If Tox could choose only one way to describe this entire situation, it would have to be as an absolute nightmare. He stomped away from Brain and sat down hard on the floor, his mind positively reeling. His hands found their way into his hair, as they often did when he was upset or agitated. The emotions roaring around inside of him were intense and his stomach was churning. Things had gotten so horribly out of hand, and he was struggling to regain some kind of solid footing so he could continue on without feeling like a ticking time bomb.
Every part of him felt angry, and Tox hated that he even felt angry a Brain. He knew how absurd that was, but his rage didn't care. Her hurtful words had been directed at him because she felt wounded by what he had said to her. He wanted to just grab her by the shoulders and explain that he had had to say those things, he'd had no other choice. Doubt crept in though...had he really had no choice? There was always a choice, that's what his grandfather used to say. Thoigh, his grandfather hadn't been faced with the same challenges as Tox.
Of course, when Brain said to him he needed to look away, Tox's initial reaction was to look up. When he did, his eyes widened slightly and he felt his face flush and the rest of his body go hot and the cold, a familiar sensation when it came to Brain. He turned his head away, but not before his chocolate colored eyes had zeroed in on the reddened area at her hip with laser precision. His shame was nearly overwhelming as he realized he could actually see the outlines of his fingers. That, more than almost anything else could have, he had made the right decision. He couldn't let his feelings for her put her in danger. He had to let her go.
"I'm sorry," he said rather softly as he stared at the ground, almost hoping she couldn't hear him. He was apologizing for so much, but she would probably only think he meant about looking, and that was alright. "I'm sure someone will come looking for us soon."
----
It was still mighty early as Flora made her way through the dorm room hallways, peering at the doors for what she was looking for. She did not appear at all tired, which was typical for her. Her familiar, Pele, was ambling slowly along behind her, just contentedly following her companion. There was a feeling of urgency hanging in the air, and the Hawaiian farm girl hurried along, a hundred different things running through her man as she fast walked across the floor.
Keeping her mind off of Wire, was difficult for Flora, but she knew she needed a clear head. As soon as Reach had given her a brief synopsis of the situation, and made it clear that Brain was still desperately needed, she'd had an idea that might help. They needed to find Brain and Tox, who were alarmingly still missing, and none of them knew exactly how to accomplish this. However, she was familiar with almost all of the people here and had an inkling of their abilities and she thought she had an idea of who could help them.
The problem was...Trace wasn't a terribly friendly person, but Flora knew she had to try.
"Hello," she said, having found what she believes to be the right door and knocking lightly, "Trace, are you in there? I need to talk to you."
Edited By Britters on 9/20/2018 at 10:43 PM.
Creativity
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Posted: 9/21/2018 at 6:06 PM
Post #152
With the crushing weight of everything that had spiraled downwards so quickly that morning, Brain found herself becoming aware, once again, of the terribly small container they were in. It was bigger than the closet she was trapped inside at eight years of age, granted, but with all of the suffocating tension within it now, it felt like she was trying to fit back in that same closet, nineteen years later.
She made quick work of her shirt, almost immediately regretting having removed it in the first place. But he had occasionally eyed the visible red mark on her side through the hole in the fabric, and she had been getting a bit uncomfortable. It just wasn't supposed to be hotter without her shirt on, but somehow, when Tox looked at her - and she knew he did - she found herself flush with heat and merely attributed this to embarrassment, not her newfound feelings for him which were most definitely gone by now, she decided.
Replacing her shirt over her torso, Brain turned away again from him, walking towards the door of the container. He actually spoke a few kind words, but by now, she knew not to trust them. Not to trust him. She certainly wouldn't be making that mistake again.
Letting out a small sigh, she placed her hands against the door, gently pushing on it without expecting the action to actually do anything. Her assumption was correct.
Part of her didn't want to warrant Tox's words with a reply, but the other part was so intensely angry at him that it was impossible to know what she'd do. The latter side won out, and she spoke directly from her mind. "Don't speak now, snake. Your v-venom does nothing."
