Heretic — Roleplayer Guild

Cassandra Voss & Cap'n Hook
A collab between @Heretic and @beyond visions

Rylan Kane, or by what the First Combatant is better known as, Cap'n Hook, only ever returned to Churchill with grave warning of potential attacks on the colony or to lead his soldiers home, their home. This was not home to him, a fox-hole was, or a bullet riddled tent. But he arrived now, because things are different, that could mean dangerous. He felt the dire need to speak to Cassie about a threat, a threat that was unlike the many he has faced outside Churchill, because this threat lied only on the inside. And no this was not about the Overseers, they were of no concern to Cap'n.  

He waited for the second-in-command while overlooking "the Crater", a dueling pit dug twelve feet deep into the Vanguard pit. His eyes squinted, watching intently as two young men, likely Initiate rank, practicing a bit of sword-play. Cap'n touched the hilt of his cutlass. He could teach them a thing or two about life and death between a blade, but that is not why he came here. 

Soon he heard footsteps approach from behind. Cassie, she was finally free of the interrogation she aided the Sheriff with. "Cass..." Cap'n greeted the Right-hand with an honorable bow, which may have felt a bit awkward to her since there was once a time that she took order under his command. If there were any man deserving of all respect within the Vanguard faction, it would be Kane. It is because of that man that Churchill has not crumbled under the Outsider ambushes or attacks. Throughout all of his time within the Vanguards, Cap'n has been offered the rank of Spartan many times. However, he could never take the position, Churchill was not his home, the field was. "Rest easy yer star-buzzin' heart, thar be no trouble beyond these walls." Cap'n paused, no that was not a valid statement made. "Well... I trust that cannot be completely star-buzzin' true. Thar's a reason why I'm here... Why I come t' you, not-- "

"Cass! CASS!" It was Theo calling for Cassandra... again. Except, this time, he came running to her, rather in a hurry, and dressed quite strangely compared to what Theo often outfits himself with. That same tux that he snickered at right before the sun rose, yes, he was wearing that now. Though, it did look a little tight for the big man. "Cass! Cass!-- Cap'n Hook!" Theo ran, opening his arms up to capture Kane in a welcoming hug, "Wait-- Nope, can't do that, can't break the suit." Yes, the tux was quite restricting when it came to stretching, thus Theo was forced to simply give up on his friendly embrace. "Cap'n, how have things been-- Wait, no. Can't talk. In a rush. Can't risk keeping Isabel waiting. I want to get there early. So, we'll talk about the interrogation later-- Um... um... Do either you know how to... um... tie a bow-tie?" Apparently the knotted piece of black fabric tied around Theo's neck was in fact the bow tie, however he has tangled himself in a mess trying.  

"Err... Bersek... Theo, hook, remember?" Of course, Cap'n clearly couldn't tie Theo's bow tie.

"Oh yeah... right... Cass? Help please?"

Cassie couldn't help but roll her eyes, a slight smile forming as she turned to Rylan for a moment to give him a certain look. 

"Come here," she motioned for Theo, watching him as he walked towards her in his tuxedo. Cassie could barely contain herself; it wasn't everyday she witnessed the Hulk himself walking somewhat funny due to a wardrobe upgrade. But Cassie bit her tongue to prevent herself from laughing as she knew that otherwise, it would just make Theo self-conscious.

"You're moving up in the world, kid. I'm so proud of you," Cassie said as she got to working on his bowtie. Oddly enough, Cassie was somewhat relieved to see Theo worrying about his appearance. It could very well mean that he wanted to impress Isabel, and that was a start. 

Once she was finished, Cassie swiped away a little bit of dirt sitting on the front side of the jacket, just below the shoulder.

"All done." she said, taking a few steps back to stand next to Rylan. "Mind if we talk for a few moments now? Alone..."

"Um, yeah, I was just about to leave-- Uh, wish me luck," In between his own anxiety, Theo forced a smile in, it was an inauthentic symbol of joy  to him. As Theo took his depature, Rylan turned in response to Cassie's question, "Aye, shall we speak in th' war room, not a soul shall be a bother t' us thar?"

At the center of the vanguard war room was a rustic square cedar table. The reason why this table was still stable and standing was because it was bolted down into floor for obvious reasons if you knew Theo. Laid out on the rustic table was a map of London, similar to that in the muse war room, however this one had upon it figurines symbolizing the vanguard outposts. "Har har, ye know when Bersek rose from th' rank o' Initiate t' Combatant, I thought he was bein' a smart-arse by askin' about uniforms. 'Uniforms?!' I barked back at 'im. 'tis th' star-buzzin' post-apocalypse, not th' pissin' Collective army!'  Har, I wasn't mad at 'im, he thought o' us that official-- glorified us, he always has been one hell o' a soldier. Even wit'  th' man's tantrums you know he can fall in line, why? 'Tis that good soldier in 'im. But..."  Cap'n rested his hook against the table's surface. There was a reason why he wished to be alone from the ears that may accuse and confuse his concern  for treason. "Who must he be loyal t' now? Not you. You may be at a lower rank than 'im, but every vanguard has always seen you as our secret queen. 'Tis wha' kept peace between those who thought you should 'ave been Spartan aft Emery died. Hm, you jus' saw 'im, how he squeezed into that small-arse suit, why? 'Cause he's a good soldier, 'n that, what you just saw, was  his uniform." Cap'n lifted his hook from the table as he folded his arms, stepping towards Cassie. "What's that Ole Earth sayin'? 'No man can serve two masters.' Theo will forget about you."

