Averting Disaster

[Nox]

11 → 4/10 S:14

Q: Start of a New Day (11)
(1d20+0: [13]+0 = 13)
Success

The morning after Peter Andersen and Vaia Plus' demise Nox felt the horde scratching at his head. There were still echos out in the city in places but he'd destroyed the bulk of where they came from. But the feeling inside his head felt strong, still trapped, still fighting -- but Nox didn't know what. He was in dire need of an outlet.  

And by the middle of the afternoon Nox was aching in ways he hadn't felt before.  They clawed at his brain. The fire still lingered in his body. The aches in his scars were piercing and red hot like they were reignited from the pain he felt -- imagined or not.

Nox sent Oriena a text in hope to relieve some of the pain. He needed that outlet.  A place to lose control safely. And he couldn't do that in Kallisti. Or at home.

Fucking horde is tearing at me. Need an outlet. Can I meet you?"

Nox didn't expect a reply quickly. Unlike Sage she didn't drop things at his beck and call. But he left Lily with Olivia and Gen. Gen was the best to help soothe Lily when he was away. Liam was busy with school or Nox would have left Lily with him, he had a knack with her that none of the other kids had.

To placate the beast inside Nox headed out for a run leaving Kallisti from the side door just as a knock came.

[Sasha]

It had taken Sasha a few days to work up the nerve to go to Kallisti even with Oriena and Zeke's endorsements. The club was nice, he'd seen their advertisements, but had never ventured inside. He sold to a few of the regulars. They told him of the girls and the sex they sold that you couldn't touch. Sasha didn't like the idea of not being able to touch.

The front door was daunting. Sasha stood staring at it for a good hour a cross the street as a drone flew by several times. It was such a strange thing to see an expensive drone wandering the streets of the Red Light District. But it didn't bother him as he stood and stared but it did hover for a while looking at him. But it moved on again and Sasha gave it no mind.

He watched people enter the side alley and liked the shadows better. He could do that much easier than the front door that seemed like the mouth to hell to him -- minus the teeth and gapping maw.

The alley was dark and Sasha found the side entrance, a camera and a key bad were the only things indicating it was an entrance. Sasha knocked but the door pulled open and a man slightly shorter than himself stared back at him in disbelief. Sasha stuttered "I...I...I'm looking for Nox."

[Nox]

Nox didn't smile. It wasn't unusual for people to ask by name for him. Though he really needed to get a stage name he was tired of people picking him out of a crowd. But it might be a bit too late for that.

"I'm Nox."

The man looked familiar, he had that in the shadows look. One of the refugees perhaps or maybe the way his eyes shifted all around one of Oriena's dealers. Didn't matter someone had told him his name. "I was just leaving. We can talk and walk." Though it was a run Nox wanted to go for but he'd walk till this guy either tired or left him, either which way it didn't matter.

"I'm Sasha. Oriena said you could help me." He said but he didn't move from in front of the door.

Nox pushed past him and nodded for him to follow he only did so grudgingly it seemed to Nox. He didn't really care as he moved out on to the sidewalk and headed towards his house. "Help you how?"

[Sasha]

Sasha didn't want walk, he tried to keep him in place but he was a lot bigger than Sasha was. Maybe not taller, or broader, but he had a presence about him.

Sasha clutched the shard in his coat pocket and drew deep upon the power inside. His hand hurt from the sharp edges but the power made it all worth it. It was glorious.

Nox stopped abruptly and Sasha ran into his well formed back. Sasha stumbled backwards. "I'm sorry." But Sasha pulled on the power until he was near bursting it almost hurt.

And then a menacing presence came and then it was gone. The man looked frustrated and then afraid...

[Nox]

Sasha's reached into the depths and the power flooded him. It grew rapidly and suddenly and it was like feeling a nova about to explode -- dangerously so. It wasn't Ascendancy level, but it was rapid and uncontrolled Nox.

Nox instinctively reached for the power but it slipped from his grasp. Angrily Nox reached again and it slide through his fingers like water. The horde snickered at him, raged at the power being grasped. Nox reached again and the power shuddered into his grasp and he tried to shield Sasha to stop him from burning himself up. But the weave fizzled as if he'd done it wrong. Anger rose up and Nox tried again. Even as Sasha's power grew Nox felt his slip away as he tried to pull at it.

The inner light was gone. The darkness at the edge of his vision was gone. Nox glared at Sasha. But the kid hadn't done anything with the power and now he felt nothing. Nox turned back towards Sasha. "You should drop the power. You are going to burn out, and that doesn't sound like a good way to die. I don't know if I can help you."

