Shortly after passing through the fringes of Russell City, James felt the motorcycle begin to sputter. Odds are there wasn’t much fuel left. His suspicions were confirmed moments later, when the motorcycle let loose a couple of violent coughs before the engine stalled. No matter; it had made it to the city, and that was as far as it needed to go. James pulled the bike over to the side of the street, slowing it to a halt before putting the kickstand down and dismounting. He had seen the woman from before walking this street while they were approaching before making a turn, either at the next intersection or the one after that. He’d have to try to trace her steps from there. [color=8dc73f]“Alright, since this was hers I’ll leave it with you, Vladimira. It only seems fitting.”[/color] he said. [color=8dc73f]“I’m going to follow that woman. Not to sound rude, but I would prefer to do this without interference. We can all regroup later,”[/color] he said, heading off into the direction he suspected the white-haired woman had gone. It was definitely hard to tell for sure where she had headed, but he wasn’t getting anywhere standing around thinking about it. At that thought, he ducked into an alleyway, keeping his eyes peeled for the immortal. It occurred to him that it might not be possible to regroup with Ivan and Vladimira immediately, so he began thinking of a way he could get word to them. A bulletin board, perhaps? Or some place he could leave a note. That would have to work. He tried to focus his hearing on any footsteps he heard, and while it told him where people were, he didn’t know whose to track down. Still, it gave him an idea, and he figured the woman would be in a hurry. He tried to narrow it down based on that criteria. He paused and took a breath, closing his eyes and channeling his hearing. After a moment, he got it narrowed down to four people within a hundred meters. No, three, one just entered a building somewhere behind him. He made a mental note of the location before setting after the other three, starting with the nearest. He turned right, following the sound through the muddy street. The rain made it difficult to get an exact location, but he had a rough idea, and that was good enough. After a moment of walking, he spotted the person in question. One of the winged guards. Figures; probably just got called in to something. He got lucky though, as the second person was heading towards him. He looked to his left, seeing the man, another one of the guards. The guard caught a brief glimpse of James, but kept moving past him. James supposed they were searching for someone. Still, he wasted no time in locking onto the last person and turned around. He broke into a run, realizing they were moving away from him. It didn’t take too long to catch up to them, just some guy, possibly running late for something. That left only the one that went into the building a few blocks back. James retraced his steps, heading back to the area in which he heard the person earlier. It seemed to be a housing complex. He could hear a pair talking in one of them; two women. He propped himself against the outer wall of the complex, trying to look as casual as possible while he did a little eavesdropping. [i]”Listen.. Alex.. I haven't heard-”[/i] began one of them. [i]”I'm about to change your life Missand,”[/i] the other interjected. Odd way to start a conversation, and while that alone would have only made him suspicious, what she said next confirmed what he thought. [i]”I solved the mystery. Tell everybody you know, the Immortals are gathering at Isolone.”[/i] Well, while that could have simply been a coincidence, it was still damning enough that even if this weren’t the woman from before, she still knew something. He pushed himself away from the wall as the conversation continued. He had to take some time to process what they were saying. He still couldn’t say for sure what was happening, but it was definitely something big. He heard the woman turning the door handle and moved himself around the corner of the building. She closed the door and began heading in the direction opposite him. He turned his head around the corner, getting a good look at the woman. There was no doubt, she was the one whom only an hour before had taken on the form of a hollow. Now that he was this close, he couldn’t help but find her a bit attractive. Still, that was secondary; she was still up to something. He was about to continue his pursuit when he heard footsteps behind him. [color=9e0039]“You seem lost.”[/color] said a gruff voice. He turned his head around, coming face to face with the Wings from before. Figures. Anyone would have looked suspicious, trying to be as stealthy as James was. He was ashamed he hadn’t heard them approach, but he chocked it up to him still processing what was said. [color=92278f]“Can we help you find something?”[/color] the other said, a hint of malice in his voice. James had to think of something. [color=8dc73f]“Well…”[/color] [color=9e0039]“Well… What?”[/color] the leader spat out harshly. [color=9e0039]“Spit it out, kid!”[/color] he barked. This wasn’t going well. [color=8dc73f]“Did I do something wrong?”[/color] James asked, managing to retain his calm demeanor. [color=92278f]“Well, that depends,”[/color] the second one said. [color=92278f]“What were you doing with those two immortals who entered the city a few minutes ago?”[/color] James could tell they were talking about Ivan and Vladimira. Still, what did that have to do with anything? [color=8dc73f]“I don’t really see why that matters, I mean-”[/color] [color=9e0039]“Take off those goggles,”[/color] the leader said. No socio-political bent here; nope, none at all. James narrowed his eyes, looking over their weaponry. They both seemed to have the same equipment; radio, baton, handcuffs, etc. The biggest difference was that the leader carried an actual firearm while the other only had a taser. Still deadly in the right, or wrong hands. Reluctantly, James reached towards his goggles, closing his eyes before pulling them off of his head. Usually he would be identifiable as an Immortal immediately, but the heavy overcast and rain made seeing through the tinted eyepieces much more difficult. He would use that to his advantage in the next few seconds. He opened his eyes and kept the goggles held over his head. Time began to slow as he noticed the reaction on their faces; a mix of surprise, apprehension, and most importantly, newfound hostility. Without missing a beat, James threw the goggles at the second man’s face whilst simultaneously reaching for his CZ. He had it out of it’s holster and pointed at the leader in under a second; neither of them having an opportunity to even get their hands on their weapons. The leader stood frozen while the second, still startled by the diversion, fumbled for his taser. [color=8dc73f]“Don’t do anything rash, stupid!”