Cassie was growing uneasy by Rylan's statements. Not due to her personal feelings for Theo, but simply out of concern that she would turn into his personal assistant as the power that came with her rank slowly diminished. In the end, would Theo and Isabel be the only ones in charge of the vanguards? And if so, where would that leave her?

Cassie attempted to come up with any valid counterargument, but unfortunately, she found herself at a loss for words. The sadness that was washing over her becoming evident on her face.

"What do I do now then?" she whispered, looking at Rylan for answers. It wasn't typical for the woman to wave the white flag right away, but the thought of her becoming useless to her people was too much to bear at the moment.

"Look, Cassie...," Cap'n placed his hook against her shoulder, with the curved side touching her.  "I came here t' warn you, not belittle you... I would ne'er belittle my future queen. Future, 'cause Cass, once 'tis within yer star-buzzin' grasp---" Cap'n shot a smirk before suddenly jamming his hook straight through the cedar table.  "Take it! Nail yourself t' it, so no one can pry it from you, not even Theo... I likely doubt he would anyways. Besides, I know I jus' said that he will forget about you, but..." Cap'n jerked his hook out from the wooden surface, lifting it up towards his face even though his eyes gazed off in space with his thoughts.  "He will ne'er be fueled by politics. Berserk has always been powered by his passions, 'tis reason why we call 'im, Berserk-- he becomes maniacal in a non-cognitive, fervent frenzy 'cause o' an intense desire fer someone he doesn't mind dyin' fer. 'tis how Theo saved Emery's life, 'cause he wasn't concern wit' his owns, only about those who he was fightin' fer 'n wit'."  Cap'n lowered his hook resting it against his cutlass.  "Speakin' o' fightin', ever thought about gettin' some fresh air... beyond these walls 'n back wit' yer true brothers 'n sisters, th' combatants?"

"I, um..." she smiled nervously at Rylan's suggestion, watching him for a moment to gauge his expression in order to figure out how serious he was being, but the young woman could not find even the slightest trace that'd suggest otherwise. It was then Cassie gave it some careful consideration.

"To be honest, I've thought about it a few times. I mean, up until now I knew for a fact that I was a vital member of the vanguards. But I can't quite say how this marriage will affect all of us. I've been here to support Theo, but since I won't be his support system anymore... Maybe I will be more useful with you guys out there."

The thought alone scared her, to be on the outside once more. She'd gotten used to living in Churchill, but likewise, Cassie loved her people, and feeling useless was just something she could not tolerate.

"Aye, 'tis th' spirit!" Cap'n smiled with his crooked teeth. Even joy could be seen through that one good eye of his. "Heard about the Overseers 'n about th' ship... I guess I came to Churchill just time-- reckon Berserk will want me and my men on it, escortin' whatever Overseer tak'n us thar. I'm sure he'll want us on it as soon as possible." Rylan gave Cassie a light playful jab to the shoulder with his hook, "Hope 'tis place hasn't made you lazy! Enjoy the wedding, Cass, but hope you consider leaving early to brush up on your skills in the Crater, that'll be where you'll find me."

"Are you kidding? I'll show up super early just to show you how good I've gotten since the last time we saw in each other in combat."

Cassie smiled back, waving at Rylan before she headed to her room to get ready for the wedding ceremony.

"I hope you bring your A-game my friend, just because we've learned from each other in the past doesn't mean I'll stop teaching you how it's done."

It all happened so fast. Chase was slowly following the natural curve of the road when he noticed a car drifting into his lane. But given the close proximity of both drivers, he couldn't react fast enough. He was, however, able to catch a glimpse of the female driver who was looking down, and he was 99.99% sure she was distracted by her phone. He jerked his bike to the left before he felt the impact, the head-on collision sending him flying over her car. 

Chase landed on the road with a hard thud, the force knocking the wind out of him. He was able to register the vehicle screeching to a halt, which meant he was alive. In pain, but alive, and that was good.

"Oh my god, are you okay?"

Such a stupid question to ask. Chase slowly rolled on his back despite of the fact that his entire body ached. He didn't dare remove his helmet nor did he want to move anymore than he had to as that may cause further damage, so instead, he gave the girl a thumbs up.

"Call 9-1-1", he told her as loud as he could. Chase noticed the girl's expression changing, and he knew she had just realized how much trouble she was about to be in. For peace of mind, Chase looked over at the girl's license plate number to try to memorize it as well as the make, model, and color of her vehicle. If she decided to run, she wouldn't get far.

But apparently it wouldn't come to that. Chase could make out the girl's distressed voice talking to the 9-1-1 operator and giving them the details of the accident. He hoped his uncle would be the one dispatched to the scene, just for the sake of having a familiar face there with him. 

Before he knew it, Chase heard sirens slowly getting louder. He tried turning his head just the slightest amount and he was able to see a police car approaching followed by the fire-rescue truck. Now he could breathe a little bit easier.

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