(original: http://simplehouse.sakura.ne.jp/game/bl30/bl30a.jpg)
As much as she tries to hide it, Nikki has hauntingly beautiful looks. The natural elven grace combined with the human vitality make for a dynamic 5 foot 3, 130 pound blonde with deep green eyes, large breasts and a slim waist.
-
RPG
-
About RPG »
-
RPG is a community of over 100,000 roleplayers from all around the world.
We build virtual worlds.
-
- Our Rules
- Writing Tool
- 👥 Authors
- 🥇 Achievements
-
₿ Contribute
- Official Patreon »
-
Donate Now with Internet Money
Clicking the code below will launch your Bitcoin wallet, or you can simply scan it with your mobile wallet. Don't have one? Install Copay »
3BZssGaw5HJEeZPhQDR3ExSqfSn1sFWb46
- 👻 Etherpad
- 🏦 Market
- 🎙️ News
-
About RPG »
- ☰ Scenes
- 🏛️ Forum
- 📣 Chat
- 🌐 Universes
- ⛩️ Places
Announcements: Cutting Costs (2024) » January 2024 Copyfraud Attack » Finding Universes to Join (and making yours more visible!) » Guide To Universes On RPG » Member Shoutout Thread » Starter Locations & Prompts for Newcomers » RPG Chat — the official app » Frequently Asked Questions » Suggestions & Requests: THE MASTER THREAD »
Latest Discussions: Adapa Adapa's for adapa » To the Rich Men North of Richmond » Shake Senora » Good Morning RPG! » Ramblings of a Madman: American History Unkempt » Site Revitalization » Map Making Resources » Lost Poetry » Wishes » Ring of Invisibility » Seeking Roleplayer for Rumple/Mr. Gold from Once Upon a Time » Some political parody for these trying times » What dinosaur are you? » So, I have an Etsy » Train Poetry I » Joker » D&D Alignment Chart: How To Get A Theorem Named After You » Dungeon23 : Creative Challenge » Returning User - Is it dead? » Twelve Days of Christmas »
Players Wanted: Long-term fantasy roleplay partners wanted » Serious Anime Crossover Roleplay (semi-literate) » Looking for a long term partner! » JoJo or Mha roleplay » Seeking long-term rp partners for MxM » [MxF] Ruining Beauty / Beauty x Bastard » Minecraft Rp Help Wanted » CALL FOR WITNESSES: The Public v Zosimos » Social Immortal: A Vampire Only Soiree [The Multiverse] » XENOMORPH EDM TOUR Feat. Synthe Gridd: Get Your Tickets! » Aishna: Tower of Desire » Looking for fellow RPGers/Characters » looking for a RP partner (ABO/BL) » Looking for a long term roleplay partner » Explore the World of Boruto with Our Roleplaying Group on FB » More Jedi, Sith, and Imperials needed! » Role-player's Wanted » OSR Armchair Warrior looking for Kin » Friday the 13th Fun, Anyone? » Writers Wanted! »
Nikki Oceantide
A half-elf witch with mastery of nature-based magic, she was kidnapped from her academy before her training was complete, and thereafter sexually abused by her captors before a dramatic escape.
0 · 2,919 views · located in 
Purgatory
a character in “The Multiverse”, as played by LawOfTheLand
Description
Personality
Nikki has learned to be naturally suspicious of most people before trusting them, for anyone can be an agent of the knights who captured and exploited her in the first place. She avoids giving anything away about such things as where she's going, except to people who need to know such things. This natural suspicion makes her well suited for information-gathering missions.
Equipment
Nikki has learned to wield a spear with some proficiency, but not to the extent that a dedicated fighter might. She tends to travel heavily for a mage, with multiple changes of clothes (the better to disguise her appearance), and each of her robes offers protections from different sorts of weather.
Blue - No matter the heavy rain, she's just fine. Even drowning in flood waters is no threat.
White - Snowstorms and the related dangers are of little concern. A little chilly, but it's better than snow blindness. Hail is still a thing, though.
Red - Resist dehydration and extremely high temperatures while still remaining fashionable.
Green - Weighted hems make this the perfect garment for blustery days.
Her powers are severely hampered when indoors due to a lack of access to the elements from which she draws her power.
Disguise kit: More than just a simple makeup set, this is every girl's best friend, with wigs, props, and accessories to look whatever part is desired, even gimmicks like double-sided clothes. Not as good as a closet full of the latest designer fashions, but it's portable.
History
Nikki was a promising student at the Academy, when a raid was conducted by an order of knights intent on wiping out the next generation of what they considered to be a corrupt organization that cared only for money and not for the safety of "innocents." Nikki managed to talk her way out of being executed outright, but her days were soon filled with torture and rape. Her magic got stronger as she got older, and one day she blasted her way to freedom. The knights have pursued her ever since.