[/color] James said to the second. He looked up at James, fear spreading across his face. He paused, hand just on the grip of the taser. As the two eased their hands upwards, time returned to normal speed for James. [color=8dc73f]“Okay, now listen up you two. I don’t know what your beef is with me, but I can’t take any risks right now. Don’t do anything stupid and you’ll live,”[/color] he said, as forcefully as he could manage. He’d dealt with criminals before, but never law enforcement. It definitely filled James with some amount of nervousness as he made his demands. [color=8dc73f]“You,”[/color] he said, gesturing towards the one behind the leader. [color=8dc73f]“Cuff this guy,”[/color] he said. He hesitated for a moment, but complied fairly quickly. [color=8dc73f]“Turn around,”[/color] James said as the leader was finished being restrained. James grabbed for his cuffs, making sure never to take his gun off of him, then restrained him as well. [color=8dc73f]“Alright, now I gotta do one last thing, and don’t take this personally,”[/color] he said, bringing his hand back and swiftly pistol-whipping the two of them. They collapsed to the ground effortlessly. James knew they would either come to or be found eventually, but hopefully not for a while. He holstered his handgun and went to pick up his goggles, now soaked in mud. [color=8dc73f]“Great,”[/color] he said, trying to clean them off with his jacket. It got some of the crap off, but he knew the goggles were practically useless for the meantime. He put them back over his head, hanging them around his neck. [color=8dc73f]“So, Isolone then,”[/color] James thought aloud, pulling the hood over his head both as protection from the rain, and to help shade his eyes. It wasn’t exactly necessary for him to pursue the woman through the city anymore, seeing as he knew where she was going. He figured he’d begin looking for a way to let Ivan and Vladimira know, and maybe grab a bite to eat. He hadn’t eaten since morning. [hr] After a quick stop at a sandwich stand, James decided to head to a bar he had heard about. The Bitch’s Brew. It seemed to be a happening sort of place; it was possible Ivan and Vladimira would head that way. He kept his eyes open for some means of leaving a message for Ivan and Vladimira, though he figured if all else failed he could simply leave the note with someone and hope they saw them. Not like they would be too difficult to identify. James found himself at the entryway to the bar and let himself in. It was still fairly early in the afternoon, so it wasn’t like it was busy at this time. He found his way straight to the barkeep, taking out the note preemptively. [color=8dc73f]“Hey, can I ask you something real quick?”[/color] he asked. “Sure, what’cha need?” he replied, cleaning out a glass. [color=8dc73f]“Two things. First of all, where would you say is the most popular place here for Immortals?”[/color] The bartender laughed a bit at that. [color=8dc73f]“Well, I’d say you found it. Immortals come here all the time. Why do you ask?”[/color] James paused to look around. Indeed it did seem like there was a high ratio of immortals here as opposed to normals. [color=8dc73f]“Well then, I guess that brings me to my second question. Can I leave a note here? I need to get going, but I want a couple of people to know where I’m headed too.”[/color] “Well, this [i]is[/i] a business. We can’t just do stuff for free,” he replied, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. “Tell you what. Buy a drink, and I’ll keep that note for you. Sound fair?” James couldn’t help but be a bit annoyed, but to be fair, he did feel like having a drink. After the things that have been going on today, he figured he could use something to cheer him up a bit. [color=8dc73f]“Yeah, sure,”[/color] he replied. [color=8dc73f]“Get me something smooth. I don’t really care what, I’m not big on drinks,”[/color] he said. “Comin’ right up,” the bartender said. James fished out a few of his shoddy 9mm rounds as payment for the drink and set them on the bar, along with the note. “There ya go,” the bartender said, setting a clear drink on the table. James took a sip from the glass, letting the lightly burning liquid slide down his throat. [color=8dc73f]“Not bad,”[/color] James said. “So, who am I saving this for?” the bartender asked, gesturing to the note. [color=8dc73f]“Oh, right,”[/color] James said, setting the glass on the bar. [color=8dc73f]“One of them is named Ivan. He’s a big dude, wears pretty shoddy looking clothes, along with a rag on his head. You probably can’t really see his eyes, but he’s an immortal. The other is Vladimira. Also an immortal. Glowing red eyes, pulsating, no pupils. Hard to miss,”[/color] he said, slugging the rest of the drink. [color=8dc73f]“Now, thank you for your time, and the drink, but I’ve got to get going.”[/color] At that, James hopped off the stool and headed off to find a vehicle. He could probably manage to buy a bike or something. Maybe not a good one, but as long as it worked and was relatively quick, he would make do. He also took a moment to take his undershirt and properly wipe off his goggles in the rain. It didn’t take too long to find a shop, and after some negotiations, James managed to get his hands on a bike, complete with a full tank of gas. Of course, he exhausted all of his money, and a few more 9mm bullets, but he could recoup those at a later date. Wasting no time, he mounted the bike and sped off towards Isolone. [hr] The ride took awhile, but after a few hours James could see the outskirts of Isolone. He had briefly seen a truck that he believed to be the woman’s. Alex, if he recalled the conversation he heard correctly. If he was right, he had passed her roughly an hour ago. That would put her fifteen minutes behind him, give or take a few. It would give him time to scope out the town before