Legerman Academy - Red Skies

Honey


Honey remained silent for a long period of time, just clutching her face with one hand. Her other palm dragged along beside her on the floor, where the sharp, hooked nails left tiny scratches, she was pressing down so hard. Her expression was a grimace of small, sharp teeth, and her ears were flattened down in defeat. Her breathing seemed forcibly deep and shaky, as if she was trying to calm herself, but whether or not it was working at the moment seemed unclear. Honey knew that her suddenly having a breakdown would make everyone worry, but she couldn’t keep dodging her own growing feelings of anguish that had been assaulting her ever since she’d escaped the guy holding her at gunpoint.
 
It was like this that Honey listened to the strange girl, who had taken her invitation to sit down. She listened quietly, and even though it sounded like rushed, uncertain babble, and the pat on the back was a weak effort to provide some sort of comfort, in spite of herself, Honey found herself chuckling softly. It was all so ridiculous, the entire situation, so perhaps when she was able to find something funny, even when she had been through so much, maybe it actually made sense. Right now, few things made any sort of logical connection in her mind, and her entire perception of reality felt oddly…distorted. The most she knew was that she’d probably made some sort of mistake, and this girl—this complete stranger—was concerned enough to tell such a bizarre story, even though she had no clue how bad things actually were.
 
“Yeah…nothing was supposed to be this way...” She said in response, slowly taking her hand away from her face, her expression changing so that her teeth were hidden again. She stared straight ahead, and her focus went away from her vision, so that even though things were happening, she didn’t really register any of the things she saw, not that she saw much. All there was to see were blurry images of people crying, screaming in pain, or curling up on the floor, trying to make sense of it all. “We were in some stupid ceremony that everyone thought was just needless repetition of what the rules of the school were…and then…it turned into….all of this….” Her ears flattened down as a particularly loud, wailing individual walked past, seemingly in search of someone they’d lost track of outside.
 
“But…what I did...that…wasn’t like me at all….” Honey had trouble finding the words, but, she needed to say it, or her heart felt like it might split in two. “I’m not…I’m not someone who just…abandons people….but….I….” Her hand went up to clutch her face again, but, this time her eyes were dry, the tears subsiding, though they threatened to come as soon as they’d left. “I...I betrayed him…I knowingly forced him into a situation where he might be killed….” She forced herself to keep back the tears, even as a sob caught in her throat, “…And….I didn’t even regret it until now…”
 
Honey shook her head slowly, “Just….what was I doing? Why didn’t I try harder? I just looked at him, I’d thought maybe he was a threat, and I just…judged him….” She folded her arms, and her hands clutched her knees tightly, wrinkling the fabric of her sports pants that she always wore, “What kind of person am I, of all people, to do that? Why did I do that?”
 
She hid her face behind the denim sleeves of her jacket, “I…I don’t have an excuse….I don’t….I just…did it….”
 
Her tears had finally dried, and given way to something else. Honey was upset, but beneath that sorrow and anguish was something she hadn’t expected to find: anger. She was angry at herself, angry because she’d done something she’d told herself she never wanted to do, and angry because in her life…in her life where she’d already been born looking like a monster….she had to be forced into a situation where she had acted like one, too. “Just….why?” Honey kept asking that question, not that she honestly expected to find an answer, “Just…why did things have to be like this, any of it?”
 
Why did those people have to attack this school, why did they have to force Honey…and all of these kids…into this kind of situation? Honey…surely….she wasn’t the only one who’d had to do bad things…she knew she wasn’t…but even so…why? Why, of all places, did a bunch of maniacs have to come here, and not only that, make her question the people that she should always be able to trust?
 
“I…I don’t understand…”
 
 
Scylla


“None of us understand…either….” Scylla remained curled into a ball, his face half-hidden, and his eyes only glancing sidelong at Honey.
 
