. A paranoid spiral was a million times more dangerous when processed at the speed she was processing it. She saw Jasper, now inside the room, tell her that the CPU was on the third floor, and there was 'something else' on the second. Heidi had wandered about this. She had assumed the beast was an entirely closed system with its own CPU but now it was confirmed that it was remote-operated. Which meant that the 'something' on the second floor was probably a signal booster. There were now three very simple ways to defeat it.
The quickest but hardest would be to destroy the signal receiver inside the beast. However, this could easily be located somewhere very hard to get to. Its casing was tough and earthed. The second way would be to take out the booster while the beast was kept on the first floor. This would be the easiest option if the Beast was programmed to behave like a wolf. If it was programmed to protect itself from threats, it would be harder. The final way was to reach the third floor and disable the CPU. But with every floor they went up, there was a greater chance that another threat would be set upon them.
The second plan was the one they should try first. This entire train of thought took less than a second after jasper had conveyed the information. Heidi immediately snapped to action to help Ronnie brace the door, taking the power cable from the back of the television and togging it hard at an angle until it snapped off. She used this cable to help tie the handles of both doors together.
"Quick," she commanded to the rest of the group in as few words as possible. "Jasper and me, second floor. The rest of you, keep the Wolf busy! Retreat upstairs if you can't!" And with that, she headed towards the corridor that Matthew hadn't blocked with a table, scanning rapidly for any sign of a stairwell.
Smiling Uná nodded once. "Sounds like something my mom would say. Thank you." She looked around the room. "So what did you come here to drop off?"
Sena stepped back over to her bag and opened it slowly, shifting a few items around before retrieving a small case and placing it on the desk. “This is actually Dr. Ashford’s medication… and part of what I’m involved in developing.” She produced a metallic business card with an embossed logo that matched the case. INDIGO with the letter ‘O’ represented by a symbol. Both items were the same color as the namesake of the company while the card simply read, Dr. Sena Yüksel and a phone number. She handed it to Uná and a slight glimmer of neon light passed around the edges as it changed hands between them. “Keep that with you, it might come in handy and feel free to call me.”
Reaching out Uná took the card willingly watching the light glimmer along the edges. She studied the symbol on the card. "That is really cool. This symbol. It means something… I think. Oh I saw this symbol when we studied Egypt… I think it was in reference to their afterlife."
“Think about what we talked about and look into it,” She said with a hint of mystery in her voice and a gentle smirk as she looked back into her bag. “There is one other thing I have here that maybe you can actually help me with.” In her fingertips was a small device, similar looking to a phone or tablet, but dark and blank, clearly without power. She held it out for Uná to take, but kept her grasp briefly before the young girl could accept it and notice it was just marginally heavier than it appeared. There didn’t seem to be any receptacles for a charger, no corporate logos and each surface was the same smooth polished texture leaving no indication of a front or back. “You have some friends whose mutations relate to technology.” She said letting go of the object. “This is for my own, personal research and I need this to be unlocked. Do you think you could do that?”
Eager to please Uná accepted the device as she turned it over in her hands. "Yes. Jasper would love to get her hands on a puzzle. I'll let her have a look at it. Anything in particular you're looking for? Like how it charges or something like that?"
“Let’s just call it a little bit of…” She had to think for a moment and very innocently touched a finger to her lip as she recalled the terran expression, glancing away thoughtfully. “Corporate espionage.” She said with a sly smile. “Nothing that will get you in trouble, but if you do manage to get inside, call me and I’ll be right over.”
Uná's eyebrows shot up as she looked up from the device to Sena. "Then yeah of course. If it helps you; that helps Dean Ashford and the school, on down to helping the others and me. I'll just tell Jasper that my parents sent it and I let it die and can't remember how to find the charger. I'm good at getting people to underestimate my intelligence."
As the students were crowded in the lobby, the beast finally made its charge. Daniela's attacks helped keep it at bay and slow it down, but the beast launched towards the doors just as they were closed. It snarled and made a high pitch whining sound, like a machine out of tune. With the door closed, the room became a bit darker with a lot of its natural light source closed up. The glowing exit sign at the end of one of the hallways became much clearer in the increased darkness. That all being said, other than the lashing of the mechanical beast outside of the front door, another sound became rather clear as the students were discussing their plans. The sound of hard thumping or stomping could be heard above them, each knock separated by a couple seconds of tense silence in the building. Whatever the thumping was, it was seeming to move, rather slow, towards the direction of the glowing red exit sign.