she arrived. If she was a threat, he needed a tactical advantage. As he got closer, he realized that would be easier said than done. The buildings in the town seemed destroyed; either burned down or just collapsed. What the hell happened here? As he drew nearer he could make out more details. Debris was laying all around the street, coupled with all sorts of carnage. Corpses lay sprawled in the street and various buildings; some mutilated beyond recognition, some flayed, some missing limbs. [color=8dc73f]“Holy shit,”[/color] James muttered. He shut off the motorcycle so as to not make any noise and coasted the motorcycle as far as it would go. It stopped a couple hundred meters from what could be construed as the town limits. He put the kickstand down and took his AK off of his back, pulling the bolt back slightly to make sure it was loaded. Once he confirmed a bullet was in the chamber, he put the rifle to his shoulder, keeping it lowered as he entered Isolone. He proceeded with more caution than he usually would. The atmosphere of this whole town was beyond oppressive, and he almost hesitated to even enter it. What exactly happened here? He kept his eyes peeled for any movement, but even as he passed the first buildings, nothing stirred. It stayed that way as he proceeded down the lone road leading through the town and towards what looked like a post office. It was damaged, but it fared better than a lot of the buildings, a solid chunk of one side being collapsed. James continued scanning the area, but he doubted anyone or anything was still here. They were likely either dead or got the fuck out. He figured if there was anyone left they’d have seen him by now. That settled it; the town was completely destroyed, not a native soul left. James let out a sigh and put the rifle back on his back, jogging to the bike to bring it into the ghost town. He pushed the bike up the road, looking for a good place to put it. There was one section between a pair of houses where the roof had collapsed between them, leaving a crevice to conceal the bike. He left it there, then posted himself at the edge of the town, waiting for this Alex person to arrive. [hr] Hardened rubber tires tore across the watery, mud laden streets of Russell City, carrying Alex away from the only city she’d ever truly considered home. She had built a pretty good life for herself there. She had been an excellent scavenger, making more than a meager living as so many others did. She was set up, and she kept herself hidden fairly well despite the extreme mutative nature of her eyes. She had even had a few relationships here and there.. [i][color=red]”Cassie… what is this?”[/color] A sleepy Alex asked, tentatively poking a bread like mass on her plate. A small dish of amber colored syrup sat next to it. [color=pink]”They’re called pancakes silly,”[/color] Cassie giggled lightly as she looped her arms around Alex’s neck and nuzzle her face against her affectionately. [color=pink]”Listen, I have work to do, I’m meeting a Wing today, wants some information on a drug dealer or something.”[/color] [color=red]”A drug dealer?”[/color] Alex repeated, using her fork to slice off a piece of the quivering meal. Cassie reached over her and poured the syrup onto Alex’s breakfast. [color=pink]”Yea, small fish trying to go big or something, calls himself Jackson or something.”[/color] [color=red]”You sure this isn’t going to get you killed someday soon?”[/color] Alex asked with her mouth full of the gooey pancakes, [color=red]”Sweet jesus these are delicious!”[/color] Cassie kissed Alex’s cheek, stifling her amusement, [color=pink]”Someday, but less likely than you venturing out into the wastes looking for toasters,”[/color] She teased. [color=red]”Hpmfgh!”[/color] Alex retorted. Cassie giggled as Alex forcefully swallowed the bite she had taken, [color=red]”Hey! I do not.. though speaking of ventures..”[/color] She said, letting the thought hang as she twirled her fork slowly in the air, as if to emphasise her aloofness. [color=pink]”Nothing yet, I’ll keep my ears open though. Now listen, I really gotta go,”[/color] Cassie said, locating her pants and moving across the room to slip them on. [color=pink]”I’ll come by next week, cool? I gotta go to Harlem for bit after this Wing business.”[/color] [color=red]”Alright, I’ll leave the key in the usual place… but I expect more of these pancakes!”[/color] Alex turned halfway in her chair, smiling as Cassie finished dressing. [color=pink]”Fine, but you’ll have to dance for me again,”[/color] She said coyly, winking at Alex. Alex went slightly red in the face at this, [color=red]”Deal, See you then.”[/color] [color=pink]”Toodles,”[/color] Cassie said, wiggling her fingers.[/i] Alex sniffled, wiping away the glistening memory from the corner of her eye. She turned and looked back out the window, watching the weather reflect her current mood. Appropriate, since she had a hand in causing it, though indirectly. It was a somber kind of mood, one that made her deeply sad. She had such a good life in Russel, even with the day to day dangers of living in Dust. And she had thrown it all away for what? [i]~”A mental breakdown.”~[/i] her mind echoed, seemingly amused. She wasn’t wrong though. She had been so obsessed with this rumor of others like her gathering. The thought that others would band together to fight the growing oppression and civil unrest against Immortals made her feel much less alone than she felt. Even with her lovers, and her very few friends, she had always felt alone. She had felt alone since she walked out of that god forsaken camp all those years ago. She still felt the scars, the tightness of them on her back. Sometimes when she dreamt she could still feel them burning, she’d wake up covered in her own blood. In the end, she just woke up profusely sweaty, and with a heart that seemed ready to explode. [i][color=orange]”You’re such a good girl Alexi, have the others been teaching you?”