-
She was being suffocated. She was always being suffocated. If she tried to run, he gripped the rope and pulled it tighter, and the collar around her neck stretched taut around her throat, obstructing her breathing. He never cared if she lived or died; his job was to break her, and break her he did. She was only sixteen years of age, trying to escape the dangerous walkway he had her on, with boiling pits of water on each side of it. If she could escape, she wouldn't have to enter the maze with foot-wide and electric fences outside of walls. She wouldn't have to track down the thing in the center of the maze that he wished for her to find. "Don't you try to escape, my little bloodhound," came his voice, sneering and rich with accent.
Like usual, Trace woke in a cold sweat, with her heart racing faster than it perhaps should be. There was a knocking on her door, and all she could think of was how he would knock on the wall of her cell to wake her up at three in the morning. He had a machine, she thought, that did the knocking for him, because it would continue for hours and drive her to the brink of madness every day.
She leaped from her bed, limbs trembling with rage. Desperately, she tried to remind herself that she wasn't at Capsule anymore. But that didn't assuage any of the anger she felt at being woken up by a timid female voice and the accompanying rapping.
Her room was a mess, with clothes and cups and plates everywhere. She was never someone that cared. Even now, she was certain she looked rather disheveled, and one of her tank top's sleeves was hanging down and revealing a bit more than it should, but she was only focused on her anger.
She threw open her door and glared at the woman on the other side. "Do you know anything about respect, girlie?" she growled. "If I can't see the sun in the middle of the sky, then this is far too early. Begone," she shooed the woman.
Britters
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Posted: 9/22/2018 at 5:35 PM
Post #153
If there was one thing growing up with so many siblings had taught Flora, it was to not be intimidated by a crabby attitude. Many, many times she and her brothers and sisters had gotten into spats, and even more often one of them was in a foul mood. It had usually been her job to try and break up the fights, smooth the ruffled feathers and soothing the bad tempers. She had been very good at it, but she had also gotten in her fair share of altercations, so she also knew how to hold her own, despite not looking very tough.
When Trace opened the door like an angry hurricane, Flora didn't flinch. She plastered on her best smile and bestowed her glowingly upon the grouchy woman. Trace was their best chance at finding Brain and Tox since her ability had to do with tracking. Flora had forgotten some of the particulars, but that was why she had asked Reach for the notebook. She felt like she vaguely remembered that Trace needed something that belonged to the person she has tracking. Now she just needed to be persuasive.
"Hello," she said brightly, "My name is Flora. I'm sorry to have disturbed you from your sleep, but we have a bit of an emergency. We have someone who is really sick and we need Brain. The problem is no one has seen her since yesterday morning and if we don't find her soon the person in the infirmary could die." She delivered all of that in a rush, her cheery voice never wavering.
It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that Trace wasn't the type of person who was usually inclined to be helpful. As she stood there waiting to see what the other woman's reaction to the situation would be, Flora fidgeted with her right hand at her side, tapping each of her fingers against her thumb in order. This was a habit she had developed as a child and which had followed her into adulthood. She usual did it when she was nervous about something. Like now...what if Trace didn't help them?
"Please," she suddenly added, her voice lower and more filled with emotion, "We really need your help."
Creativity
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Posted: 9/22/2018 at 7:20 PM
Post #154
From the beginning of the other girl's emotional spiel, Trace knew that she wasn't being fooled at all. If this tropical chick thought that Trace would actually choose to go out into the frigid morning air and use her cursed, yet wonderful, Ability rather than going back to her own bed and crawling under the covers to rest her eyes and mind some more, then she was sorely mistaken.
The girl tried to implore her, tried to use the sympathetic, human approach, and Trace wasn't going to have it. As soon as the newcomer finished, Trace spat at her feet, then stared into her eyes levelly, completely and utterly bored with the conversation.
"Listen here, girlie," she raised an eyebrow, very much unimpressed with the display of sentiment. "I ain't the clucky type. Never been, never will be. It was Crypt that trapped the root rat and snake boy in the container. My idea, too. Good on her," she shrugged.
She turned and glanced out the window of her room. It was definitely too dark for one to be up and out of the safe confinements of shelter. With one hand, she scratched the back of her neck, eyebrow still raised dangerously as she took in the sweet exterior of the other girl. Too sweet. Just lookin' at her could give me a cavity.
"I got a bed waiting. Do me a favor, sweetheart, and rack off!" she smiled wickedly.
