Lord Wraith

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

As Calliope stood, she was stopped in her tracks by cold steel against the back of her head.

“I’m sorry, luv, that’s far enough.” The familiar voice of the Butler stated from behind the blonde woman. “I’m afraid I can’t let you go through with it, that boy is my meal ticket and he knows it. If you take him away, if you give him meaning, I’ll be back to where I started before all this, and I’ll be damned if that cursed line is allowed to procreate again.”

His hand quivered slightly, the barrel of the weapon causing friction against the back of the student’s head.

“I did everything I could to protect him but this juvenile crush has gone on long enough. Hopefully he gets to you before you bleed out. I wouldn’t want to rob him of the chance to say goodbye again.”

Momentary relief washed over Calliope as the weapon was removed. The weapon cocking was suddenly deafening and before she could react the sound of the shot rang out. Calliope fell to the ground, where once was two feet, now was only one, her left leg from the thigh down gone. Searing white pain overtook the shock and blood was rapidly exiting from the open wound.

“I’d get a tourniquet on that if I were you, luv.” The Butler responded while nodding towards the bloodied stump where her leg had once been, and then he too, so like much of the Trial, vanished, leaving Calliope alone in the dark to bleed out.

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: H.E.L.P.'s Black Site - Zayas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.039: Monkey Wrench

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: I Walk the Line

In the short months that the Black Site had been decommissioned, the age and humidity of the island had rapidly caught up with it, leaving the interior damp and reeking of mold and mildew. Still, Jim noted, it was void of the usual dust no doubt thanks in part to the traffic the site was still seeing thanks to Hyperion’s Children.

“Hold up,” Jim ordered, raising a hand before motioning to Torres to flank the entrance. “We have company.” He raised his weapon, while Torres produced her own.

“Jim,” Miranda’s voice called from the other side of the door, “It’s just Tad and I.”

“How do I know ya’ll ain’t Cameron?” Jim called back.

“Your favourite bourbon is Howler Head, but you always pour it into a decanter and dispose of the bottle so people don’t know you enjoy a banana flavoured bourbon.” Miranda replied. Torres raised an eyebrow while Jim let out a low chuckle.

“Happy to have y’all along.” He stated, stepping out of the shadows as Miranda and Tad joined him and Torres.

“I take it Miss Friend is here as well then?” Jim asked as Miranda nodded.

“Or at least she was when we had Cameron, congratulations on avoiding death again.”

“If Hyperion weren’t about to kill me, I ain’t about to let his bargain bin knockoff do it.” Jim retorted as the group headed further into the belly of the beast.

“This is all very sentimental, but I am hoping the pair of you have a plan.”

“Them?” Tad’s tone was incredulous. “They’re cowboys, I assumed you being here meant there was a plan, with all due respect Ms. Torres.”

“Big damn heroes.” Torres scolded as Jim beamed.

“Ain’t we just.”

Following the corridor deeper into the prison, the group emerged into a common area only to be greeted by several robed figures. Standing on the guard catwalk above was the Harbinger and beside him Naira Cameron holding Jessica with a blade pushed firm against the woman’s throat.

“Welcome, Chancellor and Interlopers.” The Harbinger gloated, their glee-laden baritone echoed through the large room. “I understand you have been looking for us.” They paced back and forth above the room, clearly amused he finally had the chancellor before him.

“You’re too late to save the students. Even if their minds haven’t crumpled from the strain, by now they’ve been wounded, maimed and potentially even killed. The team that dared stand defiant against our savior, broken by his successor. Look upon my works ye and despair.”

“Y’all look pretty stupid in those bathrobes. What is this, the spa from hell?” Jim smiled, his eyes focusing on Jessica’s neck. “This little game is at an end, take your mask off, put down any weapons and we’ll all walk out of here, hand in hand.”

“I believe,we have the numbers.” The Harbinger raised their hands as several more darkly clad figures emerged.

“Do you realize who I am?” Torres stepped forward, interjecting herself. “I am the Face of the Foundation. With a press of this button,” She started, showing her phone screen. “I will have the Foundation Force bring this entire building to rubble. You might be able to intimidate these teenagers into following you with your abilities,”

The Harbinger faltered slightly at the accusation.

“I’m sure Miss Rivers can verify my hypothesis, but even standing here now I can feel you trying to manipulate fear and awe from me. I have been in the presence of men and women far greater than you, I know a cheap imitation.”

“Well Miranda?” Jim asked, as the dark haired woman nodded.

“Their thoughts are well guarded, but I can feel their mind struggling to maintain their ability. Ms. Torres is correct.”

“No!” The Harbinger protested, “No! I am somebody you should fear.”

“Michael…” Miranda interjected, “Michael Tableau?”

“Mike the Janitor?” Tad blurted, stifling a laugh. “Hyperion’s Children are taking orders from Mike the Janitor?”

“Kill her.” The Harbinger ordered as Naira nodded only to find the knife wouldn’t move as a purple haze emerged between the blade and Jessica’s neck. Suddenly Jessica brought her heel down hard on Naira’s foot, before throwing the back of her head hard into the shapeshifter’s nose. Blood splattered across Naira’s face, the girl unable to regain her composure before Jessica managed to hoist Naira over her shoulder and off the catwalk.

“Thaddeus Finch, if you so much as spooned her, the wedding is off.” Jessica cried before vaulting over the catwalk to join her friends.

“Kill them all!” The Harbinger screamed. “Don’t let them escape with their lives, their insolence must be punished!”

But the cloaked students faltered, hesitating as Torres continued to hover her thumb over the button on her phone screen.

“That totally is Mike the Janitor,” Tad rolled his eyes before walking forward and hugging Jessica as she rejoined her rescuers.

“I always thought he shot spaghetti-os out of his nose.”

“Don’t just stand there!” The Harbinger screamed, “Get them! Now!”

A wave of energy washed over the room as something changed within the cloaked students. The Harbinger was pushing himself towards Hyperpsychosis to ensure he went down fighting. Looking from Miranda to Torres and back to Tad and Jessica, Jim muttered before spinning the barrel of his revolver as he put a new bullet in the chamber.

“And just when I thought it was over.”

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: The Southern Plateau - Dundas Islands, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.037: I Walk The Line

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: No Angels

Behind Jim, Adam dropped to the forest floor. A clean wound through his shoulder took the rage out of the beast as the young man howled in pain. Lindsay on the other hand was unable to move as Torres held her tightly in her telekinetic grip.

“You dropped this,” Torres snarked, floating the weapon back to Jim who snatched it out of the air and hastily holstered it.