[/color] Greya purred, running her fingers through her favorite pet’s hair. [color=red]”Yes mistress,”[/color] Alex replied meekly. [color=orange]”It’ll be such a shame when I have to left you go.. but Ardall said buyers are always willing to pay high-In gold- for girls like you,”[/color] Greya said softly, it almost sounded as if she truly felt sorrow. [color=red]”I will miss you dearly Mistress,”[/color] Alex cooed, looking at Greya with a set of sad, doe-eyes. Alex, at the time, had meant it too. Her heart panged with anxiety with the thought of being separated from her master, yet she knew that she would bring her master such joy as Alex had never brought her before. Her master loved money, that much was apparent from the gold jewelry she adorned herself with. Alex was her favorite, and had piercing to reflect her master’s affection. [color=orange]”Come now, show me what a good girl you’ve become my little Alexi-”[/color][/i] Alex cringed from the memory, only brought out from it as a splattering of mud slathered one side of the small car she was in, albeit thinly. A bike zipped past, obviously heading somewhere in a hurry. No, rather, Alex was traveling slowly. She turned and looked, watching the landscape pass by slowly. The rain had stopped, this far from Russel, but mud was still present, and the sky was still overcast. It seemed the storm had been larger than she had first expected, though it was much thinner out here. It must have been moving with her. Which means she must be going really slow. [color=red]”The fuck am I paying you for? I could have walked there by now!”[/color] Alex said, her anger spiking immediately to dangerous levels. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. Meanwhile the driver looked back at her, a bit wide eyed, before he smiled a toothy grin and tilted his hand in response. A moment later and the tires spun out long columns of mud as he floored the gas pedal. Alex was rocked back into the uncomfortable seat, which didn’t help her attempts at trying to keep from literally disintegrating the driver. [color=darkred][b]”He’s weak… easy.. it would be so-”[/b][/color] A voice purred hungrily from within her head. Alex squeezed her eyes shut, blocking out Aeshma’s influence on her. [color=red]”I’m not the angry one.. he’s the angry one.. I’m not angry..”[/color] She whispered to herself, focusing on the words. It took longer than she would have liked, but eventually she could feel Aeshma recede, and with him the boiling rage that she felt. On one hand she was glad she knew about him, and what he could do. Yet, more sorrow burrowed its way into her as she looked back on what she and done. She had put more blood on her hands, she had attacked Vladimira… she had killed. She shook her head again, looking back out the window. The large mesa was plainly in view, and quite sizable. She had heard many things about Isolone, but had never actually found a reason to go there. She wasn’t even sure why she had chosen it as her staging area. [color=darkred][b]”Defensible.. High ground.. the best corner to back yourself into..”[/b][/color] Aeshma hummed inside her head. She squeezed her eyes shut once more, forcing herself to block him out, [i]Again[/i]. The rest of her ride was spent in remembrance of all the atrocities she had committed. She tried to accept them, but she was also greatly pained by her actions. She used these negative, painful memories as reminders of why she had to change, why she could no longer be the meek little scavenger girl who kept to herself, always thoughtful or amused. She had to be strong, stronger than Aeshma, she had to be in control. She had to become a leader, she couldn’t show weakness, not anymore. She focused her entire will and being on staying in control, refusing to let Aeshma take that from her. Resisting the poisonous, rage fueled influence he had on her. Ignoring his quips, his remarks, and most difficult of all… his hunger. She hummed softly as she sat there, remembering the painful things she had done. [center][color=red][i]”I close my eyes only for a moment, and the moment's gone,”[/i][/color][/center] [center][color=red][i]”All my dreams pass before my eyes, a curiosity...”[/i][/color][/center] [hr] By the time Alex’s ride traversed the steep grade up into The Big Empty, dusk was quickly approaching. She wasn’t quite sure was she was expecting, but she felt a surprising lack of nervousness, or anxiety. For once in the past, she didn’t even know how long, she felt at peace, for the most part. The car rumbled across the rocky dirt road, giving Alex the brief thought if anybody had ever bothered to smooth it out. Out the window the landscape was pretty droll in her opinion, lots of rocks and boulders. Little ones, big ones, and a few that even looked square. Suddenly she no longer wondered why Isolone wasn’t talked about more often, other than it’s unique position it looked like a pretty boring place. Though, it looked pretty safe in her opinion. There were only two real ways in, and each of those points ended within a mile of each other. It took about another forty minutes before she realized why nobody talked about Isolone often. Even through the quickly setting veil of pitch black night, it was apparent what had happened her. The amount of death and destruction present made her want to turn around and forget the place. It reminded her too much of what she had done. Every other body was somebody she knew, a mirage created just to make her feel guilty. Yet, their dead, silent faces helped her steel herself as she opened the door and exited the car. Despite all of the devastation, there was something mildly surprising. Or rather, someone. At the edge of the town a man stood, facing her direction. It looked as if he had been waiting for someone, or perhaps something? He hadn’t even moved when she arrived. [color=red][i]”Is he waiting for me?”[/i][/color] She thought idly to herself as the driver stepped out to open the trunk of his vehicle. Alex ignored the man for the moment, it was apparent that he was waiting, and she was still far enough that she could blast him if he tried anything. Half a minute later and Alex was left standing in the middle of nowhere with two duffel bags, her backpack, and her two weapons. Both of which she hadn’t even felt the need to use in such a long time… she figured perhaps now it was time to be a bit more reserved with her powers. She had been reckless before, careless even, and had very nearly killed herself that night in the abandoned housing complex with… She shook that thought from her head, [color=red]”What’s your deal stranger?”