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many of horror

Scarriden

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a part of many of horror, by partially-stars.

Villains are not the most frightening thing in the shadows here.

partially-stars holds sovereignty over Scarriden, giving them the ability to make limited changes.

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Scarriden

Villains are not the most frightening thing in the shadows here.

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Scarriden is a part of many of horror.

4 Characters Here

Lucian Mitchell [186] would you kill to prove you're right?
Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco [184] "If we do not maintain justice, justice will not maintain us. "
Erin Monaghan [28] "There's a reason I walk through that door first. It's to make sure everyone walks back out of it."
MoH Posting Grounds [4] 1x1 with partially-stars

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2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux-
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Markus watched as Lucian's words slurred into one another, thankfully he was able to understand slurred speech, otherwise, he would have to ask him to repeat himself again. He sighed and shook his head as he continued to help Lucian walk, keeping his hand firmly around his waist as they walked due to Markus' assistance. "I'm not going anywhere. I came here to complete something, and completing it means either you come with me and I take you home, or I stay here until you decide to leave. Both options result in us leaving together, Lucian." he said firmly as he sat Lucian down in a chair and handed him a glass of water, sitting beside Lucian as he resumed to talk.

"I made a promise to make sure you were okay, I don't care about my well being. I can take care of myself and you, so don't say another word about that. And what do you mean I'm boring, I can have fun as well. I'm just...Too sober for this and I know I shouldn't get drunk. That's it. Otherwise, if our lives weren't in potential danger I would have a few drinks, and show you that I'm not boring, like you say I am." Markus said with a sly grin and small chuckle as he took a sip of the water he got for him and Lucian.

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2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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In perhaps any other situation, Lucian might have been flattered by the care Markus was giving him. Or, at the very least, teased Markus about it. But getting to a chair just seemed more important in that moment, as his legs seemed to be jelly. And it felt nice to have someone support him like this, to have physical contact in an entirely innocent way. Lucian looked at Markus as he spoke about them leaving together, and burst into laughter. "Oh, darling, you should have just said if that was your ulterior motive," he said, propping his head up on his hand as he looked over at Markus.

He missed most of what Markus said, still too far amused, but he understood the meaning behind Markus' words, and the smile slid off of his face. Markus was judging Lucian. Markus was being that judgmental hero Lucian should have expected him to be. He thought he was better than Lucian just because he was sober.

"Oh piss off, Markus," he groaned. "I'm tired of you thinking that you're better than me, okay? You have no idea. No goddamn idea of what I've gone through. I work my ass off and then you just swan in behind me at the last moment and think you're better than me? If you're staying, have a drink, take a fucking Xanax, find some cute..." he trailed off as he realised that he didn't know where he was going with that sentence. "Person and just do whatever the hell you want. But if you're going to just lord your sobriety over me, you can piss off. I don't need you here. I don't want you here," he snapped. The annoyance and anger cut through the cloud and haze of intoxication. It gave him a moment of clarity, made the world a little less fun, and a little stranger.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux-
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Markus couldn't help but almost choke on his drink when Lucian replied with a snarky comment, something he wasn't expecting, but when he thought back on what he said he could see how it sounded that way. He chuckled slightly and was going to answer Lucian until he misunderstood what Markus was really trying to say and got uptight about it, even to where he started cussing him out. Markus wanted to speak up and try and calm Lucian down and talk some sense into him, but he understood at this point that it would do more bad than good at this point. He sighed as he slowly stood up, and shook his head, giving Lucian one more look as he spoke, "All you had to do was say the word, Lucian. But you're right. I don't know what you've been with, and I'm sorry. And I'm sorry that's how you think I think about you, but that's certainly not it. I never once thought that I was better than you, I know I'm nowhere near your level of professionalism." Markus said softly as he felt himself calm down a little, trying his best not to blow up as he took a few steps away from Lucian, combing his fingers through his hair as he thought to himself.

"You know, maybe you're right. Maybe us working together was a bad idea. It didn't really make sense for us to work together, even though it was fun, I have to admit." he said with a bit of a defeated look on his face, silently he dug into his pocket and held up the folded papers in his hands. "I'll be keeping these until after I look at them and analyze them. They'll be in your apartment by tomorrow. As you said I can't give you anything that could prove you were involved in this." he said softly as he stuffed the papers back into his jacket pocket as he began to walk away, stopping once more before he finally left, "Besides, you're not really my type anyway. So you don't have to worry about me wanting to sleep with you. Goodbye, Lucian." Markus said firmly and rather coldly as he gave him one final look before turning his back on Lucian and walks out of the room and building, slowly making his way back to his apartment, which by now it was dark, cold, and raining as the rain hit the sidewalk beside him as he made his way back to his place, leaving Lucian where he was as he clearly wanted. But something in the back of his mind kept telling him to go back, but he made up his mind and decided to listen to Lucian.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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There was a tiny part of Lucian that felt bad for pushing Markus away. But he could see it in the hero's eyes, in his face, the way that he judged Lucian for every decision. How dare Lucian get drunk? How dare he make out with some beautiful stranger? Like those weren't the only moments when his brain was anywhere near quiet, the only moments when he could relax, the only times when he wasn't furious at the world. Lucian stayed put for a few moments, silently drinking the glass of water that had been left behind. His agent appeared, said something about getting Lucian home. Lucian let himself be walked out to the car, feeling the steady hands gripping his arms so he wouldn't stumble, but that one, stupid, pathetic part of his brain remarked that he didn't feel as steady as he had done when it had been his arm slung around Markus' shoulder.

He somehow ended up in his apartment, he didn't know how, didn't know how long had passed. But almost instinctively, he found himself bringing up the tracker on Markus' phone. He didn't know why, but what he saw made him frown. Markus wasn't at home. He appeared to be down some side street, and the dot was stationary. The last few sensible brain cells reminded Lucian that he was still pretty damn intoxicated, and that he should probably send somebody else. But instead, he brewed a coffee, changed into a black hoodie and jeans, dug out the security baseball cap he'd stolen at some point, and stole back out into the night, stopping only to grab a mask on his way out. Even as drunk as he was, he wasn't going to have his identity exposed. Not tonight of all nights.

The coffee worked to sober him up a little, and he'd always been good at pretending to be sober, but what was alarming was the control on his powers. Lucian maintained a rock solid control on his ability. He had to. But he could feel his mental grip slipping. He double checked the dot on the map and found that he was only a street or two away from Markus' location.

His stomach dropped as he got closer. He could hear a fight, and it didn't sound like Markus was winning. Lucian pulled on the mask and slipped into the shadows, quietly creeping closer and closer. The more he concentrated on being quiet, the more he could feel the control of his ability slipping. And so... he let go. One of the figures flew against the nearest wall and hit it with a sickening crack. The other seemed more resistant, but Lucian was at least able to telepathically hold him still, suspended about a foot off the ground. He could hear flurries of their panicked thoughts. They were goons, way in over their heads, paid to deal with a target. They weren't important. They weren't worth the attention that killing them would result in.

