[IC] Fateful Convergence

[Daxam]

Nigel watches the taxi drive off and continues watching for a few more long moments until he suddenly feels someone pat his shoulder and yell, "Boo!" Nearly jumping out of his skin, he turns to find his silver-haired sister grinning at him. "Hello, brother," Sarah says. "What are you doing out this late?" Nigel, after giving his heart time to settle, sighs and says, "Nothing. I just wanted to get a breath of fresh air." Sarah raises an eyebrow at her brother and asks, "And you thought the best way to do that was in that woman's mouth?" Nigel instantly flushes and turns around to walk away, saying, "I don't think I have to dignify that with an answer!" Laughing, Sarah hurries to catch up with Nigel, saying, "Oh, stop being so secretive! Who is she? She really is pretty!" Nigel turns to Sarah and can't help but feel a surge of affection for his younger sister. Even after having gone through the 'loss' of her previous boyfriend, she still seems overjoyed to know that her brother had managed to find someone. Smiling, he begins telling Sarah everything about Arlia, except for her being part of the Mafia, as they walk home underneath the starlit sky.

[Vocalia]

Four months have passed since Arlia and Nigel's first 'date', during which the two remained in contact while their enemies, Hayley, Isaac, and Sean, continued to train and push themselves further, exploring more about their powers, and memories in Isaac's case. Regardless of what happened, it seemed that the fates of these particular individuals were becoming more and more intertwined as time passed. Alliances prospered and friendships were forged, acquaintances became friends and then moved into something more. Perhaps fate itself had a hand in this intertwining destiny as even love began to blossom amongst some of these people. However, for one loving couple, their story was about to take a darker turn.

Arlia and Nigel had been meeting more and more often since their first secret rendezvous and the romance between them rapidly grew and bloomed like a flower in Spring, but between trying to lay low from Crey's surveillance and evading the Medici's immense sphere of influence and network within the entire city, it was only a matter of time until the cat was out of the bag. One day, a package came address to the Howeland residence. It was a small innocuous box with a thumb drive inside of it, protected with bubble wraps, and a card stating that this package was addressed to one Nigel Howeland. There appeared to be no foul play with regards to the box or its content and it seemed rather harmless, if not strangely unusual.

[Daxam]

It would be late in the evening when Nigel returns home after a long day of work. As he steps into the apartment he shares with his sister, Sarah looks up from the book she was reading and smiles at her brother. "Welcome home, Nigel," she says. "A package came for you and it's sitting on the kitchen counter." Nigel, confused, walks into the kitchen and immediately sees the small box sitting on the counter. "That's strange..." he mutters to himself. "I wasn't expecting a package." His training asserting itself, he slowly lifts the box to his ear, attempting to hear anything that might mark it as dangerous. Hearing nothing, he slowly sets it down and cautiously opens it, expecting it to explode at any moment. When it doesn't, he digs through the bubble wrap until he comes across the thumb drive.

A few minutes later, after plugging the drive into his laptop, he stalks out of his room and heads straight for the door. "Where are you going?" Sarah asks from the kitchen before feeling her breath catch in her throat. Flickering around her brother's shoulders were flames blacker than even the darkest night. "I'll be back," he mutters before storming out of the apartment. Sighing, Sarah looks at the pot of stew simmering on the stove and mutters, "Please, be careful, brother..."

[Vocalia]

The night seemed to pass on like a regular evening for the patrolling teams around the Medici Mansion. Guards were casually chatting with each other or keeping an eye on any signs of intruders. To them, nothing seemed to be happening out of the ordinary and they believed that they would live to see the morning sun the following day, unaware of the fire of vengeance making his way to the mansion. Suddenly, one of the guard towers raised the alarm after their heat scope detected a spike in temperature heading towards the building. Men with guns all came totting in with bravado, ready to take on this unknown intruder.

From the topmost room, Adriano Medici heard the alarm being sounded and hummed casually. "Oh? Looks like we have a visitor," he said, his deep baritone followed by a dark chuckle as he turned to look at his daughter Arlia, now a shell of her former self. The woman, naked, injured, and covered in blood, was tied down in a spreadeagle position on the bed with cold steel chain, tears all but drenching her cheeks and eyes and her mouth gagged with blood-stained cloth. "It would still be a while before I get busy, so let's have ourselves one last round, shall we?" Adriano, clad only in black formal pants, sat down on the bed and lustfully looked at his own flesh and blood, his hand tracing her voluptuous body and touching her in places where a sane and truly caring father wouldn't even think of getting close to. Even though he had just satisfied himself not too long ago, looking at Arlia's miserable state was already turning him on. All she could do was cry and whimper, silently begging for anyone to help her.