[/color] Alex called out warily, walking forward slowly. Normally she would be on edge, nearly bursting with adrenaline, ready to fight. Today, she held both of her hands up in a sign of peace as she advanced. As she got a little closer she started to make out the man’s appearance from that of a mysterious, manly silhouette, to that of a gruff looking young man. He didn’t seem very threatening, at least at first glance. He came off kind of rugged to her actually; Dressed in fairly average travelling clothing. That is, mixed and matched to wasteland perfection. A dark hoodie, most likely a darker shade of gray, poked out from beneath an almost equally dark green jacket, though the style looked a bit more like something a soldier would wear. That last thought was only complimented by the gear he was sporting. As she drew closer, she noticed a set of goggles resting on what looked like some sort of green scarf, though she wasn’t quite familiar with the style. It was still too dim for her to make out his eyes, and considering her own goggles were hooked onto her backpack, it probably didn’t make much of a difference. James simply stood there as he saw Alex’s car pull up. He figured it would be best to avoid drawing any weapons, but he kept his guard up. No telling if this woman was about to go hollow again or something. The thought of that actually frightened him somewhat. If it was anything like what had happened before, there was no way he’d ever stand a chance against her in a fight unless he had the drop on her, or some other tactical advantage. James opened his mouth to say something, but then shut it. He realized he hadn’t really given much thought as to what he would say once he finally confronted her. Then again, did this even constitute a confrontation, exactly? He went through a list of things he could open with, but then Alex seemed to beat him to it. [color=8dc73f]“What’s yours?”[/color] he responded. [color=8dc73f]“Not to sound rude or anything, but I’ve never seen an Immortal turn into a hollow and then back again. What the hell happened today?”[/color] he asked, folding his arms. [color=8dc73f]“And furthermore, what is it that you want to gather us here for, Alex?”[/color] Alex was genuinely stunned by his question, so much so that she stopped walking. She thought on it for just a moment, quirking her eyebrow. If he had beaten her here, he must have been following her since that showdown on the road. Though she never saw him during the entire ordeal, admittedly she wasn’t exactly in control. But to know about that and head her off here means he must have been eavesdropping on her conversation with Missand, word doesn’t travel that fast. At the very least, Alex no longer felt very threatened by him. If he had watched the fight to it’s conclusion, he was probably afraid of her. Not that she could blame him, she was afraid of herself too. She wondered what power he had, or if he could awaken too. No, he probably couldn’t, that’s probably why he sounded so calmly estranged about it. She could probably learn a thing or two about self control from him. [color=red]”I’m not sure how long you’ve been following me, but I don’t exactly owe you information. Exactly who are you to be so concerned?”[/color] She asked, setting her heavy duffel bags on the ground. [color=8dc73f]“Well, an Immortal, for one. Mostly I’m concerned about what happened to you earlier happening to me. I would have been happy with that, but your conversation with that woman earlier, Miss… what’s her name. Can’t remember it too well,”[/color] he said, scratching his head. [color=8dc73f]“But, apparently there seems to be more at work. Call it curiosity, or just a feeling in my gut, or whatever, but I feel like I need to know what’s going on,”[/color] he said. He unfolded his arms and looked back towards the interior of the town. [color=8dc73f]“Also, I’m not sure if you could tell already, but this place is pretty well sacked. There’s plenty of graveless bodies lying around,”[/color] he added. He looked back to Alex to try to gauge her reaction. He doubted that she actually had anything to do with it, but it still seemed convenient that she would decide to go here at such a time. Alex looked around, her attention pulled back to the state of the town. He was right though, it did seem overly convenient. Though, accusations didn’t worry her, he had arrived her first after all. She knelt down to rummage in one of the duffel bags, her back turned to him. She still felt aware of his presence, but not on edge. She didn’t get the feeling that he was here to attack her. He seemed confused, a bit scared. She could understand his reasoning. She smiled ruefully to herself, perhaps she owed him that much. She turned, holding two collapsible spades in her hands, tossing one of them into the dirt a few feet from him. A moment later she hefted the duffel bags back onto her shoulders, [color=red]”I understand,”[/color] She said, with an inkling of compassion in her voice, [color=red]”You want information, fine. But there’s no reason to be idle about it, like you said, there are a lot of graves that need digging.”[/color] She left it at that, as she headed into the town, sure that he would follow. The main road led down a ways, surrounded on either side by the broken, burned shells of buildings. Getting a good glimpse of the place, there were bodies everywhere. And given the putrid smell hanging lazily in the air, it had probably been a few days since they died. She headed around the back of the most intact looking building, after dropping off her equipment inside. A few feet out from the building she stopped, pulling her shovel out to its full length and locking it with the pin. She was thankful for one real thing at this very moment, out here by the coast the dirt was soft. She could smell the ocean on the air, but the elevation she was at prevented her from seeing it. It didn’t quite matter though, the heavy darkness was quickly approaching. The brilliant hues of orange, red, and yellow were quickly fading as the sun plummeted below the horizon. Which perhaps was her second blessing this day, doing this in the heat might have given her a stroke. She pulled off her jacket and tied it around her waist. She still wore a tanktop underneath, but she immediately felt cooler. She jammed the shovel into the earth, and starting the long process of digging a mass grave. James looked between Alex and the spade for a moment before letting out a sigh. He figured he’d get answers after all this was said and done. He felt bad, simply digging one mass grave, but what more could be done? He would have at least wanted an individual grave for each person, but he was, admittedly, beginning to grow impatient. He took a pointer from Alex and took off his jacket and backpack, setting them near one of the buildings. He left his hoodie on, though he did roll up the sleeves to his elbows. It was nothing special, just a plain dark grey hoodie, with a couple of tears and patches from past use. He began digging not far from Alex, taking a moment every now and then to spare a glance at her. There was something oddly familiar about her, but he couldn’t put a finger on it. He ignored the thought and kept digging. He figured they should still have some conversation while doing so, help pass the time. [color=8dc73f]“So, your power, I’m guessing it has to do with electricity?”