He slowly stepped over to the one he was holding in the air. "You live. You tell your friend over there that he fell and hit his head and that if either of you report anything, Maelstrom will kill you both. Now. You're going to tell me exactly how you were hired for this job, and you're going to tell me everything you know about who hired you. Understood?"

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux-
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Markus had been walking for quite some time, he was now about halfway to where his apartment was when he felt something was off. No, it wasn't just a feeling or a hunch, but he felt it in his gut. It was the feeling one gets when they know they aren't alone, as if someone was following you, but always out of your eyesight. He smirked as he kept his hands in his pockets, a sly grin on his face as he finally turned around as he spoke, "Thought you said you didn't want to talk to me-" he immediately stopped talking when he finally saw who had been following him. They were both, large, well-built men, easily a head above Markus, and maybe then some. They were dressed in black, blending in with the darkness all around them.

Markus gave a small chuckle as he spoke, "Evening, gentlemen. I don't suppose you're out for a stroll at this hour?" he spoke with confidence, albeit it was false as he knew he was not only outnumbered but that he was clearly not going to win if they tried fighting him. He wasn't entirely sure what their motives and intentions were, but he was sure they weren't entirely good ones. The men simply began to start walking towards him, closing in the gap between him and them, finally, their massive sizes were clear to him. Markus swallowed hard as he took a few steps back, but to only see the men continuing to close the gap between them.

"Look, I don't have any money on me, fellas. I'm a broke artist, alright? Do you like tattoos? I can offer you each a free tattoo. Sound fair?" he said coyly as he tried stalling and to think up a plan. But the men only looked at him as one of them spoke, "This isn't about money." he stated, no emotion or even any humanity were evident in his voice as he spoke. A shiver went down Markus' spine as he heard the man speak, "Then what is it about, if not a mugging?" his voice fell flat.

"Just business. And someone wants your head, Shadowfaux." the other said coldly as they finally made their move. Despite their size and stature, they were fast, all too fast. Almost inhumanly fast if anyone were to ask Markus. He was able to dodge their initial attacks with ease, but as they kept pushing him further and further back into an alleyway his plans soon came crashing down as he realized what they were doing. But what scared him more than anything was that they knew who he was, and he doubted they weren't with the people from before at the event. Markus managed to fight them off with ease for what felt like forever, but the longer the fight went on the faster he grew tired and almost sore, but what was off was that the men had no problem fighting for as long as they were. They didn't slow down or show any signs of running out of steam anytime soon. But Markus didn't want to use his abilities as he would only grow more tired and would also expose him as their real target. All he could do was use his natural skills and strength, which isn't something he liked doing, especially now that he was showing signs of growing tired. From his breathing which turned into panting, his speed was progressively getting slower, as well as his reaction timing.

He was now pushed up against a literal wall as the men laid into him. All he felt was pain as they slammed their fists into his abdomen, chest, and occasionally would go for his face, causing him to spit up blood and even spit out some teeth. Markus had no fight left in his as he could feel all of his resolve to continue fighting slowly slip away from him as he laid on the ground on his back as they continued the endless assault. If he managed to cling on until someone found him he would have little to no signs of life as his breathing has almost but entirely slowed down to being almost undetectable, he would have massive bruising and fractures and broken bones, as well as internal bleeding if he hadn't received medical attention soon enough. His eyesight began to blur and go dim as he could feel himself slowly blacking out, as everything went silent and dark. But before he closed his eyes the last thing he saw was a third individual standing behind the two men. But something about this last person was somewhat familiar as he tried to cling onto staying conscious as he heard a somewhat familiar but muffled voice speak to one of the men as they were easily dispatched of. One of them went flying into the wall behind them as a crunch was heard as he slumped to the ground.

The last remaining man was now only inches away from a masked Lucian as he looked at him with no emotion on his face as he simply spoke with a deep and gravely voice, "You already know the answer to that one." he said with a sly grin as he looked over at Markus who was now unconscious, laying entirely still on the rain-soaked and blood-covered concrete. "I'd be more worried about your friend over there, jack ass." he spoke as he motioned with his head towards Markus, who laid limply on the blood-covered concrete.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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Lucian should have known. As he studied the man in front of him, his thoughts rushed through Lucianā€™s head, revealing that theyā€™d been paid well for their silence, and that revealing too much would get them killed. But it was the comment about his ā€œfriendā€ that made Lucian stop and glance in the direction the man had indicated. His stomach dropped. He dropped the man to the ground and took a few steps towards him. ā€œRun. Now.ā€ He warned. The man didnā€™t hesitate, turning and running, slipping a little on the damp pavement. Lucian scrambled for control of his powers again as he knelt down beside Markus.

The hero was practically motionless. In the darkness, Lucian couldnā€™t see much, but he could feel the blood on the pavement around him. ā€œMarkus. Markus, can you hear me?ā€ He called, shaking the heroā€™s shoulder slightly. Instinctively, he went to feel for a pulse. It was there, but too fast and too weak. ā€œShit. Come on, Markus, donā€™t do this to me,ā€ he swore, digging in his pockets for his phone. His first instinct was to call an ambulance- but something in him hesitated. Ambulance also probably meant police. Police meant questions that Lucian didnā€™t want to answer. Instead, he found a different number.

ā€œIā€™m calling in that debt. Alleyway just off fourth. Get here. Now.ā€ He hung up without giving any more details, examining Markus a little more closely. ā€œFucking hell, Markus, I let you out of my sight for two minutes...ā€ he muttered. ā€œYouā€™re gonna be okay. Help is on the way, okay? Youā€™ve just got to hold on. You hear me? Just... hold on,ā€ he ordered. He didnā€™t know if Markus could hear him, didnā€™t know if he was talking more to comfort himself or Markus. His hands were shaking, and it felt like his own heart rate had picked up to match Markusā€™.