This soon grew into quite a talent for not being found.
So begins...
Nikki Oceantide's Story
Nikki let out a soft sigh. Given how easily that wind was dispelled, she was more than a little worried about how she would fare in a one on one match, especially seeing that the powerful wards were taken down in so little time. She sent a message via whispering wind to anyone still in the Academy: We are under attack. Move all valuables out of the library and get any students not trained in combat to safety. Anyone else, squad up. Even the Headmistress would be loath to take this guy by herself.
"Swordmistress! Together we will be more than a match for this madman! Allow me to lend you my aid!" Coordination was necessary in any successful boss fight, after all.
"Swordmistress! Together we will be more than a match for this madman! Allow me to lend you my aid!" Coordination was necessary in any successful boss fight, after all.
His face lit be the lava, he took half a second to admire the dangerously beautiful lava fall on the library as it burned and melted the bricks, only adding to it's bulk.
Mud and groundshaking. All cute tactics he had seen many times before, and given his low stance, one he was well equipped to handle.
Kiriko grumbled something and raised her hand, the ground broke apart under Alam's feet as water and steam flew in a cyclone at the burning library walls around Nikki from a busted water main. "First you wake me up rudely, then you burn my sleeping place." Kiriko wasnt happy.
She smiled however hearing the words of the other defender, Raising her sword towards Alam in a ready stance she spoke, her words carried on the wind for Nikki to hear clearly "Agreed, devide and conquor ?" With Nikki being a wind mage, their words could only be heard by each other
With that she shifted, slightly, what had to at once point been beautiful armor of strange make but over the ages become rusted yet amazingly still usible and workable. It started with her skin, shifting to metal, then her clothing fading away to reveal the rusted armor underneath, but with each movement of her body it flowed as if it were her.
The liquid fire sprang along her sword blade a second time as she advanced on Alam. As she moved a helmet in all its rusted out glory formed on her face as she stepped towards Alam through the lava. Licks of magical flame biting at her clothing, bathing her rusted out armor in a unearthly light, sword at the ready
She smiled however hearing the words of the other defender, Raising her sword towards Alam in a ready stance she spoke, her words carried on the wind for Nikki to hear clearly "Agreed, devide and conquor ?" With Nikki being a wind mage, their words could only be heard by each other
With that she shifted, slightly, what had to at once point been beautiful armor of strange make but over the ages become rusted yet amazingly still usible and workable. It started with her skin, shifting to metal, then her clothing fading away to reveal the rusted armor underneath, but with each movement of her body it flowed as if it were her.
The liquid fire sprang along her sword blade a second time as she advanced on Alam. As she moved a helmet in all its rusted out glory formed on her face as she stepped towards Alam through the lava. Licks of magical flame biting at her clothing, bathing her rusted out armor in a unearthly light, sword at the ready
Nikki cursed in Elvish at Kiriko's ham-handed approach. Plus, that was a LOT of lava. A water cyclone was just as likely to fling it everywhere as it was to put out the fires on the rampart. Her job was to limit collateral damage and protect the academy while Kiriko focused on the battle. Spreading her legs and assuming a horse stance, Nikki lifted her arms to the sky. She was better at moving weather than earth, but covering up the lava was the best move here to limit the spread of destruction in less time.
"Dammit, it's not working." Alam's spells were too powerful for her to unravel, plus as a conjuration effect the lava was already here...dispelling wouldn't do her any good here. But there was one thing she could do. Commanding the water from the burst pipe and mixing it with the nearby topsoil from the gardens, Nikki was able to make a sort of clay to cover the massive conflagration and hopefully even move Alam into stabby range through the power of moving the earth under his feet. Either he would be forced to take to the sky and be subject to the winds of the cyclone, or he'd be drawn into a range too close for comfort.
Use your sword, mistress. I will do what I can to mitigate the damage his spells do, but he cannot hope to stand against you in close quarters.
"Dammit, it's not working." Alam's spells were too powerful for her to unravel, plus as a conjuration effect the lava was already here...dispelling wouldn't do her any good here. But there was one thing she could do. Commanding the water from the burst pipe and mixing it with the nearby topsoil from the gardens, Nikki was able to make a sort of clay to cover the massive conflagration and hopefully even move Alam into stabby range through the power of moving the earth under his feet. Either he would be forced to take to the sky and be subject to the winds of the cyclone, or he'd be drawn into a range too close for comfort.
Use your sword, mistress. I will do what I can to mitigate the damage his spells do, but he cannot hope to stand against you in close quarters.
Alam carefully rebalanced and took in what he had done to the library. The lava, even with their attempts to put it out, had managed to gut a good chunk of the building, and what was left was burning beautifully. That many books would require a much more directed stream to put them out than slinging water about haphazardly. While taking over the school would have been nice, it was low priority in the grand scheme of things. Still, the library destroyed would make it difficult for the mages to learn here, and he was reasonably certain no one had died. That would please Matu, when she heard the news. She always did care about the lives of those less than her.