[/color] he asked somewhat offhandedly. Alex looked down at the shallow dent they had made in the earth together, feeling as if this would never get done. [color=red]”It does,”[/color] she said simply, throwing a scoop of dirt over her shoulder. The work was easy enough, but they had a long way to go before this night was over. [color=red]”Though I’m sure you gathered that much from whatever vantage point you had, you must have been pretty far out,”[/color] She commented, casually hinting at her thoughts on the aspects of his phenomena. James thought about what she said. She was definitely observant, to pick up on that detail. Then again, it’s not like you needed to be a detective to deduce that James had better than average sensory abilities. [color=8dc73f]“You could say I tend to be pretty observant. I could hear someone spit from a mile away, if that helps,”[/color] he replied, a hint of flippancy in his voice. Alex looked up from where she was digging, shooting him one of those looks that seems innate for women. James looked up and, upon meeting her gaze, let out a disheartened sigh and resumed digging. The repetitious noise of the shovel digging through the earth became a plain, monotonous rhythm, adding to the eeriness of the atmosphere hanging over the town. He stopped for a moment and took a look around. By this point there was no sunlight left illuminating the sky. Of course, the stars provided James with enough light that he could still see fine, but he figured Alex was probably not doing so well off. He set the shovel down and reached into his messenger bag, pulling out a flashlight. He flicked it on and set it on a mound of dirt, pointing it towards the section of earth Alex was digging. [color=8dc73f]“Figured that would help,”[/color] he said. Alex nodded her thanks, letting the silence drag on as she focused on the task at hand. James was about to start digging again when he realized he had never introduced himself. [color=8dc73f]“My name is James, by the way. And yes, I have been following you; practically all day. I was with a couple of others; Vladimira and Ivan. I left a note at a bar for them, if they wanted to find me again.”[/color] He picked up the shovel and got back to digging. [color=8dc73f]“It seemed like they were going to do their own thing, but who knows,”[/color] he added. Alex paused momentarily, wiping away the sweat dripping from her brow. Even with the onset of the night, it was still warm out for the time being. Perhaps up here on the mesa, the temperature was less likely to become freezing like so many other nights did. Though the weather patterns in Dust had always be odd. Still, she mulled over the thought of Vladimira. A part of her wondered if she was alright, the other worried that she had made a deadly enemy. [color=red]”Heh, small world, I know that woman,”[/color] She replied, sounding bemused. Though that wasn’t entirely a facade, she still had some naggling worries in the back of her mind; wondering if Vladimira would show up here fully awakened and looking to settle the score. [color=8dc73f]“Oh, so you knew her?”[/color] he inquired. Upon thinking back to the fight, he began to think about what exactly had happened. He had nearly forgotten, but this woman had killed someone. [color=8dc73f]“I couldn’t tell for sure in all the fighting. Did you know the other woman, too? You know, the one you killed?”[/color] he asked, his increased temper showing through as he practically spat out the last few syllables. [color=red]”I uh..”[/color] Alex started, feeling the sting of his words, [color=red]”No, I did not.”[/color] [color=8dc73f]“Mmmm,”[/color] he grumbled. There was a short pause before he finally said, [color=8dc73f]“Well, maybe it was better that way,”[/color] he said, a sharpness still in his voice. He kept digging, his pace quickening slightly after the short argument. Once his temper began to level off again, he considered the thought that she wasn’t in control. Upon thinking about it further, he came to the conclusion that it was probably the most likely scenario. He stopped digging for a second and let out a sigh before opening his mouth. [color=8dc73f]“I’m sorry. You probably weren’t exactly in control, were you?”[/color] he asked, shifting his gaze towards her. Alex looked up at him, her expression thoughtful as she looked at him, he was quite perceptive. [color=8dc73f]“I kinda lost my cool for a second there, it’s just…”[/color] He let out another sigh before continuing. [color=8dc73f]“I don’t know. I feel like I need something to blame. She didn’t have to die. I know it probably isn’t your fault, but still.”[/color] His eyes shifted downwards for a second before he turned back to the hole and resumed digging. Alex chuckled, ruefully, sadly. [color=red]”No.. it was my fault. You’re right, I wasn’t in control, I was weak,”[/color] She said, jamming the shovel into the quickly deepening hole as if for emphasis, [color=red]”She got in my way.. and I killed her, like I’ve killed so many others..”[/color] Her voice dropped off at the end, and she let the statement hang in the air for a moment. [color=red]”You saw what I was, you couldn’t begin to understand what was happening at that juncture in my life.”