Aya didn’t move. She didn’t open her eyes. Her blood was stagnant in her veins, dark and congealed. Stiff. Heavy. Distantly she heard the dull screech of a steam wand heating milk for a latte. She felt the paper underneath her hand, felt the warm plastic of her pen. She remembered how to breathe. Her heartbeat was a slow, steady rhythm, no longer forgotten.
Her eyelids fluttered open.
It was almost disorienting to come back to her body - her mundane reality of an empty cafe and a half-drunk mocha. She blinked. Her hand twitched slightly, pivoting around the joint in her wrist. Aya tried it again. Her fingers moved, releasing their grip on the black envelope and it fell the short distance to the table.
Little by little, Aya broke the spell on her body. She flexed her fingers, her hands, her arms. She pulled her neck this way and that. All the while, that single, familiar truth sat with her.
I’ve died. It was simple. Somber. Maybe a little sad. But Aya couldn’t bring herself to dwell - not when she still had a job to do. The failure of her death pushed her forward.
Flipping the page in her notebook, Aya picked up the third envelope. She turned it in her hand, foreign trepidation staining her thoughts. (No. Not ‘foreign.’ Aya. She was Aya, sad, nervous, soft spoken Aya -) She took in another slow breath. It shook as she pushed it out of her lungs. Closing her eyes again, she placed the pentip against the fresh page. She slipped back into her meditation.
Nothing.
Not the nothing that came with the first two envelopes - just… nothing to find. Aya couldn’t have spent more than a few minutes meditating over the envelope, but she knew it was pointless. The envelope was lighter somehow, lacking some metaphysical weight.
Was she just incapable of seeing whatever it was? Was she missing something? Aya breathed in slowly again, and muscle by muscle she forced herself to relax where she’d unknowingly tensed. Her eyebrows relaxed. Her shoulders dropped slightly. Her fingers loosened their grips on the envelope and pen. Her toes uncurled in her shoes. With every breath, that stoic determination that’d so thoroughly filled her seemed to melt away.
It didn’t belong to her. She wasn’t dead, she was Aya. Another breath. Another heartbeat. The envelope remained devoid of anything to find, as little by little Aya remembered what it meant to be her.
When her eyes opened again she felt lighter somehow. As empty as the envelope. A sudden sense of vertigo hit her. She dropped the pen and envelope to the table, squeezing her eyelids shut and bringing a hand up to press into her temple. Aya rested her elbows on the table and used the heel of both palms to press into her eyes, palms cradling her forehead, fingers twisting in her hairline. Her jaw clenched before she forced it to release again.
Another breath.
Aya raised her head again, blinking with bleary eyes. She let her gaze wander, regrounding herself in reality. Two baristas behind the counter, chatting, making themselves drinks. The navy and white color scheme of the cafe. Another patron sitting at the only other occupied table. The music overhead had changed to something slow and acoustic, a gentle tenor crooning in Spanish. Aya looked back down at her notebook. There was a single splotch of ink, thick where she’d let the pen rest against the paper. The third envelope stared up at her.
Aya picked it up, holding it in the air in front of her face. She turned it, watching the way the silver lettering reflected the light. Aya wondered if it was even worth trying again. Was there something she just wasn’t getting about the envelope? She paused then. Did she even want to see what was in it? In the last one? She remembered the torrent of too many emotions, the fire, the confusion, the death. Looking into these envelopes was like drowning - waves washing over her, not knowing which way was up, water filling her lungs, making her lose herself until she no longer existed - and all there was, was the vast, consuming ocean.
What was the point of this exercise? Why make her see these things? What purpose could traumatizing her possibly have? Professor Everose had called this a test. Was it just to see if she could? Did they want to know how she’d react? Why would they want her to know how Mr. St. John had lost his family, or that Dean Ashford’s doctor was -
Aya froze. Her eyes widened. Dean Ashford’s doctor was a killer. She wasn’t even human, she was as alien to this realm as the dark man - Finvarra - and the Sluagh, and Uná. She’d taken it for granted when she’d looked into the envelope. It had been a fact as clear and familiar as the open sky. It was only now, when Aya was herself again, that the truth of it struck her. Aya felt her heart rate quicken, her breathing growing shallow.