“But…whether or not what you did was right…do you think the people…who put you in that situation…were right to point a gun at you…just because you tried to protect someone?” His eyes flashed and went dark, only the deep red-brown scleras visible. Scylla’s stress had finally pushed him over the edge, “Ah…can’t see….” He then laughed uneasily, and shifted, “I still question…why I’m even here…I wasn’t even meant to have eyes….my real form…my real form doesn’t have them….these eyes…they’re just….there….”
 
He turned and faced his head away, since looking didn’t really matter when it was like this, he couldn’t make eye contact, anyway. He was blind like this, and having no details in your eyes seemed creepy, anyway. “I….I’m not good with any of this…but….you….you didn’t do it because you were bad…or because of hatred….what you did….wasn’t really personal…even though it seems like it was….” His fingers picked at a loose thread on his sweatpants, “You…glared at him because you thought…he would hurt us….even after you got him away from that dome…even after you saved him…”
 
He thought he could sense that he was being looked at, even though he couldn’t actually tell. “Am…I wrong…?” He asked.
 
There was no response, so Scylla continued.
 
“You were angry because…you thought…maybe…just maybe…he was a traitor…and because you were being held at gunpoint….you couldn’t be sure that you wouldn’t get shot…you couldn’t just be compliant….you had to make sure…they couldn’t shoot you…or me…or anyone else…” He paused, “You were personally hurt because…it looked like that guy knew the attack was going to happen, and tried to run away…even though he knew people like us would be trapped….”
 
Scylla felt something resembling vision illuminating back into view, but he still couldn’t make anything out, “So…maybe…maybe you think you might have hurt someone innocent…but before you beat yourself up over it…you didn’t kill him…I’ve been watching the one presence…that I think is his…and it hasn’t vanished yet…”
 
He then laughed, though there was no humor in it, “So…do you think you’re still stupid?” His words became a little more confident, “I don’t think you are. You’re crazy smart, and you managed to figure something out in the middle of…this.” He gestured to the room around them. “You just…don’t want to be seen as a monster…I… I know the feeling…” He shook his head and lowered it so that his face was hidden by his arms again. “I really do understand….so…please stop crying…you have a conscience…you feel guilt and pain and things hurt you….just like they hurt me and everyone else…you hold yourself accountable, and you hold other people accountable, too. You shouldn’t have to be ashamed.”
 
Honey stared at Scylla, bewildered.
 
Scylla, deciding that he wasn’t comfortable with being stared at, sighed, “That in mind,” he leaned his head back against the wall, the back of his hood acting like a pillow, “I’m tired…I kind of wish I could fall asleep…but I can’t…kinda weird…huh?”

Just like that, within moments of heading outside, they’re targeted. Riley was unable to react in any significant way, but Thomas’ reaction seemed almost instinctive due to how he handled the gunman with ease. “W-woah,” she breathed out. If it were not for Riley’s ability to read his emotions, she may have suspected him for having training of some sort.

Riley looked down at the gunman who was now passed out. He wasn’t anyone she knew, which she was grateful for, but the idea sparked yet another worry among the many in her mind. What if one someone she knew from the other side died, as well? Sure, they are considered the “bad guys” right now, but if one of these freaks killed a person she knows, that would be yet another added to the death toll. The thought of how many were already added to that made her shiver.

When Thomas offered her the gun, Riley’s eyes widened, and she hesitated answering. Well, of course she knew how to use one. Considering the “crowd” she was with, it would seem weird for her not to. She couldn’t just say she knew how to use a gun to Thomas, however. What average person would know how to use a gun? Then again, this school didn’t necessarily have “average” people, and having a gun would make her feel safer… but what if she accidentally killed someone? With all of this in mind, Riley stumbled to find an answer.

“I- um, well…” don’t screw up, Rye. “No,” Riley sighed, shaking her head almost in a way that seemed like defeat. “But I could carry it or something for you if you feel awkward holding it.” Please say yes. She then pointed in the direction of the one shelter she knew was actuall safe and not being destroyed. She noted that many students were scrambling there, also realizing that it was currently “safe.” “There’s a safe shelter over there – we could try to make it.” As long as they aren’t anywhere near Virgo or his fellow freak squad, they will be able to make it.
_____________________________________________________________

Lexy’s face lit up when she heard the cat changeling begin to chuckle, but when this new acquaintance began speaking, her features deflated. As she listened, Lexy kept her eyes on the cat changeling, trying to drown out the sounds of many screams and wails. After listening to what they had to say, Lexy bit her lip, unsure of how to respond. There was obviously a lot more to the problem than she realized.