The clay mixture was inconvenient, but it was the work of a thought and magic to be standing on top of it, anchored to the more solid ground underneath. Bored of these two defenders, he ended it. Unfortunately, Matu was sure to be disappointed with him for this one, but they had attacked him, after all, and that certainly changed the rules of engagement.
He held up his hand to his lip, formed a loose ‘o’ with his fingers and breathed. A billowing yellow-brown cloud flowed from his hand, heavy in his magic, held down by his will, unmoving in the wind. It smelled of mustard, perhaps with a hint of horseradish, and it flowed over the battlefield, forming a dense cloud easily seven feet high, and 40 feet wide. Those exposed to it would find it hard to breath as blisters would rapidly form in their lungs, the beginnings of them on their skin making movement painful within minutes. The blisters in the lungs though would take all of thirty seconds to take effect.
It was a deadly attack, that lingered, causing chemical burns hours after it’s victims assumed they had washed it away. He had heard of a modern version of his attack, or more modern at least. They called it Mustard Gas, a cute term for an ancient, yet once forgotten attack.
The clay mixture was inconvenient, but it was the work of a thought and magic to be standing on top of it, anchored to the more solid ground underneath. Bored of these two defenders, he ended it. Unfortunately, Matu was sure to be disappointed with him for this one, but they had attacked him, after all, and that certainly changed the rules of engagement.
He held up his hand to his lip, formed a loose ‘o’ with his fingers and breathed. A billowing yellow-brown cloud flowed from his hand, heavy in his magic, held down by his will, unmoving in the wind. It smelled of mustard, perhaps with a hint of horseradish, and it flowed over the battlefield, forming a dense cloud easily seven feet high, and 40 feet wide. Those exposed to it would find it hard to breath as blisters would rapidly form in their lungs, the beginnings of them on their skin making movement painful within minutes. The blisters in the lungs though would take all of thirty seconds to take effect.
It was a deadly attack, that lingered, causing chemical burns hours after it’s victims assumed they had washed it away. He had heard of a modern version of his attack, or more modern at least. They called it Mustard Gas, a cute term for an ancient, yet once forgotten attack.
No.
No.
This couldn't be. Nikki had to risk shouting it out loud.
"Get out of there! It's poison!"
The weather witch had to end it now. And maybe, just maybe, she had a way to do it. The lava under her hastily made earth cap was still seething and bubbling under the earthen equivalent of thin ice. Gesturing powerfully upward, Nikki took advantage of the fact that she forgot to put a vent on top of the wet clay to create a massive steam eruption, blowing the cap off in the explosion. Up on the ramparts she was afforded a modest amount of protection, but Kiriko and Alam wouldn't be so lucky as the 60-foot pool of lava was exposed once more.
Perhaps the pressure wave would cause the mustard gas to spread farther than intended. But this bastard needed to die.
No.
This couldn't be. Nikki had to risk shouting it out loud.
"Get out of there! It's poison!"
The weather witch had to end it now. And maybe, just maybe, she had a way to do it. The lava under her hastily made earth cap was still seething and bubbling under the earthen equivalent of thin ice. Gesturing powerfully upward, Nikki took advantage of the fact that she forgot to put a vent on top of the wet clay to create a massive steam eruption, blowing the cap off in the explosion. Up on the ramparts she was afforded a modest amount of protection, but Kiriko and Alam wouldn't be so lucky as the 60-foot pool of lava was exposed once more.
Perhaps the pressure wave would cause the mustard gas to spread farther than intended. But this bastard needed to die.
Wait... what ? Poison ?!
"Ack!!"
Now she was blinded for real. Her eyes burned, her lungs throbbed for air that continued to burn her throat and eyes. Blindly she stumbled, albiet briefly backwards, blinking rapidly as her eyes turned tpo m,ist, anything to kill the burning blinding fire of the poison she'd gotten full brunt into her face.
Kiriko stumbled backwards right into the gyser that Nikki had formed, Old Faithful indeed helped... a little bit.
Fire with fire eye ? OK, she Kiriko could do that indeed! Using the steam she redirected it directly at Alam with one hand while the other went to her mouth as she coughed madly to get the pison out of her lunges which burned as if on fire. Kirikoo blasted the steam at wave of poison gas. her eyes barely able to focus fro mthe burning feeling she saw six of Alam before her, and spread the arc of the steam wide to try and encompass the guy in her steam wave.
But now she really couldnt see a thing, her eyes burned as if on fire.
"Ack!!"
Now she was blinded for real. Her eyes burned, her lungs throbbed for air that continued to burn her throat and eyes. Blindly she stumbled, albiet briefly backwards, blinking rapidly as her eyes turned tpo m,ist, anything to kill the burning blinding fire of the poison she'd gotten full brunt into her face.