_**Q:** Grasp the power (11)_
(1d20+0: [3]+0 = 3)
**Fail**

11 → 5/10 S:14

_**Q:** Try again (11)_
(1d20+0: [1]+0 = 1)
**Critical Fail**

11 → 7/10 S:14

_**Q:** And try again (11)_
(1d20+0: [19]+0 = 19)
**Success**

11 → 7/10 S:15

_**Q:** Shield Sasha (11)_
(1d20+0: [9]+0 = 9)
**Fail**

11 → 8/10 S:15

_**Q:** Try shielding Sasha again (11)_
(1d20+0: [1]+0 = 1)
**Critical Fail**

11 → 10/10 S:15

[Sasha]

The guy looked confused and frustrated and Sasha wasn't sure what was going on. His words were the same as Oriena's had been to him. Sasha let the power go. "Why can't you help me? Oriena and Zeke both said you could." Sasha heard the whine in his voice.

"Five seconds ago I could have. Right now I have no idea what the fuck is going on. It was right fucking there and now it's not." Sasha was confused.

"I don't understand."

Nox rolled his eyes and started walking again. "Doesn't matter. I can't show you how to use your gift at the moment. You can't pull power like that. You don't need that much power to do most things. Even when you channel multiple flows you don't need that much."

Sasha frowned. "I don't know what you just said."

[Nox]

Nox looked at Sasha. He slouched like he was trying to shrink away into the shadows. He was used to being looked down on. Nox knew the feeling well, he'd lived with it his whole life. Nox put his finger under the man's chin and made him look him in the eye. "You can draw on the power willingly. Control it?"

Sasha nodded. "I think so."

Nox gave Sasha a smile with a nod, though the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Then you won't die. Can you stop by another day? I will do what I can to help, but something is going on and I need to figure it out. I won't be a good teacher until I figure it out. I'll be preoccupied and distracted."

"How can you be sure I won't die?"

"Make a small flame in the palm of your hand using the smallest amount of fire you can."

"I don't know how to do that."

Nox sighed. "Alright, fine come on." Nox took Sasha to his place, opened the side door and went around to the basement entrance and lead Sasha down. "We can determine if you are safe here." Nox turned on the holographic program in the dojo area and pulled up the drawing program.

It was a simple weave of fire exaggerated in scale. "It's a simple weave. And you only need a trickle of power. Don't draw everything you got. Just a fine thread is needed." Nox tried to reach for the power but found it gone -- no where to be found.

Nox didn't know if Sasha had started or even had tried to grab the power but he explained anyway. "The more power you draw the harder it is to control. The more complex the weave, the harder it will be to control with large amounts of power. You must always remain in control. Pull only what you need. Another man can tell how much you draw and you don't want to give away your strength if you don't have to."

[Marta]

Marta was in a very good mood today, but she often found her mind wandering. Ever since noticing Jackson, she had seemed to notice every boy. It was so weird. She’d had to ask Sterling or Elyse about it. It was just a new thing. She skipped on her way to the Fortress of Noxitude. Ricky let her walk if she felt up for it. She knew the way and was safe. Besides - she knew the drones made sure she was safe there.

Marta entered the building, Splash at her side. She gave her a pat on the head as she headed down to the dojo. She was going to relax a bit before the other kids would show up and they’d head to Kallisti together. She was also hoping Jackson would show up early, but who knew. She’d didn’t even know what she’d say anyway. He probably thought she was ugly and stupid.

When she got down the stairs there were two men there. One she recognized as Nox, and it was the first time she had seen him in person since Mexico. He looked a little worse for wear now and not so happy as he had back then. Then there was another man. She didn’t know who he was, but she had the feeling she wasn’t supposed to be here.

”Sorry!” she said, taking only a tentative step back.

[Sasha]

He walked into the building like he owned, punched in a code to the door that lead down stairs. Sasha was a little worried as he watched him walk down the stairs. When he didn't look back up to see if he was coming Sasha took a deep breath and followed. him into the dark basement.

But it opened up into a wide space with some stuff a gym and a weird place with ball throwers and then he pulled up a projection program and started showing him something. He was weird.

Sasha clenched the shard in his pocket. The power welled up inside of him as the shard dug into his palm.

A second set of foot steps flowed down the stairs, and a third, or forth, more foot steps... Sasha didn't think as a fireball formed above his hand.

[Nox]

A little girl and her dog came bounding down the stairs startling Sasha and a fireball formed in his hand and before he threw it Nox stepped in front of him and backed him up against the wall and pinned his hand against the wall with his good hand. The mechanical arm wasn't ready yet and his arm wasn't healed. And he didn't have the fucking power. He wasn't angry. He wasn't even a little bit angry that Sasha had pulled the power so easily and that he was threatening a little girl.

Nox's voice was cool and distant like he was holding the power but he hardly noticed. "Drop the power. Now."

Sasha looked at Nox with fear and dropped the power, or at least the fireball.

Nox turned to make sure the girl was alright. She looked familiar but she wasn't one of his. "Are you alright?"