How would she react under the same situation? Leaving someone with a dangerous person… it seemed out of her own character, so she didn’t think she would do it, but then this other changeling didn’t think they would do the same thing, as well, but did. She felt tears build up and cloud her vision, threatening to spill. Lexy, being prone to wearing her heart on her sleeve, let them as she silently listened to the man begin to speak, for once at a loss for words.

As she listened to him speak, she smiled slightly, rubbing the palm of her hand at her eyes. By the time he was done speaking, Lexy had composed herself, once again, and had a calm expression on her face, the only sign of any tears being her puffy eyes. It was almost humorous how quickly her expressions changed and how obvious her emotions were. Her response was rather innocent.

Lexy smiled, “Well, I don’t see either of you as a monster. I think you both seem nice, really – like, super nice. I doubt there’s anyone here that would consider you monsters, y’know?”

She suddenly changed topics, her words just as fresh-from-the-mind as her expressions, “I need to introduce myself, don’t I? I’m Lexy. Some people call me Lex, but I don’t like that because that’s also the name of a bald villain in a comic book.”

Honey


Though she felt beaten down from all that was happening, Honey still found her mouth curling into a Cheshire cat grin at Lexy’s introduction. “Ah…do we have a comic reader here?” she questioned rhetorically, her voice teasing. The truth was that she would have never made any sort of connection between this girl and the villain she was talking about, but now, it was undeniably there. “Well, then, Lexy, pleased to meet you. My name’s Simona, but everyone calls me Honey.” She flattened down her ears in a mock version of sadness and dismay, “My power affects plants, so people used to want to give me the nickname Ivy when they heard about it, but….that’s not really how it works.” She decided she’d go ahead and do her own bizarre introduction with a comic villain. Not that it was entirely a joke; when Honey mentioned plants as a part of her power, Poison Ivy was the first thing people thought of, and her abilities weren’t really of that nature.
 
Realistically, it would take a bit longer before Honey felt entirely like herself, but at least for the moment, these two people sitting with her made things seem better than they initially were. Not to say that anyone trapped in the bunker felt entirely fine; but a few people listening to you was like good therapy. When they knew the right things to say, it made things all the more bearable than they had been before. Lexy seemed like a very kind person, and Honey could tell, this girl had trouble hiding what she felt; but there was never anything wrong with having your heart on your sleeve. As for Scylla…beyond all of the fidgeting and anxiety, he was someone very different from the impression he initially gave.
 
Scylla
 
Beside Honey, Scylla chuckled and pinched the bridge of his nose, pushing up his glasses and shaking his head in disbelief. This cat-monster girl….she’d just told a joke, but it was so poorly-done, he could hardly believe that she’d actually gone for it. “Ahhh….great joke, there, great joke.” He said sarcastically, commending her for attempting humor that most people wouldn’t actually laugh at.
 
Without skipping a beat, Honey looked at him in mock anger, “I will punch you,” She threatened, her voice stern.
 
Scylla suddenly found himself laughing a lot harder than he had moments before. Yes, he was afraid of touching, but the false threat was hilarious.
 
It took a few moments before he managed to recover enough to speak, and he looked past Honey at Lexy, “Ah, darn it, I can’t breathe,” He said with a giggle, before launching into his own introduction, “I’m Scylla, nice to meet ya, Lexy.”

