Project21

|Clementine|

|Somewhere in the city of Éclos, 4:36 AM|

The dawn of the day crept closer between the time it took for Clementine, a high class assassin, to strike his next victim and meet his deadline. He knew there was a mother harboring a child in the house across the road from where he sat, a rebel to bring the adults down. He also knew that if he failed to kill her he would have to report to the head officer and master assassin and admit his failures, or wait another day to commit his kill. These were not options.

He waited silently above a two story apartment building, a shabby looking thing with only one light flickering inside. This part of Éclos was the poor section; there were many abandoned buildings and the houses that dotted the area with small, grotty looking cottages and tired residents. These adults were often the trouble, the traitors in which Clementine was assigned to get rid of.
It wasn't the first time Clem had been assigned tasks to kill mothers, in fact he had killed quite a lot of women to make it almost shameful. But after failing the Abigail Nora case, where Clementine ended up unconscious due to unwelcome circumstances, he knew he couldn't give too much emotion towards his victims, after all, he would prefer not to report back as a failure to be mocked.

Soon enough, morning light slid over the city, covering it in a grey light that made things easier to see.
Clementine could not kill in public, he could not let anyone else see or be killed, the Adult Government did not want there to be a panic, they did not want the adults to know that the children may be a threat, that there are people trying to stand up for themselves and the children. This is the way it was and will stay, and Clementine did not question or take sides, he needed money and they gave it to him, a lot. They also gave him a name, something to live up to, and that is all that Clem wanted. He did not care for anything else until it presented an opportunity to him, in his face. It's how Clementine worked, and the Government knew that.

This assignment was a young adult, a single mother in her early twenties, who had a young child of some description. A neighbor of hers had recently spotted the child within her home and reported it to the officials, wanting the reward of money for reporting suspicious behavior, but also not wanting to be around when the Government found out in the end. They always did after all.

Eventually Clementine stood from where he sat and crawled his way down the building, his eyes not leaving the silhouette of the small house where his destination was. He made his way silently to the house and scanned the windows for one easy to break in through. One he had found one he pried it open as quietly as he could and crawled through it.
It was the woman's bedroom he had found himself in. It took Clementine a few moments to adjust his eyes to the dark, but when they had he saw the woman sitting up in her bed, staring right at him.

"You're here to kill me?" she asked shakily. She did not move from her place, but watched him intensely as he moved closer towards where she sat.
"Yeah," he answered, a ping of guilt filling his voice for only a moment. But she had noticed it and sighed, a long, drawn, sad sigh.
"Is this how you truly want to live?" the woman asked angrily, still unmoving despite Clementine's slow walk towards her. "As a heartless killer? Pah!"
"Sorry lady, but that's how the world works now. I'm only doing my job." he shrugged and got out a small syringe, flashing it for her to see.

Shaking, the woman pulled out her arm. There was no escape, she knew it, just the acceptance of death and the small relief of a quick and painless death from Clementine's poison. He handled her arm gently, about to put the needle in without a word, but she quickly pulled away in sudden realization.

"Please don't kill my daughter. She is only 4, she will be an adult one day...please don't kill her! Have mercy!"

Clementine looked at the woman in silence and lifted her arm again, causing her to sob loudly. As he pushed the syringe into her skin, letting the poison flow in slowly, he muttered "I don't kill children. Only adults. I am not a hunter, so it is not my job. They will probably put her into Project 21."

The woman, tears smothering her cheeks, smiled before death took her away, and uttered a quiet "Thank you."

***

|Training Grounds, 3:05PM|

The odd assassin walked joyfully through the training grounds, watching new recruits hastily attack and defend each other, learning new skills. After his job that morning he felt rather energetic, a skip in his step, probably at the thought of a new paycheck to come. Job's had been slow recently so it was a relief to be finally out on the field again.

