[center]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/unQ2imY.png[/img]
[color=254f28][u][b]Location[/b][/u][/color]
💀 Warehouse District - Connor’s Home.

[color=254f28][u][b]Interactions[/b][/u][/color]
💀 None.

[color=254f28][u][b]Time[/b][/u][/color]
💀 Late Evening.
[/center][hr]

A worried call from Connor’s mother was what welcomed him into their house. Her absence remained, but the disembodied voice trickling into the boy’s ear made sure to confirm his well-being, and location. [b][color=254f28]”I just got home after walking Cerbie,”[/color][/b] Connor explained, slipping out of his shoes, [b][color=254f28]”why, what happened?”[/color][/b] The boy continued, a dainty hand reaching for the television controller, as he had been instructed. 

“A Variant attacked midtown, we’re getting packed full of patients. Stay inside, Connor, don’t go out anymore, tonight,” Claire Everest stated, the pale creature’s mother, and concerned parent. They had lived by themselves for as long as Connor could remember, and memories of his father were all but vacant. Indeed, upon approaching the issue, it was quickly dismissed, and the little ‘Monster’ was left with unanswered questions for a past shrouded in mystery. As far as he knew, he never even had the second part of a typical, parental set. There was only one aspect of the situation which shone through every time the teenager attempted to coax his mother into an explanation, and that was her distaste for the man. 

[b][color=254f28]”I didn’t plan on going out, anymore,”[/color][/b] a black claw pressed down on the controller in Connor’s hand. It mattered little which news channel he tuned into, as every anchor behind a camera covered the same story. 

“Good,” Claire returned, “I have to go, sweetheart.., I’ll likely have to work overtime tonight,” she sighed. After a catastrophe like they had witnessed, the worst one in modern times, overtime was the least of anyone’s concern. 

[b][color=254f28]”Okay, mom,”[/color][/b] Connor offered, his obsidian gaze fixed on the television screen. Constant coverage of Midtown was being streamed through the polished surface, chaos and mayhem stretching across a large part of the city. Buildings had been toppled, the streets were torn asunder, and vehicles were haphazardly tossed about. [b][color=254f28]”I’ll see you when you get home..,”[/color][/b] the teen finished, his voice slowly fading, along with the development displayed before him. 

Dropping to the sofa, Connor slipped out of his sweater, that scrawny frame coming into full view of Cerberus, before the large canine joined his master on the comfortable foundation of soft, sturdy cushions. [b][color=254f28]”Holy fuck, that’s horrible..,”[/color][/b] the Variant clenched his teeth, slender arms resting on Cerberus’ shape where the Wolf Dog laid his head on Connor’s lap. From footage of devastation, the camera’s focus soon shifted to a gathering of people sitting at a debate table. 

“Let’s be honest,” came a statement from a woman Connor could recall. She was an anti-Variant journalist, constantly writing pieces damning ‘Monsters’ of the world. “This came as a surprise to no one. We’re letting these Variants march around freely, without supervision, and then we get shocked when this happens?” She moved a hand towards the large screen behind them, indicating the destruction caused by what had been dubbed ‘Subject 7’.

“You can’t use this as fuel to hate monger, Mary,” a man replied, the frown on his face confirming a dissatisfied response. “The thing that attacked didn’t even look sentient. You’re using deaths caused by an actual monster to attack Variants who are just as human as you and I.” 

“It’s difficult not to see Mary’s point on this, James,” came a third voice, another woman who often found herself in a position debating the Variant issue. “We have Variants in our schools, too. What happens if they have a ‘bad day’,” she gestured with her fingers, “will that be enough for us to act? You don’t know if this.., shadow thing was sentient, or not.” 

“They can be dangerous, let’s not kid ourselves,” James added, “but holding a biological part of their being against them is just intellectually dishonest,” he continued. “Any human who wants to cause damage can do so just as easily. I think the entire history of mankind is proof enough, for that, Nina.”

“Are you willing to compare a human with a gun..,” Nina rebutted, before turning her attention to the screen revealing Midtown in its aftermath, “to that?” She raised a brow, “many of these Variants are actual nukes, James. At the very least, we need to escalate some form of control.” 

“And what do you suggest?” The male journalist asked, looking to the two women who opposed him on the issue of Variant security. “Concentration camps? Separate schools for Variants? Are they all going to start wearing ankle monitors?” 

Mary, who had been quiet between for a short spell, decided to speak up. “Whatever’s necessary to prevent this,” she yet again indicated the screen. “There are five million Variants on the planet. Five million, among billions of people, and yet.., they could destroy the whole world. That should tell you something about the powers we’re dealing with.” The woman now raised her voice, “those buildings that were destroyed weren’t empty, James. They’re still searching through the ruins after survivor.., and the kill count keeps rising.”

Exhaling a deep breath, Connor rubbed his forehead. This was escalating quickly, and the moment his mother called about what had taken place in Midtown, he knew immediately that the ramifications would be far-reaching. This wasn’t going to pass within the next week’s news. This was a disaster, both for Variants, and for humanity.