ā€œMaelstrom,ā€ a voice said from behind him. He whirled around and sighed when it was only Apollo. Apollo was one of the few heroes left, primarily because they didnā€™t play hero all that much. He mostly just patched them up. Lucian had saved his ass twice before, and it was time for the hero to repay. ā€œApollo. Iā€™ve got a broken rib and a healing gunshot wound, and Markus here is... just generally a bit fucked up. Hospitals are out of the question. We both need healing, primarily because Iā€™m guessing the best youā€™ll be able to do for him is to stabilize him and so iā€™ll need to drag his sorry ass home. And then weā€™re done. Weā€™re clear. You never have to hear from me again.ā€

The hero just stared at Markus for a few seconds, before glancing back at Lucian and placing a hand on his arm. Lucian gasped as heat spread through his chest, mending bones and stitching skin back together. Lucian had just about recovered as the hero bent down to examine Markus. ā€œIā€™ll be able to stop the internal bleeding, but not do much more than that.ā€ The heroā€™s tone was level, calm. How Lucian wishes he could feel right now, because god knows he didnā€™t. ā€œDo it,ā€ he just said, folding his arms.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux-
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Everything was dark and cold. An endless silence that seemed to be growing colder the longer it went on. It was almost as if he was trapped in an endless void and was slowly falling further and further as all of his senses began to slowly fade away. He couldn't hear or feel anything, except for that small nagging murmur that faded in and out of his consciousness every now and then. He didn't know what or where it came from, but that it held slight familiarity to it. Something about that small, barely above a whisper voice brought some small remnant of comfort and safety to him as he slowly faded away. But then he felt something, he didn't know what it was but a warm, tingling sensation began to wash over him as he could feel something tugging him back to consciousness as his senses slowly began to come back to him.

With a sudden jolt, Markus' eyes opened as a burst of air filled his lungs causing him to gasp sharply as he regained consciousness to only see shadowy figures standing above him. He couldn't exactly tell what they were saying just yet as his senses were slowly coming back to him, but as he strained to listen he made out who one of the figures was, it was an all too familiar silhouette by now, as for the other, Markus hadn't a clue who it was. A small grin formed on his face as he blinked weakly as he hadn't gained much strength back yet, just enough to open his eyes and barely speak above a whisper. "I thought you said you didn't want to see me again, Luc?" he croaked out with a small chuckle that turned into a horrible, raspy sounded cough fit that lasted for a few moments until he managed to calm himself down, regaining and stabilizing his breathing as he remained laying on the pavement as he couldn't feel his body just yet. All he knew is that he was gonna feel it in the morning and it was going to hurt like a bitch.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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Lucian could hear Apollo muttering a list of injuries to himself as he examined Markus for a moment. None of them sounded good, and it just made the pit in Lucian's stomach grow even deeper. But then Apollo placed a hand on Markus, and the hero gasped sharply, his eyes snapping open. Instinctively, Lucian dropped to his knees to place a hand on Markus' shoulder.

"The bleeding has stopped, and his healing's been brought along about two days. That's the best I can do. But he's out of danger,"
Apollo said quietly. Lucian nodded as Markus croaked something and grinned at Lucian. "Asshole. And, actually, I think it was you that said we shouldn't work together any more?" He teased, laughing a little with relief. Moving Markus was going to be interesting, though. The hero didn't look like he could stand, let alone walk back to either of their apartments. And calling a taxi was just going to result in too many questions

"You need a lift?" Apollo asked suddenly, almost begrudgingly. "My car's not too far from here." Lucian looked over to study the hero for a moment. He mentally reached out to see if he could read the healer's thoughts- but that aspect of his ability had disappeared again, there for a moment and gone just as quick. So instead, he just studied the hero's body language for a moment.

"Sure, that'd be great," Lucian replied. He couldn't see anything to warn him, but that didn't mean he wasn't wary. "Alright. I'll go get the car, you... hold on here." Lucian nodded, turning his attention back to Markus. He'd hardly realised that his hand had been on Markus' shoulder the whole time, and he pulled it away. "So. Guess we're even now, huh?" He asked with a smirk. "Come on, let's see if we can't get you to your feet. Lean on me as much as you need, okay?" He said calmly, as though his heart wasn't still pounding and his head wasn't still swimming.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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0.25 INK

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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux-
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Markus couldn't help but chuckle slightly at Lucian's remark, even with the slight pain he felt from the broken ribs, among all the other fractures he was suffering from. Markus listened to the other figure's voice, finding out that it was familiar, he focused for a moment trying to figure out who it was, but with the fact that he was just beaten to a pulp only a few moments ago, he pieced it together. It was Appolo, one of the hero's who had the ability to mend wounds for others as well as himself.

"I could have sworn you told me to piss off, but alright, Luc. You have a point, I suppose." he said weakly as he remained laying on the ground, only now realizing that Lucian still had his hand on his shoulder. But he shook his head and tried his best to get to his feet, with the help of Lucian who offered to be there for him to lean on, as well as his sly remark. "I fucked up. I get it, Lucian. Is it what you wanted to hear?" he asked weakly and softly as his voice was very raspy and soar, he knew he was going to feel this for a while. "Also, what made you come after me? Nevermind how you found me as quickly as you did..What were you doing? Stalking me?" he said with a small chuckle and grin but groaned as he leaned against Lucian, the pain fully hitting him as he hobbled along to the car with the help from Lucian. He didn't understand why someone like Lucian came to his aid, as he was a villain, but as he witnessed, even then Lucian wasn't entirely bad. If anything he had more good tendencies than evil ones, something he found interesting.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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He smirked as Markus agreed to having fucked up, shrugging a little. He fully intended to get as much mileage as he could out of this, but now didn't really seem like the right time. He helped Markus get to his feet, slowly as he dared, providing a semi-steady foundation for the hero to at least lean on. One Markus was upright, Lucian moved so that the hero had his arm around Markus' shoulders and Lucian had an arm around his waist to keep him steady. Lucian had injured himself enough to know that the key to minimising pain was moving as slowly as they could, but even still, he could see how much pain Markus was in.

"I checked my phone when I got back to my apartment. Earlier- you know, the first time I saved your ass?" He teased, turning to grin at Markus. "Well, I ran a tracker on your phone to help me find you, and the tracker was apparently still running. And even though you left before me and your apartment was nearer than mine, you weren't at home, your phone was stationary in an alley. So my spidey senses started tingling, and here I am." It was more or less the truth. Markus didn't need to know that Lucian had specifically checked the tracker to check up on him.

Lucian eased Markus in to the back seat and took the front seat himself, pulling on his seatbelt. Apollo smirked. "Well, well, the infamous Maelstrom does have a heart. Who would have thought?" He remarked, and Lucian just glared at the hero. "I'm not saying it's a bad thing. Just never thought I would have seen a villain look that glad to see a hero come round. Especially not you of all people. So, where to?"

Lucian told Apollo Markus' address. He was conscious that he'd demonstrated his ability and didn't want Maelstrom being linked to his apartment building. He didn't want the questions. But as they drove, Lucian staying silent the whole time, questions swirled through Lucian's mind. What the hell had Apollo meant by that?

"So. Maelstrom. We're done now. Next time we see each other, the slate will be clean." Apollo said as they pulled up outside Markus' apartment building. "We're done. I don't want to see your sorry ass again. For any reason," Lucian said, climbing out of the front seat and opening the door to help Markus out. Apollo watched them for a minute or two as Lucian got Markus steady on his feet, before driving away. "Right, lead the way, darling," Lucian said, pulling Markus' arm around his shoulders again.