Azazel

boom

Azazel and his sister had just gotten outside when it happened. A deafening explosion, located at a crater that used to be a nuclear fallout shelter, or something. How exciting, and utterly, excruciatingly terrifying. Did this mean they weren't safe anywhere? Were they doomed? No, no he had to stay calm. He was pretty sure someone couldn't have put bombs up at all the shelters beforehand, otherwise they would all be craters by now. No, this was caused by a person, or multiple, going about with some kind of bomb. That meant he had a chance. Of course, he could risk flying him and his sister out of there, but they'd make great target practice for this no doubt well trained group of gunmen. He had to take his chances and go for a shelter. And so he ran, with his sister, and ended up in the current one.

It didn't go that smoothly, however. On the way there was a gunman that aimed his gun at Zara, and he, under the influence of adrenaline and anger, foolishly flew towards him at high speed using his power, and punched him across the face. Effectively breaking his own hand while knocking the gunman out, possibly even killing him: he didn't care. He deserved it. That broken hand hurt like hell though. Unfortunately, he actually did manage to fire the gun. Fortunately for Azazel and his sister, he missed, only hitting air, maybe a few bugs. It wasn't any less scary though.

Zara

Zara looked at her brother with a worried look. Although they were inside the shelter and relatively safe, his left hand wasn't looking so well, he could hardly move it. "Are you sure your okay, brother?" She said, her voice cracking a little. "Of cojrse I'm okay, sis. Are you? Your voice is cracking. Or did you finally hit puberty?" He said, gigling a bit at the end. It was a terrible joke, but Zara laughed either way. "Nice one, bro."

After having calmed down a bit, she started to look around for her roommate, hoping she was okay. Luckily for her, a cat-otter person is very hard to miss, so spotting her was a piece of cake. She didn't look so good though, her tail was burnt up. At least she's alive.

"Azazel, come on, let's go. My roommates over there and I want to see if she's okay."

Virgo waved down the remaining shadow men, causing their forms to begin to boil and burst apart violently as black blasts. His mutinous ruby eyes squinted angrily at Claire. His black boots tapped loudly against the asphalt as he footed his way forward. "Improved a bit since the last I saw you," he began, his silver scar shining brightly from the edge of his mouth. "Doesn't matter much though, unfortunately." He added. "Alright, alright, Claire... I guess I'll give you what you want..." he said, chuckling. He stretched his arms and rolled his neck as his body suddenly began to sink into the pavement. Slowly and gently his entire form was flattened into one black blotch on the ground. A sizzling, a crackling. That's all that was heard as his body melted into two-dimensional form. It swam about the area quickly and encircled Claire. From above the shape of a man, flying or swimming, could clearing be made out.

He flew under her in an abrupt change of direction. In an instant his arm materialized from the ground, stretching up and coated in a sparkling black which struck her heels as to knock Claire off balance. Virgo's entire body then emerged, shooting straight up from the ground. In his right hand he held a stunning black blade. One tainted and crystallized of shadow. It seemed to steam the color black in the light of day and he kept it poised for Claire's face. It was not quite so strong in the light, but it was all he needed. He had great confidence in his ability in this. "En garde? Sunshine?" he asked.

____________________________________


Muriel

Muriel made his way down the stairs and into the compartment where the majority of the students had fled. At once he fell against the wall and dropped to the floor; no regard for comfort as his legs bent under him. Blood was leaking from the sleeve of his buckled black coat and could be seen peppered across his neck and forehead. He clenched his upper rips and wheezed, his mis-matched eyes tightening shut in agony.

In the pain he was in, he was only happy to be safe. And to know that the students he had saved were safe. He could still feel the force of the bomb. Thankfully, he had not been affected by it, all due to his own unique gift. "Agh, damn..." he wheezed. God, tell me Corrigan has made it... His breathing was heavy and his bones felt tattered. Each breath was painful. His form was scented with the smoke of Hadriel. It was an aroma most disgusting to him, for it was the smell of the waste of dead fires, the last remnants of what they had eaten. Worthless, putrid... Agh-- he gritted his teeth, wheezing. Something is wrong. It hurts too much. I've got to get to Munson...

“I don’t read them anymore, but I used to,” Lexy responded a bit sheepishly, but with a pleased smile resting on her lips reflecting her emotions towards being able to crack a smile from her acquaintance. She obviously didn’t realize it was a rhetorical question. She then introduced herself as Honey. Honey… Honey… Lexy made sure to repeat it several times in her head so as not to forget this new acquaintance’s name.