He walked along the sidelines of one of the training facilities, not actually planning to train (he rarely did) but he enjoyed watching others' techniques, picking up little moves that might help him. Perhaps he should train, he thought, but it was a lost cause. He preferred to stay undercover, to not draw any unwanted attention to his techniques in case someone might find his weakness. So he just watched happily, waiting for the day to end.

As if on cue, a scream could be heard not far from where Clementine stood. His ears perked up in curiosity and he began to make his way to the direction of the sound.
He saw the strange woman Aramay, more of a creature really, catch a solider in mid air and bring him down again with a thud, a solider that had seemingly fallen due to Luther's anger.

With a childlike laugh, the gasmasked man walked casually towards Aramay and shrugged, "Poor man," he looked at the unconscious solider in amusement, "I'm surprised you caught him like that. Most people would've just let him fall."

|Cethin Aurel|

Plip, plip, plip, plip…. Dripping water could be heard somewhere within the dark building, most likely from one of the broken pipes lining the ceiling like a maze. The area was eerily silent, except for the sound of hot air being released every so often, followed then by the loud rustling of chains in the background. Broken windows dotted the walls in random locations with black tattered curtains behind them to keep the light out in the training session, while other metal pipes protruded from the ground and were mostly caked with dirt and grime aside from some small areas that were covered from the elements and still somewhat clean. Some of them had lights that would flicker on and off in a slow, mesmerizing pace. Three shattered mirrors could also be located, one against the northern wall, another propped up against one of the metal pipes, and another simply lying on the ground. The glass shards from these three were also scattered about the room.

However, there was also a loud heartbeat that steadily responded to the eerie surroundings, beeping every second, almost as if someone was hooked up to the medical machinery found in the E.R.; probably because someone was. One of the new recruits had opted to assist in one of the more experienced adult’s training, and he had been hooked up to the machine to record his breathing and heartbeat rates in the ‘simulation’.

Plip, plip, plop, plop, plunk. Plip, plip…. For a few moments, the water’s steady beating suddenly shifted, hitting something other than the floor for those precious two seconds before resuming the free fall into its puddle. Sweat covered the recruit’s brow, his eyes wide and heartbeat picking up a few notches. Having spent at least twenty five minutes alone in the room with nothing but agonizing suspense and adrenaline, his senses had become adjusted to all of the sounds and the darkness, so he immediately noticed the difference in the water’s soft drumming. He swiftly turned his head to stare into the darkness of where the noise usually was, but he saw nothing. Another few ticks escalated in his breathing, before… Whoooshhh. The recruit jumped in coiled surprise, but it was only the air vent going off again. But, wait… where was the clinking of the chains?

Cethin shifted out from the hot, sticky air, placing a finger on the cleaner part of a nearby pipe running suspended in midair before suddenly disappearing once more. A crunch responded from under his boot as his weight settled on the shards of broken glass, a huge smirk spread across his face and his eyes wide with anticipation. He had to admit, it was pretty fun playing predator, especially when he got to increase his ability anyway. Swiftly crouching down, he stared at the reflective glass, watching as the recruit was just coming up to the mirror propped against the north wall. Seth portrayed himself on that mirror for exactly half a second before causing the image to shift violently to the right of the mirror in the other half of time before it was nowhere to be seen, quite effectively toying with the poor recruit once more. The sweet sound of the rapid beeping from the wires hooked up to display heartbeat made Z rather smug with himself.

’Enough play, I wanna see how well I did this round.’ He thought silently to himself before reaching into a different shard and climbing out of the mirror the recruit had passed moments before. Silent as he could, Seth snuck up behind the boy and in one swift motion pressed a knife to his throat. A shattering scream split from the boy’s throat, and Cethin recoiled from the loud noise. ”Woah, hey, relax, it’s just a rubber blade~” With an innocent tone, he held out the fake knife as the overhead lights flickered to life, signaling the end of the training.