Setting

2 Characters Present

Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux-
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Markus listened to what Lucian said as he explained how he managed to find him, a sly grin spread across his face as what Lucian said hit him fully. And an evil thought slowly crept into his head, "So, you were stalking me, huh? I mean, if you wanted to find me this late at night all you had to do was ask." he said with a somewhat flirty tone in his voice as he teased the villain. But maybe teasing him like that wasn't the best thing to do as he was the only reason Markus didn't just fall flat on his face, literally. As his legs felt like jello and his whole body ached and the pain was slowly spreading all across his body. He'd knew he'd live, but god did it feel like he got hit by a semi-truck at full speed.

Markus groaned as Lucian helped him into the car, and throughout the car right he was pretty much silent, as he was trying his best to not pass out on Lucian's shoulder. All the while he was slowly feeling himself grow delirious the longer he remained conscious. Finally, the car came to a slow stop as he peered out the window, realizing where they were. It was his apartment, he almost forgot that Lucian knew where he lived. Could either end up being bad or good, but at this point in time he didn't care, all he wanted was his bed and to sleep for the next year.

Markus let Lucian help him out of the car, feeling his shoes hit the pavement beneath caused the pain to shoot through his body with each step he took, reminding him how injured he was. He chuckled when Lucian told him to lead the way, hobbling to the door which then led to a few flights of stairs, then eventually his apartment at the end of the hall. "Fucking aye...You don't realize how far down your apartment is until you're halfway dead.." he grimaced as they eventually made it to the door of his apartment which was on the second floor. Markus dug into his pocket, digging for his keys, he frowned as he felt something else, realizing it was the knives Lucian gave him, "Right..These are your's.." he mumbled as he handed them back to Lucian. He went back to searching for his keys as he rested his head against the side of the door, eventually finding them, his hands shaking as he fumbled to hold them still enough for him to unlock the door. "Uhm...M-mind helping me out, Luc?" he practically murmured to him as he struggled to keep himself upright.

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LUCIAN MITCHELL
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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Lucian just rolled his eyes at Markusā€™ comment, but grinned as he did so. ā€œI thought you said I wasnā€™t your type?ā€ He retorted. The teasing was a way of keeping the mood light, because Lucian could feel how much Markus was leaning on him. He could see the pain on the heroā€™s face clear as day, and he just wished that he would have been able to do more. Getting Markus up the stairs was difficult, and more than once he was afraid that Markus would lose his balance or flake out on him. But they made it up to the door, and Markus continued to lean on Lucian. He took the knives back, silently slipping them into his pocket.

The simple act of unlocking the door was too difficult for Markus, and a blend of pity and fury crashed through Lucian. He wished heā€™d actually killed the goons now. But instead, he just forced himself to take a deep breath. He didnā€™t know how his hands were so steady as he silently took the keys from Markus and easily opened the door. ā€œWould carrying you in the door just be too much of a grand gesture for your little heart to tolerate?ā€ He teased, but he let Markus lean on him as they stepped inside. Lucian raised an eyebrow.

ā€œNice place. Oh fucking hell, more stairs?ā€ He swore. ā€œRight, Iā€™m drawing a line, youā€™re sleeping on the couch tonight, getting you up and down those stairs will be impossible,ā€ he said, leading Markus to the couch. He dug in his pockets for his usual bottle of painkillers, before realizing that heā€™d forgot to grab them in his hurry of leaving the house. ā€œTell me where you keep your painkillers, you need something to take the edge off, and Iā€™m seriously going to need some in the morning,ā€ he joked. If not just for the inevitable hangover, then for the aftermath of using his abilities so much. ā€œDo you want anything to eat?ā€ He asked as an afterthought.

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Markus couldn't help but grin at his comment of being carried through the door, even if it was painful for him to do so. He only shook his head ever so slightly as he was helped through the door with the aid from Lucian, who only stopped when he saw more stairs. He nodded when Lucian said he'd just sleep on the couch until his wounds were better, and he would be able to make it up the stairs. "I'm sorry.." was all he was able to mumble out as pain began to take over his body, sitting down slowly on the couch he groaned, he was going to be feeling this for a while. He looked up when Lucian asked where his medicine was and gestured to the hallway that led out from the other side of the kitchen, "Down the hall to the right. You can find the bathroom there, it'll be behind the mirror. The mirror acts as a cabinet as well. You'll figure it out, you're smart." he spoke, the last part coming out as more of a whispered remark as he grabbed his ribs as he slowly began to lay down against the couch, trying to alleviate the pain as much as he could.

He listened when Lucian asked if he wanted any food, he could tell he was trying to be nice, but why was his question. If Lucian really was such a bad guy, why did he even care? Not only to check where he was, and to not only go after him, but to also call for help instead of just killing him on the spot when he had the chance to. He could have very easily left him for dead and took the papers from his jacket if that's all that he wanted. Or maybe he was just overthinking things and maybe Lucian was simply just faking as if he cared. Which was probably the case.

"Uhm, I'm out of food right now actually, I think. There might be some leftover sushi in the fridge if you want it. It was from last night so it's still good. Or if you want something else you can just order, there's a pretty good Chinese place that's still open if you would prefer that. I was gonna go and get more stuff in the morning, but that'll have to wait." He said softly as he craned his neck to one side, feeling the muscles in his neck slowly stretch out.

"Also, I'm sorry, Lucian. For what I said back there, at the event. I..I didn't mean any of it and I'm sorry that you thought I was judging you or thinking I'm better than you. To be honest, I didn't think any of those things about you, if I'm being honest. You live the life I could never live. And yes, I don't know what you've gone through, and I'm sorry for whatever it is. truly, I'm sorry. if I wasn't such a fucking idiot I would have made it clearer to you, and look where it ended up getting me? Beaten up and almost murdered in an alleyway...ironic really, with all considering.." he said softly as memories came back to him of his family, and how his parents died more or less in the same way he would have is Lucian hadn't checked his tracker on him. Part of Markus was undeniably thankful for the fact that he came to look for him, but the rest was confused. With fumbling hands, he took the papers and the USB drive out of his jacket and put them on the coffee table in front of him, thankfully due to the covering over the folder they papers were still in perfect condition still. Everything that Lucian would want was right there, and if he wanted those papers, he could easily take them and leave, and Markus was ready for their partnership to end right there if Lucian decided to do so. "Everything you want is right there. Locations, names, addresses, everything." he said as he motioned towards the folder and USB stick that was now in the open.