“I suppose y’all have my gratitude,” He replied, his hand wandering to his ribs before his winced. As the adrenaline began to die down, the pain racing through his body began to rise.

“How’d y’all find me?” Jim asked, his eyes darting back to Adam to make sure the older student was in fact downed.

“Your island isn’t that big,” Torres replied dryly, “A vehicle taking an impromptu trip offroad leaves a mark. Happened to be on my way to observe the Trial, though I’m hearing you’re having some trouble with that. Are things always like this with you in charge?” Torres asked.

“Oh darlin’,” Jim replied, “Things were like this long before I was in charge.” He examined the damage to his arm, giving his hand a few flexes before checking the elbow and shoulder. Satisfied, Jim secured his holster before retrieving his Stetson from where it had been blasted to by Lindsay’s attacks.

Thankfully, the hat was miraculously unmarred.

“If’n ya’ll be excusin’ me, one of them got away and I’d very much like to track that whale back to the whole pod.”

“Not without backup you’re not.” Torres responded as Jim reluctantly moved aside, gesturing for her to follow him.

“Though I don’t know how you allowed an entire terrorist cell to fester under your nose this whole time.” Torres added with a disapproving tone.

“People in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones, darlin’.” Jim smiled with a wink of his gruff face. “We both know y’all got more than a few problems in your pipin’ based on the smell coming from your sewer.” He added, giving Torres a pat on the shoulder before he continued to speak while walking.

“Hyperion’s loyalists fled P.R.C.U. after he was dealt with. It wasn’t until the Foundation removed all incarcerees from the islands that we started to hear whispers of growing numbers. Clearly, their ranks had been culled at some point, but to pull a stunt like this they wanted attention. The question is why.” Jim mused while Torres kept pace beside him.

“The Foundation somehow has garnered a reputation for being Hyperhuman first over the last couple of years,” Torres replied, “Based on the reputation of Hyperion, if anything your so-called loyalists probably figured helping our goals actually would aid theirs.” She paused, studying the hastily trampled forest floor.

“It looks like they were heading to the coast.”

“Not the coast,” Jim grunted, his bruised ribs making themselves known again. “The Black Site.”

Wraith's Little Workshop of Horrors

Ünterland:

Ünterland or Umbra, is the mirror world occupied by the Magni and the Hellions.A world that parallels that of the Mundane, it lives in a state of anachronisms and arrested development, technology having peaked in the Victorian Era and supplemented by magic and alchemy to rival the modern technology of the mundane world.

Architecture and settlements in Umbra primarily mirror the major cities and population centers of the mundane world. However most smaller towns and villages are sparse, unable to flourish due to the Hellions present among the natural flora and fauna shared by both worlds.

Major cities are hubs of trade and commerce with the primary economy running on the barter system though valuables and currency exist but vary from Draoi to Hexenbrut to the Fair Folk to the Dwellers.

The residents of Umbra, the Magni have a split seelen or soul, the Überseelen and Unterseele. The Überseele, or oversoul is seated in the brain. It contains the thoughts, memories, and personality of an individual. Whereas the Unterseele or undersoul is seated in the heart. It contains the appetites, emotions and fears of an individual.

Hyperhumans however have a unified soul made for the mundane world but upon entering Umbra it begins to fracture before fragmenting into tangible shards. These fragments draw the attention of Hellions and can empower them and grant them powers they normally would be unable to possess. Hyperhumans on the other hand, lose their abilities in Umbra, and furthermore are trapped until they re-unite their shattered souls.

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

^{| A Day Ago}

The corridors of the former Black Site had always given Naira Cameron the creeps. But she walked with pride, the Harbinger had chosen her. There was something exhilarating about being in the presence of the Harbinger, they had an atmosphere about them that commanded respect, Naira couldn’t help but be in awe of the power they wielded from the makeshift throne they sat upon.

For the past year, Naira had been working for the Harbinger using her ability to maintain the alias of Pallyx Penada. Under this alias, the Harbinger had been able to get Pallyx into the system and ultimately onto Team Blackjack, a personal sleight against the chancellor’s former team and both Thaddeus Finch and Andrew Olyphant who personally defied Hyperion.

With the announcement of the degrees being stripped away from Pacific Royal, the opportunity to further drive a wedge between the students and the Foundation was at hand. It was simply the icing on the cake to ensure Blackjack suffered for Orcinus’ gain. Pallyx would simply leave, and Naira would move to the next part of the Harbinger’s plan.

A gloved hand reached towards Naira, holding within it a small USB drive.

“You’ve done well this far, my child. Truly you are a Child of Hyperion.”

"The winds are blowing." Naira replied with a bow.

"But the surface is still." The Harbinger answered, “You will need faculty access to the Trial, with your talents, but also you’ll need the student card of one of the Trial’s architects to write the code. Opportunity won’t knock twice, we need to strike while they’re confused and vulnerable.”

“Yes, Harbinger.” Naira stood to rise, “And should any of ours become ensnared in the trap?”

“Then they die for the glory of Hyperion.”

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: The Southern Plateau - Dundas Islands, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.035: No Angels

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Cult of Personality

“Structural integrity is currently at 61%.”

Another blast rocked the Manticore before the sound of something slicing into its armor filled the cabin. The back door was suddenly pried from its hinges as Naira climbed out, smiling smugly to her awaiting cohorts.

“Structural integrity is currently at 39%. Vehicle stability is compromised.”

“What do we do with him?”

“We have to kill him, he knows too much.” Naira replied, “The whole faculty is onto us, the mission is a failure. If we kill the Chancellor we have a chance to get away.”

“If we kill the Chancellor, it’s an open declaration of war.” Replied a male voice.

“We already did that the minute we tampered with the Trial.”

“She’s right.” A female voice interjected.

“I’m not doing it,” The male snapped, “Hyperhumans shouldn’t be killing other Hyperhumans, we’re supposed to be lifting each other up.”

“Sometimes,” Naira responded with a cruel smirk, “You have to crack a couple of eggs to make an omelette.” She turned to the woman beside her, “If Adam won’t do it, how about you?”

Picking up a nearby rock, the women smiled before charging it with kinetic energy, turning the stone from a projectile into a grenade.

“Jim wrote my parents last year, said I was a troubled youth, I spent my entire summer break bouncing from therapist to therapist. He wasted my summer, I’m happy to waste him.”

She launched the rock into the vehicle, the explosion quickly engulfed the interior while Adam shook his head.

“I can’t believe it came to this.”