She turned the page in the notebook to see what she’d written for the second envelope again. Her eyes scanned the words, flashes of memory replaying in her mind. She stopped when she reached the last line: ‘I’ve died.’
Her eyebrows pulled together though when she saw the character she’d written for the word ‘I’: 俺. Masculine. Authoritative. Her fingertips brushed over the kanji, feeling the edges where her pen had pressed into the paper. Who had she been?
Aya bit her lip. Then she picked up the second envelope from where it sat on the table. Her heart hammered in her chest, as she looked down at it, eyeing where the flap was sealed. Professor Everose had given Aya clear instructions not to look inside.
But obedience had already killed her once.
Aya’s slim finger slid under the flap of the envelope. The wax seal broke, tearing at bits of the fine black paper. Aya’s shoulders tensed at the sound, but she carried on. She slowly pulled out a cream-colored card. Her eyes scanned the words written. Then again. Then again, like it would help her understand.
Adam Pierce.
She felt her heart stop. Professor Pierce was dead. No… no that couldn’t be right. He had classes, he’d been there for the Danger Room conversation on Saturday, looming behind Dean Ashford -
There was a date and time written beneath his name. Saturday night. Aya felt like she might throw up. A hand snapped to her mouth to cover a shaking gasp for air, as tears sprang to her eyes. Professor Pierce was dead. The phrase circled in her mind, over and over again, like repeating it would make it understandable. Her eyes found the other envelopes. With a shaking hand, she lifted the first one. She already knew what it would say.
Coleman Lee St. John.
The security officer’s face flashed in her mind - his picture at his own funeral, surrounded by bouquets of white roses. Fresh grief pooled in her chest at the memory, only some of it hers. A date was written under his name, from a few months ago. She ran her thumb over the letters on the paper, feeling guilty.
She hadn’t had the right to see into his life like that. His family, his death, their grief, the fire... the fire. It had been filled with righteous hate, the burning need for retribution, smoke and anger and so much pain -
The third envelope was empty save for a blank piece of paper. Aya turned it over in her hands, eyebrows furrowed. It explained why she hadn’t been able to see anything. Why give her nothing though? To just… see where she went? A test? Confusion mixed with suspicion to form a growing distrust. Again and again, she came back to the same question.
Why?
The final envelope stared up at her from the table. It grew in her vision until it was all she could see. Aya couldn’t stop her hand from reaching out, fingers slow and trembling. She picked it up, crisp black parchment course against her skin. It felt… heavy somehow. It stilled her breath in her throat. The other envelopes and the revelations that came with them had been horrible - not just because of the pain and grief. Whatever sort of ability she had, it took something from Aya: her identity. It hid the boundaries between herself and the souls surrounding her, made it too easy to lose herself and take on someone else.
Whatever was in this envelope, it would take from her too - if she even dared to look. Professor Everose’s gentle face flashed in her mind again, smiling, guiding, soothing. She’d failed to warn Aya what this 'test' would really mean - which meant Aya would have to prepare herself, instead.
She pulled open the final envelope. Like the others, it held a single cream-colored card. Aya held her breath as she slid it out, letters slowly revealing themselves.
Avalon.
The word seemed to pulse. It echoed in her mind. Aya didn’t look away from it. She didn’t know how. She couldn’t stop her eyes from falling closed, card still pinched between her fingers. The world went black.
Darkness pulsed around her in a steady, living rhythm. Aya’s breathing slowed to match it, in and out. The push and pull of the darkness’ tide coaxed her deeper and deeper, floating far from the shore until it was completely out of view.
And then the riptide claimed her.
It was a city dipped in starlight - high towers of shining, black opal, colors like frozen firelight trapped in the polished stone, catching against motes of floating lights. Aya looked up as she spun, a laugh bright on her painted lips. Her gown rippled through the air. Her auburn curls, so carefully pinned up, bounced where they hung around her face. Lilting music filled the air, elegant dancers laughing around her as they spun and dipped and jumped. The very air was vibrant with energy, textured in a way she could touch, taste, smell. Aya looked over her shoulder at her dancing partner as her spin slowed, and her smile turned cheeky.
He was so handsome, it nearly broke her heart. He returned her smile, pointed teeth obsidian-black. He lifted a gloved hand towards her, in open invitation. Beckoning. Her eyes turned wicked then, mischief bubbling up like champagne.
Silly man, didn’t he know she wanted to be chased?