[Daxam]

Gunfire fills the otherwise still night air as the guards attempt to kill the intruder, who was clad in black flames. Not even flinching as bullets whiz past his body or pepper the ground before him, within millimeters of slamming into him, Nigel regards the foolish men with unrestrained fury. Raising his hand, he releases a torrent of black fire, incinerating all caught in the blaze and reducing their weapons to slag. To the remaining men, who had stopped firing to witness their comrades become reduced to cinders, Nigel says, "If you value your lives, let me through. Or else there won't be enough remaining of your body to fill even a thimble." While a few of the men throw down their weapons and run, the majority of them raise their weapons at the intruder, seeking revenge for their friends. With no ounce of sympathy to be found anywhere in his heart, Nigel steps forward.

Long minutes later, Nigel strides down the bloodstained and scorched hallway until he comes to a set of doors. "This has to be it," he mutters, having checked all of the other rooms, already. Without pausing to listen, he slams his foot into the door, breaking it off of it's hinges and causing it to fly several feet into the room.

[Vocalia]

Arlia screamed as the door came flying onto the wall just as Adriano was about to take off his pants. As her green eyes watched, a figure stepped into the dark, unlit room, the smell of burning ash and wood causing her to cough. In front of Nigel was Arlia and the bed she was chained onto. Looking at the flame-bathed intruder, Adriano smirked and finally removed himself from her. "Buona sera, signor Howeland. We finally have the chance to meet," he calmly greeted as he grabbed onto some clothes from a nearby chair and put on the top half of what turned out to be a set of sharp-looking tuxedo. Seeing her lover clad in burning flames and eyes flashing with indescribable fury, Arlia looked away, crying and weeping in shame.

[Daxam]

Nigel says nothing right away, instead fixing his gaze on Arlia. Seeing the state she was in, he feels his anger build even more, but not at her. Turning his furious gaze back toward the man who deserved it, he feels the fire covering his body intensify as he says, "I'm going to tell you only once, you piece of shit: release her or else I'll turn you into a scorch mark on the wall, like I did your men."

[Vocalia]

Adriano appeared unfazed even as the man in front of him exerted a flame so hot that every candle in the room was reduced to a gooey pool of wax, the paintings crumbled into ashes, and the carpet under his feet burning away to reveal the marble floor. To his threat, the man calmly dusted himself and asked Arlia, "Such foul language and rude mannerism. Why did you associate yourself with him, mia figlia?" As if to provoke Nigel even further, he sat down next to Arlia again, the woman trying to use her power to ward him off before he simply slapped her bolt of light aside with one hand, and grabbed her face, gripping her lower jaw as she winced in pain. He looked back at Nigel with a smirk on his face. "Unfortunately, signor Howeland, you really have no say in what I could do with my own daughter. Still, I beg to wonder, why would you waste your time to chase after such a dirty, impure filth?" To frost the cake of provocation, his hand moved away from her face and down to where only the man of her choice would even think of seeing, his smirk breaking into a twisted grin as Arlia whimpered.

[Daxam]

Nigel watches Adriano begin to lower his hand down Arlia's body. Before it could get past her navel, however, Nigel moves with blinding speed, closing the distance between himself and the older man to slam him against the wall, his hand closed around Adriano's throat. His dark brown eyes, burning with hatred and fury, lock onto Adriano's eyes as he says, his voice no more than a whisper, "You don't deserve to have such an amazing woman as your daughter." The flames covering his body then begin to concentrate on his arm as he says, "Burn in my hellfire, bastard." A moment later, the flames on his arm burst into a blast of pure, black heat, destroying the wall behind and around the Medici boss.

[Vocalia]

Arlia had to close her eyes lest the heat melt them as Nigel destroyed the wall where he had pinned her father onto. However, Adriano appeared unfazed and unharmed even as he was being held by the throat by the man and hit point blank by a blast of fire. "My, I believe I have to take back my words. Now I do see why my daughter fancies you," White, glowing markings began to appear all over his body and his teal eyes were glowing with a blinding light. Said blinding light then shot straight into the dark brown eyes that were glaring at him, temporarily blinding him and inflicting him with a little bit of pain, but then Adriano followed up with a display of superhuman strength as he slammed one elbow onto his attacker's elbow. The sheer force was enough to break bones and tear flesh apart.

[Daxam]

The stinging sensation in Nigel's eyes was completely forgotten as Adriano practically tore his elbow apart, causing him to feel indescribable pain shoot up his arm and down his forearm. Taking a step back, he holds his arm, feeling blood, warm and sticky, run over his hand as he attempts to staunch the bleeding. "That's it," he growls. Suddenly, a pillar of black fire envelopes him and, a moment later, he bursts out of the fire in his beast form, his arm appearing to be healed, roaring as he charges toward Adriano once more.

[Daxam]

The stinging sensation in Nigel's eyes was completely forgotten as Adriano practically tore his elbow apart, causing him to feel indescribable pain shoot up his arm and down his forearm. Taking a step back, he holds his arm, feeling blood, warm and sticky, run over his hand as he attempts to staunch the bleeding. "That's it," he growls. Suddenly, a pillar of black fire envelopes him and, a moment later, he bursts out of the fire in his beast form, his arm appearing to be healed, roaring as he charges toward Adriano once more.