She caught the Poison Ivy joke only after the other acquaintance said “Great joke,” and found herself giggling more at the sarcastic response, along with Honey’s response. It was nice laughing with some people – relaxing, even, despite all the panic and disarray present in the room. When Scylla introduced himself, as well, Lexy grinned at him. “Nice to meet you, Scylla and Honey.” She looked up when she noticed two more changelings approaching, and happily waved a hand towards them in greeting, not knowing one was Honey’s roommate.

“Hey! What’s up?” She greeted in her usual bubbly attitude.

__________________________________


Before Virgo could deliver any blows, there was a flash of light and suddenly, music. A tall, slim figure stood next to Virgo, headphones resting on his shoulders as some form of rock music blasted through them, the bass being its only audible piece. The boy appeared to be around twenty-one. His skin was tan, jawline chiseled, and his eyes a rich violet. He wore a grey suite and silver tie, the said attire greatly contrasting the royal blue headphones resting around his neck. Resting on his well-groomed, pale blonde hair was a pair of sunglasses, their lens a red tint. The only blemish on any part of his body was a pale scare that slid up from the left side of his neck to his left cheekbone. His boyish grin completed the package, making the oddling appear all the more attractive.

“It’s time to stop – Lady’s orders,” he hummed in a carefree voice before looking at Claire, tilting his chin up in acknowledgement. “’Sup?”

((sorry about the quick post - gtg to bed for college tomorrow morning~ 5:30 a.m. should be illegal, bruh))

Virgo's lips drew back in a filthy snarl, his nose wrinkling as his red eyes squinted angrily. He whipped away from Claire and turned to the young man with the headphones. "Just give me one more minute!" he shouted, "I was so close, damn you!" he shouted, pointing the blade back at Claire. Chance seems to lust for you, ugly-eye... I won't lose you. Not this time. You have grown too much for me to be comfortable with. He kept his glare locked onto Claire, but his voice locked onto the newcomer.

"Virgo," called a secondary voice from behind his shoulder. It was Regina's. Thick, lovely red dripped from the pale skin of her face. Her hands were soaked in red, as was her chest. "You know I love what you do, but it's time to go. Come on, she can wait."

"No!" Virgo said, glancing back at Regina quickly. His eyes flashed to surprise suddenly as he gazed upon her, noticing all the blood. "You... did you kill Cassius? Like you said..." he trailed off, his voice becoming angrily shaky.

"He got away. Now come on," Regina said. "The Lady wouldn't stop the fighting if it wasn't for good reason. Now come."

Virgo's head flashed back to Claire as the black blade burst apart into hundreds of glassy black shards, flushing away into a fine dust with the wind. "I'm not finished with you, you worthless bitch. I'll be back."

When you recognize the extent to which a person feels an emotion – the amount of passion they feel about a particular subject – it is then that you begin to empathize with them.

Riley sensed the emotions before they even stepped into the shelter, and it was almost enough to make her turn on her heel and brace the warzone, blood-colored sky and all. She would rather deal with that (even if two “comrades” almost killed her) than go through another guilt trip. Instead, she willed her feet to move forward, each step causing a pang in her chest as the emotions became more evident and less blurred together, though most people felt the same, anyway. Panic, sadness, anger, fear, hatred – Riley sensed all of these emotions radiating from the crowd of students. This wasn’t just a bedlam. It was a tragedy - a scene of pathos.

And you could have prevented it.

Riley winced her eyes begin to water as a lump formed in her throat. The sick feeling in her stomach came back with a force that made her sway on her feet, slightly, and she looked away from the crowd.

She hated it – empathizing with freaks wasn’t making this job any easier for her. It’s not like she asked to be placed in this predicament, being placed on a side without question. If she had her way, she would have remained neutral through everything, not getting involved in any of the fighting. But, of course, she had to be one of the closest things to a psychic anyone could get. There weren’t any mind reading changelings that she knew of, so reading emotions was the next best thing, especially if the person can influence emotions. People are easily controlled by their emotions, and if an emotion they’re feeling is strong enough, they will eventually cave to their natural emotional responses.