The recruit’s right hand was pressed against his chest where his heart was. “Holy crap, man.” He breathed, his eyes wide but the beeping beginning to slow down. ”Well, let’s see how I did, shall we?” Sauntering over to where the machine itself was located, the recruit in tow, Ceth pulled the curtain back, revealing the screens and green lines and such. The boy stood beside him, watching with wonder at the screens. Shifting his eyes toward the boy, another smirk filled the assassin’s face before he turned back and wiped his wet hand on the boy’s shoulder. ”Increased shift time by a few seconds, definite marks on the psychological warfare.” He snickered, patting the boy on the back with some force.

“Where did you get this stuff, anyway?” The recruit grumbled, obviously embarrassed that he couldn’t take on the challenge. ”Stole it. But hey, hey, I’ll bring it back as soon as I’m done. It doesn’t take long to transfer items through mirrors.” He raised his hands in the air above his shoulders, defending himself. ”It’s a pain they don’t let me just have it.” An irritated frown flickered across his facials for a moment before disappearing. ”Anyway, you should run along now. And I hope you learned a very valuable lesson.” Z ruffled the boy’s hair, further demeaning him in that subtle way with a full grin on his face. “Yeah, yeah, don’t do any training with crazy Ceth.” The recruit placed his chin in his hand before turning to get the heck out of this place. ”What, no! Don’t tell your friends that! Otherwise I’ll never get anyone to train with me!” He had turned as the boy was leaving, his voice rather loud and playfully frantic while he had a pout on his lips. ”Pah.” Coal simply waved off the boy as he exited his training area, a content look to his face as he scanned over the results once more.

However, his form suddenly froze and his pupils widened as his mind seemed to slip and crash. Ceth winced physically as blinding light filled his mind’s eye. “Come on Coal, don’t be like that!” He looked up, the face before him completely unrecognizable as the light prevented him from making out anything other than a blurry silhouette. “Come on, please? Pretty please? You know you wanna get out of your grumpy pants and come p-“ With a harsh scowl, Z abruptly cut off the flashback. But his body gave him up as his form shivered with tensed pain and he coughed. ”Bloody….” ’That one was weak, pointless.’ He clenched his fists before turning away from the screen. ’Guess I just forgot that sometimes they’re delayed, if I’m even gonna have one anyway.’ He slammed his fist against one of the pipes, denting it in his anger. He shouldn’t have such memories, no one else did, so why him?

However, all was completely forgotten as a scream could be heard hurtling above his training building, and a bright smirk filled his features, knowing exactly what that meant. Trotting back to one of the glass shards, he slipped through and popped out a few meters behind Ruukia. His eyes scanned over her before he looked up at Luther and then bent over, one arm across his stomach while with the other he pointed at his open mouth and fake gagged. With that shiny outfit of hers, Seth was very, very thankful he didn’t accidently alter his course and pop out like right on top of her.

Without a moment to lose, he shifted onto one of the clear lines that bordered a few of the training areas. ’Ah Èclos, such an easy place to get around in.’ And he reappeared closer to Luth just as Ruukia taunted him. "Goodness me... somebody had a little temper tantrum, hm?" Ceth shoved his hands into his pockets and lazily walked over to Luther, clicking his tongue in Ruukia’s general direction. “Some people just don’t learn even when a hurtling body comes screaming over them.” He spoke breezily at Ruukia, leaning towards Luther and about to rest his elbow on the man’s shoulder before immediately changing his mind with a good-natured look. He then danced away from Luther, subtly worried that the man would explode once more. Obviously he couldn’t really get out of his range, but he was closer to something reflective so he’d have an escape route if things turned violent. Seth was feeling very plummet-free today, and would rather prefer to stay on the nice, safe ground to begin with.

Anna slowly spun in her seat, her eyes gazing over the various monitors, taking in data from sensors. It was once again the time for a routine scan. Each scanner was deployed in a designated route through Project 21, ensuring that each child would be scanned, as long as they were where they were meant to be, of course. And if they were not where they needed to be....
However, that had not happened today, at least so far.

