DK
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it's a new day
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Post by DK on May 15, 2021 19:06:32 GMT
First, the Hour of Revelation: The hour in which sacrifice is made to open The Eye.
Then, the Hour of Glory: The hour in which streets are swarmed with malevolence. Another sacrifice.
Then, the Hour of Promise: The hour in which heroes rise. Another sacrifice.
Then, the Hour of Eternity: The hour in which the final two sacrifices are made.
And then, the Hour of Devastation: His coming. The End of the World.
Or so, that's how it always happened. This go round, things felt... different. Paya found herself at a certain unease... one that she hadn't felt in several lifetimes now. Somehow, even through all of her suffering, through all of her being being ripped away and melded together with others... was she growing soft? Was this just another game? This time, was He destined to win? Was she destined to live this life, no matter what she did to try to change it?
Was this not the change she so desperately longed for?
Shaking her head of her thoughts, an exhausted Paya rushed through the large, double doors that so wonderfully sheltered her lair away from the rest of the world. Stopping in front of the sink in her lab, she ripped the respirator away from her face and threw it to the floor, leaning into the sink and violently coughing up blood and poison, through her reverse asphyxiation. Growling, she turned to the mirror above the sink, her bright amber eyes filled with frustration and...fear. She clenched her teeth together, fighting the suffocation.
And then, she noticed Pippin in the mirror.
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 20, 2021 20:19:54 GMT
Pippin was practicing their flexibility, having finally accomplished a handstand. They were enjoying themselves, staying far away from all of the places that Paya had warned them against, and just... having fun, as they were known to do. Once their eyes met Paya, they raised a hand to try to wave at her, and completely lost their balance.
They went tumbling down to the floor in a flail of limbs, making a slight noise of displeasure... but just as quickly, they untangled themselves and popped up back to their feet, smiling their usual wide grin.
"Paya!" They squeaked, and came over to her with a tilt of their head. "You're back! I'm glad you're back. But the nachos aren't done yet.... I wanted them to be done before you got back. Are you okay?"
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
Likes: 2
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Post by DK on May 25, 2021 0:57:09 GMT
Paya leaned over with a grunt, reaching to pluck the respirator off of the ground as another spew of noxious fluids split out of her mouth. Turning to the mirror, she raised the mask to her face, her gaze wandering her rarely uncovered mouth for a brief moment, before locking it back into place.
"It's begun," she rasped, finally turning to Pippin. "Everything is aligned, and the clock is ticking. Now, all I have to do is wait. The "heroes" will do everything for me," she said with a shake of her head, imitating moving a chess piece with her right hand, before resting against one of the many lab tables, her gaze turning to the ceiling.
"In other words, I'm as well as I can be."
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 25, 2021 20:51:56 GMT
Pippin kept their gaze focused on Paya, but as she moved her hand, their fingers slid out and brushed lightly across them before their hand fell back to their side. It was a brief touch, but it was meant to be comforting.
"They don't know that the dragon is coming yet, do they?" They asked with a tilt of their head. "The heroes, I mean."
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
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Post by DK on May 25, 2021 21:06:13 GMT
"As far as they know, I'm the dragon," she rasped, cracking a smile beneath her mask. "And for as long as they think that, I can rest easy. None of them have what it takes to kill me. Not yet, anyway."
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 25, 2021 21:09:50 GMT
Pippin made a little face, twisting their lips to one side as if they were deep in thought. That expression remained for a moment before they shrugged.
"Well. You're not allowed to die, anyway. So, you know. You're not going to! Problem solved!" Their face broke out in a brilliant smile, and they clapped their hands together.
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
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Post by DK on May 25, 2021 21:19:55 GMT
Paya shook her head, before turning her gaze back to the ceiling. “Eventually, I have to die. I shouldn’t even be allowed to exist.”
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 25, 2021 21:22:03 GMT
"Well. I reject your reality and replace it with my own."
They continued to smile at Paya.
"And in MY reality, it's you and me, Paya! And we get to eat nachos and watch movies and play doctor and try out new experiments!"
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
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Post by DK on May 25, 2021 21:25:28 GMT
Paya fell into a contemplative silence, closing her eyes as images flashed in her head. Sighing, she shook her head, before turning her gaze back to Pippin.