Kiriko stumbled backwards right into the gyser that Nikki had formed, Old Faithful indeed helped... a little bit.
Fire with fire eye ? OK, she Kiriko could do that indeed! Using the steam she redirected it directly at Alam with one hand while the other went to her mouth as she coughed madly to get the pison out of her lunges which burned as if on fire. Kirikoo blasted the steam at wave of poison gas. her eyes barely able to focus fro mthe burning feeling she saw six of Alam before her, and spread the arc of the steam wide to try and encompass the guy in her steam wave.
But now she really couldnt see a thing, her eyes burned as if on fire.
Between the steam and his poisonous cloud, Alam was well hidden. With a chuckle, he dodged the poorly aimed geyser and the more directed wave from Kiriko. Hm, that was much worse aim than she had previously shown. He hadn't expected that. Still, one last distraction should keep his back safe, assuming the girl in the sky could see to attack, and he quietly drew his pal open, facing away from him, across his chest. Immediately, six copies appeared.
All seven Alam's took off, running out. The real Alam headed for the exit, of course, but the others mirrored his moves, seven prongs all identical as they moved as if around the center of a circle, each equidistant from the others as they moved out.
He considered this an excellent success, and no doubt the reports of the gas would only add to the fear others may have of him. He'd have to build that up again, it seemed. Even rumors of his existence had faded, and that wouldn't do.
All seven Alam's took off, running out. The real Alam headed for the exit, of course, but the others mirrored his moves, seven prongs all identical as they moved as if around the center of a circle, each equidistant from the others as they moved out.
He considered this an excellent success, and no doubt the reports of the gas would only add to the fear others may have of him. He'd have to build that up again, it seemed. Even rumors of his existence had faded, and that wouldn't do.
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
XX Briar Harvent
"What if we just... ran away?" "What do you mean? Run away from what?" "What if we ran away from this place? They're using us, well, you. So what if we just, you know... left." xx
Briar looks at Oscar with a little flurry of thoughts twirling about in his head. A part of him wants to think this is just a joke. After all, Oscar isn't exactly known for taking things seriously. Another part of him is rapidly weighing out all the possible outcomes of actually leaving, or, well, trying to leave. He's never once heard of anyone just up and leaving an Institute, and that's the kind of rumor he thinks would spread through the ranks like a wildfire in dry grass. And still another part of him, a very quiet, hidden part of him, is already constructing a plan to leave the Institute alive. xx
"What if we did?" Briar asks, voice low. He knows what will happen if they're caught discussing this. "What would we do then? Where would we go?" Oscar huffs and appears to be pouting, to which Briar just rolls his eyes. He does realize that he... didn't really answer Oscar's original question, just threw a different question right back at him. "Well, I have my family. I could go see my little sister. Then, we could just... be together. All of us." He says, very matter-of-factly. xx
Briar thinks about the word family and what it means. The Institute leaders, the Head- surely they are what he can consider family. Could he leave them behind? Yes, he thinks. I could. But if we get caught, what will they think? What will they do?I'm already in trouble often enough just for- Briar shoves the thought deep down, the thought that if he weren't friends with Oscar, if he just ignored the kid like he did everyone else, the leaders would never scold him. But he knows he could never ignore Oscar- not after eight years. It would be like ignoring his own conscience. xx
"They would never let us leave. The leaders would find out about our plans, catch us on our way out, hunt us down- we already get punished enough because you can't seem to take orders." He knows it's a low blow, and Briar instantly regrets it when he sees Oscar stiffen. "Don't you see? That's the point. We're not robots, we should make our own choices, Briar!" He says, almost shouting but not quite. "Besides, with all the training they've given us, we have exactly what we need to escape. All of us. Our squad, we're family, and we need to look out for each other. Together we can do anything!" And then Oscar's eyes are on him- bright, determined, piercing straight into his soul like an arrow to the heart. Briar is mesmerized. xx
Briar still doubts. He still doubts Oscar, doubts their abilities, doubts himself. But those eyes are bearing down on him and even he doesn't have the will to disobey. Not Oscar Wilson. "... okay." xx
XX ❋
Oscar's argument is sound to their squadmate's ears, and before long, all three of them - Whistle, Walker, and Whirlpool - are latched onto Oscar's every word. Briar feels comforted that they all agree with Oscar's idea, and he also feels an immense anxiety. Escaping with five people is going to be much more conspicuous than if it were only two, and if they get caught, the consequences will be more dire. But Briar knows Oscar wouldn't leave without them, couldn't abandon them. xxx
Their plan forms through everyone's contributions, and they go to sleep with their minds filled to the brim, running through their roles and simmering with both excitement and, most likely, dread. xx
XX ❋