“Where’s the beast?” Naira teased, “Never would I expect Lindsay to have more of a wild side than you.”

Adam roared, bearing his long, pointed teeth as the animal-like Hyperhuman gave a sullen look towards the burned-out vehicle.

“Suppose you want me to drag that wreck into the ocean-” He started to ask before a violet glow from the vehicle caught his attention. Turning to Lindsay, he raised a furry brow, “Is that you-”

The words didn’t make it out of his mouth before a wall of psychic energy smashed into his face, toppling Adam into the thick trunk of a nearby tree. From the other side of the vehicle, the driver’s side door exploded open as Jim toppled onto the ground, encased in a glow bubble of psionic energy. Lindsay smiled, reaching into the pouch she wore and producing a sleeve of metal slugs. Ejecting one into her hands, it immediately began to glow before she hurled the charged object towards Jim. Raising his metal arm and projecting a shield in front of it, Jim braced for the impact.

The explosion caused his eyes to blur as he was temporarily blinded while his cowboys dug into the soft moss covered floor of the ravine. He slid backwards, before turning to retaliate.

“Ainsworth, why I am not surprised y’all are caught up in this mess.” Jim drawled sarcastically.

“Go to hell!” Lindsay replied while repeatedly pelting Jim with explosives. Behind her, Naira looked between Lindsay and Adam before ultimately making a run for it, abandoning the other Orcinus members.

“Oh, you bitch.” Lindsay snapped from between gritted teeth while Jim began to close ground. “You better hope he kills me, Cameron! I’m coming for you, next!”

“I’d pay more attention to the fight y’all are in before picking more.” Jim suddenly leapt over the wreckage of the vehicle that had been separating the pair. Lindsay didn’t have time to react before suddenly Jim was tackled out of the air. A roar echoing through the trees as Adam re-entered the fray. His eyes were gone to bloodlust as the bear-like man tackled Jim to the ground. Jim winced as his skull bounced off a rock, his impact barely padded by a hastily made shield.

Scrambling for his sidearm, Jim managed to draw it from his holster only for Adam’s claws to tear it from his hand, sending the large revolver spinning across the verdant forest floor. Adam reared his head back, his pointed ears flat against the mane-covered skull. His protruding jaws snapped open, before rushing towards Jim’s neck.

Raising his metal arm, Jim grimaced as Adam bit down hard enough to bend and dent the metal shell. But it was the moment he needed. Using Adam’s locked jaw as leverage, Jim managed to get out from the much larger man, scrambling towards his firearm before coming face to face with the barrel of his own gun.

The weapon floated in front of him, the safety pulled back as none other than Teresa Torres stood near the wrecked Manticore. Lindsay’s eyes darted from Jim to Torres and then back to Jim with a smile. The birds in the trees above suddenly made themselves sparse as the sound of the revolver echoed through the trees.

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

“I came as fast as I could, had to end a class early in the A.R.C.”

Aiden Roth’s voice echoed through the multi-bedroom apartment. The faculty housing on campus wasn’t sparse on space and it provided more than enough room for the small family. He smiled as Victoria rounded the corner, moving towards his wife and landing a peck on her cheek while embracing her. She returned the gesture before her body language informed Aiden there was something more important than a cordial greeting at hand.

“His H-Gene manifested.” She replied before her husband excitedly cut her off. His arms spread wide, pride evident in Aiden’s face as he moved to celebrate

“That’s great news-” His excitement was met with a shaking head, tears welling up in the corner of Victoria’s eyes.

“A kid is in the infirmary, his parents are trying to sue the school.”

“Tori, what happened?”

“He took after you, his powers set the other boy on fire. The poor kid is covered in third degree burns. If it wasn't for our healers, I don't know that he would have survived.” She put her head in her hands.

“I never wanted him to have to experience that, to have his abilities happen so fast and so aggressively. The whole point of raising him on the island was to keep him safe and then this happens.”

“He’s still safe.” Aiden replied while massaging his wife’s shoulders. “I’ll talk to him, I’ve been where he’s at.” He softly kissed Tori on the forehead before climbing the stairs towards the bedrooms. Inside, he found Lorcán sitting silently on his blue comforter, a plush otter gripped firmly between his small arms as reddened eyes looked up towards his father. What had once been swirling irises of blue were now ember-like orange catching Aiden off guard before the elder Roth remembered his own abilities affected his eyes.

“I, I wanted to be his friend.” Lorcán replied, “Why was he so mean? I didn’t mean to get so angry, Daddy, I just wanted-”

“I know,” Aiden replied softly, sitting down beside Lorcán before putting an arm around his son and giving the boy a firm squeeze. “I know, Lion Lungs. You have your mother’s heart, but your father’s spirit and with that spirit comes the instinct to fight and stand up for yourself.” His tone was soft as he spoke.

"You also have a Hyperhuman gene, just like both of your mother and I. Much as we've long suspected. Unfortunately, you take after me instead of your mother which means you're going to need to learn to keep emotions in check in order to control your abilities. These abilities we have, they move with our emotions, anger and arousal specifically."

Aiden paused, taking a second to process what he had just said.

“We’ll cover that latter one in a few years.”

“I don’t want to be a Hyperhuman, I want to make friends,” Lorcán sullenly protested, “What good are these powers if they only hurt people?”

“Powers don’t hurt people, it’s unfortunately people that hurt other people.” Aiden chided softly, “Remember, the boy wasn’t hurt until you were angry. That’s when you lost control. I know right now it hurts, I know he wasn’t being kind to you either. You need to learn to choose when to stand up and when to let it glide over you, just like skipping a rock across the water.”

“I just wanted a friend,”

“I know that. It’s hard being the only munch on the island at times. We would have loved to have given you a sibling, but that just wasn’t in the cards for us.” Aiden replied kindly, a small lump forming in his throat before he swallowed and washed it away.

“In the meantime, we need to teach you how to use your abilities.”

“I don’t want to burn anyone else,” Lorcán reiterated, before sending a chill down Aiden’s spine as he spoke again,

“But, in the moment-”

“-It felt good to watch him burn.”

“I know you don’t, Little Lion, and I know you think you mean that right now. We’ll find you someone to talk to so you can get those feelings out in a healthy way. I will never tell you how to feel, but I want to be sure you’re able to deal with them in a productive way.” Aiden replied, trying to ignore the way Lorcán was now looking at himself in the mirror.

“For those reasons, I’m going to teach you how to use your abilities,” Aiden said while standing up, before extending a hand to Lorcán. “And when I’m busy at school, I’ve found you a tutor to help your Mom out, I think you’ll like her. Her name’s Ryan, she has an ability much like ours.”