[/color] James stopped for a moment, looking back at her. He was about to say something else but decided against it. He thought about what else he could say, but when he came back with nothing he simply continued to dig. Silence remained between them for a while, except for the sounds of their shovels penetrating the ground and tossing clumps of dirt onto the growing mounds. Alex stopped digging, setting her shovel on the edge of the hole and pulling herself out. [color=red]”I’ll be right back,”[/color] She said, already walking towards the building where she had left her gear. A minute or so later she returned with two cans, utensils, and a device to open them. Additionally she held a jug of mostly clean water. [color=red]”You said earlier that you wanted to know how I became a hollow, still sure you want to know?”[/color] She asked, sitting at the edge of the hole and patting the area next to herself. James looked out from the hole, seeing Alex go to one of the buildings and return with what seemed like food. Following suit, he set the shovel aside and pulled himself out of the hole before dusting himself off. [color=8dc73f]“Well, if this is going to be a recurring thing, I think it would be pertinent for me to know, yes,”[/color] he replied, smart-assedly. He sat himself next to Alex, taking the can and opening it before digging in. [color=red]”By the way,”[/color] she added, [color=red]”I’m Alex, and I’m not some vicious killer, really.”[/color] James couldn’t help but chuckle somewhat. [color=8dc73f]“Well, I guess it’s nice to officially meet you then, Alex.”[/color] He got up and went to his backpack to grab a bottle of water, then returned to where he was sitting before. [color=8dc73f]“So, anyways, do tell,”[/color] he stated as he sat down. [color=red]”Well..”[/color] Alex started, taking a breath and looking out into the starry veil of the sky, [color=red]”I’m not sure how much of this you’re going to believe, I barely believe it myself.”[/color] [color=8dc73f]“Please, you made it rain earlier today. How can it get any crazier than that?”[/color] he quipped. [color=red]”I guess you’re right,”[/color] She agreed, taking a quick bite of canned beans, [color=red]”I wasn’t a hollow.. well not exactly I guess. As far as I’m concerned all Immortals can do it. It has to do with your spark.. I.. I could never hear mine before today, but.. it’s sentient. I can feel him, in the back of my mind. Sometimes he comments too, but I do my best to ignore that..”[/color] She paused, realizing she was was beginning to babble, and looked over at him. James stared back, a fair amount of disbelief written on his face. He thought for a moment that she may have had some mental disorder. He didn’t say anything about it, but that was the only thing that came to mind. He set down his can before speaking up. [color=8dc73f]“Okay, let’s say that…”[/color] He stopped himself as he finished processing what exactly Alex said. [color=8dc73f]“No, wait, I’m sorry, the spark is sentient?”[/color] Of course, given how unexplainable any Immortal’s powers were, it wasn’t too far out, but still. He had never heard [i]his[/i] spark talk before. He wasn’t exactly sure how to continue with that. He kept thinking about it, but it really… no, maybe it did make sense. Immortals who were otherwise rational people have been known to go crazy before. Possibly the spark had side effects. But still, sentience? [color=8dc73f]“I dunno. You’re right, I actually do find some trouble believing that,”[/color] he said matter of factly. [color=8dc73f]“Well, whatever. Is that it?”[/color] [color=red]”That’s the least of it.. my spark’s name is Aeshma,”[/color] The name rolled off of her tongue awkwardly as she said it, [color=red]”I don’t know how to explain it.. but he was in control back there during that fight.. I don’t know what happened. I was kind of having a breakdown, and I could feel this.. hot rage boiling inside me, I think that was his influence on me.. he seems so.. predatory… I mean, I never knew he was there and then suddenly there was this presence clawing into my mind and putting me on the back burner,”[/color] She paused for a breath, gulping down some water from her jug. [color=red]”You can feel it.. the change.. I don’t know how to describe it. I could control what was happening.. but the other two seemed to be themselves. For months I felt lost, and angry, lashing out at everything around me. Now I know why, I wish I couldn’t hear him anymore, that he would go back and be dormant… but on the other hand.. that rush of power.. it’s unreal.”[/color] She looked at her hands, stopping again and thinking back on what had happened, trying to remember the feel of it. Since she wasn’t in control and was busy freaking out, the memory was hazy, but it was there. [color=red]”Questions?”[/color] She asked, turning to him. He seemed to be struggling with her words, and Alex didn’t blame him. What she was saying was more akin to the ranting of a crazy person, the spark is alive, it’s evil and powerful and murderous. The corner of her mouth pulled back in slight amusement, maybe she was just crazy. James was still pretty well shocked, but he knew there was a way to confirm this. [color=8dc73f]“Well, if Vladimira shows up, I’ll have to ask her about it. If her story is consistent with yours, then I guess I’ll have my answer.”[/color] He ate what was left of his can of beans, then set the empty can aside. He then let out a sigh and took a swig from his water bottle before leaning back and staring up at the stars for a bit. Even though he knew there was never a starless night for him, he never really stopped to get a proper look at it. There was something inherently comforting about a clear night sky, and as that thought crossed James’ mind he couldn’t help but crack a small smile. [color=8dc73f]“Nice night,”[/color] he said, simply, bringing his hands up and placing them behind his head. [color=red]”Not for them,”[/color] Alex muttered, setting her nearly empty can down in favor for her shovel. She took a quick drink from her jug and dropped back into the pit. Ignoring the ache in her muscles from the day’s activities and strain. James let out a low grunt as he remembered what it was they were doing. They worked in silence for awhile, other than the occasional sigh of exhaustion or grunt of effort. The night dragged on, but other than a slight increase to the darkness nothing really changed much, just the sounds of night and the monotonous tones of digging. Finally, when the hole seemed to the appropriate size and Alex was busy using the shovel like an ice pick to climb her way out, she turned to her digging companion. [color=red]”So.. you got your answers, but I wonder... what’s keeping you here?”