The evening before their escape is to take place, Briar finds himself unable to sleep. He knows he needs the rest, but his mind is racing, running through every detail of their plan and swirling out of control with anxiety. Their chances of success are slim, so very slim, yet they have to try. Have to, because Oscar asked them to. Because Oscar called them his family- something that is so very precious to him. There's a weight in Briar's chest that is becoming familiar, a weight he has no idea how to place, and it only grows heavier when quiet footsteps move toward him in the dark. xx
He knows it's Oscar even before a finger prods him in the shoulder, and he shifts over in his bunk without a word, making room for Oscar to crawl under the covers with him. He rolls over to face his friend and can barely see the outline of his face in the dim lighting. Briar offers up his hand. xx
Oscar takes the offering in his own hand and instantly, his voice is echoing in Briar's head. Can you promise me something? Briar questions what the promise is. Silence. He closes his eyes, lets the warmth of Oscar's body wash over him, the familiar comfort of having someone so close. Out of nowhere, another feeling washes over him like a waterfall- fear. Oscar's fear. It catches Briar completely off guard and he grips Oscar's hand just a little tighter. I'm scared. The voice in his head says, and Briar knows. If I fail, protect them. My family. And Briar understands, for once. xx
Briar has power in his ability, and Oscar has power in his voice. Together, they make the perfect soldier. And. whatever happens tomorrow, Briar must protect Oscar's family. His family. Whether the word 'family' means their squad or Oscar's parents and sister doesn't matter. Briar can feel his companion's fear and knows Oscar can feel his. They're both scared, scared of failing, scared of succeeding and not knowing what to do next. And Briar's willing to bet the others are scared, too. xx
"I promise. I promise to protect our family. No matter what." He whispers the words aloud, to make the promise more real, more true. But you won't fail. I promise I won't let you fail, Oscar. xx
XX ❋
Briar hears the gunshot before he's made it to treeline, hears a garbled scream- Maximus. But he can't bear to stop and look, can't bear to watch his friend fall. Seconds later, another gunshot rings out, hitting Adriel this time, and Briar's vision becomes clogged with tears. There's screaming and gunshots and the familiar sounds of Matthias fighting someone- everyone- anyone to protect the others. Briar can feel Oscar at his side, can hear his breathing, and he doubts. He doubts that they'll make it. They've lost three of their squadmates, and the treeline that will conceal them is still several meters away, and the leaders are shooting at them, possibly killing them- and he's- xxxx
One more gunshot rings out. Oscar screams, falls, fails. Briar keeps running while the pact they'd made that morning plays on repeat in his mind- " No matter who falls, keep running. Don't stop." xx
Briar slows, looks back. Maximus is crying out in pain, blood seeping out of a hole in his shoulderblade. Adriel is struggling against a leader's grip while another leader seemingly digs the bullet out of her side. Matthias is still fighting, but it's clear he won't last. And Oscar, his Oscar- tackled to the ground and staring right at him, right into his soul with that desperate, determined light in his eyes even as the leaders crush him, he's not even that far away, Briar can help him- xxx
Keep going. You promised. The words pound into him and Briar stumbles back, shocked. There's no time to contemplate it, no time to congratulate Oscar's evolution in telepathy, no time to even respond. Briar turns, leaves. He keeps going, because he did promise. He promised he'd keep running even if the others fell, he promised he would keep Oscar's family safe if he didn't make it. xx
He also promised that Oscar would make it. He promised, there in the dark, to not let Oscar fail. xxx
There are more gunshots, but Briar is at the treeline, and he ducks into the forest with a terrible pain in his chest that grows every second. He forces himself to compartmentalize, shoves down his thoughts of going back, of being able to help his squad. He can't break this promise to Oscar. xx
(The other promise, that late-night, now-broken promise, will haunt him for many years to come.) xx
XX five years later
Briar blinks his eyes open and stares up at the white ceiling above him. There's just enough light seeping through the window blinds to illuminate a long crack running from just above his head to just above his torso- a product of a nightmare and a lot of violent thrashing on his part. He drags a hand across his face and rubs the gunk out of his eyes, forcing his sight to stop being blurry, then carefully sits up. He has to slouch to keep his head from bumping the ceiling and Briar wonders why he's still stuck on a top bunk when his roommate is more than half his height. Speaking of... xx
Briar leans through the opening for the ladder and peers down at Cedar. The kid has thrown his blankets onto the floor in the night, one foot is tangled in his pillowcase, and he's somehow flipped around so that his head is where his feet would normally be. Definitely not a peaceful sleeper, but a deep one nonetheless. Briar smiles to himself and climbs down, tiptoeing outside. xx
