Estylwen

Academy 218 - Superhuman School (Always open)

September 10th, 12:37am

Laying awake in her bed, Aislin tossed and turned in her freezing sheets. She was cold, uncomfortable. The dorm was too empty. Even Alex's night light would have been comforting, but she hadn't seen the moon girl that entire evening. Maybe Alex hated her. That's why she wasn't here. Not that Aislin would blame her. She was a failure. Walking along with Mark before just showed her how helpless their damn situation was. The killer, the killer...

He was impossible to find. Even her own memories of his single silhouette seemed to haze and blur; it worried her. She was ready to continue her investigation all night, but it was Mark who finally convinced her they were going in circles. Poor kid, he really should have spoken up sooner. Aislin half-considered inviting him up to her room as she feared being alone in a locked down school, but several reasons held her back. One, that would have been inappropriate. Two, he never divulged what he'd been up to before he walked to the hospital with those mysterious injuries. Vera's death, she heard it was a gruesome one. If there had been a struggle, it would make sense someone would sustain minor wounds from the scuffle. Now, she wasn't labeling Mark or anything, but she had to keep her options open. The students were on trial, maybe even the teachers. They had a killer on the loose, and everyone was a suspect.

Growling in frustration, Aislin rolled over in her sheets, tossing her pillow to the wall. She'd have to speak with Mark again, see exactly what he was up to before they met. Hopefully his story absolved her suspicion; he seemed like a nice kid. She was grasping for straws here, one answer and it wasn't even really helpful. Vera was deceased. She didn't know the girl, but from what other students said she was a superb person. It... It didn't make any sense.

Damn, here I thought the killer had a sense of justice. Aislin thought, sitting naked in bed with her arms wrapped around her knees.

When the killer saved her life in the depths of the caves, it had been quick, painless, efficient if not loud. The devil was silenced before he could rip her own throat out, and the killer left her alone. It seemed like an almost different person went after Vera, butchering the girl. Vera was innocent, the devil was not. He got the quick, easy death while Vera bled out on the floor like some twisted horror movie. It didn't make sense, and Aislin found herself questioning the killer's motives once again. Were there two? Or was he/she experimenting? And how did the blue lady tie into all of this?

The questions kept Aislin up all night. As dawn finally peeked through her window Aislin sighed, grudgingly peeling herself off her mattress. She was even more exhausted than she was yesterday, and yesterday had been hellish. She looked at herself in the mirror, poking at the dark, heavy circles under her blue eyes. She seemed disheveled, bony and tired. The child within was terrorized and destroyed; all that remained was a tired, scared soul seeking some kind of respite. Her life at this school, especially yesterday, it all seemed so surreal. She wished she could just shut it out, pretend it never happened. It'd be the easy way out, the path of least resistance.

No, no way. Aislin shook her head, stepping into the shower. Hot water washed the chill out of her system, bringing the warmth back into her cheeks. I'm in this too deep. I've gotta see it through.

September 10th, 4:08pm

Holding a purple tinted thermos, Aislin sipped on her sixth cup of black coffee that day. Not only were the bags under her eyes still prominent, the coffee made her eyes dry and blood-shot. But it served it's purpose. She could function without falling asleep at her desk, though the coffee left her jittery. She found the purple thermos complimentary to her feathery cashmere sweater and black skinnies. Today she dressed for comfort, and feeling the cool beige fabric at the edge of her palms steadied her nerves. It was for good reason too; The Headmaster was to make a formal statement in front of all the students soon, and she was slowly making her way to the Auditorium with the rush of every other meta student. There were still seats available, but Aislin was looking to sit with someone in particular. She needed an information broker, and there was only one person she knew who qualified for the position.

As the Auditorium filled up, Aislin sat in the other seat beside Deborah, taking another long swig of wakeful coffee. She gave Shannon and Debs a tired smile. "Hey ladies, it's lovely to see you again." She dropped her voice a tone lower, talking to Debs specifically. "I need to speak with you after this. It's... important."

Obsidian: Wyverns

Hehe, I'll try to have a post for Citrine up tonight. :)

Rubylust [Estylwen x Wrensthav]

Yay posties! How exciting!!

Academy 218 - Superhuman School (Always open)

//nodnod

Yes please! We're collaborating at the moment. You'd possibly be free to join in, but I think you might be drained after that wicked collab post in the IC. Damn, is it sexy. Sad, though.

Academy 218 - Superhuman School (Always open)

Dana, after a long pause, finally spoke. She seemed to harbor the same feeling of dread growing in Aislin's own chest. "... I'm worried. Very worried. This doesn't feel like the Academy I spent seven years of my life in...."

"...I feared as much." Aislin bit her lip, more mumbling to herself. "What's going on in the shadows here? How long until we ask the right questions, never mind answers?" Her brow furrowed as they neared the hospital and she lapsed into a tense silence, her mind throwing back every question still unanswered in this hellish, hellish and damned school for the genetically gifted. 