He smiled as Lorcán took his hand,

“Now I believe your mom promised you some ice cream earlier.”

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: Southern Plateau - Dundas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.026: Duality

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: You Look Good Like That

The clash of plasma on plasma showered the catwalk in sparks and charged ions. The hum of their electromagnetic fields squealed in protest with each parry, the red and blue coloured blades becoming a vibrant purple each time they collided.

From the balcony above, the Aurora dopplegänger was fully engrossed and entertained as Lorcán and his own dopplegänger traded blows in a display of prowess with their abilities and acrobatics. She was captivated by the two nearly identical men and the fervor at which they fought.

It was a flurry of blows, equal exchanges and close calls as Lorcán continued to duel his dopplegänger atop the catwalk whilst Aurora and the hooded figure beside her looked on. Raze smiled before feinting, Lorcán barely had time to block the blow as the two blades locked again, illuminating Raze’s scarred visage in a violet glow.

“You are wonderful.”

“Thank you,” Lorcán responded through gritted teeth. “I've worked hard to become so.”

“I admit it, you are better than I am.” Sneered Raze before pulling away and putting some distance between himself and Lorcán.

“Then why are you smiling?”

“Because I know something you don't know.”

“And what is that?”

“I am not left-handed.” Raze taunted, the plasma blade switching from his left to his right hand before he re-engaged Lorcán in combat.

“You are amazing.” Lorcán replied, fending off the attacks as Raze drove him back along the catwalk. Above them continued to be captivated by the display of both Lorcáns.

“I ought to be, after serving Hyperion for years.” The dopplegänger sneered while continuing his onslaught.

“Oh,” Lorcán interjected, parrying the blade with his own before taking a step back,
“There's something I ought to tell you.”

“Tell me.” Raze growled with anticipation.

“I'm not left-handed either.” Lorcán responded, dispersing his blade from his left before reigniting the air in his right hand and suddenly driving Raze back toward the middle of the catwalk.

“This is clearly not your first time doing this,”

“Nor yours,” Lorcán stated admiringly between breaths.

“How often do you do this?”

“I practice with them three hours a day.” Boasted Lorcán nearly stabbed Raze as his thrust just missed the other’s torso, instead piercing his cape.

“You need to find yourself a girl. Or perhaps the reason you practice three hours a day is that you already found one, and are otherwise incapable of wooing said lady.” Raze taunted, “You're not a eunuch are you?”

“I practice three hours a day, so when I meet a Hyperion loyalist, I can kill them.”

Cackling laughter broke the tension of the moment as both Raze and Lorcán’s eyes were drawn towards the robed figure looming over them from the balcony above.

“Oh,” The voice from under the hood chortled with delight, “I am so not Hyperion.” His hands moved to the hood, slowly removing it to reveal a burned scalp, and a face marred by lightning and fire.

“I have a bad feeling about this.”

“As you can see, the attempt on my life has left me scarred,” Rory explained, gesturing to the burns that covered his face. “But I am very much still alive.”

“Of course,” Lorcán muttered while continuing to defend against Raze’s attacks. “Somehow, Rory has returned. Didn’t I leave you at the bottom of the ocean, bro?” He called back to the hooded Rory.

“You do realize you tried to murder your best friend, bro?” Rory retorted, “And you’re not even shaken up about it, Goody-Two-Shoes Lorcán takes a life and he’s completely unphased, what are you some kind of psychopath? Are any of your relationships even real?” He raved, salvia flying from his mouth.

“Is that why you can’t get Aurora to love you? She’s seen the monster inside, she knows all your attachments, your friendships, that they’re all fake.” Rory paused, chuckling darkly.

“All your friends are experiencing their worst nightmares, and you’re playing make believe. Even in a life-or-death scenario, you’ve managed to make yourself the hero. It’s all about Lorcán.” He hissed venomously.

“Just like when abandoned the real me to go play in the woods with Amma, just like when you sprang your feelings on Aurora in the tent.”

Lorcán felt the knife twist.

“In the end,” He laughed, “You’re no different than him,” Rory added whilst pointing toward Raze.

“No… that’s not true!” Lorcán protested with a loud cry, “That’s impossible!” Pushing back against Raze with all his might, Lorcán broke off from their fight before he leapt onto the catwalk railing and boosted himself towards the balcony that held Rory and Aurora’s doppelgängers.

“Aurora’s my best friend, you’re a dick and you’re not real.” He roared, his plasma blade reigniting from his hands. Rory laughed as the blade arced towards him. Suddenly, Lorcán found himself blocked as Rory ignited a blade of his own.

With his free hand, Rory unleashed a blast of lightning, knocking Lorcán from the balcony, watching the other boy hit the catwalk with a fleshy thud, smoke coming off of his chest from where the attack had melted some of the suit’s protective layer away. Removing the flowing black robes, Rory tossed them aside before teleporting to the catwalk and reforming the plasma blades.

Lorcán’s eyes widened as he found himself between Raze on one side and the now shirtless Rory on the other.

“Forgot I could take multiple powers, didn’t you, Lorc?”

“Still won’t help you,” Redirecting a lightning blast from Rory towards Raze, Lorcán held his own against both of his demons. Pain suddenly radiated through his body, exhaling a cry from between his lips as he missed a parry from Raze, the plasma blade dragging across his back.

Anticipating the next one, Lorcán danced between his two foes and watched Raze skewer Rory. As Rory cried out in shock, Lorcán pushed Raze back, taking his weapon and twisted it into Rory’s side.

“You hurt, Aurora. You threatened her.”

“Bros before hoes.”

“Not on your life.” Lorcán swung his blade hard, separating Rory’s scarred head from his neck and perfect abs.

But Lorcán had no time to celebrate as Raze was atop him, aggressively striking until Lorcán couldn’t parry again and the blade ripped across his chest. His A.R. suit spilled open while the blade burned into his flesh.

Cries of pain and protest erupted out of Lorcán as he struggled to regain his advantage. Stumbling, he barely had enough time to produce a new blade before it was locked with Raze who was rapidly overpowering him.

“Merciless aren’t you?” The doppelgänger laughed.

“I am not you.” Lorcán managed to spit, barely holding Raze back.

“Whenever you look in the mirror,” Raze whispered, pushing down hard on the blade as he came nearer and nearer to Lorcán’s face. “I want you to remember this failure, I want you to feel fear.” His voice dripped venom.

“I want you to see me.”