[/color] She asked, plopping her rump on the ground for a break. [color=8dc73f]“Well, for one thing, I can’t leave these people lying around here. It’s only right to burry them with some amount of dignity and respect,”[/color] he replied, digging himself out of the hole. He set his shovel aside and took a knee a few feet away from Alex. [color=8dc73f]“That and I’m still a bit curious,”[/color] he continued. [color=8dc73f]“What are you hoping to gather Immortals here for?”[/color] It was a question that was still on his mind, but that was more of a cover for him. He couldn’t shake the feeling that somehow he knew this girl. He wanted to find out why or where from. [color=red]”Fair enough.. I’m not entirely sure. Have you seen the new information uploaded to the terminals?”[/color] She asked, tilting her head to look at him as she layed back on the ground. James knew about the terminals and whatnot, but he never really bothered to look at them for anything other than general knowledge while he was studying in Aspin. [color=8dc73f]“Well, I used to live up in Aspin, but I never really stayed up to date on things. I should probably change that now that I don’t have engineers and physicists to talk to all day who know everything about everything.”[/color] James sat himself down fully before continuing. [color=8dc73f]“What, exactly, are you referring to?”[/color] he asked. [color=red]”Not sure how long it’s been up, but there’s a video of something closely resembling what I went through killing that guy who calls himself ‘The Watcher’ … basically his dying words were that we’re all monsters. Things are only going to get worse for us.. better that we’re together before they start rounding us up and putting us in cages,”[/color] She speculated. [color=red]”I want to separate myself from the standards.. the world is hard enough without their baseless discrimination and fear. I’m sure there are others who feel the same way. Somebody has to take initiative.”[/color] [color=8dc73f]“Is it really that bad?”[/color] James asked. [color=8dc73f]“I mean, maybe I got lucky, but… discrimination?”[/color] He hadn’t really had a taste of true discrimination. There were a few in Aspin who didn’t like him, but for the most part everyone treated him relatively normally. Or maybe he hadn’t really picked up on it. Who knew. [color=8dc73f]“Maybe living in a city with the most advanced technology and the best scientific minds we know of exposes you to more people who understand that we’re still human. At least, mostly, I suppose.”[/color] [i]Mostly[/i] huh? Well, if what Alex had said was true, that wasn’t too far off. If this spark was… sentient, and it could turn an Immortal into what was essentially a hollow… James put his hand to his face. [color=8dc73f]“Man, shit just seems to get worse, doesn’t it?”[/color] he asked rhetorically. [color=8dc73f]“I guess I never really knew how bad it could get,”[/color] he finally conceded. [color=red]”I got a reality check a long time ago, mostly kept to myself when I got to Russell.. but that still didn’t protect me from it. The standards, they get scared easily, scared of us. This unrest has been growing for awhile now.. especially with the Wings,”[/color] Alex sighed, lacing her fingers together across her chest. [color=red]”Maybe you were lucky.. I wouldn’t expect that to last forever.”[/color] James let out a grunt of acknowledgment. [color=8dc73f]“You’re probably right.”[/color] It was pretty typical of humans to be scared of things they don’t understand. Sadly, there didn’t seem to be a line between [i]things[/i] and [i]people[/i] as far as that went. History proved that time and time again. He shook the thoughts from his head and directed his attention back to the task at hand. [color=8dc73f]“Right, let’s start gathering the bodies,”[/color] he said with a melancholic tone, getting up and heading towards the town. Alex sighed in response, her body protesting loudly as she pulled herself to her feet. It was a short walk back around the post office, which Alex had figured out what the only real building partially intact was earlier when she went to retrieve the food. It wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small either, though it was hard to tell anything about the place as most of it had collapsed. There was at least one good room, and a partially collapse hallway from what she had seen. The rest of the town was going to take a lot of work. As she and James walked into the town, the air was heavy with the smell of decay and charred wood. There were bodies everywhere, and in every state of mutilation and death. It was almost like some sick, twisted Forsaken art. James made a conscious effort to avoid looking at the various bodies. Pieces of limbs were strewn about in the street, long swaths of gore trailing behind them. Alex looked over at James, partially jealous at his little scarf thing, she had no such thing to pull up to protect her nose from the pungent smells. She walked to a large, half burned husk of a building, picking up a piece of wood from the ground. It had been a sign of some sort probably, but it was so marred beyond recognition that Alex gave up hope of trying to figure out what kind of building this particular body was halfway out the window of. She reached over with her gloved hands, gripping the upper torso by its shredded, blood stained shirt and tearing the body from the window. The boards squealed loudly and snapped, letting the body loose in a small shower of broken wood and splinters. The body hit the ground with a wet thud, followed by a wet slap of what Alex assumed were his insides. She didn’t bother looking to check. Instead she grabbed the body by both arms and dragged it behind her, though she could tell from the weight that it was probably only one half. She sighed heavily, putting the thought from her mind. James had to look away from the torso as it split in half in the frame of the window. He realized he would have to deal with the smell for a while and pulled his shemagh over his face to block some of it. Reluctantly, he reached in through the window and grabbed what was left of the body, lifting it through the window and following behind Alex. [color=8dc73f]“This is going to be a long night,”[/color] he murmured. [color=red]”It’s been a long life,”[/color] Alex chuckled.