Through the data and video that came each day through the screens, Anna got to know many of these children, or at least know about them. However, it was difficult to see them as much more than data, and Anna never tried to connect with them. They were merely there to mature into an adult, little more. Their time as a child meant little as long as they made it through childhood. And if they failed in even that... well, their data mattered even less, and was quickly filed away, rarely opened again unless for some obscure statistical matter.

Anna checked each child as the scanner brought their face and location into view on the screens. She made sure the information matched with a practiced speed, then gave the scanner the 'okay' to proceed. After all, they would not want the children getting the brilliant idea to switch bracelets. Each had their place and function, and it would not be beneficial for them if they ever forgot that. Suddenly, a screen began flashing with an error. It seemed that some child had forgotten its place. Her hands nearly flying, Anna turned the scanner to 'pursue and clean' mode. She watched impassively as it rapidly scanned the surrounding area.

It was not long before it locked on to the signal of the errant child in the wood. It was not his first infraction either. There would be no mere punishment this time, but a full-blown 'cleansing'. Anna could feel conflicting emotion rising somewhere within her, but it was distant and faint. She easily suppressed it, fulfilling her duties with a properly emotionless, logical mindset.

The scanner easily came to the now terrified child. The young teenage boy futilely tried to flee, pushing recklessly through the undergrowth. His bracelet flashed in a bright, blood red, that was stark against the foliage surrounding him. All his fuss was useless, and the scanner easily pursuing him gave him one finale sentence, the last he would hear. "You have committed your final violation. Prepare for cleansing." The boy stumbled and fell to his knees, turning toward the scanner with a wide-eyed look that still stubbornly harbored defiance. Then, in a flash of light, he was gone. From discovery of the empty area to cleansing of the errant child, less than a minute had passed.

Without another thought about the boy, Anna returned the scanner to its normal function, and it sped back toward its route. Scanning resumed in each of the scanners, as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. In fact, it was nothing out of the ordinary. That had been the third cleansing that week, though it was unusual to have such a high number for so early in the week. Perhaps the children were becoming restless for some reason? In any case, they would soon settle, and those who did not would be dealt with promptly.

The scanning concluded without any other aberration, though a few children seemed to have barely squeaked by this time. Anna gave a small sigh and began the process of returning and shutting down the scanners, as well as writing up a report. It was slightly longer than usual due to the cleansing, but still did not take more than a few minutes. Soon, Anna was signing off for the time being. Once these tasks were finished, Anna set off for the training grounds.

---

Within a few minutes, Anna arrived. From the general mood around Luther, she assumed he had lost his temper and injured, or perhaps killed, someone again. Anna almost felt sorry for the poor oaf who angered him. She approached silently behind Cethin, who seemed a bit on edge, which was probably wise. She carefully avoided the 'line of sight' of the few reflective objects in the area until she stood directly behind the man, sure she had not been noticed by any of those gathered around Luther.

"Watch it, he might get ya," she said, nearly in his ear. She was not especially loud, so Luther would not hear her and break his concentration, but she was easily audible to the rest of those gathered, and, no doubt, especially loud for Cethin. She saw a couple of the recruits jump when they realized she had suddenly appeared, and barely kept a smile from her face.

...

(sorry, ignore)

...

|THE RESISTOR|

Zzzzzzzaaaaaaap~

Energy and light met and ricocheted off each other in displays of colourful electricity. It sparked dangerously as it shot around the purple and silvery gray haze. As the light and energy and light smacked against each other again, it shot off in different directions branching out into different colors and disappeared into the distance. Lightning traced the walls of a metal dome, containing it within the enclosure of the large circular area. It ran down the sides and spun rays of multicoloured light downwards to the town below.