God. Dammit.

Her frustration extended beyond herself. Jaska morphed into her mind, the monster with glowing golden eyes. What if his transformation wasn't accidental? It seemed he was the catalyst in creating chaos in her new home. The devil after was icing on the cake, and the true killer revealed himself for a moment. She remembered his/her silhouette perfectly, now just to unmask the bastard...

In their travels across school grounds Aislin couldn't help but catch the scene in front of the cafeteria. It was a blur of lights and shadows of officials marching around. This immediately set off alarms in Aislin's head, and she almost expected it when Adam got a phone call. She had never seen such panic in a teacher's eyes before. The kind of panic figures of authority never show around kids; they are meant to be a foundation of strength, but the way Adam looked caused Aislin to be afraid. Something was terribly wrong.

Adam took off running. Dana reacted more than Aislin, she simply stared coldly as he left. Dammit, he wasn't even going to hint at the news. She felt she had a right to know what was going on, she was the one who got tragically sucked into this first. 

Dana sounded a little hollow. "... I don't know what to do now. Head into the hospital?"

They were just outside the building, yet even though Adam direly requested it, Aislin had other plans. She folded her arms and stuck out her chin, planting her feet firmly on the sidewalk. "No." Her eyes hovered on Dana's before drifting to where the cafeteria building was located. "I need answers. If Adam won't divulge, then I'll simply go to the source. You can stay here. But I'm going to the cafeteria. Something's happened, and I'm gonna find out exactly what. Maybe... Maybe it'll get me a step closer..."

It was then Aislin noticed footsteps approaching from behind. She spun around, flashing a beam of light into the rainy darkness. He seemed to be a student, very tall with matted brown hair and thoroughly soaked clothes. The shock factor was the blood seeping from a wound on his face, and his bloodied jeans. Aislin inhaled sharply. "Ah fuck."

She flicked the beam off, placing the flashlight in her other hand while she approached the limping student. She ducked under one of his arms, drawing it over her shoulder to grip his wrist tightly. He would be better supported now. "Come on, let's get you into the hospital. Did someone attack you? What happened?" She said, cursing under her breath. What a shit-ridden day...

Her hand holding the flashlight prodded the handicap button on the wall, and the hospital doors automatically opened. Aislin slowly walked down the hallway with Mark, finding the waiting room empty save a few people. She leaned him toward one of the chairs, releasing her grip on his wrist. "Here. Take a seat." Aislin glanced at Dana, barely managing a smile. "Are there any nurses around? Could you by chance flag one down for us please? Maybe they'll have towels."

She sat in one of the chairs beside Mark, shaking her head softly before meeting his eyes. "My name's Aislin. I don't believe we've met. I wish I could introduce myself in a better light," She briefly paused to look down at her torn and muddied clothes. "But it looks like both of us have had quite the shit day."

Tales of Eyreseum - The False King

Yay posties!!! I'll respond tomorrow. :)

Obsidian: Wyverns

That's fine, Rook can always join Cyrus later, if he decides to go. Post when you can, same goes for you Lyn. However, I'd like to get the scene rolling so Team Cyrus can intervene Team Laraxis and their CIA blueprints in good time.

Korban, you are on a roll! Lovely posting. And Psycho, congrats on concocting your post. I want to see (bad pun) more of Ghost, he's a fascinating individual. :)

Elementals: Void Assault

It's all good, my new job's left me tired. I've finally posted. XD

Elementals: Void Assault

A sudden thud jerked at Cora's attention. She was sensitive to noises, and her nerves still tightly coiled with tension. Glaring with wide, icy eyes, she stared accusingly at the source of the noise -- Phil. His forehead was a little red from smacking it against the wall. He really didn't look so good.

"Phil..." Cora's face flashed with confusion, then empathy. She noted how little he ate. "You need to function at your best; I want that entire ration gone by the time we reach Appling." The snowy Hygron hesitated. "I... I'm a little worried about you. You haven't let on much about your past, that's fine. But something's eating at you, it's as plain as day on your face. Life is shit, I know. But you can't let your demons consume you. The world is dependent on you, on we. There are some luxuries we simply can't afford..."

Yahtzee finished his ration with great satisfaction. He seemed back to his normal self, despite the heavy taxing he demanded from his flames earlier. "Certainly surprising. Does that kind of thing happen a lot? You know, life and death glorious battles?"

Cora chuckled, brushing a few chocolate locks off her face. "I suppose so. I mean, I wish the warehouse had gone more smoothly..." Her glare settled on Sig, figuratively searing holes through his face. "But this task requires a lot from us, and I guess being willing to fight for what we need is just part of what we do. If anything, I can guarantee you'll never get bored. Our adventure's just begun." A sparkle glinted behind Cora's pale eyes as she wolfishly grinned.

Tsumani rested on his haunches by Cora, eyes fixated in the distance. She patted the spirit's head. "He'll be back soon. Him and his brother, those two are the most stoic of us all."