The windows are open in the hallway and Briar squints against the light. It's raining outside, just a sprinkle, but the sky is bright despite the cloud cover. Interesting, how rain can be like that. He heads down the hall and into the sitting room, where Maia and Aiden are sat on the sofa reading together. They're snuggled up close and Briar smiles. Maia looks up when he walks in. "Good morning, dear. Are the boys still sleeping?" She asks, referring to Cedar and Nick. Briar shrugs. "Cedar's definitely still out cold, but I don't know about Nick. I don't think he ever sleeps. " xx
Everyone laughs at that, and Briar heads for the kitchen. Maia and Aiden go back to reading while he makes himself breakfast- since they all have such shit sleep schedules, no one really eats together, except on the rare occasion they're all home and hungry at the same time. Nick comes wandering into the kitchen with a laptop in hand about half an hour later and tries to steal some of Briar's leftover fried rice, and they battle with forks for a few moments before Nick freaks about food getting on his computer and moves farther away. Nick pouts and Briar blankly flips him off. xx
"Children, stop fighting!" Maia calls, glaring at them from the couch while Aiden giggles. "Briar, can you go wake Cedar up? He's got a mission review in an hour and I'll be getting the piss if he's late." She asks. Briar mumbles a yes around his last mouthful of food and carries his dishes to the sink. Nick tries to trip on his way back out of the kitchen and Briar smacks him over the head in return, ignoring Maia's half-assed scolding as Nick practically screams in 'agony.' xx
Cedar is flipped into a different-but-just-as-uncomfortable-looking position when Briar walks into their room, and his snoring is even louder on account of his face being pressed into the mattress. Briar presses the back of his hand to Cedar's cheek and the kid's eyes instantly shoot open, giving Briar exactly .04 seconds to back the fuck off and avoid a 5'0 ball of fury directed right at him. xxx
"Dude, it's me. It's always me. Calm down. Maia says you have a mission review in an hour, so I'd probably get ready to go before she beats you into oblivion." Cedar flips him off and Briar forces himself not to smile as they both get dressed. Cedar, despite Briar surging energy into his cells, still pulls of the exhausted-and-grumpy look. Briar ignores his glares like a champion. xx
Cedar leaves for his review, Aiden leaves for his full-time normal-people job, and Nick leaves for his hovel of a bedroom as soon as he's got food in him. Maia stays sitting on the couch, but when Briar looks up at her from the graphic novel he'd started thumbing through, she's staring at him with a serious expression that has his stomach sinking. It's the kind of expression she has when something bad has happened, or is going to happen. "What is it?" He asks, part of him not really wanting to know. He sets the book aside. She hands him what she and Aiden had been reading. xxx
It's a file, a mission file, and Briar sighs. "Word is, there's a high-ranking Institute officer going around the city, taking out our people. We've lost six members in the last two months, and all of them were disguised deaths." "They have Lily over?" "Yeah. Point is, they want me to send you out there, since you have the most knowledge on how the Institute does their missions. But you can say no. I know being out near them can be scary for you, sometimes." xx
"No, I'll go. It's fine." Briar says, skimming through the file. It's all rather bland information- general description of the person, how the victims died. Something about it is familiar, but Briar figures seeing anything from the Institute would be familiar, after spending so long there. Maia searches his face for discomfort, and Briar gives her a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine. Really." xxxxx
Maia nods and smiles back, and Briar finishes reading the file. "Well, let's go find this asshole." xx
"What if we just... ran away?" "What do you mean? Run away from what?" "What if we ran away from this place? They're using us, well, you. So what if we just, you know... left." xx
Briar looks at Oscar with a little flurry of thoughts twirling about in his head. A part of him wants to think this is just a joke. After all, Oscar isn't exactly known for taking things seriously. Another part of him is rapidly weighing out all the possible outcomes of actually leaving, or, well, trying to leave. He's never once heard of anyone just up and leaving an Institute, and that's the kind of rumor he thinks would spread through the ranks like a wildfire in dry grass. And still another part of him, a very quiet, hidden part of him, is already constructing a plan to leave the Institute alive. xx
"What if we did?" Briar asks, voice low. He knows what will happen if they're caught discussing this. "What would we do then? Where would we go?" Oscar huffs and appears to be pouting, to which Briar just rolls his eyes. He does realize that he... didn't really answer Oscar's original question, just threw a different question right back at him. "Well, I have my family. I could go see my little sister. Then, we could just... be together. All of us." He says, very matter-of-factly. xx
Briar thinks about the word family and what it means. The Institute leaders, the Head- surely they are what he can consider family. Could he leave them behind? Yes, he thinks. I could. But if we get caught, what will they think? What will they do?I'm already in trouble often enough just for- Briar shoves the thought deep down, the thought that if he weren't friends with Oscar, if he just ignored the kid like he did everyone else, the leaders would never scold him. But he knows he could never ignore Oscar- not after eight years. It would be like ignoring his own conscience. xx