Riley realized she was staring at the ground, still, and quickly wiped the tears out of her eyes, looking up at Thomas. He didn’t help lessen the guilt – in fact, he made it more intense when she thought of him putting his life on the line. Riley’s voice cracked when she began to speak. “Sorry for…” Her voice trailed off as she swallowed and looked down again. Sorry for what? Lying to him? Not helping him fight and just trembling in fear like some scared rodent? Sorry for initiating this nightmare of an attack that could have been avoided, resulting in what will probably be the majority of students’ deaths?  Riley pursed her lips before managing a meek smile as she said, “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to help you fight or anything, and, um, thanks for the help.” She was tempted to ask about whether or not she should try to help calm some of the fellow freaks who were, well, freaking out, but decided against it. She didn’t want to get in trouble with them.[/i]
[/i]

Honey
 
Honey looked up at the people that Lexy was waving over, at first, thinking maybe they were friends of hers. Then, when they got closer, and her eyes could actually distinguish who the blurs were, she recognized the girl immediately, and gasped with relief, “Zara!” She rose to her feet, wincing as her singed tail tip briefly brushed against the ground. “Ow…thank goodness you made it! It’s awful out there, you didn’t get hurt, is that your brother? Oh, I wish we’d met under different circumstances but…I’m just glad you’re here and not still out there…” Her sentences might have been blending together multiple thoughts at once, but there were few ways to truly measure how glad Honey was to see that her roommate was here, alive.
 
Of course, she didn’t know her roommate that well, but despite this, Honey still knew who Zara was, and the fact that she had made it to the bunker meant she had managed to escape the attackers that had trapped all of the students under the dome. As for how she kept saying ‘out there’…what else could anyone call it? Out there was the nightmare that had created the horrific scene that kept panning out inside the bunker. As Honey exclaimed with relief, she thought she could feel angry, hurt glares coming from people elsewhere in the room—the people who still had friends or family out there somewhere. Honey didn’t know where the gazes were coming from, but she looked around, laughing nervously, her relieved smile falling into a kind of anguished, wounded expression, her ears drooping low. Why was she happy, even if Zara was here? That didn’t make what was happening right now any less awful than it already was.
 
She looked back at Zara, “Ah…please, come sit with us….we…ah…hahah….” She smoothed back some fur on her mane uneasily, “…ah…who am I kidding?” She sighed, “This…just…” She shook her head, mouth agape, at a loss for words. Finally, she threw up her arms, wordlessly, and then just stood there for a good minute, before speaking again, “I’m…I’m fine and everyone with me is okay…but…just…it’s all just one big mess, isn’t it?” She looked around, ears flattening when more shrieking people passed by, screaming either in pain or in despair. “I thought when I came here, I’d manage to make life better for people…but instead….all of this happened….and I can’t do a single thing…”
 
Honey took a deep, shaky breath, feeling tears trying to form, and then forcing them not to fall; she’d already cried enough, she had to move on from that. “I’m…sorry….I’m glad that you’re here….I’m really glad…it’s just….” She sighed with frustration and pinched her temples, trying to force the words out, before giving up, “just…I wish this whole thing….I wish it never happened….and if I ever find out who did this….I’m going to demand to know why…”



Scylla

Honey had walked off to talk to her roommate, and even though he’d already calmed her down once, everyone was still in a hysterical sort of mood, and the slightest event could make a person burst into tears again. Scylla sighed, leaning his head back against the wall, and letting his eyes scan the crowds around him, as he wondered if his own roommates had managed to escape the nightmarish scene outside. It was then that he became aware of a presence his other side, and turned to look, the smell of ash and soot thick on their clothes, and actually very hard to ignore now that he realized it. It was the teacher who had shielded everyone from the blast. He didn’t look very good, but the fact that he was still alive was amazing in itself; he’d tackled the explosive changeling and taken the full force of a blast, after all.
 