The spirit remained quiet for a couple minutes, then started whining. He got up on all fours, wagging his tail enthusiastically. The brothers, exhausted and covered in dust and sweat found their way into the valley. They finally made it, and in one piece too. Will fell to his knees as he joined them. "I'm... really... exhau-" He collapsed.

Cora was by his side in an instant, gently flipping Will on his back. She took off his hat and put it beside her. "Don't panic, I got this. He's merely fallen from fatigue." She sat cross-legged, pulling him up to rest his head in the crook of her arm and legs. An ice chip was conjured in her free hand which was placed in his loose jaw. She meant it to melt quickly so the water could revitalize him. She gently patted his cheek, trying to coax a response. 

"Will... Hey Will, wake up. You made it back. Everyone made it back this time." She smiled, knowing he put his all into protecting them. She lowered her voice to a whisper, brushing the hair off his face. "You've made me so proud, Will. I couldn't do this without you. Come on, open those eyes." She said gently. 

Cora briefly smiled at Gilfred. "I'm so glad you arrived when you did. I was beginning to worry. And please, help yourself to the supplies. There's lots, and I'm sure you've been missed by a certain someone." She gestured to Thema before returning her gaze to Will.

Yahtzee returned from his brief walk, looking more sure of himself. "Just more nothing. Boring and barren. My kind a place."

Cora glanced up from where she sat with Will on the ground. "It won't be like that forever. Just imagine this place covered in trees, fresh streams and wildlife again... I would do anything to see that for real, just as my grandparents saw it." She said thoughtfully.

Obsidian: Wyverns

47

After Arsenic left with Citrine and Cheshire, the elevator doors opened. Petite little 47 walked in hefting her spoils, quickly making her way through the large white room. Laraxis eyed her with a narrow glare as she joined him at the console. 

"The stolen goods were recovered, Master Valco. The IDs in particular are still in excellent condition." She placed the duffle bag at his feet, a small smile programmed on her lips. 

Laraxis was not amused. "Your objective was to bring in my thief, Operative Rook. And where, by chance, did you put him?" 

"He refused to cooperate, not to mention his vulgarity on top of that. I let him go as he gave up what he stole. He would be very hard to convi--" Laraxis' palm smashed across 47's cheek, front-handing the girl with a slap. 

47's sensors caused her face to contort into a look of hurt; the Master's response was an incredibly negative one. She fell silent, touching the skin mesh and metal of her cheek. There was no pain, she had no concept for that. But she thought she completed her objective correctly. The goods were returned, were they not? What caused his burst of anger?

Laraxis swore under his breath, working the sting out of his searing hand. He almost forgot it was hard metal under that pretty face, not ideal to commit punishment upon. He sniffed dismissively, gesturing to the duffle bag with contempt. "Put this shit away. I have Operatives in the armory, be a dear and supervise them, would you?"

Without another word, 47 scooped up the bag and left, keeping her eyes from making contact with anyone else's. She ignored the blue line leading to the armory, instead heading to a room filled with specialized filing cabinets -- the Hardware Information Room. The duffle bag was placed on an empty table for someone else to sort and put away. 47 didn't enjoy this room all too much, there were lots of secrets hidden away in its locked vaults. Secrets that divulged her programmed trigger word to shut down, or self-destruct. Awful stuff. 

The armory brought a sense of satisfaction to the child hostess as 47 entered the open door. It was very lovely to see background objectives check out in the lower levels of her RAM capacity. The tools of this room were being placed in very capable hands, just as they were intended. And the Operatives seemed acceptive, almost enthused from their gifts in the locker. 

Arsenic spoke as 47 walked past the aisles of velveted steel tables. “Neh, Citrine, where have you been these past two years?”

Ah, her database was filled to the brim with this kind of intel. Courtesy of Master Valco, of course. In the case of emergencies (Operatives in need of restraining), it was better to know everything than steer blindly in the dark. She may have been a robot, but not even robots were indestructible. Her Master liked to pretend so, but she was acutely aware of how fragile her inner circuits were.

"Ms. Citrine abandoned her conning practices in the name of lying low after Obsidian's destruction. For the past while she's had a legitimate job working at a cafe in Portland with little to no government interference." She stated, pulling a small feather duster from her velvet sleeve. There was a noticeable bit of lint curled up in Cheshire's cat ears, which 47 brushed away. It satisfied the secondary cleanliness aim always running in her background, 

Citrine raised an eyebrow, tearing her eyes away from the yellow jacket. "You know an awful lot to be one of Laraxis' lackeys. 47, was it?"

47 blinked her rose eyes, her face expressionless. "I am not a lackey," Her synthetic voice played the word an entire octave lower. "My serial code is 4A185038W-47, but Master Valco shortened it to 47. He created me using ideas from borrowed NASA plans, but for the most part I am my own original. I am Master Valco's second-in-command, and have been my whole life."