[Vocalia]

Arlia watched with horror in her eyes as the man she loved with all her heart succumbed to rage and became a monstrous beast, roaring and charging head on at her father. She had never seen him in such a state of fury, let alone in a state of single-minded rage. "It's time to put this animal in his place," Adriano calmly spoke. He waited until Nigel came close enough for him to reach him before using both his hands to grab onto his jaw, dueling his strength against that of the large beast. As they clashed, it soon became clear how he could survive the blast that had incinerated his men and how he was able to deflect Arlia's attack. A protective layer of light protected his entire body from the attacks, covering him from head to toe just above his skin, the layer shining as Nigel's jaws made contact with his arm. "A beast's strength is indeed one to be cautious of," Adriano paused, then smirked as he felt the beast trying to clamp down on him, "but a beast of hell is no match for an angel of the heavens." Upon his confident, almost arrogant, declaration, he began to push back as if he was trying to tear Nigel apart by his jaws.

[Daxam]

Nigel feels Adriano beginning to pry his jaws apart and attempts to back away. However, unable to escape the man's iron-like grip, he summons a ball of black fire in his mouth, which suddenly explodes. Using the explosion as a diversion, Nigel quickly pulls himself out of the man's grip and jumps back. Even though he was in this primal state, he could still realize when a situation was too dangerous to pursue. Glaring at the man, deep in his mind, Nigel begins to desire more power, enough to make good on his earlier threat, enough to protect the woman he loves. As he charges again, a ball of black and purple fire in each large, clawed hand, the flames enveloping his body begin to intensify once more as they spread down his back, arms, legs, and around his face.

[Vocalia]

"It's useless. Surrender now and I will be merciful," Adriano boasted as several spheres of light appeared and began shooting at Nigel's direction, specifically his eyes, lungs and heart. It was a light laser attack similar to the light beam that Arlia could use, but much more powerful and precise. He then followed up by sweeping his hand, sending a wave of cascading light rushing towards the beast bathed in black flames. Watching helplessly, a restrained Arlia screamed for her father to stop hurting her beloved, her voice muffled by the cloth gagging her mouth.

[Daxam]

Despite his bulk, Nigel was able to avoid most of the attacks. However, one beam managed to hit his left eye, causing him to roar in pain, which distracted him enough for another beam to pierce through his chest. Falling to the ground, wheezing as his lung collapses, Nigel glares up at the man, defiance burning in his good eye. Then, the flames completely cover his body. As the fire burns, his body begins to grow smaller as his bestial characteristics burn away. Soon, he was lying in a pool of his own blood, still wheezing and unable to see out of his destroyed left eye. "I'm...gonna...kill you..." he rasps.

[Vocalia]

"Big talk from a half-dead corpse." Seeing Nigel's injuries, Adriano smirked and walked towards the man, then stopped right in front of him and brought his foot up above his head. "Rest in peace, beast of hell. Rest assured that you will not be alone. I will send my useless offspring to your side soon." Arlia watched with a shriek as Adriano brought his foot down, preparing to deliver the killing blow.

[Daxam]

At the last possible moment, another pillar of flame erupts around Nigel. However, unlike the last one he used to transform, this one seemed more controlled, and yet much, much more powerful. As the flames dissipate, the only evidence of Nigel's presence is revealed to be a circular scorch mark in the floor. "I'm not going to be killed that easily," he says, his voice seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. In the middle of the room, black flames begin to gather together, forming the likeness of a man. Then, the flames disappear, revealing Nigel in a new form: Large horns curve forward from his temples and a cloak of dark fire covers his shoulders and conceals his entire body, except for his feet. His hair burns with silver fire, as if each strand were set alight, and his eyes were now black instead of their usual dark brown. Fixing his dark gaze on Arlia's father, he says, "Now, then, let's start over, shall we?"

[Vocalia]

"Let's." Adriano seemed to take a small interest in Nigel's newest form, but was nonetheless onto Nigel, moving like a lightning bolt across the room. The markings on his skin glowed as more spheres of light shot forth from his glowing markings, once again homing in on Nigel at light speed. While Adriano was now focused on Nigel, Arlia looked at her chains and decided that she had enough of playing the victim. Although weak and exhausted, she cast a light dagger and began trying to cut herself free from her chains.

[Daxam]

Nigel watched Adriano close in on him, firing those orbs of light once more. As each one flies toward him, a wall of fire erupts from the ground in front of Nigel, blocking the attack. One manages to slip through his defense, but Nigel, almost casually, reaches out and catches it in his hand, which also burned with black fire. "This will no longer be effective against me," he states, crushing the sphere of light in his hand. When Adriano finally gets within range, Nigel holds his other hand out toward him and fires off multiple, thin lines of flame, each one hot enough, it could sear through almost anything, much like a black laser.