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LUCIAN MITCHELL
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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Lucian nodded as Markus told him where he kept the painkillers and made his way down to the bathroom. He stopped as he saw his reflection. He was still wearing the mask, the baseball cap throwing his face into shadow. He pulled the mask off and took off the cap, shaking his hair out. Heā€™d always thought he was good at hiding his emotions, but now, without the mask, his expressions seemed to be betraying him. He shook his head and opened the cabinet, digging out the strongest painkillers he could find. They still werenā€™t anywhere near as strong as Markus probably needed, but it might at least take the edge off. He came back in to the main room as Markus detailed what food he had. Lucian shook his head. ā€œIā€™m good, but thanks.ā€ Heā€™d gone over to the small kitchen area to fill two glasses of water when Markus started to apologize for how heā€™d acted.

Lucian couldnā€™t look at Markus. There was so many emotions burning through him, he didnā€™t know how to put a name to any of them. For a moment, Lucian felt like a teenager again. Like the angry, hurt, confused, terrified teenager that heā€™d been so long ago. Any time a shadow had moved when it shouldnā€™t, any time someone who looked like a threat looked at him in the wrong way, heā€™d been struck with this same confusion. Fear but also anger but also a determination never to let it happen again. He took a deep breath and filled the glasses, making himself look as calm as he could manage, before turning around and heading back over to Markus. ā€œYou couldnā€™t have known. I have terrible coping mechanisms and just... choose to party and feel alive instead of... you know, actually dealing with it.ā€ He said with a small shrug and a half smile. ā€œAnd for what itā€™s worth, I was far from gracious. Youā€™re not the only one to blame.ā€

He froze as Markus handed over the papers and the USB stick. This was his chance, his chance to walk away. To leave the hero behind. But he realised something. One, he couldnā€™t do this alone. Theyā€™d been saving each otherā€™s asses since day one, and theyā€™d both probably be dead if they hadnā€™t worked together. Two. This wasnā€™t about them any more. There was kids out there, kids out there like Lucian, like Markus. Nobody was going to protect them. And three. Lucian didnā€™t want to walk away from Markus. That was the one he understood the least.

He just shook his head and handed Markus the glass of water and two painkillers. ā€œAnd what, pass up on the chance to tease you about how I saved your ass? Not likely.ā€ He remarked. ā€œItā€™s gonna take a lot more than a drunken tantrum on my part for you to get rid of me.ā€ He sighed and knocked back two painkillers himself. ā€œThis isnā€™t just about us anymore, Markus. Thereā€™s kids out there... kids like me, who have nobody to stand up for them, nobody to protect them, nobody to save them. If we donā€™t try and stop these people, those kids are next. And Iā€™m not going to let that happen,ā€ Lucian said.

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Markus couldn't help but raise an eyebrow when he saw the look on Lucian's face, it was something he never saw before. It looked like the pure, primal fear someone gets when they're faced with something that makes them go pale in the face. He was going to ask what was wrong until Lucian handed him a glass of water and the pills, easily downing them with the water he listened as Lucian began to speak, taking in the tone in his voice, and how he talked. Everything was so different from how he talked, it wasn't how it was moments before. Had he said something that upset or triggered something inside of Lucian? If that was the case he couldn't help but feel slightly guilty as he listened to Lucian speak.

He nodded silently as Lucian explained that he couldn't have known, due to his unhealthy coping mechanisms and how he'd rather ignore and run away from them than simply deal with them. Markus couldn't have related more, he always chose to run from his problems, no matter how big or small they were. He didn't like confrontation and the thought of confronting his demons terrified him, something that made it somewhat easy for him to relate to Lucian in this instance. Markus looked at Lucian as he mentioned the kids that were involved, and how it wasn't just about them. But people that could be the future and be the turning point for Scarriden, depending how things went if they were rescued or subjected to the same things that they had almost gotten involved in.

Markus nodded, feeling his jaw and hand clench at the thought of it. "I never cared about what happened to me, and I don't now. Especially when it comes to the kids." he said softly as he leaned back in the chair, the medicine slowly kicking in now as he didn't feel as sore as he did moments prior. "We don't have much time to prevent this. We have a little over two weeks, Lucian. I need to get better in that short of time to make sure this doesn't go south. I don't even know if me and you can do this on our own. From the small amount that I read, this could go south very easily. Heavily guarded areas, people everywhere. It could go wrong so very fast, and the last thing we need is casualties with the kids...I'm going to need your help with this, Lucian, I won't be able to do this without you." he spoke with a soft and raspy voice as a small onslaught of a coughing fit hit him, yeah, he definitely had some issues with his lungs now.

"What do you say, Lucian? Ready to team up with me one more time?" he asked with a somewhat outstretched hand, and a small genuine smile on his face. Something about working with Lucian felt...Odd, not in a bad way, they worked well together, but that's what was worrisome to him. But Lucian was the only person he could rely on, and he accepted it, even if it still felt off to him.

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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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There was a part of Lucian that wanted to run away at the thought of this mammoth task. He had no idea how the two of them were going to take down something at this scale. But what other choice did they have? Walking away wasn't an option. Not any more.

Markus' coughing made Lucian frown. Apollo had reassured him that Markus was out of the woods, but it still seemed indicative of some pretty serious internal injury. But he smiled at the question of working together and reached out to grab Markus' hand. "One more time. To saving each other's asses all over again," he said. "And, that takes quite a lot of energy, so I think we could both do with getting some sleep."

He would have been lying if he said that he didn't want to go back to his own apartment to sleep. With the space his head was in right now, he felt as though being somewhere familiar would help. But he wasn't leaving Markus here by himself, and he wasn't risking walking through the streets alone at this hour of night. Staying here was the best option for both of them. "Right, Markus, darling, do you want a blanket? More pillows? I'm at your service, sir," he teased. "And ask for it now, because once I fall asleep, you won't have a chance of waking me up."

Mentally, he was running through his schedule for the next two weeks. Miraculously, he was in a quiet patch for once. The fashion show had been such a mammoth task that his agent had basically forced him to take two weeks off. He had one feature due in a few days time, but for once, his attention wouldn't be divided.

They were going to need every spare hour of those two weeks. Those goons were incredibly strong, and they both needed to refine their abilities to have a hope of standing their ground against them. What Lucian and Markus had against them was the power of strategy. The goons were disorganised, every man fighting for himself. That might be what it took to outsmart them.

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Markus smiled as Lucian accepted the offer of his, and as firmly as he could he gripped his hand, but it still felt fail and slightly trembling as they shook hands in agreement. He could feel exhaustion overtaking him every minute, feeling his body get heavier and heavier. He was barely able to make sure he understood what Lucian was saying, nodding all the while, "Nah, I'll be fine. It doesn't get very cold in here. The room is upstairs, it's a loft, kind of hard to miss it. If you need anything, just look around for it. I'm sure you'll find it, Lucian." he said plainly as he laid down on the couch, slowly bring his legs up and bent his knees, making himself as comfortable as he could as he crossed his arms, bringing them close to his chest. "Goodnight, Luc.." he all but mumbled the last part as sleep easily overtook him, and soon he was fast asleep to whatever dreams awaited him.

