Which is More Dangerous

[Nox]

Everything happened so fast. Nox's ears rang from the sound of the gun firing. Searing pain shot through his arm but thankfully his power remained firmly in his grasp. Cain protected him. Dane was reacting everything was not how it should be.

Nox wove spirit and sliced through Cain's wall like it was nothing. He smiled as he remembered Bas' first use of the weave. Nox would at least be able to remember his friend by that. Nox chocked out "Wait Dane."
and rushed to Dane's side.

He was about to become a hypocrit. Nox hated this part of the job, but this man knew what he was, knew he was killing monsters - knew what monsters were. He'd captured a chup that still lay in the netted bag behind them.

"What do you need that for?"
Nox asked.

The man spat at him. "You are undoing all our work."

Nox gave the man a sad grin. "Suit yourself."
Nox took the badge that was hanging inside of the man's coat and the man's wallet from his back pocket without ever touching the man himself. Nox flipped through the wallet and then stuck in his pocket with the badge.

Nox turned to Dane. "I'm going around the corner to take care of this."
Nox said as he clapped his hand over the wound that was starting to make him feel light headed. "Don't leave evidence."


And Nox stalked away grabbing Cain's shoulder and pulling him around the corner to let Dane do what Dane wanted to do. Nox didn't feel bad - he felt numb as he pulled he hoodie from his body to look at the gunshot wound to his left arm.

The hot air of the underground felt cool against his skin. Shock would set in. Thankfully it was just a graze but it hurt like a son of a bitch. With the last remaining power Nox formed a rod of earth and fire and pressed it to the wound. The pain was worse Nox tried to hold back the cry of pain and it came out a whimper. Fuck! He'd never been shot before, monsters don't carry guns.


Edited by Nox, Jul 23 2016, 07:43 AM.

[Cain Belasis]

Every time Cain thought he had a handle on the situation, he was proven wrong. Nox used some new kind of magic (another one?) to cut through his wall. It seemed to attack the web of magic sustaining the wall rather than the air itself. The redhead tucked that thought away for further investigation – a type of magic that targeted other magic, maybe? Regardless, Cain flushed as Nox rushed past him. He felt a bit like a little kid who’d stepped into his big brother’s fight, who ended up getting pushed away with a pat on the head.

The feeling intensified as he watched Nox frisk the stranger down, clinically pulling out what looked to be his wallet, ignoring the fact that Dane was pointing a gun in his direction. It struck Cain just how out of his depth he was when Nox told Dane not to leave any evidence. Dane was going to kill the stranger. He couldn’t find it in himself to care about the guy, even though Nox was sort of breaking his promise not to let Dane kill anyone. The man had shot at them, after all, and the monster he was dragging around suggested that he wasn’t exactly a great guy or anything.

Even though the redhead didn’t care about their captive – certainly not enough to speak up and risk his own neck – the whole scenario was absurd. Nox and Dane weren’t like him. They weren’t just lost in the Underground. They didn’t accidentally stumble across some crazy creatures and defend themselves. They were purposefully, intentionally hunting the monsters. They were literally monster hunters. And it appeared there was another sect of monster hunters, who were unfriendly enough that they would shoot first and ask questions later. Somehow Cain had managed to land himself into a Godfather-like gang war except with literal magical monster hunters.

Before he’d somehow ended up with magical abilities himself, Cain had been a no one. He was a day laborer who knew how to work a forklift and could do decently well in a fistfight. These guys… they were real killers. Nox pulled him around the corner, and Cain watched numbly as the man struggled with his jumper to get to his wound. The redhead cringed as Nox cauterized it shut. He’d seen some pretty nasty things before. With modern technology, factory incidents were rare, but they still happened, and so Cain had been witness to some bloody, messy accidents. Living on the streets exposed you to the nastiness of life as well. Still, there was something different about a man intentionally cauterizing his own gunshot wound. It reinforced the fact that these people weren’t innocent.

Cain’s life in the last hour had taken a turn for the weird. There were monsters living in the tunnels with him. There were people out there who could – and would – crush him with the power of their mind. And, perhaps strangest of them all, was the fact that he could be one of them. Not only could he, but he had to. The problem with blissful ignorance was that once it was gone, it was gone for good. Cain wasn’t an ostrich; he couldn’t just stick his head into the sand and ignore the monsters and magic. There were things out there, inhuman creatures, that would kill him. There were inhuman humans who would do the same, and they would all do so regardless of what he felt about it. He couldn’t afford to hide beneath the covers and hope nobody got hurt.

Strangely enough, his mental pep talk appeared to be working. Cain felt his pulse slowing down, and his breathing even out. There’d been times in his life when he’d had to man up and do things that he didn’t want to. He could remember the first time that he’d walked away from a fight, or the first time he’d eaten some truly disgusting trashcan food because he was hungry and it was that or starve. This was just another one of those moments. Cain was no longer adjacent to the world of monsters and magic; he was a part of it, and it was time he started acting like it. And a good place to start would be by figuring out just what the hell he’d gotten himself into.

