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 Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 10:45 am
"Faolan!" Roka shouted. He would not lower himself to a shriek. He stared down at what once had been one of his favorite shirts and turned, eyes glittering at the anthro. " What the ******** do you expect! It's been in there for months!" He grabbed the plate and threw it onto the floor as Athos marched past them up the stairs. A smirk crossed his features and in flash he had wrapped himself around Foalan and was crushing more of the disgusting mixture into the grey fur. "There." He broke the contact, nose wrinkling. It was at this point that Faolan's attention focused on the door.
Damnit. That figure was still there. She hadn't gone away. He had caught the name Shi on his way down teh stairs but he wasn't sure if he'd caught it from Athos or if he'd heard it. Either way it seemed to be her name.
"Shi." He said in reply to the question.
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Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 1:12 pm
The hood of the figure's cloak seemed to lower slightly as Athos told her to wait, and so she remained upon the stoop, having been cut off before she could reply. Turning to face the...slime? covered men, she took a step back, and faced away again. They looked such a mess...
The hood bobbed again, "Ineed, I am Shi.." She stopped herself there, waiting until she had spoken to Athos before saying anything more, despite the fact that she wanted to take a hose and wash the two herself..
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Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2006 4:37 pm
Roka nodded more to himself than anyone. "Well I'd invite you in but I don't really know you and you seem a little put off by the roast." He glared once again at Faolan. " Don't worry. He'll clean it up, in the meantime I'm going to have a shower." At Faolan's raised brow he sighed.
" In the guest bedroom...Nolah won't care. She's too tired." He stripped off his shirt and let it drop to the floor with a heavier sound than usual. The smell really was revolting. His thoughts once against drifted to a hot shower, the pulse of the water against his sore muscles. They had seperate water tanks for each bathroom so the problem of more than one person showering in different rooms was never an issue as they frequently entertained guests.
He was just on the edge of the stairs when he paused, feeling slightly guilty. Turning he sat down and stared hard at Faolan who was looking more than a little pissed off.
" I guess I can help clean up...even though it was your fault." He said this with a hint of a grin. "The faster we get it taken care of, the better. Whoever Shi is...she's not liking this very much."
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Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 2:03 am
As Shi and Athos stood on the lover's doorstep, they were watched by a thin, pale female. She was easy to miss, even if you were looking straight at her, as her pale features and white dress blended in to the rubble of the town above ground. Her light brown hair blew gently with the soft wind, and she shivered although it wasn't cold.
When the door was shut behind the two on Roka and Faolan's doorstep, Rochelle stepped out from her hiding place but then changed her mind and sat back down. Concentrating really hard on a piece of wood near the front door, she imagined it rising up and hitting the door. Just as she thought it, the wood obeyed, levitated and rapped the door hard. Rochelle heard footsteps, and discarded the wood, watching to see who (other than Shi and Athos) were in the house.
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Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 9:22 am
"I'll get it." Roka muttered from where he knelt with Faolan on the floor. Another quick flick of his mind, the door opened slowly. Instantly he scanned the area, his mind creating a perfect composite of what lay outside. Instantly he caught sight of the girl. She seemed familiar...one of the experiments?
He nudged Faolan gently and said under his breath. "I think that's the banshee girl...Rochelle?"
"How do you always remember names?"
"I have a good memory..." He was quiet for a moment, the sponge in his hand scrubbing at the same place over and over. " Why didn't we find her during the attacks?" He mused aloud and cast another glance in her direction. She wouldn't come into the house without being invited. She was polite, at least as far as Roka could remember. He didn't remember much else except that Athos and Theonidas had been quite pleased to aquire her due to her strange heritage.
Telepathically he sent his message. "Wait outside until Athos comes back down." Usually he was as polite as he could be, but not remembering terribly much about this girl he didn't trust in the fact that she'd be alright once inside.
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Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 10:44 am
Rochelle watched the door open, and was overjoyed to see Roka- therefore letting herself become more obvious to the two him. But then Faolan came along too. Rochelle had always been scared of him, but that was normal, as she was generally afraid of the unknown. Her smile disappeared as Faolan put his hand on Roka's shoulder and peered out too.
"Wait outside until Athos comes back down," Roka said as clear as the day, yet inside her head.
"I was planning on it- I don't like large crowds, you know that!" Or at least she hoped he remembered that little piece of information about her, though it was unlikely. She smiled slightly, but recieved no welcoming grin back.