He didn't know how long he was asleep until the dreams came. The ones he always had. The memories of his parents' deaths, him being found guilty of murder, everything he had been through since he came to terms with his abilities. His body twitched and spasmed as he slept, which was an all too common occurrence for him, the sleep terrors were anyway. And with the body twitches, so came the sleep talking. Anything from mumbling and incoherent whispers to full-on conversations and yelling, but more often than not, and in this case, it was the incoherent mumblings. The dreams seemed to go on forever until he found himself on the carpeted hardwood floor of his apartment.

Slowly he blinked as he laid there motionless on the floor as the world slowly spun around him, a soft groan came from him as he tried concentrating on where he was. It finally hit him like a semi-truck when he remembered the prior night. He had been walking home when he was jumped and brutally attacked by two men, more than likely connected to the event that they had been a part of. His memory after that was rather hazy, but when he thought more on it he remembered that Lucian had stayed the night and was probably still asleep as the sun was just now starting to come through the curtains of the windows in his apartment. He slowly sat up, feeling everything in his body ring out in pain as he slowly made it to his feet, and slowly shuffled his way to the bathroom.

It was now that he finally got a good look at himself in the mirror, almost jumping back as he didn't recognize his appearance at first. "Jesus fucking christ.." he mumbled, dipping his head down he turned the faucet on and washed his face gently, the water stinging the fresh cuts for a moment until it became more of a healing tingle. He took some more pills and swallowed them without water as he made his way back into the living room, looking at the papers and USB drive he had he thought it would be a good idea to start doing some investigating as it couldn't have been any later than 7am. He opened his computer and after a few minutes of downloading and installing a few fire falls and extra safety precautions, he got to work. He installed the USB drive and got to work on his computer as well as looking over the papers, for anything that could help them as he now had the time to properly study them.

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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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Lucian thought it would feel strange sleeping alone in someone else's bed, but instead, he passed out almost immediately. He'd been expecting nightmares- and he was right. They varied, but they were almost always the same. Being trapped, unable to fight back, waiting for somebody to kill him. Sometimes, he saw faces taunting him. Tonight, he could hear screaming. And no matter how much he fought, how much he struggled, they were always just too far away for him to reach. Lucian didn't talk in his sleep, not unless things were spectacularly bad. Unbeknownst to him, this was one of those nights. His body desperately required rest, but the sheer panic of his mind led him to awake a few hours earlier than he usually would.

When he awoke, it took him a moment to remember where he was and what had happened. And then the pain hit. The migraine that felt like somebody was driving a spike through his brain, the ache in his muscles, the harshness of the light. He somehow managed to drag his ass down the stairs, where Markus was already awake. Incapable of speech at that very moment, Lucian just grabbed the painkillers from where he'd left them on the table, downing two dry, and grabbed the baseball cap he'd been wearing from the night before and pulled it on in an attempt to shield his sensitive eyes from the worst of the light. "Coffee?" He just grumbled at Markus, before making his way over to the small kitchen area.

His whole body ached with the effort of having used his ability the night before, and the hangover and having basically carried Markus up most of those stairs certainly wasn't helping. He needed more sleep, but his mind refused to go back to the place of nightmares. And, besides, they actually needed to get planning. Lucian managed to make himself a cup of coffee and drained it almost in one single go, before pouring himself another.

"Anything useful in there?" He asked, looking over at the hero.

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Markus had been awake for a few hours by the time he heard noises coming from the loft above, alerting him to that Lucian was now awake, a bit earlier than he expected if he was being honest. He expected Lucian to be asleep for a lot longer considering he was still healing from a gunshot wound, as well as a few broken ribs. Not that he was one to talk, especially now considering what happened the prior night. Markus was busy at work as he had studied everything he could see from the data he collected, as well as from the files he collected as well. And what he learned, actually terrified him to the core. He didn't think anything like that was even planned, nevermind by villains, let alone anyone else. He felt his stomach drop at even the thought of what he read.

He looked up when he saw Lucian come down the stairs and go directly for the kitchen, asking if he wanted any coffee. He silently declined as he shook his head, finally stepped away from the computer as he walked over to the windows, which faced towards the middle of the city, wasn't much of a view, but for what it was it was above simply being nice. Markus silently paced back and forth across the room thinking, thinking about what they were going to do about what they discovered. It was until Lucian asked if he found anything that he finally stopped pacing back and forth like a crazed person.

Markus looked up at him silently for a moment and gave him a look he never gave Lucian before, one of primal fear and uncertainty as he finally spoke up, his voice was low and somewhat held a sense of fear as he fumbled for words. "Lucian...They're planning...They're planning on gathering up all the young kids in Scarriden that are like us to...To sell them off to the highest bidder, whoever grants them the highest bid, they get one of the kids. If what is on those papers and on that hard drive is true, we're looking at fifty kids already taken, and counting." Markus' voice went raw as he tried to contain his emotions and feelings of disgust that ran through him.

"Basically, they're planning on auctioning the kids off to some high up scientists and other facilities that will use them for experiments, essentially turning them into their home made weapons and who else knows what. I already knew this happened before, but this is on a much, much larger scale..." Markus said as he covered his mouth with his hand for a moment as he thought. He looked at the papers on the table that were next to the computer and sighed, brushing his hands through his hair once more. "We have two weeks to stop this, or those kids are gone. I don't even know if we could trust anyone else in this. This feels too off and almost like it's being orchestrated by law enforcement. Several of the names belong to at least four of the officers spread throughout the city, and who knows who else is a part of this. We're on our own for this one, and I honestly don't know if we can help them all. The locations are on the papers there, I don't recognize any of them, and everything I pulled up comes to a dead end there. Maybe if you take a look at them you can figure something out?" Markus gestured to the papers and folders behind Lucian. His head began to hurt, not from physical pain, but more so from the primal fear and emptiness, he began to feel as he thought about what was actually going on, and how over their heads they were going with this.

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LUCIAN MITCHELL
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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Lucian knew the moment he saw Markus' expression that this was worse than either of them had imagined. But he couldn't have imagined it was as bad as it was. The minute he mentioned that they were kidnapping kids, it felt like Lucian was going to pass out again. In that moment, he wasn't Maelstrom, he wasn't Lucian Mitchell, he was the scared kid who had been drugged and stolen in the middle of the night, who had screamed himself hoarse in the hope that somebody might hear, who fought back only out of a primal fear of death. And he realised that this mightn't have been the first time that this was happening.