Lorcán suddenly screamed in anguish, Raze’s blade burning into the right side of his face. The smell of his own flesh burning was enough to make Lorcán gag, but the pain, the pain was unlike any burn he had ever felt. Releasing Lorcán, Raze smiled before stepping back.

Slumping to his knees, Lorcán moved his hands to cradle his face before stopping himself from further agitating the wound. A feeble whimper escaped from between his lips before he stifled the rest.

This was no place for tears. This was no time to cry.

Molten eyes burned, rising to meet Raze as Lorcán began to channel the pain to anger, and then to rage. Years worth of suppressed emotions bubbled inside of him, fanning the flames into a wildfire.

A face covered in spikes sneered at him.

“Stay down.”

Lorcán placed a hand on the ground in front of him, pushing himself to his feet while watching a few stray drops of blood rain down from the open wound on his face.

“I told you to stay down.”

He shook his head, the voice ringing before placing his hands in front of him and igniting the air to create another blade.

“Good, good,” Raze taunted, “There’s still some fight left in you.”

“I can do this all day.” The other young man boasted defiantly, molten eyes staring out from behind singed eyelashes.

“Come, let’s finish this.” Raze charged as Lorcán released a roar, raged matched by fury exploded in a shower of sparks, shades of sapphire, ruby and amethyst. Wild swings and aggressive jabs cut through the catwalk and its railing. Gaining the upper hand, Lorcán raised his weapon above his head only to catch a solid kick to the chest. He felt his balance go as he toppled over, rolling backwards.

And then, Lorcán felt the ground go out from under him, sliding over the catwalk’s edge. His hands caught a piece of sheared metal. White knuckles held tightly while Raze leered over the edge dragging the plasma blade along the edge, raining flecks of molten metal over Lorcán.

Raze had won, all that was left was to savor his victory.

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: Southern Plateau - Dundas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.025: You Look Good Like That

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): @Melissa - Aurora Mitchell}

Previously: The Flame In All Of Us

“I don’t really know how you could, brah, this place it messes with the mind-” Lorcan replied, looking between both directions of the narrow corridor before turning his face back toward Harper only to find himself alone in the sterile white hallway.

“-More than poor swells mess with my morning.” He muttered to himself before cautiously proceeding forward alone. Even without Harper, Lorcán’s resolve was unfaltering. His priority was to find Aurora, no matter what this place threw at him.

Turning a corner, Lorcán froze at the sound of approaching footsteps before skulking back out of sight as what he could only assume were members of the Foundation marched back, wearing shiny white composite armour over their uniforms as they moved towards the direction he had come from.

Waiting until the hard footsteps were in the distance, Lorcán made his move and skittered around the corner and down the hallway. Truthfully, he had no clue where he was going but at the moment, away from fully armed and armoured guards, it felt like a better path until his abilities had a chance to recharge.

Even if none of this was actually real. It was real enough to hurt in this moment.

Sticking close to the walls, Lorcán made his way through the maze-like facility. Stumbling upon a door, the molten-eyed young man opened it with only moderate difficulty before slipping inside to find himself in a room filled with uniforms and weapons.

“Harps, brah, you are missing out,” Lorcán muttered aloud with a low whistle before grabbing some of the armour and pulling it over his A.R. suit. Picking up a weapon, Lorcán rolled the long-barrelled gun over in his hands. It looked like something straight out of science fiction. A small screen illuminated the current ammo count while a secondary display informed him the weapon was currently set to stun. He inspected the weapon further, locating the safety and the toggle to move it to ‘kill’.

“Hey!” A voice interrupted Lorcán, “You’re not supposed to be in here.”

Weapons fire grazed Lorcán’s new armour as he dove for cover behind the wall adjacent to the open door. He gave the weapon another look over, flicking the safety on and off before peeking out from his cover and loosing a shot that exploded a nearby segment of wall. As the weapon recoiled into his shoulder, a smile spread from ear to ear across Lorcán’s face.

“Oh, oh yeah.”

Swinging the weapon around again, Lorcán fired a volley of shots into the hallway. His smile got wider with each subsequent shot. This was always enough to make Lorcán forget he was trapped in a nightmare.

“On Dundas Island, born and raised,” He muttered, centering himself as he rolled away from the door into the nearby corner to avoid the retaliatory fire.

“Alone was where I spent most of my days.” Lorcán raised the weapon, steadying the barrel, his finger hovering above the trigger as he levelled the sight towards the door.

“Here’s more than a clue,” He hummed to himself, blasting another guard. “I’ll tell you about how I became the Fresh Prince of P.R.C.U.”

He continued to fire as they were bottled necked their way into the small room, his foot tapping as he moved forward.

“And another one down, another one down, another bites the dust.” He growled before bursting out of the room into the blackened corridor. A red beacon flashed above signalling an alarm was tripped. Lorcán wasn’t keen to stick around and find out exactly what reinforcements were going to look like. The weapon in his hands suddenly beeped as Lorcán’s eyes were drawn to the ‘0’ where his ammunition count had once been.

“I have got to get me one of these.”

Reluctantly tossing the depleted firearm aside, Lorcán mourned the loss of his toy before vacating the scene. He moved further through the hallway coming to a fork in the road. Making the split second decision to go right, he moved a couple more paces before finding a hallway lined with detention cells.

“What are you doing here?” The redhead asked from between pursed, pouty lips. Lorcán was quickly taken aback, her hair was styled in a way he had never seen before, it was seemingly longer than he remembered. Her copper locks had more volume and a slight curl throughout that made it bounce with even the slightest movement. Her makeup was darker, with a bold cat-eye atop a smokey eye shadow.

Lorcán had seen Aurora in a bikini before, but the metallic outfit she wore now left him feeling like all the blood in his body had collected into a single point. Her plunging cleavage and bare abdomen left little to the imagination coupled with the sheer skirt and tiny bottoms.

“I’m here to rescue you.” He managed to stammer.

“Aren’t you a little short for a Flood Trooper?” The redhead purred before standing. Her tall heels clicked against the cold floor with each step she took. Her hips swayed from side to side as she walked by putting one foot in front of the other. She was confident, collected and intentional in every movement.

Lorcán nearly pinched himself.

“Oh, it’s this dream again.”

“You need to dream a little bigger, hotstuff, if the woman in your dreams still have their clothes on and aren’t on their knees.” Aurora cooed, tracing a long, well manicured fingernail down Lorcán’s chest.

"You get me out of here, handsome and I'll make sure you're well rewarded.” She paused, slowly winking at Lorcán as she batted her very long eyelashes at him before purring.