Britters
Level 72
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Joined: 8/25/2014
Threads: 167
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Posted: 9/23/2018 at 12:46 AM
Post #155
In truth, Flora was not surprised by Trace's reaction. It was disappointing, of course, but not unexpected. She continued to stand there and stare at the other woman unflinchingly, her fingers moving in their unique rhythm. She knew Trace was expecting her to wilt like a flower baking in the sun at her colorful language, but it was nothing compared to what she had heard from her siblings growing up. There were things she was afraid of, but Trace wasn't one of them.
It was hard for Flora not to think about how much Trace reminded her of her oldest sister, Kiana. They were both very dominant personalities and they both have the tendency to lose their temper. There was one trick tag she had always found effective when it came to dealing with Kiana when she was being grouchy and didn't want to do something that her younger sister wanted her to do. She wasn't sure how effective it would be here, but at this point she was willing to try anything.
"Look," she said, her voice more more blunt now, "I don't know what the deal is about Crypt and Tox, I don't care about that. I just want to find Brain so we can make sure we don't lose someone over something personal." She paused, her nose wrinkling as she considered her next move. "What is it going to take for me to get you to help us?"
Creativity
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Posted: 9/23/2018 at 9:57 AM
Post #156
Although the girl, Flora, that's what she said her name was, was being completely serious in her question, Trace couldn't help but let her grin grow a bit more, and turn almost cynical. "Nothing you can give me. Let's see..." she made a show of pondering the thought. "Freedom, a life, being fifteen again, a time machine, really, a stubby couldn't hurt, um, ten million American dollars..."
She was being sarcastic, and she knew it. Quite frankly, she didn't care about the girl's feelings at all. She had given up caring about most people a long time ago; from her experience, the world was made of malicious fools and cruel thieves. Only a select few were precious enough to her for her care, such as her Erik, and her friends.
Randomly, she felt her heart beat hard and far-too-quickly in her chest. It only lasted about ten seconds, but it was still there. She rolled her eyes at it and crossed her arms. It was as if it was reminding her how little time she had to live - she just wished she knew how little that was. She almost wished, at that moment, for the fifth thing on her list.
Flora had mentioned someone dying, didn't she? Almost like Emilie... A shudder ran down her spine as she recalled the giant smile on the face of the little girl upon meeting the scrawny fifteen year-old kid who had rescued her.
'Devi, your Ability is amazing! You can save lives with it!'
"Tell you what, mate," Trace spoke up again, trying to pull herself out of her memory and surprising herself with the familiar term. "When I shoot through, you owe me a stubby or two."
Edited By Creativity on 9/23/2018 at 9:57 AM.
Britters
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Joined: 8/25/2014
Threads: 167
Posts: 2,041
Posted: 9/23/2018 at 11:10 PM
Post #157
Feeling as though she were waiting for the verdict on a crucial case (which in a say she was), Flora could feel herself getting jittery. Her fingers were beginning to move at lightning speed. She knew she needed to remain calm, but her mind kept wandering back to seeing Wire laying in that bed in the infirmary, looking so ashen and weak. It was hard to maintain her focus, to remain neutral as she tried to deal with Trace. She just wanted to go find Brain, for Wire to recover, and for Reach to not look like she was going to collapse from the stress.
The sad truth was that Flora didn't have hard feelings toward Trace for hesitating. This place was not a family, as much as she might try to feel otherwise. No one owed anybody anything besides the fact that they were all stuck here, suffering through the same trials and ordeals. She did feel profoundly relieved when she saw the subtle change on the other woman's face, and sure enough, Trace have her ascent. At least...thats what Flora assumed had been because in all honesty she had no idea what any of that meant.
"Sounds good," she said with a grin and a nod, after having absolutely no idea what a stubby was but not wanting to waste anymore time, "I brought this, I seemed to remember you need something that belongs to who you're looking for." She handed the notebook to Trace, feeling eager to get going.
Edited By Britters on 9/23/2018 at 11:11 PM.
Creativity
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Joined: 3/4/2013
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Posted: 9/24/2018 at 1:00 AM
Post #158
It had certainly been a while since Trace had actually used her Ability, and in truth, she was almost eager to use it again. It was as if the Ability itself was bursting within her, ready to connect with the world again, to connect with a person in a way that only she knew how, only to sever the connection as soon as she was done focusing on it. There was something exhilarating about it, knowing the world's secret hiding places better than anyone else did. Something exhilarating, and something so completely petrifying.