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Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 3:30 pm
Roka heard her response but didn't return the smile. It wasn't that he was deliberatly being mean, he was trying to remember more about her. Once Faolan and himself had proven themselves invaluable they'd been separated from most other experiments. He did remember her, her origins, her name and now that she mentioned it a brief flash of her huddling in the corner during dinner time in the holding cells seemed to prove the fact that she hated crowds. "Sorry Rochelle...I've just been so separated from everyone for so long...although it's still a good idea to wait outside. There's no telling what our master will do as other experiments no doubt turn up. He'll have to decide if they're truly loyal." His face was trained on the floor as he sent this next message and turned his head quickly enough to give her a hint of a smile.
"You'll wear a hole in the floor." Faolan cautioned and Roka realized he was still scrubbing the same spot. Anger flared when he realized he was blushing. Curses.
"Sorry." He got to his knees and went to rinse the sponge off in the sink before returning. Everything was nearly cleaned up save themselves and he was aware of the disgusting smell and how it must be offending everyone.
"Blood does take a long to time to get out of your hair." He said as an afterthought, in regards to Athos who was still upstairs. He knew that from experience. Most of the experiments did thought not all were as image concious as Roka. While Faolan scrubbed the last of the grime from the floor Roka took the time to glance down at his body.
He was nearly indescribably thin-something he was often teased about when younger and in with the others (he'd quickly taken care of that problem though he'd been reprimanded as several deaths had resulted), slender almost skeletal fingers with perfectly manacured nails picked at the button of his leather pants. They'd manage to hold up throughout the attack. He was definately going back to that nail place again. He desperately wanted to peel off his pants, so that he was nearly rid of the rotten meat but thought otherwise. Faolan would probably have no objections but the girls might. Instead he focused his energy on the fridge.
The hum of the appliance stopped as its cord detached itself from the wall and the refridgerator itself rose from its spot in the kitchen and floated silently into the livingroom, doors firmly shut.
"I'll be back in a minute." He told everyone and headed outside , fridge following him like an obediant pet. He gave Rochelle a nod of greeting as he passed and disappeared around the corner.
Several minutes later he found himself infront of a dump site. The attackers had seen fit to dump everything here that they didn't want from the houses. Furniture, decorations, artwork, appliances and more lay in splinters across the hard ground. Anger welled up like blood inside the slender man and the fridge was suddenly flying a hundred miles an hour towards the bordering wall. It fragmented on impact, no piece bigger than his thumb as the remaining splinters burst into flame. He waited until the entire thing and its foul contents had been eviserated before quenching the flames with a flick of his eyes.
That felt better. As he turned to head back towards the house, he took his time. It had been so long since he'd had fresh air. With a wicked grin he began running at a nearly impossible spead, leaping to the roofs of houses and crashing in doors and windows. It was a small release but a release nonetheless as he broke off a stone gargoyle with his right hand and threw it clear from sight.
When he landed silently on the ground he was back a few houses away from his own. A thought struck. The home he was outside of had been empty for many months. The experiment who had lived within had been eliminated and thus everything had been replaced for when another would take up residence. There was a brand new refridgerator inside there, never used and without rotting food.
He barely had to concentrate and soon the door opened and a shining black fridge floated out into the sunlight. He grinned and made his way back, object in tow and passed by Rochelle once more. Not until the fridge had secured itself where the old one had been and plugged itself in, did he turn his attention back to the banshee girl.
"Where were you hiding the entire time?" He questioned silently, eyes flicking in her direction.
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Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2006 3:38 pm
She had remained on the stoop, peering up at the sky, despite the hood that obscured her face. The wind blew, though her cloak did nut rustle. Then, a curious smell, not the one from the 'roast', but it was the scent of an aura. Why hadn't she smelled it sooner? Maybe she was just..preoccupied. Either way, Shi recognized it, and moved towards it, appearing to be hovering slightly over the ground. She was not worried about leaving her place; the girl was not too far from the home's front door.
Shi was soon beside the girl, scanning her for any injuries. She seemed to be fine, so she just gave her a nod, and a single, eerie word: "Good." She returned to her place on the stoop, awaiting the return of Athos.