“Very well."

“You’re not my Lady Dude are you?” Lorcán asked as the woman in front of him smiled mischievously while shaking her head.

Really, Roth? It took her propositioning you before you asked that?

You really could use the relief.

Not the time.

“Face it, Tiger,” Aurora smiled seductively, “You just hit the jackpot.”

“I need to find the real Aurora.” Lorcán replied, turning to leave before the other Aurora wrapped her arms around his shoulders and nuzzled her face against his cheek. She may not have been his Aurora, but she still had the same intoxicating fragrance about her.

“Please, you can’t just leave a damsel in distress.”

Lorcán let out a heavy sigh. Simulated or not, she was right, he couldn’t just leave her behind. It helped that in comparison to the other doppelgängers he had encountered, this Aurora seemed pretty harmless.

Did he mention pretty?

“Can’t you teleport?” He asked, his tone deadpan.

“Where’s the fun in that?” She replied, spinning Lorcán around before walking a pair of fingers up his chest, tapping him on the nose with a flirtatious smirk.

“If I just teleport to safety, where’s the challenge, where’s the thrills?” Aurora asked, hovering her lips above his before whispering in his ear. The hot breath against Lorcán’s earlobe set everything on his body upright and erect.

“Where’s the shiver of antici-” She paused, before licking his earlobe and gently sucking it. “-pation.” The vixen version of his best friend suddenly pushed off him before running for the door.

A klaxon suddenly blared from the hallway of the detention room.

“Come my smoldering hero, we need to run.”

"I can't run," Lorcán answered, leaning on the doorway, cursing the fact he didn’t leave earlier.

"Why not?" She teased, those hungry blue eyes devouring him.

“I’d rather not say”

“You’re not getting bashful on me now, are you, hotstuff?” She winked, taking a step back towards Lorcán only for the wavy-haired young man to throw his arms up and keep his distance.

“Dude, I can’t run because I keep getting brained on the codpiece of this armour.”

Aurora giggled as her eyes darted to his crotch.

“I suggest losing the armour then,” She replied, ‘innocently’ batting her voluminous eyelashes, “Shirt too ideally.” The copper-headed woman looked around the hallway, “Hell, I could give your reward right here, we’d even get caught in the act. How hot would that be?”

Ditching the codpiece and most of the bulkier pieces of armor, Lorcán stopped short of fully stripping back to his A.R. suit with definitely staring at Aurora. With things squared away, he motioned for her to follow as the pair ran into the hallway, the klaxon becoming a distant echo behind them.

“Dude, why were you even in that cell?” Lorcán asked as the scantily clad woman amazingly kept pace beside him in some of the tallest heels he had ever seen.

“Why else?” She replied, “I’d been a very bad girl.”

Lorcán almost tripped at Aurora’s reply before the two exited the sterile corridor and found themselves on a catwalk suspended above a seemingly endless chasm. The roar of numerous turbines thundered from below. Behind them the door closed with a heavy thud and the hiss of hydraulics.
“Princess!” A familiar voice called from the otherside of the catwalk. Lorcán’s eyes drawn to the man in black.

“You’re only running from the inevitable.” Raze continued, moving towards the pair. His hands were still illuminated. the flickering of lit flames casting long, eerie shadows across the chasm walls below the catwalk.

“Ugh, fine.” Aurora replied, rolling her eyes, “I just wanted to play with him before you break another one of my toys.”

Cackling laughter could be heard from above, as Lorcán turned to see a hooded figure standing up from a throne. He hobbled on a cane towards the balcony railing before Aurora suddenly teleported to his side.

“Delivered as requested, I didn’t even break the seal.” She winked, as the robed figure patted her on the hand appreciatively.

“Once you’re done playing with him, leave some for me.” Aurora asked with batted eyelashes as the hooded man cackled further.

“Of course,” Lorcán muttered bitterly, “Now she can teleport.”

The doppelgänger fired a blast of lightning towards Lorcán. Flattening his feet along the catwalk, Lorcán stretched out an open hand as the lightning struck before guiding the current through his body and returning it back towards Raze. The dopplegánger subtly moved his shoulder clear of the blast before smiling.

“Clearly our dispute can not be settled by our abilities, but rather by our skill with them.” Raze retorted, a blade of crackling red plasma extending from between his hands while Lorcán emitted a brilliant blue blade from his own.

“Let’s frakking go.”

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: The Southern Plateau - Dundas Islands, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.021: Cult of Personality

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Crash Into Me

“Do you think she bought it?”

Miranda smiled as she and Tad walked towards the pair of waiting Harpys. For months, the school’s faculty; particularly herself and Jim, had been suspicious about a resurgence of Hyperhuman Supremacists on campus. There were rumours of a newly strengthened House Orcinus and a return of Hyperion as preached by his supposed Harbinger.

It was seemingly fueled by the gossip regarding the Alexandria Foundation’s takeover of Pacific Royal. While Pacific Royal had firmly been affiliated with H.E.L.P., its statements regarding equality for all its association with the Hyperhuman & Human Alliance, the Foundation was more ambiguous in its stance regarding Human and Hyperhuman relations.

No doubt House Orcinus saw the Foundation as a potential ally. Which meant the hijacking of the Trial was not only meant to incriminate the Foundation, but also to paint Pacific Royal as incompetent.

“Hook, line and sinker,” Miranda replied, picking up a helmet. “You might have missed your calling as a thespian, Mr. Finch.”

“We’re still not out of the woods,” Tad pulled his helmet on, “The Team is still trapped in that simulation with a traitor amongst them. Not to mention my fiancé was kidnapped in the middle of the night and is currently being held-” He paused, looking at Miranda.

“Where did you say they took her?”

It was all part of their plan. Jim would escort Naira and have her placed in Foundation custody while Tad and Miranda freed Jessica. It was bold of Orcinus to assume that Tad wouldn’t notice another woman taking the place of his fiancé. Naira might have been able to fool people visually and even had the voice, but the smell, the body language and the way she spoke had given it away for Tad.

“The old H.E.L.P. Blacksite.” Miranda responded, “Guess they like the dramatic irony of hiding in the building that would have held them had politics not intervened. Can’t say I love the power dynamic between H.E.L.P. and the Foundation right now, would much rather Naira and the rest of the whales stay in our custody. Probably better for them.”

“Is it true about the Foundation?” Tad asked into the helmet comms between the pair, “About the Foundation and the experimenting on students? I’ve seen the scars on Amma, they’re subtle beneath all the ink, but they’re there.”