Energy crackled and gave off intense heat as it mixed with the moisture in the air. Chemical’s reacted with the strikes of lightning and created a vapour that was toxic and a pale green color. The purple electrified haze spread across the area engulfing it in sharp electric waves. It seemed as the whole place was trapped inside the center of a live jellyfish. As the energy hit against the sides of the metal encasement a loud sound erupted, sounding very close to thunder. It was a booming loud crackling sound that bounced around the circular town, sounding louder in some places and quieter in others.

The western hemisphere consisting of a lake and a metal mound resisting on the edge of dock seemed to be lit up, with the electricity mixing with the water. Sparks licked up the sides of the metal Shop. The mechanical enhancements of the area were set off, and shot down the metal street. The town beyond that got a mix of toxic gas, and rain from the connection with the lake. It fogged up the windows of the Bakery A little ways away, in an area closer to the exact center of the circular area, colourful light zapped against the glass of a house covered in vegetation. It wasn’t strong enough to break it, but the sound it emitted was terrible and loud. The lightning that hit the plants caused them to shrivel up. The Greenhouse was only safe on the inside.

Beyond that to the south, the toxic vapour was weaker as it floated down an abandoned and ruined Street. The worn down houses were surrounded by an invisible and weaker form of the gas, and the colourful energy shot branch like over the walls, almost as if tracing the lines of a circuit. The Newspaper Booth was no exception. Similar electrical surges erupted through the town’s uninhabited areas and other streets.

At the far east of the town far from the other places the top of the hill was getting most of the fumes from the toxic vapour, TheTower there was heavily hidden within it, the color now a dark green. The Warehouse and Tent were no different, being so close to the height of the hill.

The jolts of light continued down the sides of the dome and shot back up, gathering in the center of the town, suspended high above a long forgotten Church. It created a large ball of energy that continued to zap with multicoloured light. There, thevapor was pushed away as the energy ball began to pulse, sending waves of electricity and a sharp ringing sound, slicing through the air.

The entire town would hear it. Hours passed as the energy ball continued to grow and slowly the colors and lightning around the town had dispersed then gathered in the center. The fumes of toxic vapor faded, to an almost nothing, including at the peak of the hill. The sky turned into a pale shade of purple as the energy ball grew even larger. The light shining off it brightened the town, as if it was a bright sun, yet it was an eerie pale shade of green.

Then as the last bit of multi colored light came back and joined the glowing orb a beam of light shot down into the precise center of the town. It was neon green in color and sparked with a large shield of sparking light energy.

Zzzzzzzaaaaaaap~

And then all at once everything vanished. The “storm” was over. The purple sky faded back to the darkness of 2:45 A.M. The town was back to normal, with all the usual defaults. If people had been able to sleep through the “storm” they wouldn’t have known it had happened. There was only one change.

Lying on the ground buried in the flowers of a rundown church, below a large gaping hole in the ceiling was a pale, pale boy. Teal colored hair spilled over his face as he lay almost deathly still on the ground. His silver and purple clothing seemed to be made of a metallic cloth, unheard of to the Children of Project 21. Upon his head was a pair of black head phones with lights that flickered on and off. A purple sheet of plastic or glass stretched from one headphone to the other making a visor over the boys closed eyes. His entire body sparked with the electricity of the “storm”, a multicoloured circuit running over his skin.

Zzzzzzzaaaaaaap~

(ooc: Yay posted! DO NOT INTERACT WITH ME! wait for Prelude's plot point)

|Danielle Leiber|

Danielle arrived at the Assignment Hall in time to see Zero floating above the others, and now her as well. She looked at the others to see what they were doing and then looked back at Zero as he descended. "Lovely weather, isn't it~?" Dani just glanced at the sky for a moment in reaction. "What a weirdo....." Danielle muttered to herself. She watched Zero, finding him to be slightly unpredictable. His wild eyes seemed to be wildly searching his audience. "I do wonder what lovely playtime we'll get today, don't any of you~?" The guy appeared as a lunatic to Danielle. She turned and looked away. If I don't make eye contact, maybe he won't bother me....