[b]Lost Haven outskirts Present[/b] Pain. It ruled GE-04’s life. Pain from the humans drove her to hate them, pain from their minds, like blinding motes of light, drove her to the darkness. Pain from her cuffs halted the range of motion in her arms, her shoulders aching with a pain that was constant, bone-deep. She was fully nocturnal, now, though most nights she sat on the bedframe, staring blankly at the floor, until the pain in her stomach forced her to venture out for food. Tonight was no different, except when she stood to leave the shed, the barrel of a shotgun greeted her between the eyes. “Didn’t think you’d be dumb enough to stay in one place,” the shotgun drawled. “So which freak’re you in with? Blue boy? One a’ them tin men?” GE-04 could make out the gleam of crazed eyes beyond the gun. “Answer me!” She glared at him, silent, until realization dawned on her face. She took a step back and sat on the bed, the gun never leaving her face. [color=4488cc]“...There’s others?”[/color] Her mind buzzed with the man’s fear and anger, but with only him, it was an ignored discomfort. The man huffed. “Don’t play games with me, bitch.” The static of his brain worsened. “Get up! I wanna see you drop when I--” The gun shoved to the side before he could even meet the ground below him. GE-04 grabbed the front of his jacket, pinning him to the floor. He gripped the gun in a vice, quickly darting it back towards her head. [color=4488cc]“There’s others!”[/color] She declared. The discomfort grew, her face twisting accordingly. [color=4488cc]“Where?”[/color] The man squirmed, sweat pooling on his face. “The city. Congregatin’ and fightin’ like a den of rats, killin’ anyone who gets in their crossfire.” His lip curled, and he spat right in her face. She recoiled back, dragging the man with her, before snarling and smashing him down, crushing his ribcage like a cardboard box. Blood sprayed into her eyes, coating her world in red. [sub][i][b]white hands cold hands pulling cutting[/b][/i][/sub] The man gurgled once, fired off a shot, then died. The bullet crumpled against her face, making her flinch back and curl up on the floor. She scrubbed desperately at her eyes through sobs, trying to rid herself of the awful color. The shed, her one safe place, was ruined forever. She stumbled to her feet, blindly crashing through the wall to the forest beyond. She ran like a panicked animal through the darkness, wood splintering as she broke through underbrush without slowing. Static screamed just beneath her temples, coalescing like a sickness in her stomach. It wasn’t in her head anymore, it was everywhere, howling with spiteful laughter. She awoke halfway in a stream, the sun rising. Water flowed over her exposed legs and stomach, soothing her with lazy, cooling touches. She forced her eyes to open fully and took in her surroundings. The river sat on a hill between a large industrial building and the forest. GE--04's rampage last night was apparent by the human-sized hole of snapped branches and uprooted trees. She lay back down, chewing on her lip. There was no blood in sight, which was good, but she didn't know where she was, which was...fairly normal in her case. Clouds rolled along the orange sky, beckoning for her to join them, drifting, warm--it wasn't as beautiful as the night sky, so endlessly black and unfeeling, but it seemed the farthest thing from the humans. Desperation sank into her heart. If she could just live in the clouds, away from the fear, the blood...the clouds twisted just a little closer, tempting her hands to touch, until she sat upright and realized she was floating. She gasped and curled her legs in tight, covering her face. She could feel herself tilt above the stream several feet below, drifting like gravity had been shut off. Bravely, she took a peek, then leaned and wiggled until she was right-side-up again. Looking up at the clouds, she willed herself to approach, slowly ascending, struggling to keep course. The forest fell away, and she saw the city in full view, set aflame by the sun behind it. Her head was already throbbing. But she couldn’t go back to the shed, and maybe the forest itself. She didn’t belong there. If there was a chance she could find...something, anything other than dullness and pain, she had to search for it herself. If there were others like her, maybe they knew how she felt, and would help her. Resolute, she tipped towards the skyline, steeled herself to fly, saw a flash of red, and-- --fell. The stream greeted her descent, as well as the silt and mud about two feet beneath it. She dislodged herself with a wet pop, and spent the next few minutes on the bank, holding herself. Slowly, she labored to stand, and soon was running. [b]Royal Park Present[/b] “You’ve seriously never been to a skate park before, Thomas?” Liam, Thomas’ best friend, elbowed him roughly, starting up a brief shove match between the two boys. “No! I don’t even think I’d be allowed in.” Thomas smirked and jumped back from Liam’s hands. “Quit it, dumbass.” Thomas’ language had been significantly expanded since joining the 6th grade, a fact he liked to flaunt to his peers. “Look dude, to get in with the 8th graders we gotta act like them. My sister said she’d drop me and Luke off on Saturday, you wanna come or not?” “I don’t even know how to skate, that’s you guys.” “Yeah, but you got that bike for your birthday, you can just get really good at that, X Games style.” Thomas’ face scrunched up with worry. “My mom’ll get mad if she found out I went to Little Ulster.” “Seriously? Your mom doesn’t need to know. Just tell her you’re going for a ride to my house, we’ll pick you up at the corner.” Thomas picked at a loose thread on the strap of his backpack. “...Alright. But if I get in trouble you owe me a dozen donuts.” Liam's family was well-known for their doughnut shops around the city, something Liam's friends loved to capitalize on. “Fine, whatever. Seeya at lunch.” Thomas watched Liam disappear into the crowd of the hallway, his mouth a thin line of worry. Another steady headache was throbbing behind his eyes, giving him an excuse to miss a portion of his next class to get his medication from the nurse’s office.