He suddenly became aware of a sharp pain in one hand, and snapped back to reality, discovering that he'd somehow managed to shatter the coffee cup that had been in his hand. A shard had embedded itself into the flesh and the hot coffee burned as he swore to himself and turned to the sink, running cold water over his hand as he carefully pulled out the fragments. He'd missed what Markus had said. His good hand shook as he propped himself up against the counter, feeling as though his whole body was shaking. He forced himself to take a deep breath, trying to slow his heart rate. He was glad that his stomach was empty, because the nausea was almost overwhelming.

"I... I think this happened before," he managed to get out. "About twelve years ago. They... they targeted the homeless kids first." He couldn't look at Markus. "I... I only know of one case. The kid fought back and escaped. But... that's not saying that there wasn't more. I can... I'll have a look at my own case files, see if there's anything." It was then he realised that Markus had said something about law enforcement. "Fucking hell. The cops are supposed to help kids like that, not... not round them up and sell them to the highest bidder," he swore. "They call us the monsters."

"I- I- Markus, I need to head back to my apartment, I need to get changed, I need to grab stuff." He said. In reality, he needed to get the hell out of this apartment before he lost it and trashed everything, either intentionally or unintentionally. "I'll be back in, I dunno, half an hour? Call me if you need anything," he said, zipping up his hoodie and pulling the cap low over his face.

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Markus could easily tell what he said had an immense affect on Lucian. With his face paling, his body language drastically changing, and from how his voice sounded, he could tell Lucian was scared by what he told him. How the reality of the situation on him had such a powerful impact, Markus knew that Lucian wasn't entirely bad. At least not deep down or when it came to kids, something that was slightly endearing about him. But that wasn't the time for him to think on that. Markus listened and nodded as Lucian spoke, listening to everything he had to say and his stance and opinion on what Lucian thought, albeit with how sparatic his comments were in the moment. He watched as Lucian gathered his things and said he'd be back later, and that he needed to get a few things.

He stood up and looked at Lucian with clear worry on his face, "Be safe, Lucian. I'll do what more investigating I can later. While you're gone I'll get some food and supplies, seeing as we'll be camping out here more often than not. I'll see you soon, Lucian." he said as he finally watched Lucian walk off after some more words were exchanged. Quickly Markus gathered the papers and folders, as well as the hard drive, and whiped what was on his computer, making sure there were no ways of tracking his location. He hid them in a secret safe in his apartment, hiding his computer in another spot as well, wasn't going to be careless and have it in the same spot.

Markus grabbed a hat and sunglasses as well and left to the nearest supermarket for some funk food and simple pain medication, and some drinks. He'd order food for later when Lucian got back so it'd be as good as it could be. He made a few more painful trips to some more stores, but he was all too quickly done and back at his apartment. He put all of the snacks and drinks and pain medication on the counter, and sat back down on the couch, giving himself a moment to rest before Lucian got back to the apartment and they could work on their plans a bit more. He thought for a moment, and pulled out his pc again, and did some digging. He was curious was Lucian had taken it so personally, and after a bit of digging he figured out why.

According to some articles and papers, when Lucian was younger he was forced from place to place, never finding a good home or permanent place to stay. At least that was until he became a well-known villain over the years who donned himself as Maelstrom. Markus sat back and everything made sense. Lucian didn't have a good upbringing, and neither did he. He was left alone to fend for himself in a fucked-up world such as their's, and it made sense. No wonder why he would be so hate-filled and angry. It would only be natural. And part of Markus couldn't help but feel sorry for him, as part of him felt like he could understand and connect with some of Lucian's struggles.

But that wasn't for the time for this, and he knew that. He'd need to make sure that they could find the people responsible for this, and get the kids out of there before anything happened to them.

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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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The light from outside hit his eyes and Lucian squinted, wincing a little at the sudden worsening of his migraine. He'd initially planned on walking, but suddenly felt like his legs mightn't have held him up the whole way. So instead he flagged down a passing taxi and kept his head down. He knew that his reaction had to have given him away to Markus, revealed that he wasn't as cold, as difficult to upset, as he'd wanted to seem. Every cell in his body screamed at him for giving that away, for revealing the only chink in his armour. It was a weakness, one Markus could exploit if he wanted. But Lucian felt like Markus wouldn't do that. He seemed like a genuinely good guy. And Lucian wasn't sure how he felt about that. Despite how inebriated he'd been the previous night, the events after leaving his apartment were crystal clear, and thinking about them made the nausea worsen. Seeing Markus in that state-

The taxi driver suddenly pulled to a halt and announced that they were at their destination. Lucian handed over the money and slipped back into his apartment. He couldn't think about that right now. He went straight to the bathroom, downing two more painkillers and one of the anxiety pills he'd... acquired for days like this, when things were bad. He quickly showered and changed into something that felt a little more Lucian Mitchell. But even still, as the pills started to kick in and take the edge off the worst of the pain, Lucian couldn't quite pull himself together.

He had killed his kidnapper. The police had found where Lucian had been kept, and there, they found his body from where Lucian had panicked and repeatedly attacked the man. That had been case closed. It had been as close to closure as Lucian was ever going to get. And now the stitches had been ripped open all over again, and it had been worse than Lucian had even imagined.

He sank his head into his hands. He needed to face this. He needed to be there, and he needed to be present to make sure that this didn't happen to anyone else. He felt that familiar spark burn in his chest, and let himself exhale slowly, feeling it bloom until it cleared his head. He knew what he needed to do.

He got to his feet and grabbed a bag, throwing his laptop into it and digging out what little paper files he kept around the place. Pulling on some sunglasses, he mentally braced himself and waltzed out of the apartment. Even as terrible as he felt, despite the pounding in his head, he made himself walk to Markus' apartment. A few people recognised him, but he embraced that, posing for pictures. The media pressure was off for now. It was always the worst right before a big event as the world began to pay attention, but Lucian was a relatively small fish in a huge pond. There was always someone else just as interesting. It was how he'd avoided anyone finding out before that.

He swanned back into Markus's apartment building, knocking boldly on the door and waltzing right back in. It was as much an act to make him feel better as it was an act for when he was in public. "Right, Markus, darling, are you ready to get to work?" He asked as he made his way back over to the couch. "There's a case I think you need to read, it's the case file from twelve years ago. Read it all before you say anything or come to any decisions." Facing this head on was terrifying. But maybe getting Markus on board to help him face it would make things a little less terrifying. Lucian's surname was different at the time, back before he'd taken Mitchell after the last good foster family he'd had, but there was details in the file that made it pretty damn clear who it was. He opened up the casefile from his kidnapping and passed the laptop to Markus.