Aya let out a high giggle as she grabbed the fabric of her fine gown and turned from him, running into the night -
Aya let out a low growl as she grabbed the nearest object - a heavy, gilded candlestick, purple fire flickering above it - and lunged forward to strike the disrespectful, ungrateful, clumsy, useless, filthy servant. Hungry satisfaction shot through her body when she heard his sharp cry. The boy tried to raise a hand and her rage only increased. He dared try and stop her, his lord? Aya snarled as the candlestick came down again. Then again. There was a crack and the servant was on the floor but Aya didn’t stop, not as the whelp’s face grew more and more unrecognizable, not as slick, hot blood coated her fingers, her fine silks, her golden rings.
It was only when the flesh of her own hand burst open, the boy silent on the floor, that Aya finally turned away. An ill-aimed swing had caught her somehow. She curled over her hand, hissing in pain. The candlestick fell to the ground -
The cup fell to the ground, empty and forgotten. Aya tried to fight back tears as she leaned over her husband. She took a dirty cloth, stained from his sweat, and dabbed the running water away from his lips. He hadn’t left the bed in days. His skin, once a warm, burnished copper, was now dull and greying.
They were alone in their tiny house, him lying beneath the thin blanket on the one bed, her sitting beside his leg, leaning over him, a hand brushing against his sweaty forehead. The family that they shared the too-small home with had stepped outside as a gift to them - to give them this final moment of privacy.
He blinked up at Aya, eyes unfocused. She made a soft shushing sound, forcing a weak smile as a tear burned its way down her cheek. She wanted the last thing he saw to be her smile.
Aya ran her fingers through her husband’s dirty hair -
- Through her cat’s dirty fur, clutching it close to her chest like a lifeline. It was too weak to protest. Aya mindlessly scratched behind its ears with long, untrimmed nails. She rocked back and forth, back and forth, eyes unblinking as they stared at the ground in front of her. Pedestrians trying to go about their lives, pretend they couldn’t see her, gave her a wide berth. They had to be careful not to fall into her gravity.
A chip in her nail snagged against the cat’s fur. She pulled at it, but it didn’t loosen. She pulled again, harder. With a wet tearing sound, her hand came free, midnight blue fur still tangled around her finger. Smoke wafted up from the hole she’d torn in the cat’s flesh, shifting cerulean and bloody orange in the light of the city. It drifted up, around her face, filling her lungs -
- Filling her lungs with her own hot blood. Aya looked down, eyes wide in a frozen stare. The golden hilt of her sword, glistening with jewels and delicate engravings, was flush against her chest, blade piercing through her uniform, her armor, her skin, muscle, nerves, and sinew, to emerge again just to the left of her spine. Aya looked up at her killer. His eyes were wide and frantic - young. Angry. Skinny from a lifetime of malnourishment. They stared at each other a moment, reality still catching up with them. Then the boy tightened his grip on Aya’s sword and ripped it from her chest. Her blood arced through the sky as the sounds of battle echoed -
- Through the city to reach her room. Aya grabbed onto the windowsill with both of her little hands, pushing up onto the tips of her toes. She saw the glow of fire before she saw the city’s skyline, smoke heavy on the air even at this distance. Magic sparked over the fighting, neon cracks of color ripping through the night like lightning. Aya’s grip tightened on the windowsill as she tried her best to balance on her toes. Her mother’s grip on her arm was sudden and tight as she -
- Forced Aya to her knees.
Her grunt echoed through the hall, pain reverberating up her legs, bouncing off her other injuries. Aya clenched her jaw. She wouldn’t cry out, not here - in front of them. Her blood seeped into the fine indigo carpet. She hoped it left a stain. Someone was talking, reading off her crimes in an arrogant, derisive tone, but Aya ignored him. She ignored everyone in the grand, insultingly ornate room.
Except for him.
He stood at the end of the hall, back to her, on a raised dais beside two empty thrones. Even at this distance, Aya could see the care that had gone into crafting them. They were statues of solid gold, carved to depict tales of old - images of plants and flowers, cats and snakes, hunters, beasts, monsters, all finely formed on the shining thrones, with red velvet so dark it was nearly black lining the seats and backs. He had a single arm resting on the back of one of the thrones, fingers curled around the frame. A golden serpent lay on the back as well. It was impossible to tell where it ended and the chair began, as the snake wound its way up his arm, curling and heavy, like a golden chain holding him in place.