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Posted: Thu Apr 27, 2006 7:20 am
Faolan had expected to be yelled at, and the plate to be thrown to the floor, but he had NOT thought he'd get a crushing bear-hug from his lover, and gave a surprised yelp followed by a bit of a struggle as he felt that rancid mush get crushed into his normally soft and pristine fur. "Oh gods be damned, ROKA!" He paused, training his gaze upon the one in white once more. "Well, I'd gathered THAT much." He said flatly. "You know, you're going to drive me crazy soon if I don't figure out WHO you are." He pointed at Shi with a clawed hand and sighed. "Today's been an odd day."
Though, at ROka's mention of going to shower and leaving Faolan to clean up the mess, he put on his best angry/pout face (which was QUITE convincing, if he did say so himself) and started down Roka until the man gave in and started helping out. "There's a good little lad," Faolan said, ruffling Roka's hair as they scrubbed.
At the sound of the door, Faolan's pointed ears perked up, and he looked over to Roka in a questioning sort of way, his head cocked cutely to the side. "All I remember about her is that she was always hiding when Athos was in one of his moods... Or when I was pissed... Or when it was time for food... Or meetings... I take that back, she was ALWAYS hiding. She's got an interesting smell though. It doesn't surprise me she hid well enough from those morons that tried to kill us."
"Well, that's one way to take care of it..." Faolan said lightly as Roka left the house, fridge in tow. He quickly cleaned the rest of the mess and desposed of the nasty sponges and more or less ignored Shi (she was kinda creepy in a way that made his fur stand on end anyway) and poked his head outside, where Roka was standing, looking over at where Rochelle was hiding. "Hey, talking aloud would be good for the one who's NOT a telepath." He said with a sort of irritable growl.
It was about this time that Athos made his appearance, looking impeccibly clean. He had but his pants and shoes on, his jacket and shirt neatly folded in the crook of one arm, his pistol resting lightly atop the perfectly clean clothing. His sword was being carried in the other hand, and his hair was still a bit damp, but somehow still looked perfect; as if it were meant to be that way. He cast a glance about the more or less empty front hallway and lightly came down the stairs and set the things he was carrying on the entryway table.
He noted that Shi had indeed waited outside, but in his absence, another presence had come (he'd felt her from a mile away) and remained more or less hidden from view. So, he silently stepped up next to Shi, placing a lght hand on her shoulder. "Just one more thing to attend to." He then walked a few steps down the walkway, his arms folded lightly over his chest, attention turned onto Rochelle and he said quite calmly, as if giving her a simple greeting, "Tell me now why I shouldn't kill you on the spot." His icy gaze bore into the woman's eyes, and he raised an eyebrow, waiting for an answer. "Your loyalty must be absolute, and if it isn't... Well, it won't be that way for long."
Faolan had given a slight snigger just before Athos came out, mostly due to the fact he smelled lilacs; Athos had taken it upon himself to use Roka's soap and shampoo; though it was disturbing in a way that he smelled no blood at all on the man. His ability to clean things up was almost sickening. Though, he stifled this giggle of sorts before Athos could hear, though he did flash a grin toward Roka, who seemed to be sharing the same amusement.
"Hey, Athos. You're looking nicely groomed." he paused here, swallowing another laugh, which wasn't so hard at the look he got from his leader. "Er, was there anything else you needed? Becaus-"
"Because both you and your partner there need to clean that wretched smell off of you? I'm finished. Do what you will. There are a few things I need to discuss with Shi and Rochelle. You two go get cleaned up, and when you're done, be ready for a few tasks I've set up for you two." He flashed an eerie grin; "I'm sure you'll enjoy it."
With an air of complete dismissal, Athos looked from Rochelle to Shi, and addressed them both as Faolan and Roka went back inside, the door closing behind them, "Explain yourselves." Those two words, despite the fact they were coming from a man of slight stature, who was carrying naught but his own hands and a pair of pants and shoes, were the sort that would not go unanswered.
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Posted: Thu Apr 27, 2006 2:22 pm
She sighed, sitting on a chunk of some wall that Rochelle had been hiding behind, seemingly floating over that, too. "When Theonidas disappeared, I went after him. I followed him to Dark Haven, and took him in. I did the best I could to hide him from McKrea's goons. I'd have returned to tell you that he was safe, but I couldn't shake off his men. They had me taile, and eyes were looking at me at all hours. Why else would you think an Inn woul have Gaurds? Much less Shaow Gaurds..." She peered about for a moment before continuing. "If I had known that this was going to happen, don't you think I'd have tried to stop him? I was waiting to find out exactly what he wanted with Theonidas before I took any action... But he was always one step ahead of me.."