“Who was that man and why did he attack you?”

[Dane Gregory]

Nox robbed the shooter, and Dane smiled upon permission to end the man's life. Nox's logic was indecipherable to Dane, but he didn't care. What made this man deserving of Dane's attention but not the homeless man? His only guess was because this one shot Nox.

Nox didn't expressly say to kill him, but he dragged Cain away and left them alone to do just that.

Without the light Nox spun, Dane had to craft his own. A snap of the fingers brought a torch of flame to life. It flickered demonic red upon the planes of his face, and shooter slowly began to realize his fate.

A gun was too easy. Too messy. Not intimate enough. It lacked elegance and skill. Anyone could pull a trigger. But only Dane could tangle the threads of life in the palm of his hand.

They were away ten long, silent minutes before the sobbing started. Then weeping turned to screams. Splashes of water. Gurgled cries for help. Once silence fell again, Dane appeared soon after, wiping his hands on the jacket the shooter wore. He dropped it on the tunnel floor when done.

"It seems he died of bite marks. But the dog is dead too as well."


He clapped his hands together excitedly, rubbing them gleefully.

"Why did he shoot you? Does it hurt?"
He started to poke at Nox's arm. "I'd imagine so."

[Nox]

Nox was weary, the pain was intense. Nox barely had time to take a breath before the screaming started - at least to his ears. Cain asked him a question but the only thing Nox could do was fight back the bile that was rising in his stomach. There was no pity for the man. No guilt for the deed being done. Nox was numb except for the churning of his stomach. He hated this part of the job - thankful that he didn't have to do it. The man was a threat to everything Atharim - but more importantly a threat to himself and to Aria.

Nox took the wallet from his pocket and flipped through the screens. He couldn't concentrate. It wasn't until Dane poked at his arm that Nox was aware of anything other than the pain. He glared at Dane, "Yes it hurts. Unless you can heal don't touch it."
His voice was quiet but filled with pain. The power had fled after he had cauterized the wound. Everything felt dull and empty.

They had both asked the same question. Who was this guy and why was he shooting at him. Nox really had no answer. "I don't know. He said I was ruining their plans. Making them have to start over."
Nox shrugged. "Maybe the wallet will help decipher that when I'm above ground."


Nox looked to Dane. "Was that satisfying enough, or do you require a little more sport? Hunting right now won't be safe. I can't flick a fly with my power, all I have is a handgun. And that won't be much good against much down here."
He didn't say with the lot of you with me. With Aria he could feel safe going deeper, but now, with only the dredges of his own power left he wasn't going to feel safe at all.

Nox hoped Dane would be sated - at least for now. He would take him again - with a little more planing before hand. "Can we go topside?"



Edited by Nox, Jul 25 2016, 04:49 PM.

[Cain Belasis]

Even knowing about Dane’s sociopathic tendencies, and seeing them firsthand, Cain still was surprised by the obvious glee that the other man exuded. It seemed that now he’d gotten his fill of blood, he was perfectly agreeable and content. The redhead was just grateful that it didn’t end up being his blood that satisfied the magician.

Cain’d had so many realizations about his abilities throughout this strange encounter that the way Nox spoke about “healing” (like it was something that could definitely be done if it was known?) couldn’t even phase him anymore. He wanted nothing more than to have an excellent – monster and magic free – night sleep before doing a little bit of experimenting with his abilities. So when Nox suggested moving above ground, he was more than happy to nod his head enthusiastically. If Nox’s power was truly exhausted, then Cain certainly wasn’t eager to stay in the tunnels with monsters of the creature and human variety. Still, he stayed silent, knowing that Dane was the one who would need convincing to cut his fun short.

((Sorry it’s short! I’ve got to run and it was post now or in 12+ hours so I thought I’d just get it out there!))
Edited by Cain Belasis, Jul 25 2016, 01:35 AM.

[Dane Gregory]

Heal? Dane scoffed. There was no such thing. Not with this churning, rabid power they shared.

It took so little for Nox to condemn a man to death. Apparently shoot at him, with a bullet that didn't even embed in him, and drag a sedated dog around in a bag was paramount to execution for him. He would never understand the decisions others made.

When asked if he was satisfied, Dane frowned. Of course he wasn't. This was a major disappointment in his eyes. The stupid sunglasses had been unnecessary the whole time. They found rabid dogs. A homeless stray and a regular man to kill. He didn't need Nox to find those things on his own.

But he looked over his shoulder and considered the possibility of continuing alone.

No. He hated to think it. But he needed Nox.

"I am satisfied," he lied. "I'll return with you."

Nox admitted he was weak and without his power. As they turned to go, Temptation roused Dane's imagination. A new, uncontrollable magic user and a weak Nox were both at his disposal.

He could tie them up and make them decide who would die first and how. He could make Cain kill Nox. Talk him through it. Lure him into dealing a killing stroke. He could leave them in a hole with poisoned food and see how long they resisted eating until starvation set in. Put them in a room and told them only one could walk out alive.