She was excited to touch the notebook and search for its owner, but at the same time, she didn't want to. She spent at least a full minute just staring down at it, regretting her relent, wanting a time machine again, trying to convince herself to shove Flora out of the doorway and go back to bed.
But there was a life she could save. And if anything could reach deep down into that dark hole of cynical hatred and pull out some semblance of the girl she used to be, that was it.
With a small growl, she forcefully took the notebook, turning away and closing her eyes. She focused deeply on the book, on its roots, and searched. She felt the very atmosphere of the world pulsate within her, and an aching within her chest - not that of her heart, but of something far deeper, far more precious - forced her to face a certain direction. Her fingers trembled as she buried herself deeper into the center of the world, trying to pick out a location, a setting, anything. And then she found it. Something nearby, blurry but recognizable.
She gasped as she centered back on herself so harshly, and the notebook fell to the floor. She was shaky, as she always was after experiencing something so much bigger than herself, and then being reduced back to her mortal vessel.
With a cough, she did her best to return to her tougher exterior. "The container is behind the "B" lab. Kinda beat up. Shouldn't be hard for you to find."
Britters
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Posted: 9/25/2018 at 2:38 AM
Post #159
Watching Trace's ability in action was rather awe-inspiring. There had been a moment when she thought Trace might not grab the notebook, but in the end she stood there and watched the other woman Kay her hands on it and get to work. She didn't understand exactly what Trace was doing, but whatever it was was pretty incredible. Her family had certainly praised her ability in their farming business, but she had never found it all that special. What Trace could do was useful and potentially lifesaving. It was a privilege to see.
"Thank you," she said with relief, taking the notebook back, "I appreciate this so much." She turned to head back down the hallway, but stopped and looked back at Trace. "You should come by the infirmary later. I'm sure Reach and Wire will want to thank you themselves." She gave her a soft smile and then jogged down the hallway.
Not letting Trace have time to give an answer had two motivations. First of all, Flora knew there was no more time to waste, but she also didn't want to give Trace another opportunity to be sarcastic and tough. She knew there was more there, but she understood the reasons a person might have to have built those walls. Prying had never been her style and she knew better than to try now. The most important thing right now was to get to that shipping container, find Brain (and Tox), and hopefully save Wire's life.
Moving with a purpose now, Flora exited the dorm building quickly and made it out into the courtyard again. The sun was peeking a good bit over the horizon by now and it didn't seem as dark and deserted. There were a few other early risers stumbling outside, but they were mostly those individuals who were on food detail for the morning and were rubbing their eyes groggily. She paid them no mind as she hurried through the courtyard, pausing only to orient herself on which direction "B" Lab was in, and to spare a passing glance at the tall, Gothic figure that was Necro.
Should she...? No, there was no time to ask for help. Time was of the essence and Flora could feel it slipping out of her fingers. She fast walked in the direction Trace had said the shipping container was in, not wanting to run and tire herself out quickly. She had no idea how long it would take her to find it, nor what sort of scenario she would find when she got there. It was important to hurry but it was just as important to be prepared for anything.
Creativity
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Posted: 9/25/2018 at 5:10 PM
Post #160
Quickly, Necro was growing restless again, even as he paced. Sometimes, mere wandering wasn't quite enough for him, and he craved more. He desired most to be off of this island, to be back on the stage, becoming an emperor and a king and a widower and a peasant and everything in between. His time spent in the Nether that morning, even to confirm that no deaths had arrived from the compound that day, was pressing at the forefront of his mind.
He remembered what he used to do to contain it, or rather, express it. He would do his best to put what he saw and felt into art. It was something he often undertook as a child, but now, he had no access to the paints that his mother would so dutifully procure for him.
He lamented on this absence, this failure of an idea. He would have only to suffer the consequences of going back there: the beautiful destructive void that he saw, and the effect it still had on him, to this day. If only there were perhaps someone who might know where he could find paints...
"Ah!" he exclaimed as he saw Flora, hurrying off in a set direction. She might know something! He trotted to catch up with her, and then fell into swift step beside her. "Engelskuchen, would you perhaps know of any plants native to our confinement that could be crushed or mixed or something to create a paint-like substance?" he questioned of her, tone light and jolly in spite of the obvious rush she was in.
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