Muttonhawk

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

I've got some housework to do. Back in a few hours.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ariel gave a sympathetic look while listening. There didn't seem to be any obvious solution to Meesei's plight. Ariel could still tell that it bothered her, though, so she extended a hand and gave her a comforting squeeze on her upper arm. "Oh, Meesei, that's not fair." Even though Ariel was hardly an expert, it didn't seem right in her mind that Meesei's prospects were completely empty. After thinking of some way to put it, she moved her hand up to Meesei's shoulder. "You shouldn't just give up completely, surely there is a way around this authority business? Um...take kings and queens, for example! All monarchies basically require marriage to continue royal families, surely there is room for sincere love in such relationships?" Ariel glanced away for a moment, perhaps that was a bad example, "Okay, look, if you think of yourself in a relationship, what do you think is the worst that could happen?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei's recount established a warm empathy in Ariel's mind. For all the presence and wisdom that Meesei had, she used to be a beginner in all this as well. It made her a little more relatable. Her advice of course made plenty of common sense, but up until then, Ariel's anxiety had been clouding such conclusions. She felt as though she could relax now.

Mention of an amethyst ring confused Meesei at first. She looked at Meesei and was about to ask her about it when she realised where she had seen such rings before. Neercana-rei always wore one, as did Hides-In-Trees, and any other married Argonian she had come across. She deduced that such jewellery was traditional in some way for their abundance, but that it was associated with marriage was only a suspicion at this point. "That would be nice," Ariel said after her revelation.

A moment passed where Ariel sat and fantasised about what being married to Rukeewei would be like, and marriage in general, but she snapped herself out of it before the silence dominated. "So, how goes relationships with you, Meesei? I know you travel around a lot, but have you had any interests lately?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

As if to try and play off the blush that spread over her face, Ariel smiled widely and looked out to the sea. There were a few quiet seconds where she just sat and stared, obviously lost in her thoughts. Eventually, she opened her mouth and breathed in to speak. "At first, I wasn't quite sure about Rukee and I. On one hand, he was Argonian, why would he be interested in me, and me him. On the other hand, if Fendros and Ahnasha were any indication, race was really nothing." Ariel slowly breathed in and out through her nose, "Starting off, I was just along for the ride. We got to know one another better, and I really admired the way him and his brother handled their own business, I liked his personality, he was clever, gentle, helpful, and nice to talk to," A chuckle escaped Ariel's nose, "And even then, for all his confidence, he has his weaknesses."

As she continued, Ariel's mirth began to descend, though not worryingly, "Then I started thinking about him a lot, we saw each other more, and...then, well, we both had the rush of business that caused the little argument." Ariel's wistfulness seemed to yield to her consciousness for a short moment, looking to Meesei, "I am glad that we sorted that out, it's just..." Ariel's tone began to get a little uncomfortable, "I think I love him, but I'd like him to...well it seems silly, but I'd like him to tell me whether he loves me." Ariel nervously fiddled with the hair behind her ear, looking down, "I mean, I don't really doubt that he does, we've been close for a while now, and there's no reason to be so cynical. But, I just want to hear my own feelings being...reciprocated. Does that make sense?" Ariel's eyes flitted up to Meesei, then down again, looking a little disappointed. "He's probably just nervous underneath, I can't fault him for that."

ParaCom: Adversary Inside

Luc lowered the top panel of his gun to secure the new belt of bullets he had loaded and gave it a belligerent thump closed with the bottom of his fist. This 'Death's Head' guy must have been serious business if they were aborting already. At first, Luc wasn't convinced that the immediate area was secure when he witnessed Burkley toss a grenade off to something out of sight, but by his gait following the action, there were no more contacts at least. "Dissected, you say? What, like a frog? Sounds like a psycho." Luc commented, scanning down his sights in case anyone was waiting to ambush them.

As everyone reached the little lady, Luc got to look over the squad and give a silent review to himself. The designated marksman, otherwise known as the walking tank, Michael, did his job rather well, all things considered. Rather than praise the cyborg, Luc avoided his eye-contact. Looking at a WREC trooper just seemed to make him cross at the moment. Burkley was effective as always, there was nothing much else to appraise him for as he coaxed their new captive in by gunpoint, and boy was their captive one ugly motherfucker. Angus was understandably quiet as he carried Din's remains up the ramp on his back. His expression was looking like it was hiding a failure on his part, and his new pallor confirmed it.

Luc gave him a nod as he walked up the gangway. "Nutcase rookie. He got the same fate assigned to any who go nuts like that." Luc shook his head, but he seemed surprisingly lacking in empathy for the sniper's death.

"You ain't the one who has to tell 'is family that, Luc." Angus said in a voice that spoke of experience in this matter.

"Correct, we're the ones who survive."

There didn't appear to be any more contacts that Luc could see as the ramp raised shut.

---

On the flight back, everyone in the squad tried to steal a glance at their new guest. He was no threat while unarmed and cuffed as he was, but his presence was still unnerving. He might have been the one who threw the grenade and caused the damage to the corpse of Din buckled into a seat nearby.