“I guess it’s time I should tell you I’m not just...me. Well, me is multiple people. We, I guess. But you would know a thing or two about that, wouldn’t you?”
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 26, 2021 1:13:30 GMT
"Mhmm!"
Pippin nodded enthusiastically, not seeming to understand the depth of what Paya was telling them.
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
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Post by DK on May 26, 2021 1:24:29 GMT
"Do you want to hear a story, little monster?" Paya suddenly asked, her amber eyes seeming to twinkle at the question.
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 26, 2021 1:25:32 GMT
"A story???"
Pippin immediately plopped down, crossing their legs and grabbing ahold of their ankles, like a child in a library. They peered up at Paya with eager eyes, nodding vigorously.
"Yes, please! I like stories."
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
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Post by DK on May 26, 2021 1:45:19 GMT
"I know," she said with a little masked grin. Slowly, she sunk into the cold, hard concrete, crossing her legs with a series of grunts, and folding her arms over them, right across from Pippin.
"My soul isn't mine, anymore," she started, her tone cold and desolate. "My very being is an amalgamation of others. Torn, shredded souls desperately clinging to one another as they wither away at the essence binding us together. I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I'm sick, in body and mind. On the outside, my 'brother's' "gift", and on the inside, my own "gift", given to us by our 'father'," she rasped, little growls accompanying the mentions of her adopted family.
"Make no mistake, the others aren't my family. Like me, they're just test subjects. Experiments. We were all found by Dr. Doli, a scientist bearing hope and the promise of tomorrow to the ill and the ill minded."
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 30, 2021 4:00:33 GMT
Pippin blinked slowly, staring at Paya as she told her tale. Chaotic thoughts flooded through their mind, similar to flashbacks combining with questions, comments, even voices that didn't sound quite like their own. They pressed their lips tightly together, but didn't look away from her.
Tilting their head slowly to one side, they waited to see if she would go on.
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
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Post by DK on May 30, 2021 4:54:01 GMT
Paya leaned against the table, a soft sigh escaping her as she turned her gaze to the ceiling.
"I was in college for mechanical engineering. I worked part time at an auto body shop with my roommates. I didn't realize it at the time, but I was sick. I was losing weight, short of breath, coughing, swelling, hurting, weak... until a few months before graduation, I passed out and was taken to the hospital. Turns out, I had some rare form of heart cancer, and couldn't afford the treatment. So, I quit. I left school and isolated myself where no one would find me, broken and given up, fully accepting my fate. Some weeks later, a man showed up, offering treatment. I was an idiot. In desperation, I trusted that man and let him experiment on me in exchange for a cure...or placebo, I should say."
Paya shook her head, a low growl escaping her.
"With a single handshake, I doomed myself, and everything I ever cared about."
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 30, 2021 5:01:57 GMT
"Do you still have the heart cancer?" They asked softly, not wanting to interrupt her story by speaking too loudly.
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
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Post by DK on May 30, 2021 5:03:58 GMT
"No," She rasped, returning her gaze to Pippin's.
"He cured that cancer and gave me another. His "gift"."
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Post by Pippin Laudin on May 30, 2021 15:40:14 GMT
"What's your gift, then?"
They continued to blink slowly, staring at Paya as they absorbed all of this information. It was hard to think, their mind racing through different voices and memories, dreams, visions... They weren't entirely sure WHAT was going on, but it was something overwhelming. That was for sure.
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DK
Mentor
it's a new day
Posts: 528
Likes: 2
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Post by DK on May 31, 2021 2:53:24 GMT
Paya sneered at the word. "Gift".
"It's the reason I wear this mask," She growled, resting a hand on the bottom part of the respirator. "His attempts to 'fix' me only turned me into a bioweapon. The 99% that made up the mass of my body was turned to noxious gas, poison. My cancer is gone, and I gained strengths that even the strongest metas in this damn city couldn't compete with. But as a side effect, I have to keep taking his fucking 'cure'. I can't breathe oxygen, I can't eat, I can't drink. I have to inject every nutrient, or I'll die. He and the others started calling me Snake, or "The Twin Fang", because of the way I live, if you could even call it that."
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Post by Pippin Laudin on Jun 7, 2021 1:41:31 GMT
Pippin slowly tilted their head to one side, before a hand reached up. They gently caressed their shoulder, where her mark rested, and they blinked.
"Do you... like that name? The Twin Fang?"
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