“You…” Scylla’s eyes widened, “You’re alive!” He said with amazement. His brows then furrowed with concern, “I’m…not a doctor…but…if you got hit by that blast….it’s possible that your ribs are broken….” It was true that Scylla had no medical expertise, but just as much as he knew he could use regular needles and thread to stitch his own leg shut, and just how people could visibly see a dislocated shoulder, the way the teacher was clutching his ribs and wheezing sounded like broken bones. Scylla shook a little, not sure if he could help or not, “Hey…if they’re broken…you need to sit up and not put any pressure on them….just breathe…they hurt, but you’re not coughing blood…so….that’s good….”
 
Scylla shrank back and pulled his hood tightly over his head, hiding his face, “You…saved us….so….darn it I wish I could do more….I can’t get up or it’ll start bleeding again…”

Claire's blades faded away slowly, de-materializing from existence as Virgo spoke to her. She was relieved that Virgo and the others were leaving seeing as she wouldn't have to fight for a longer period of time, but she was also incredibly angry. In a sense, she considered Virgo cowardly for not being more defiant, but from what she understood from the situation, it would be a dangerous gambit to be disloyal to these people. She ignored the newcomer and only responded to Virgo with three, simple, wrath-filled words. "I'll be waiting."

Claire quickly looked around, noting that most of the students had been able to find shelter. "I need to find Corrigan and Cassius, and make sure they're okay. I wasn't able to see what exactly happened to them." She thought, and made haste towards the places she suspected they would be taking refuge.

___________________________________________________________

Thomas simply shrugged, almost dismissive of Riley's worries, though not in a way that could be considered completely disrespectful. "Honestly, you shouldn't worry about it." Thomas sighed, brushing some dust off of his t-shirt as he spoke. "I did what I could to protect myself and others because I can - After all, many of the students don't have abilities that would allow them to fight back against anything like that."

Thomas, finding an unoccupied spot on the floor nearby a wall, gestured for Riley to follow suite as he sat down and leaned against it. "Still though, I have to wonder who those people were. It wasn't the Fellowship, because there were Changelings... Maybe some sort of radical group?" He elevated his head slightly and stared at the ceiling of the shelter, as in deep in thought.

Corrigan

The same foreboding white boots stomped through down one of the winding stairs of the bunkers. She stopped at their bottom, panting slightly. Her uniform seemed beaten up, and there was some blood seeping through it in several places. Corrigan's face was bruised as well, but it did not hinder her very aura of authority. She eyed the students that had made it to the bunker, giving a sigh of relief. But now, her fears were only beginning. She found herself being overran by Easton, climbing desperately down the bunker stairway. The sounds of gunfire and explosions could still lightly be heard even from all this way down under, though now they were only echoes, patters, impressions.

Corrigan quickly grabbed Easton by the shoulders. "Have you seen Heath?" she said, her eyes widening without a sense of sanity. Miss Easton shook her head quickly, grimacing as she watched the fear in Corrigan's eyes increase tenfold. "I have to go back," she said, "I have to go back."

"Are you insane?" Easton said, grabbing Corrigan by the elbow as she attempted to stomp off. She pulled the suited woman back and grabbed her by her collar. "No one is going out there right now! That man will kill you. And so will whoever those people are that are working with him in this. Heath will be alright. If he was at the east side of campus when the attack happened, he's probably with Muriel. So he should be okay. Who we really need to worry about right now is Munson."

Munson. The campus medic was completely missing. Corrigan's heart raced twice for him, as she hadn't seen him at all. You'd think he'd be easier for her to find, given that he's a giant. But Corrigan traced through her memories, finding nothing of him. "Yes. We need him... Who... Who else is up there?"

"So far it's just you and me that are down here as far as teachers--"

Corrigan pushed past Easton quickly, heading towards the side of the room. In confusion, Easton turned and moved with her, quickly realizing that Corrigan had found Muriel holding his chest along the wall. Scylla was next to him, whom Corrigan disregarded completely. Corrigan dropped to her knees next to Muriel, holding his arm. "Muriel," she said, her eyes full of potent urgency. "Are you alright? Where is Heath? Do you know?"