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Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux- | Outfit
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Markus had been back at his place for roughly ten to fifteen minutes when he heard the knock on the door, it didn't take him much to know who it was. With how the knock sounded and that he heard it before, he easily let Lucian back in without even really having to look to see who it was. He sat back down on the couch as Lucian stepped in, sitting next to him, leaving about a foot or two of the distance between them he nodded when Lucian asked if he was ready to do more reading and that there was one more case for him to read.

His eyebrow first quirked when he looked at the article, it was about a kidnapping that happened twelve years ago. What he read made him feel sicker than what he read in those notes. Maybe not worse, but damn well close to it. He was able to put two and two together, the article was about Lucian. The same Lucian was sitting right next to him. He took a deep breath and began to get completely focused into the article, taking in every little bit of information, not leaving anything out, not even the smallest detail. Once he was finally done, he slowly lifted his head up and looked away from the laptop and slowly stood up. All the while his expression never changed, nor did he even make a sound. His mind was working overtime with this. He was piecing together every little detail in all that he read.

From the information and documents on the hard drive, and papers, to what he just read from the article that Lucian had him read. There were too many details that were identical, it seemed almost too identical. But there were no such things as coincidences in Scarriden. It had to be the same people. Their main objective was the same, what they did and were going to do to the kids were hauntingly similar. He couldn't help it when he felt his stomach almost quite literally drop when he realized what they may have been dealing with, and what might be on their hands. They really were over their heads in this, and that's what scared him the most.

Finally, he turned back to look at Lucian, a solemn and almost heartbroken look overtook his face as he spoke, "I...I think it might be, Lucian..." he started, his voice seeming more solemn and down than usual. " There are too many things that happened in that case, and what's possibly going to happen to these kids if we aren't careful. What I'm trying to say is, I think it's the same thing that happened to you all over again, Lucian. I can't say I know it for a fact, but it's too likely not to be. Or there could just be a lot of sick fucks out there, but I really do think it's the same people from before...And I'm sorry, Lucian...You shouldn't have to go back to that mindset or place, but, what I'm asking is that you still help. I know it'll be hard to go back to that kind of place and time in your life. But, The only one that can really help them is you, Lucian. Otherwise, I won't be able to do this on my own..." Markus said with a saddened tone in his voice as he spoke. It honestly made him feel guilty and bad about having to bring Lucian into this situation again, but with him having survived, as well as him being the only other one that knew about this, as well as the only one that Markus could really trust, he had no other choice but to ask for Lucian's help. Whatever Lucian needed with this, Markus would oblige and do the best he could. He understood how hard this would be for Lucian, as he too had his own demons to overcome, but that wasn't what this was about. It was about kids, innocent kids that could be turned into war machines and weapons, or experiments, and he wasn't going to let that happen, not if Lucian could help him anyway.

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Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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LUCIAN MITCHELL
the villain - 2d2a2f - outfit
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xxi can take all that you can give
xxitā€™s survival of the sickest
xxi am not afraid, bring the pain
xxwhat doesnā€™t kill me makes me vicious

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As Markus read the file, Lucian found himself completely unable to just sit and wait. He found himself pacing around the apartment, once again glad that he couldnā€™t bite his nails. Otherwise, they would have been bitten almost raw. Instead, he found himself playing with his hair, checking for non-existent split ends, doing anything that might temporarily distract him. He took one look at Markusā€™ face as the hero got to his feet and knew that heā€™d come to the same conclusion that Lucian had. This was happening again. It hadnā€™t ended with Lucian.

For a moment, he felt himself slipping back into blind panic. He couldnā€™t do it again, couldnā€™t face it. But he forced himself to take a breath and focus on Markus for a moment or two as the hero spoke. He let the hero finish before he spoke, slowly walking over to look out the window. He sighed.

ā€œCan I tell you something, Markus? Something Iā€™ve never told anyone before?ā€ He asked, but it wasnā€™t a question to be answered. ā€œIā€™m fucking terrified. Last time, I nearly broke myself trying to escape. I donā€™t want to go back there. But...ā€ he turned to look at the hero. ā€œLast time, I didnā€™t have a single living soul on my side. Nobody came looking because there was nobody there to look. I had to save myself because nobody else would. And... donā€™t get me wrong, youā€™re a pain in the ass sometimes. Youā€™re a little self righteous and frankly, you could do with taking a chill pill sometimes. But I know you have my back. And... I trust you. This time... this time it will be different. It has to be different. But I know you have my back. And thereā€™s gonna be somebody looking out for those kids. I donā€™t care if I have to cram every single one of them into my apartment, I refuse to let this happen again. Iā€™ll kill every single bastard involved if I have to.ā€ Focusing on his anger made him feel in control again. ā€œIā€™m stronger now. Okay, admittedly, so theyā€™re pretty damn strong as well. But we can train. Build up our stamina. We have an upper hand because we know their plans. Just... stick with me. Because I am so... so goddamn terrified that I will break again, and that I will never get any of it back. But even if I have to claw out their eyes with my goddamn hands, I refuse to let them win.ā€

His voice cracked at one stage, but his tone was otherwise steady and low, running on pure anger.

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Character Portrait: Lucian Mitchell Character Portrait: Markus "Shadowfaux" Vasco
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MARKUS VASCO
-Shadowfaux- | Outfit
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Markus listened as Lucian finally spoke, knowing full well that Lucian wasn't going to wait for him to answer him, but now hearing how his emotions slightly got the best of him, ones of anger, fear, and sadness were clear. He nodded as Lucian said that he was scared, he could understand that, and to be honest he was scared shitless about this whole thing. The fact that it never ended after Lucian left, it caused chills to run through his veins.

He understood that Lucian was now putting his full trust in Markus, understanding that he never had anyone else to rely on or trust, no one to turn to, no one to help him. He was just alone. By himself, seeing as the world was against him, and that no one cared. Markus nodded, feeling more of himself understanding and relating to Lucian. He too once felt alone and scared, and to be honest, it's how he too felt.

He remained silent all the while, but he let his emotions show on his face, letting Lucian know that he was truly listening, and taking in everything he said. He couldn't help but give a small chuckle when he commented on him being a pain in Lucian's ass, as well as being "self rightous" and a bit of a prick. He crossed his arms and leaned against the window of his apartment. "You have me now, Lucian. I'm not going anywhere, and I don't plan on letting these kids end up in the same place you did. You never deserved it, no one does.." he said with clear sadness in his voice.

Markus gently placed his hand on Lucian's shoulder as he spoke, "I understand how you feel in all of this, Lucian. I can never understand or relate in what happened to you...But I know what it's like to be scared, and alone, and feeling like no one was there for you. After my parents were murdered, I felt alone and scared, and that I had no one to turn to. We'll help these kids, and I'll do what I can to help you take these bastards down, even if we have to do it bare handed."