“More true than they like to let on.” Miranda answered before suddenly braking at the sight of smoke over the treeline.
“No.” She uttered before raising a hand to her temple. Turning her head as she surveyed the forest edge, Tad watched as her body froze before she said a single word that sent a chill down his spine. A single tear welled up in the corner of her eye as she spoke.

“Jim.”

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: Southern Plateau - Dundas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.017: The Flame In All Of Us

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): @Qia - Harper Baxter}

Previously: My Demons, They Know How to Swim

The blast door opened sending a momentary sense of relief coursing through Lorcán until he realized that not only was Harper’s escape blocked by the foreign woman, but the same malicious woman had haphazardly tossed Aurora back into harm’s way. The redhead’s unconscious body collided with the floor leaving an audible thud that sent Lorcán’s blood to a boil.

Last night hadn’t exactly gone how Lorcán had imagined. He had so much turmoil building up inside of him, and while Aurora had let him down gently, that didn’t mean the subtle rejection wasn’t still rejection.

And it hurt.

But he needed that pain right now, the pain of rejection fueled his fire the first time it manifested and he needed that fire now more than ever. Harper was depending on him, more importantly a helpless Aurora was depending on him, and he’d be damned if he allowed her to continue to suffer.

^{Burn them all.}

The Rory doppelgänger had teleported so many times, Lorcán was starting to notice a pattern to the locations. It was something his father had ingrained him over and over again, especially pertinent to the nature of Aiden’s abilities. Once you can predict your target, the fight is won. Lorcán had been trained to recognize patterns, to watch body language, to see his opening.

And especially to take it.

Steeling his composure, he continued his assault, the drain on his abilities causing him to break a sweat as a subtle ache began to set into his arms. Still he counted the teleports and noted the corresponding appearance. Rory was moving in a circle varied between heights.

He’d shown his hand now.

“C’mon, Lorc,” Rory taunted, teleporting from the first position to the second.

Burn them all.

“I know you can throw better than this.” He laughed wickedly teleporting again. Without even turning, Lorcán summoned all his fury into left hand before extending his finger tips. The temperature rapidly rose, lighting flashing across the room before Rory’s form dropped to the ground, the smell of burning flesh quickly overtaking the stale air.

“I hate that nickname.”

Igniting the downed imitation, Lorcán turned to help Harper while leaving Rory to burn. It was only upon doing so that Lorcán realized Aurora was nowhere to be seen. Another loud crack echoed behind Lorcán, causing him to flinch as a spray of cold seawater doused his back. Jetting forward, Lorcán tackled both Harper and her redheaded sister into the hallway before the door’s emergency override closed it behind them as the room became part of the sea.

His eyes frantically darted around the sterile white corridor for a head of beautiful copper hair, but there was no sign of his best friend anywhere. He snarled, one hard wrapping around Sierra’s throat while he held her on the ground in front of Harper.

“Where is Aurora?” Lorcán practically roared, his hand squeezing harder before pulling on arm back, his fist surrounded by a sustained blade of superheated plasma.

“Ooh, daddy.” Sierra managed to choke out, “Harder.”

Sierra’s malicious flirtations made Lorcán hesitate, his blade flattering slightly as the sustained heat flickered and became less defined, starting to dissipate. He looked back at Harper before squeezing his fist as he strengthened his resolve.

For Aurora.

Sierra’s screams echoed through the corridor, sending the haunting wail of a banshee through the trial as the blade burned through her shoulder.

“She-” The woman spat at Lorcán, “She’s in better hands than yours now.” A pained chuckle came from her chest beneath Lorcán. The doppelganger smiled from ear to ear between pained breaths, the ghastly odour of cauterized flesh and melted leather singed at Lorcán and Harper’s nostrils. Standing, Lorcán let his powers fade, before turning coldly to Harper.

“Do what you will with her, I need to find ‘Rora.”

His tone left no room for argument.

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: The Southern Plateau - Dundas Islands, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2.016: Crash into Me

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): None}

Previously: Dark Necessities

While Miranda led Tad away, Jim motioned with his head for Jess to walk. She hesitated for only a second before Jim’s hand moved towards the shoulder holster hidden under his leather jacket. Escorting the student-faculty representative, Jim moved her toward his waiting vehicle.

“I’ve known Thaddeus for a long time,” Jim started, opening the back door to the Manticore before engaging the containment mode. “Watched that boy grow up, saw him fight through his studies, struggle to make friends and ultimately undergo the horrors of what Hyperion did to him. But-” Jim paused while climbing into the driver’s seat.

“I also got to see him succeed, become a leader and ultimately fall in love,” He continued before his eyes locked on Jess in the rearview mirror.

“It’s why I know you’re not Jessica Friend. Thaddeus Finch is a lot of things, but he sure as hell ain’t stupid.” He growled while igniting the vehicle’s engine. “And I don’t need to read your mind to know for sure, though no doubt Miranda is taking Tad right now to rescue the real Jessica. I’d pray to whatever you believe in that there isn’t a hair on her head harmed.”

“What gave me away, Chancellor?” The imposter smiled, continuing to maintain the facade of Jessica’s face.

“Friend was trained by Miranda.” Jim retorted, “She’d never let her mind be so open, especially knowing how many telepaths the school sees come through its doors.”

“My guess is that makes y’all Naira Cameron, Sophomore, one of six shapeshifters currently attending Pacific Royal, but the only one capable of perfect voice mimicry, House Ursus, though you were almost placed in Lynx and Alces at your Trial.”

Jim looked in the mirror again.

“How am I doing?”

“I think you should focus on the road.” The reply came as Naira dug her hands into the seat seconds before an explosion outside the Manticore flipped it off the beaten path through the woods that separated the Plateau and the Campus.

Careening into the thick underbrush, the armoured vehicle took another hit that sent it further into the overgrown bush before it dove down into a ravine. Trunks and stumps on either side hammered on the armoured sport utility vehicle as Jim’s head collided with the steering column too quickly for him to protect himself. Blood sprayed from the gash that appeared on his forehead while his Stetson flew out of the passenger seat before coming to a rest on the now face-down roof of the vehicle.

Commencement: A Pacific Royal Collegiate & University RP

^{________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}

_{Location: Southern Plateau - Dundas Island, Pacific Ocean}

Hope In Hell #2012: My Demons, They Know How to Swim

^{_{____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________}}

_{Interaction(s): @Melissa - Aurora Mitchell, @Qia - Harper Baxter}

Previously: Buddy System

Everything was rapidly unravelling.