About to respond to Scylla, Muriel was interrupted and looked up quickly at Corrigan. "Don't worry," he said, coughing. "I took Heath to the south bunkers when the gates burst. Your husband is safe," he said, groaning. "Where... Where is Munson?"

"Oh thank God," Corrigan said, sighing. "Munson is still out there, along with Cassius and all the others. I'm not sure who is dead and who is alive, or how many students are left. They were all scattered. They should've went with teachers to each remaining bunker, but it's hard to tell what's happened. I know some have been separated from each other. God, this is such a mess," she said, shaking her head. "What happened to you?"

"It was Mister Suicide," Muriel angrily groaned, "That damned exploding man. I was able to phase out my form for the most part when he exploded onto me, but the force passing through me was enough to find and damage my ribs, as this young boy figured out quickly," Muriel said, gesturing to Scylla. "My treatment will have to wait till Munson is found. However he has a rather nasty one on his leg," Muriel said, pointing.

Easton looked to Scylla and then crouched before him. "Can I take a look at your wound? If it's minor I may be able to numb and bind it for you till we can get it properly mended."

At this time, Corrigan stood, "Is anyone else hurt?" she called, to the crowd of desperate students.

Scylla


Scylla winced, and carefully bent over, gingerly trying to roll up the leg of his sweatpants, and clenching his teeth as dried blood pulled at the edges of the wound. He eventually got it up above his knee, but one spot had started bleeding—nothing major, but the way he clenched at the fabric with white knuckles was enough to tell that this injury hurt a great deal. “It’s for your own good, Scylla…” He murmured uneasily, “You’re already in the middle of a nightmare, so don’t make it worse…” Nobody would ever say that talking to yourself in this manner seemed crazy; it was easily recognizable as a kind of self-coaching. Scylla hated having other people touching him; it was his phobia, and it would be a lie if he said it didn’t upset him having to tolerate it.
 
Even so, he needed to do this, because he would never get anywhere in life if he didn’t try to force himself to handle it. He had to do it. He didn’t have the option. He’d been fighting the panic and the anxiety ever since all of this madness had first started, and he could do it again.
 
He looked up at Easton, “I had to wrestle one of those guys….his gun went off and I got grazed by it….it’s just a big, long cut…though…no mixed blood or…lodged bullets….” He looked at it and bit his lip slightly, realizing just how big and ugly the injury looked on a superficial level, “….how did I even run with this…?” He asked, thinking that he should have been completely crippled by it, as painful as it looked. Somehow, he’d been sprinting with a wound like this.
 
 Then the motionless form he’d run from suddenly flashed back into his mind again, and a hand stained with his own blood reached up and pinched his temples, the full weight of what he’d done hitting him suddenly. “I….I think I...” He closed his eyes shut tightly failing to finish the sentence, “I….was justified…but…why now…? Why did I have to think of that now?” He suppressed the tears, but one still streamed down his face anyway. He gritted his teeth.

 
…Flashes of a white room, and a person wrestling him to the ground…
 
‘I don’t want to go!’


 
….Suddenly he opened his eyes and he was back in the bunker again, looking back at Easton.
 
“I’m…sorry…just…please look at my wound….I’m fine….I’m just….remembering something unpleasant…” He said, biting back the memory.

 
‘…You worthless monster…’
 
“Stop,”
 
‘…you don’t belong here…’
 
“You aren’t here anymore…”


 
The voices faded, and reality suddenly grew more solid again.
 
“You can’t find me…you can’t hurt me…”
 
Scylla had thought that these episodes would stop. He’d gone a long time without them, but all of this was making them rise to the surface again. The memories couldn’t be destroyed, and he wasn’t happy that they were there, but usually, he didn’t suffer any flashbacks.
 
But then there were bad days.
 
Bad days where someone touched him and he’d suddenly be in those memories again, trapped.