"They would never let us leave. The leaders would find out about our plans, catch us on our way out, hunt us down- we already get punished enough because you can't seem to take orders." He knows it's a low blow, and Briar instantly regrets it when he sees Oscar stiffen. "Don't you see? That's the point. We're not robots, we should make our own choices, Briar!" He says, almost shouting but not quite. "Besides, with all the training they've given us, we have exactly what we need to escape. All of us. Our squad, we're family, and we need to look out for each other. Together we can do anything!" And then Oscar's eyes are on him- bright, determined, piercing straight into his soul like an arrow to the heart. Briar is mesmerized. xx
Briar still doubts. He still doubts Oscar, doubts their abilities, doubts himself. But those eyes are bearing down on him and even he doesn't have the will to disobey. Not Oscar Wilson. "... okay." xx
XX ❋
Oscar's argument is sound to their squadmate's ears, and before long, all three of them - Whistle, Walker, and Whirlpool - are latched onto Oscar's every word. Briar feels comforted that they all agree with Oscar's idea, and he also feels an immense anxiety. Escaping with five people is going to be much more conspicuous than if it were only two, and if they get caught, the consequences will be more dire. But Briar knows Oscar wouldn't leave without them, couldn't abandon them. xxx
Their plan forms through everyone's contributions, and they go to sleep with their minds filled to the brim, running through their roles and simmering with both excitement and, most likely, dread. xx
XX ❋
The evening before their escape is to take place, Briar finds himself unable to sleep. He knows he needs the rest, but his mind is racing, running through every detail of their plan and swirling out of control with anxiety. Their chances of success are slim, so very slim, yet they have to try. Have to, because Oscar asked them to. Because Oscar called them his family- something that is so very precious to him. There's a weight in Briar's chest that is becoming familiar, a weight he has no idea how to place, and it only grows heavier when quiet footsteps move toward him in the dark. xx
He knows it's Oscar even before a finger prods him in the shoulder, and he shifts over in his bunk without a word, making room for Oscar to crawl under the covers with him. He rolls over to face his friend and can barely see the outline of his face in the dim lighting. Briar offers up his hand. xx
Oscar takes the offering in his own hand and instantly, his voice is echoing in Briar's head. Can you promise me something? Briar questions what the promise is. Silence. He closes his eyes, lets the warmth of Oscar's body wash over him, the familiar comfort of having someone so close. Out of nowhere, another feeling washes over him like a waterfall- fear. Oscar's fear. It catches Briar completely off guard and he grips Oscar's hand just a little tighter. I'm scared. The voice in his head says, and Briar knows. If I fail, protect them. My family. And Briar understands, for once. xx
Briar has power in his ability, and Oscar has power in his voice. Together, they make the perfect soldier. And. whatever happens tomorrow, Briar must protect Oscar's family. His family. Whether the word 'family' means their squad or Oscar's parents and sister doesn't matter. Briar can feel his companion's fear and knows Oscar can feel his. They're both scared, scared of failing, scared of succeeding and not knowing what to do next. And Briar's willing to bet the others are scared, too. xx
"I promise. I promise to protect our family. No matter what." He whispers the words aloud, to make the promise more real, more true. But you won't fail. I promise I won't let you fail, Oscar. xx
XX ❋
Briar hears the gunshot before he's made it to treeline, hears a garbled scream- Maximus. But he can't bear to stop and look, can't bear to watch his friend fall. Seconds later, another gunshot rings out, hitting Adriel this time, and Briar's vision becomes clogged with tears. There's screaming and gunshots and the familiar sounds of Matthias fighting someone- everyone- anyone to protect the others. Briar can feel Oscar at his side, can hear his breathing, and he doubts. He doubts that they'll make it. They've lost three of their squadmates, and the treeline that will conceal them is still several meters away, and the leaders are shooting at them, possibly killing them- and he's- xxxx
One more gunshot rings out. Oscar screams, falls, fails. Briar keeps running while the pact they'd made that morning plays on repeat in his mind- " No matter who falls, keep running. Don't stop." xx
Briar slows, looks back. Maximus is crying out in pain, blood seeping out of a hole in his shoulderblade. Adriel is struggling against a leader's grip while another leader seemingly digs the bullet out of her side. Matthias is still fighting, but it's clear he won't last. And Oscar, his Oscar- tackled to the ground and staring right at him, right into his soul with that desperate, determined light in his eyes even as the leaders crush him, he's not even that far away, Briar can help him- xxx
Keep going. You promised. The words pound into him and Briar stumbles back, shocked. There's no time to contemplate it, no time to congratulate Oscar's evolution in telepathy, no time to even respond. Briar turns, leaves. He keeps going, because he did promise. He promised he'd keep running even if the others fell, he promised he would keep Oscar's family safe if he didn't make it. xx
He also promised that Oscar would make it. He promised, there in the dark, to not let Oscar fail. xxx