Finvarra.
Aya spit a thick wad of blood onto the carpet. A heavy boot slammed against her back. She fell to the ground, her lower jaw clacking hard into her skull. Her ears rang. For a moment, there was only blinding pain as Aya tried to remember she was still alive, still had a body.
Well, not for long.
She knew this was all theater. She was already dead. There’d be no trial, no opportunity for penance. The reading of her ‘crimes’ was a formality so they could all preen at each other that they’d given the mongrel a fair chance.
Aya didn’t care. Fuck everyone hiding in this golden palace, fuck the soldiers she’d killed, fuck him.
Her only regret was that she wouldn’t be there to see him fall.
Because his fall was coming. Soon. The bastard knew it, too. She could see it in the tense set of his shoulders, in the way these pompous rats flicked their eyes back and forth, trying to keep a smile on their lips.
When the soldiers heaved her to her feet again, her smile was half drunk with pain. A weak laugh escaped her. Then it grew. Even as it sent pain arcing through her lungs, her spine, her throat, Aya laughed. The people around her shifted uncomfortably, and even the man reading off her crimes grew silent. How fucking pathetic. They were clinging to some idea of status, of power, and they were too blinded by their goal to see that they’d all be in ruins before this war was over. Aya saw it. Finvarra saw it. His back was still to her, the coward, but it didn’t matter. Aya wished she could stay to watch his world crumble, he deserved to crumble, murderer, thief, bastard, Aya wanted to rip him from his golden throne herself, she wanted to -
The muscles in his back shifted slightly. His fingers flexed, curling tighter around the back of the throne. The snake lifted its head, forked tongue flicking in and out, tasting her blood in the air. Finvarra turned his head to look over his shoulder, meeting her eyes.
And suddenly all the layers fell away until there was only Aya. Ice shot through her veins. Finvarra turned more, standing sideways against the throne, with a slow, easy movement. His gaze never wavered.
Aya’s breathing quickened, growing more and more shallow. The last echoes of laughter that bounced through the hall shifted - it distorted, one voice becoming many, some high a bell-like, others guttural and monstrous. Aya swore she saw movement in the shadows. She saw a flash of fangs, familiar pink eyes, a hulking, skeletal form with daggers for claws.
Aya looked down, away from Finvarra. Golden serpents slithered their way up and around her legs, trapping them in place. Others wrapped heavy around her hands, up her wrists, tightening around her arms like chains, crushing, pulling, trapping. The snakes climbed higher and higher, wrapping tight around her chest and crushing her lungs. Aya’s breath was too shallow, too quick. Her head spun with terror as the snakes made their way up to circle around her neck. She couldn’t breathe. Her mouth gaped uselessly for air. They were choking her, she was going to die she was going to die she was going to die -
A golden snake pushed its way into her mouth. The plated scales were slick against her throat as it forced itself into her. She could feel it, a parasite in her body, as tears ran down her cheeks. She had to scream. She had to sob. She had to run. But Aya couldn’t move, trapped by layer upon layer of snakes, slithering their way up her body, chaining her in place. They climbed, until every inch of her was covered, from the ground to high above her head. Aya only had a sliver of light, stolen in the cracks between their bodies, to see out of. Finvarra still stood, unwavering. Then, that was gone too, and the world was black.
More and more snakes joined the colony, making it thicker, taller. The one inside her body began to calcify. As it hardened, Aya felt the rest of her body turn solid, too. Like a spreading virus, the snake froze the blood in her veins, hardened her skin. Eventually it passed beyond her, to the hundreds of serpents covering her. One by one, they all stilled their writhing, rigor mortis setting in. They were a single mass - Aya and the serpents solidified together to become something new.
A gilded tree shined against the black of the night, long, serpentine roots, and high, bare branches stretching in either direction. Gold dust glistened like starlight.
The snake inside her began to rot.
Black sickness ate at it, radiating from a single point. The snake withered, collapsing in on itself. Then so did Aya. Slow decay pulled her inward, turning her bones to dust, her flesh to dark gravedirt. The tree engulfing her followed. As steady as a clock, the tree rotted from the inside, wood becoming powder. The rot spread further out, finally reaching the exterior of the tree, collapsing it under its own weight - but when it came time, the gold dust didn’t move. It held its shape, a memory of what had once been, even as the tree deteriorated.