Lorcán looked around the narrow corridor at his gathered team. Harper was frozen, Calliope was succumbing to a panic attack, Rory had somehow slipped into either denial or obliviousness, Katja was apparently hurt and Amma had gone rogue.

Before Lorcán could even begin to process the fact he was now living in a reality with not one, but two of both Calliope and Katja, the room began to change. His eyes were plunged into total darkness, the scraping of stone and metal drowning out the screams and protests of his team members.

Just as suddenly as the darkness came, the dim light returned. Stopping himself from creating a torch, Lorcán took a look around the new room he found himself in alongside Aurora and Harper.

Something was awe-inspiring about being this far underwater. Lorcán was used to riding the surface of the ocean, he had never truly thought about taking up diving. However, after this experience, he couldn’t see himself going all-in on the hobby.

“That glass isn’t going to hold forever… we have to find a way out of here.” Aurora declared breaking the silence between the three as Lorcán’s molton gaze fixated on the slowly spreading crack.

“There has to be a set of controls on the other side, a way to deactivate the fail-safe.”

As Aurora turned to Harper, Lorcán realized that Aurora was still firmly holding his hand. His cheeks flushed before he reminded himself they weren’t exactly on a romantic picnic. Plus Harper was kind of involuntarily chaperoning, not exactly Lorcán’s idea of a first date.

“I’ll teleport and unlock the door.”

"Okay, that sounds like a good idea. Just...be careful.” Harper replied, clearly still trapped in her head. Her voice was hesitant, her eyes distant as they rolled from the door, back to the ominous wall of glass slowly succumbing to the pressure of the ocean.

Lorcán’s eyes followed Harper’s gaze before he gave Aurora a look, his eyes continuing to dart between the glass windows and the single sealed blast door.

"It'd be a grom move to just try without at least testing for an EBI field." He reluctantly admitted, taking a few steps forward before raising his hand. Taking a deep breath, Lorcán placed it on the blast door and exhaled a small sigh of relief. There was no overwhelming sense of nausea this time, the wall that stood between them and their escape was part of the trial.

There was still no telling what else it was about to throw at them.

"I still am not stoked about this."

“We don’t have a ton of options here, Lorcán. I’ve got to try.” Aurora asserted, squeezing his hand before letting go and not giving him another opportunity to detest. Lorcán felt his cheeks redden again, hoping that Harper was still too lost in her head to notice. A familiar sense of envy clawed at his chest while Lorcán watched the ease at which Aurora moved from one place to another.

“I found the panel! Give me a minute, I-”

Aurora’s excitement was cut short by a dark laugh. Before she had time to react, her face was slammed against the viewport in the door. Lorcán was forced to watch helplessly as her body crumbled and slid out of view.

“NO!” His anguish cry echoed through the room before Lorcán jetted forward, pounding his fists against the blast door. Igniting his hands with plasma, he pummeled them against the door, the heavy metal showing little more than minor scorch marks from his onslaught.

Slamming his hands against the door once more in frustration, Lorcán tried to compose himself. Feelings he had kept suppressed for years were clawing at his throat, rage, fury, and fear all trying to get out and consume him.

“Baxter.”

“Baxter!” Lorcán called trying to get Harper in the moment. “Baxter, brah, whatever is going through your mind, ignore it, let the sea have it. We need you, and we need that big brain of yours.”

“Boo!” The voice belonging to the laugh suddenly appeared in the viewport, smiling eyes and dark hair accentuating the familiar face.

“Bro, take a chill pull, Borealis is fine,” It sounded like Rory, it mostly looked like Rory but Lorcán knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it was not Rory on the other side of that door.

“Well, mostly fine.” He cackled, looking down at the redheaded woman crumbled at his feet. The ambient temperature of the room rapidly began rise while Lorcán paced back and forth in front of the blast door. His molten eyes were unblinking as they watched the man on the other side.

“I’ll be with you in one second, Hothead.” Rory smiled before kneeling out of sight. “Since you’re not using these, baby cakes” He stated, touching Aurora’s unconscious form, “I think I’ll borrow them,” He added before teleporting into the room with Harper and Lorcán.

Hurling a blast of lightning towards the doppelgänger, Lorcán gritted his teeth in frustration as the Not-Quite-Rory easily teleported out of harm’s way before reappearing on the other side of the room.

“Damn, bro, I still can’t believe you haven’t hit that.” Rory taunted, teleporting again before Lorcán could strike. “If I spent a night in a tent with Red I’d have been all up in her,”

He dodged another attack.

“Multiple times.” Laughed echoed around the small room as Rory vanished again, drowning out another crack as a second fracture appeared in the window.

“Though, I guess I kind of already did,” Rory smiled before imitating striking himself in the back of the head with a dark chuckle. Lorcán hesitated before throwing another strike, he was wasting strength and HZEs at this point. If they were going to beat Rory, he needed to be smarter.

The only question was; what was going to go first, Rory’s duplicated powers, or the structural integrity of the window?

“Is it because of your little thing for Amma? ‘Cause, bro, you can totally just have both. Just like don’t be stupid about it, hell, I bet if you play your cards right you and Harper here can scratch each other’s itch. Y’know before you die virgins.”

Rory’s eyes darted between the trapped pair and the window.

“‘Cause you are gonna totally die in here.”

Lorcán watched the clone carefully, slowly taking a couple steps towards Harper, before whispering as Rory continued to play mind games with the pair

“Oh, Harps, don’t look at me like that, we both know you’re not a virgin, just trying to make Rothy feel better about being the only one in the room.” Rory mocked while hanging upside down from the ceiling.

“That blast door,” Lorcán muttered out of the side of his mouth, trying to subtlety communicate with Harper, “Should have a manual override. The access port likely isn’t obvious to the average pair of eyes, but to you…”

The incessant chatter of the doppelgänger increased in volume, drowning out Lorcán’s whispers.

“Don’t worry, I won’t ruin the surprise for Gil, I’m evil, not a monster, Si told me it was kind of a secret for you.”

“Heya, Sis,” Sierra’s voice suddenly called from the other side of the door as she held Aurora up by her neck. “Your friend isn’t looking so good, I was hoping she’d be awake to watch her loverboy, well you know-” She taunted before miming drowning noises.

The sound of water suddenly coming through the crack felt deafening to Lorcán as he watched the two fractures suddenly meet.

“Go!” He ordered Harper, flaring up again as he superheated the air in front of his fist and launched a barrage at Rory.

“I’ll cover you!”