Shi stopped there, leaving herself open to any inquiries on Athos's part.
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Posted: Thu Apr 27, 2006 5:56 pm
Roka watched the door close behind Athos and tuned himself out of overhearing the conversation. He was terribly curious but a shower seemed like a much better option. "Better conserve water shouldn't we?" Roka asked, grabbing Faolan hand and they ascended the stairway. He said it as though there were a question of them not showering together.
"Too bad you'll be smelling like lilacs when we're done." The door was already open, but the room seemed immaculate. You could not have known that someone had just taken a shower. Roke laughed, stripped off the remainder of his clothing and went to turn the water on. Steam soon consumed the space.
Half an hour later, Roka descended the stairs in a pair of embroidered leather pants and a hooded sweater made of the finest wool. His hair was fashionably tousled, feet bare as they padded down the stairs.
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Posted: Fri Apr 28, 2006 3:58 am
When Roka left the house with a fridge and returned with another, Rochelle hadn't taken her eyes off him. But for him to then turn his attention back to her startled her and she blushed slightly- very glad that Roka was now inside and couldn't see her.
"Where were you hiding the entire time?" came his question.
"I-" she began to reply, but a gulp rose into her throat and her body suddenly all felt tight as she heard Athos coming down the stairs. Within seconds, he was outside and confronting her and Shi.
The banshee-girl was silent as Shi gave her perfectly reasonable explanation, and then Athos turned to Rochelle with a look that made her feel guilty even though she'd done nothing but hide.
"Sir," she began, trembling slightly from being in his presence. "My loyalty IS absolute, I'd never think otherwise. I've always been faithful to the swords and love working for you and..." she glanced up, from looking at her feet to looking Athos in the eyes. She knew she'd regret it, and that she did- he looked unimpressed because she was stuttering and skirting around where she'd been for so long.
Taking a deep breath, she dove into the subject. "I've been hiding in one of the houses more or less since the men came. One of them confronted me and I killed him, but it drained me quite a lot- I haven't been well recently and it was painful. So I hid, and lowered my aura so that I wasn't obvious to anyone, and stayed there.
"Only when I heard you and the Reaper did I come out of the shadows, but there were so many people I didn't know and... you know I'm afraid of crowds sir..." She bit her lip, looking up at Athos but keeping her eyes on his chin so that she didn't have to see his eyes.
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Posted: Mon May 01, 2006 10:29 am
Glancing around, Roka seated himself at the table, fingers playing with the still damp tips of his hair while he waited for Athos to come back inside and explain their 'job'
His stomach growled and he cursed under his breath, glancing at the shiny new, and empty refridgerator. If those goons who had taken over had any sense they would have kept the grocery store running. He didn't have such high hopes for the open market but at least they'd keep one food source going. After whatever Athos assigned them was completed he'd have to go shopping. A house full of a guests and an empty fridge were really not a good combination...and where was Faolan? He usually took three seconds to get dressed.
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Posted: Mon May 01, 2006 1:09 pm
Faolan went into the house willingly enough, and a devious sort of grin crossed his face at the mention of a shower, but the idea of smelling like lilacs made him dig his heels into the carpet (which he knew would do no good against Roka's strength) and gave a whimper. "I HATE lilacs." He growled, allowing himself to be dragged into the bathroom anyway, and begrudgingly stripped off his clothes, hopping into the shower as well.
Shortly after Roka left, fully dressed, a soggy mass of dripping fur stepped out of the shower and gave a few good shakes of itself to at least relieve SOME of the water's weight. This resulted in Faolan's fur poofing out rather comically, and he groaned, padding lightly to his dresser to don a pair of simple cargo shorts and a wifebeater.
That done, he went back to the bathroom and did his best to de-fluff himself, but all he ended up doing was running his claws through his fur and made it known to himself that he most definitely smelled like a wet dog that rolled through someone's flowerbed. Wonderful. Not to mention he looked about six times his normal size because that rediculous POOF.
"Gods damn it all..." He muttered and made his way down the stairs and sat heavily in the chair next to Roka, who had QUITE an expression on his face. "Not. A. WORD." Faolan ground out. "Not ONE word."
Athos trained his gaze on Shi when she started speaking, and gave a slight sigh of irritation. What she said sounded legit enough, but he still couldn't shake the feeling there was something being hidden from him, and he REALLY didn't like it. "Enlisting the help of others meant a simple phone call." He said quietly, staring at the fact Shi seemed to be hovering just above where she was sitting. He wasn't sure he'd seen this form of hers before. "And I know you'd be able to at least do that. There's a difference between the Swords and a few watchful eyes." As he said it, he held up his right hand, the tattoo on his palm giving an eerie glint.