There are more gunshots, but Briar is at the treeline, and he ducks into the forest with a terrible pain in his chest that grows every second. He forces himself to compartmentalize, shoves down his thoughts of going back, of being able to help his squad. He can't break this promise to Oscar. xx
(The other promise, that late-night, now-broken promise, will haunt him for many years to come.) xx
XX five years later
Briar blinks his eyes open and stares up at the white ceiling above him. There's just enough light seeping through the window blinds to illuminate a long crack running from just above his head to just above his torso- a product of a nightmare and a lot of violent thrashing on his part. He drags a hand across his face and rubs the gunk out of his eyes, forcing his sight to stop being blurry, then carefully sits up. He has to slouch to keep his head from bumping the ceiling and Briar wonders why he's still stuck on a top bunk when his roommate is more than half his height. Speaking of... xx
Briar leans through the opening for the ladder and peers down at Cedar. The kid has thrown his blankets onto the floor in the night, one foot is tangled in his pillowcase, and he's somehow flipped around so that his head is where his feet would normally be. Definitely not a peaceful sleeper, but a deep one nonetheless. Briar smiles to himself and climbs down, tiptoeing outside. xx
The windows are open in the hallway and Briar squints against the light. It's raining outside, just a sprinkle, but the sky is bright despite the cloud cover. Interesting, how rain can be like that. He heads down the hall and into the sitting room, where Maia and Aiden are sat on the sofa reading together. They're snuggled up close and Briar smiles. Maia looks up when he walks in. "Good morning, dear. Are the boys still sleeping?" She asks, referring to Cedar and Nick. Briar shrugs. "Cedar's definitely still out cold, but I don't know about Nick. I don't think he ever sleeps. " xx
Everyone laughs at that, and Briar heads for the kitchen. Maia and Aiden go back to reading while he makes himself breakfast- since they all have such shit sleep schedules, no one really eats together, except on the rare occasion they're all home and hungry at the same time. Nick comes wandering into the kitchen with a laptop in hand about half an hour later and tries to steal some of Briar's leftover fried rice, and they battle with forks for a few moments before Nick freaks about food getting on his computer and moves farther away. Nick pouts and Briar blankly flips him off. xx
"Children, stop fighting!" Maia calls, glaring at them from the couch while Aiden giggles. "Briar, can you go wake Cedar up? He's got a mission review in an hour and I'll be getting the piss if he's late." She asks. Briar mumbles a yes around his last mouthful of food and carries his dishes to the sink. Nick tries to trip on his way back out of the kitchen and Briar smacks him over the head in return, ignoring Maia's half-assed scolding as Nick practically screams in 'agony.' xx
Cedar is flipped into a different-but-just-as-uncomfortable-looking position when Briar walks into their room, and his snoring is even louder on account of his face being pressed into the mattress. Briar presses the back of his hand to Cedar's cheek and the kid's eyes instantly shoot open, giving Briar exactly .04 seconds to back the fuck off and avoid a 5'0 ball of fury directed right at him. xxx
"Dude, it's me. It's always me. Calm down. Maia says you have a mission review in an hour, so I'd probably get ready to go before she beats you into oblivion." Cedar flips him off and Briar forces himself not to smile as they both get dressed. Cedar, despite Briar surging energy into his cells, still pulls of the exhausted-and-grumpy look. Briar ignores his glares like a champion. xx
Cedar leaves for his review, Aiden leaves for his full-time normal-people job, and Nick leaves for his hovel of a bedroom as soon as he's got food in him. Maia stays sitting on the couch, but when Briar looks up at her from the graphic novel he'd started thumbing through, she's staring at him with a serious expression that has his stomach sinking. It's the kind of expression she has when something bad has happened, or is going to happen. "What is it?" He asks, part of him not really wanting to know. He sets the book aside. She hands him what she and Aiden had been reading. xxx
It's a file, a mission file, and Briar sighs. "Word is, there's a high-ranking Institute officer going around the city, taking out our people. We've lost six members in the last two months, and all of them were disguised deaths." "They have Lily over?" "Yeah. Point is, they want me to send you out there, since you have the most knowledge on how the Institute does their missions. But you can say no. I know being out near them can be scary for you, sometimes." xx
"No, I'll go. It's fine." Briar says, skimming through the file. It's all rather bland information- general description of the person, how the victims died. Something about it is familiar, but Briar figures seeing anything from the Institute would be familiar, after spending so long there. Maia searches his face for discomfort, and Briar gives her a reassuring smile. "I'll be fine. Really." xxxxx
Maia nods and smiles back, and Briar finishes reading the file. "Well, let's go find this asshole." xx
K'gara is trembling with fear, looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings (what does it even look like here? The description is very vague) with her once proud ears folded flat against her head
“
What is this place.
”
K'gara is a nude burly muscular wolfess, her clothing having been left behind in the belly of the beast