Once the colour started to return to Angus' cheeks, he started looking curious behind his facial hair. He eyed the saurian and his markings in comparison to the others, noting that he had communicated with William as one point. "Oi, croc, you're not like the others, aren't you?" Angus asked with a raised eyebrow.

Luc butted in, speaking French while giving Angus a glare, "Angus, don't even try." Luc tossed his glare to the saurian, "This guy is just a killer, like the rest of them."

Angus sent Luc a glance, but wasn't fazed. He looked at the saurian neutrally and gestured to his chest, "My name's Angus, do you 'ave a name, mate?"

"Pfhah," Luc guffawed, crossing his arms and leaning back with a grin, "You're going to make him think that you want to reproduce with him, saying that stuff, Angus."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ariel took a pause to get herself in the mindset for speaking Jel before giving a reply. "You could say so. I am able to hold conversation much better, but even now I make mistakes with pronouncing and grammar. I am always learning new words, though. Having Rukeewei for practice and help was a great thing as well." Ariel silently congratulated herself for getting that much right, "Also, having someone to speak Cyrodilic with when Jel got tiring was nice. He says that if I remain for another year, my accent will start to fade, but I get more..." Ariel licked her lips and dredged through her vocabulary. She knew this one, "...fascinated...I get more fascinated when I have dreams where I speak Jel with people."

"Meesei," Ariel continued in Jel, leaning her chin on her hand, "I know that you and the others say that life here is not ideal, but I want you to know that it is still more than I could have dreamed of without everyone's help. I love this city, I love my life, I love my new friends and my work, and...I never would have met Rukee without coming here." Ariel shifted and looked rather dumbfounded, "I'm still speaking Jel, aren't I?" She held her head back and let forth a peel of amused laughter, her hand moving to her forehead. "Azura's light! It seems so long since I've spoken Cyrodilic at such length. I'm starting to really go native!" Ariel recovered and asked Meesei another question, "Did you go through similar experiences in learning Cyrodilic from Jel?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Having witnessed Sabine's curiosity first hand, Ariel gave a small laugh at its mention. As for magical training, Ariel nodded to Meesei's question, but had to stare into the fire and think about what Sabine had done. "We were both trained, well, starting to, I had some years ahead of her," Ariel answered slowly, then going to a normal pace as she continued. "From what I remember, the magic was both for self-defence and to supplement our understanding of alchemy. I quite enjoyed learning about it, but I don't think Sabine was quite as receptive when she started." Ariel tilted her head and looked at Meesei, moving her open palm around as she spoke, "I don't think it was because she was incapable, or lazy, I think it was simply because she wasn't fond of our instructor. Heh, to be honest, I didn't like her much either. She was the best witch in the coven with magic who wasn't too busy to teach, but she was not a very effective teacher, and very impatient." Ariel brought her hands together, "On more than one occasion, Sabine sneaked off to do more experimenting with her ingredients."

Ariel caught herself smiling while reminiscing. Even if the coven had changed and was now a world away, there were still fond memories. "How has Sabine taken to magic? Does she have a talent for any particular areas? Or..." Ariel interrupted her question, "...I suppose you would be taking a more holistic approach, if what you told me about your views of it were any indication."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Time for work. G'night!

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Ariel tightened one corner of her mouth and thought about it. "I will give a recipe to Sabine, but the ingredients are not simple to find. They will have to be bought from shops, most likely. My batch ought to last at least to Leyawiin, however. The dosage is small. As for having a talk, I can perhaps stay for a short while, but I will have to get started on the medicine promptly." Ariel looked up from Rhazii to Meesei, "Was there something in particular?"

Ariel motioned for them both to be seated. She wanted to help however she could, and honestly she wished she knew more about how to deal with Ahnasha and Fendros' trauma. If she had known that much, then perhaps she would have been able to help Sabine earlier, but that was in the past.

ParaCom: Adversary Inside

"Best o' luck's about to get you out o' this situation, buddy!" Angus replied defiantly into the radio, not finishing in time for Din to hear. With the distance and the smoke he had deployed, Angus didn't realise just how torn up Din's body was until he moved closer. Unfortunately, Angus didn't even have time to take a pulse before he took Din by the collar and dragged him behind a fallen concrete pillar.

"Ah, Oui!" Luc exclaimed as his shots hit the mark of the running Saurian. "I got one with a limp on my position!"

At this point, everyone was quietened by a strange voice that gave Luc and Angus shivers. Burkley's reaction was almost immediate, acting on Luc's advice about the injured one with a new passion and attempting to subdue him. With that, Luc scrambled behind his cover and began to replace his empty magazine, "Reloading." As he did so, he peeked over to the commotion off to one side and observed the aftermath of Din's rambo moment. "Who the hell does that voice belong to?" He murmured.

Dragging Din's corpse had left a red streak along the ground, causing Angus to curse under his breath. With this much blood lost, there was very little chance. By the time Angus pulled out his medkit, Din was gone. "Central," Angus held a low voice as he put the medkit away, "we have a man down."

As if not caring about the fate of the rookie until the mission was over, Luc became impatient about the voice. It made him uncomfortable to say the least. "Would someone tell us what that damn voice was!?"