"Just bear in mind, Shi, that I still don't fully trust you, and though your loyalties to Theonidas are obvious, there is evidence of other agendas. Be forewarned I will be keeping an eye on you myself. And that is something far more observant than a few cronies."
That said, he crossed his arms over his bare chest and looked to Rochelle, who finally decided to speak up. And of course, the rather frightened girl was skirting the subject, so Athos cleared his throat expectantly, which was quickly answered. "I thought we'd dealt with that fear a while ago. Apparently the good doctors were a bit mistaken." He said coolly, ducking down slightly so her gaze met with his again. "You're one of VERY few that remained, and that in itself shows more loyalty than most." He placed a hand lightly on her shoulder, then stood upright completely and turned toward the house. "That should make you feel a bit more energetic..." The man then motioned for both Shi and Rochelle to follow him back inside.
Once in the house, Athos grabbed his clothing and almost lazily buttoned up his shirt, deftly tucking it in. "Roka? Faolan? You're to take Rochelle and clean out the southern and eastern sections of the aboveground. Quite a few men are hiding there, and there are countless other bodies. You're to make a tally of McKrea's men, as well as the experiments that didn't make it out alive. Shi? You do the same for the western section. The northern section has a few interesting things about it that I'd like to examine myself. When you are finished, meet me there. The bodies should all be disposed of, save the experiments. They are to be gathered at the center of the aboveground area; even dead, they can be quite useful.
"Any questions?"
Faolan gave a big of a chuckle and flexed a clawed hand, "No, sir." This was gonna be fun.
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Posted: Mon May 01, 2006 4:59 pm
"Well in that case..." Roka had been stealing glances at Faolan with a hint of smirk on his androgynous features. "I'll have to change...this sweater is impossible to get blood out of...I had to buy a new one after the last cleanout." He said in reference to a batch of experiments that had gone wrong, and subsequently were eliminated. "And you," He wrapped his fingers around Faolan's wrist, "Can come with me, and I'll do something about your fur." He was sure he heard the wolf-man utter something under his breath but ignored it and exused himself politely with a nod in Athos' direction.
At the top of the stairs he paused and gestured for Faolan to proceed into their room, while he went towards the guestroom. He opened the door silently and peered inside. Though the light was still bright, the curtains had been drawn giving the room a dimmed looked. Instantly his eyes focused on the figure in bed. Nolah lay curled up with the covers up to her chin with hair still drying and splayed out against the pillow like a dark halo. He smiled, glad that she seemed comfortable. He knew that she was naked beneath the covers, having not sought him out for clothing and seeing the discarded robe. Usually a woman sleeping naked in the house of two strange men would be something to fear. At the moment, however, this was probably the safest place she could be. With an inward chuckle he backed up and let the door close softly before padding over to his own room.
Faolan sat on the bed looking decidedly pouty but as always, in an angry way. "Sometimes..." He said, shedding his sweater in one fluid movement. "You'd think I was the topper in this relationship." He laughed as the sweater landed quietly on the hardwood. He was at the closet next, fingers rifling through neatly organized shirts. Finally he picked out a simple black tank...well as simple as Roka got. There was writing on the front, Japanese Zombie Heroz or something of the like. He slipped it over his head and grabbed a grey jacket, of course of fine detail and make. He slipped it on and gave himself an appraising look in the mirror.
"I guess it'll do..." He muttered to himself and then grabbed a brush from the top of a dresser. With an impish grin he crawled onto the bed and settled himself behind Faolan. After what seemed line an eternity he'd managed to comb the fur down with much fighting and playful threats. "There..." His grin widened. "And no need to thank me, I know your masculine pride won't allow it." He leaned around and captured Faolan's lips in a long kiss before gracefully finding his feet and going to the door. "Come on darling, we have a job to do." He was almost gone when he appeared again, suddenly without noise. "And I'm sorry I ordered you around...I never forget you're the one incharge...and don't worry, guests or no guests, I'm completely yours tonight...the only thing I will not budge on is wearing the 'kiss the cook' apron you got me when I cook supper later. Those fools probably kept the grocery store running so we'll have a stocked fridge by the time we're back. It shouldn't take us that long to clear things out."
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