So many possibilities. He let his thoughts run wild as they journeyed back to the surface.

[Nox]

Nox didn't believe Dane but he wasn't going to say anything. He really needed to figure out what was going on. That man wasn't Atharim yet he was hunting Chups. He had captured one. Something was going on...

But his arm hurt. His head hurt too. He had a bad feeling about letting Dane follow him after torturing a guy. But there was little he could do about this. He let him follow him, but Nox made sure he kept Cain in his sights.

Nox's wallet vibrated in his pocket and he pulled it out to look at the message. He smiled as he saw Elyse had sent him a text. It brightened a dulling mood. This hunt had been anything but fun. "I will take you again Dane. I'll find something more interesting."
He could always take him deeper into the tunnels and let the horde of massive creatures overwhelm them. But that didn't exactly seem like something Dane wanted - he wanted human like. Nox sighed at his thoughts. He wished Aurora was here, she'd tell him how bad he was doing.

"When we get topside, we can talk Cain. Or you can go back to slumming it."
He didn't really care either way but what is one more stray to bring home... Aurora would be so mad.

[Cain Belasis]

As calm as Dane seemed now, Cain didn’t miss the fact that Nox kept himself between them. That belied the statement that the other man was “satisfied,” as he said. The redhead didn’t let his guard down, knowing that his protector was weakened and that he was hardly safe. Although, as worn down as the man looked, clearly he must have something going his way, because he smiled at something notification he received on his wallet.

“When we get topside, we can talk Cain. Or you can go back to slumming it.”


He considered his options for a moment. It sounded almost like Nox was offering him a place to stay. Part of him wanted to refuse, to run away and hide back in the dark of the tunnels with the other homeless wretches of the capital. Down there at least, he knew the rules. He minded his own business and they minded theirs, and all it took was a little flash of magic here and there to ensure that no one would bother him. As tempting as it was to bury his head in the sand, Cain knew it wouldn’t actually do any good. There would still be monsters, and monster hunters, and other magicians. Maybe going with Nox would just put him on Dane’s radar, or maybe it would be the only thing protecting him from people like Dane.

In the end there was only one real choice. He’d given up his entire life and trekked across the entire continent in order to get this one opportunity. Cain might not be so lucky as to bump into another friendly magician, even considering all of the baggage that came with Nox. If nothing else he needed to at least hang around Nox for a little longer, see where he lived. Even if he didn’t end up bunking with the other man, he couldn’t let the chance of a mentor slip through his fingers.

“I’m definitely sticking around, mate,”
Cain decided. “I owe it to you to make sure you get home safely, at least.”
The redhead tactfully didn’t mention that their companion was the very thing from whom he may need protecting.

[Dane Gregory]

Dane followed behind complacently. He loved how Nox catered to his whims like he was a servant following orders. What happened to those glorious days? Of servants and bowing and swords and goblets? Such artifacts hung on the walls of his family's estate. The Cooper and Gregory families were long standing members of the peerage, he recalled in his youth learning about his ancestors, and wandered the museum-like halls of his childhood home. Until being shipped to school abroad, of course. What was Declan doing these days? Probably gathering dust in a library somewhere, wasting his name and years studying the dead.

As they journeyed, his dulcet singing voice hummed hush little baby, the inspiration for his nickname.

((Mode me along if needed.))

[Nox]

The humming was unnerving... hush little baby in the depths of the tunnel hummed by Dane. It fit well with Nox's mood.

They could have gone back the way they'd come in, but Nox didn't want to fight with the power and remove the grating again. Instead he wandered in the direction that the new map and the old maps would converge. There were signs of monster activity all around - odds scratches on the walls, the smell of death and decay permeated the humid air. It gave him an odd sense of comfort being down in the tunnels, enough to push aside the problems of his life. The hunt was all that mattered. Which was a lie unto itself - Aria mattered, Aurora had mattered and he'd let her die.

Guilt rode him. He'd thought he'd pushed past it but knowing his life was about killing humans again had changed that. He'd saught Aria's help in taking care of Diego - a man who had strangled and raped countless women - his own sister. He couldn't even deliver justice to him. Aria did it so carelessly.

He'd given Dane the same freedom - to kill a man who could destroy the Atharim. Why did he care if the Atharim were destroyed, they'd destroy him in the end. If he thought he could get away from it he would but Nox knew nothing other than hunting - than being Atharim.

Nox sighed and pulled himself out of his thoughts. "How long have you known what you can do?"
Nox remembered his own incident - saving Aurora's life, at least they had known what they were - struggling through life unknowing what you truly were. Nox couldn't imagine.

The map from his HUD finally merged together and Nox breathed a sigh of relief. He'd been worried that they'd never find a common area. Nox saught the nearest exit. It wasn't far, and by the smell of it they were near a settlement of humans - the far edges of humanity could be seen and smelt - debris was everywhere.