The last of the tree was gone. Dust hung suspended in the air, a gilded shadow of what had once been. And then it too fell away. Golden particles drifted through the black night, suspended in the sky like stars.
Aya sat in the cafe, feeling only half-conscious. At some point she'd dropped the envelope on the table. Her eyes were unfocused as she breathed, mind still trying to orient itself in reality again. Her head swam. She felt like she was still floating in that tide, useless against the current. In the fog of her mind, there was sudden clarity.
She was being mined for information.
The realization didn’t hurt at first. But slowly, like that icy chill that had already crept its way through Adam Pierce’s body, emotions built, each one anchoring her.
Sadness.
Hurt. She’d trusted them.
Fear. There was something undeniably dangerous about all that she'd seen, potent knowledge staining her.
Anger. They’d used her like a tool. She wasn’t a student, she was a crystal ball, convenient for pulling up whatever images might be needed, no matter what it did to her. Aya didn't have any tears left. She was too exhausted, hollowed out to make room for her visions and the souls that'd come with them. Her mind worked, detached from her pain.
Professor Everose had given her this 'exercise' but if she was just after the information, then she wouldn't need Aya - she could have these visions herself. She was older, more powerful, and wasn't trying to use this ability for the very first time. It'd certainly be more reliable than having Aya do it - unless she knew the danger of the visions and was trying to protect herself. That thought hurt. As painful as it was, Aya felt dirty for considering it, like it was somehow a betrayal. She didn't want to believe her mentor would do something so cold. Aya carefully packed the thought away, not eliminating it, but eager to move on to other ideas.
If it didn't make sense for this task to come from Professor Everose, then there were only two people that she knew of that could give the older woman a command, and one of them was already dead. But the question came back: why wouldn't Dean Ashford just ask Professor Everose to have these visions for him? Aya paused. How had he even known Aya would be able to do this? Before today, her power had been limited to traversing between the Astral and Material worlds, nothing to do with visions -
And then Aya remembered the first time she'd ever seen Finvarra. She saw roiling black smoke, and his dark smile. Aya hadn't told anyone about her dream, not even Professor Everose. But she'd seen Dean Ashford the next day. She'd spoken to him about her fears, about a growing sense of dread, but had that been enough for him to know she could do this?
Saturday stayed in her mind. The memories were clear, even when she'd been exhausted and disoriented. Even if she couldn't recall the details exactly, she could step by step walk herself through what she'd done. She couldn't say the same of the night before.
Aya had been more than happy to leave the events of Friday night unexamined and forgotten. She'd written off her fading memory as simply trauma mixed with adrenaline. But now, swallowing her fear, Aya tried to remember, really tried. She saw flashes - the club. The Sluagh. Fear. Pain. But the images were murky - covered over with a now familiar, vast, solid white mist.
She'd only begun to forget after Saturday - after the meeting with him. It was then that Aya realized she didn't know what his mutation was. Aya's heartbeat, already growing too quick, spiked. Aya sat at the table in the little cafe, looking down at the black envelopes, their contents spilled on the table. She tried to control her breathing.
Eventually Aya moved. Picking up her pen, Aya turned to a new page in the notebook and began to write. Her grip was too tight on the pen as she wrote line after line, flipping the pages. When she finished, she turned to the back of the notebook to see four fresh envelopes in the back pocket - the ones she'd been meant to turn in to Professor Everose. Aya pulled four pages from the notebook, folding them each into careful squares and slipping them into the envelopes. She pushed the opening flaps inside of the envelopes to keep them closed. She tore out the rest of the pages she'd written on, folding them and placing them between the pages of her own personal notebook. Then the rest of her belongings were in her backpack and Aya was pushing herself up from the table.
Aya winced as she flexed her hand, muscles stiff. Then she looked up and saw the other patron in the cafe. Aya realized she recognized him. He was a student, new this week (after Saturday, her mind whispered). She remembered passing him when she left campus, praying he didn't notice her. And now he was here. Looking at her.
Aya's heart was in her throat as her mind worked in overdrive. She stared back at him. Then she threw the food wrapper and the rest of her mocha in the trash, and marched up to the boy.
“Are you following me?” She’d meant for it to come out combative, but instead she just sounded like a cornered animal. Aya pressed her lips together, cutting off any more words. She stared down at the boy in his chair, knuckles white as she gripped the strap of her bag.
]
