Ramiel S. Lore's Story

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J U N E

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Tattered black sneakers pound the gravel and dirt mixture that was probably at some point in the past green grass and exotic plants. Junsoo's legs carry him across the empty space as fast as they can physically go in a desperate effort to find shelter behind something. Anything. The heavy sack of wood over his shoulder makes staying alive a little harder than it should be and his only form of weapon at the moment is a small pocket knife the boss always makes him carry around and the gathered wood. He can almost hear her scolding him for not having taken something bigger and more practical, or for managing to be separated from Bryant when they're supposed to travel in no less than twos at all times, precisely because of situations like these. It really is a wonder how the twenty-two year old has managed not to get himself killed for this long, what with being one of the most reckless of the bunch. Not that he intended on being separated from him, but they also hadn't intended on being attacked. Seraphs never hint at this time of day, so the pale and slender figure that showed up almost out of the blue had definitely caught them off guard.

What was supposed to be a simple mission to retrieve firewood turned into a race for survival. Now he's backed against the wall of an abandoned building, chest quickly rising and falling and heart on overdrive while he attempts to devise an escape strategy. Unfortunately, that's never been his string suit. Which is probably the main reason Bryant was sent with him. The older has always been best at planning. But he's not with him now, and June hopes he doesn't come looking for him either and opts for heading back to the group instead. This is something he'll have to handle on his own. He can almost smell the seraph closing in on him while his eyes search for some kind of small opening which he can slip through, but there's nothing. As much as he doesn't want to admit it, this may be his last day in No Man's Land.

Arabelle can feel the fear emanating from her prey. He's still close. She's not meant to be hunting right now. She hadn't even thought of coming here to do so. Her intentions were purely to get some fresh air, to get away from the stuffy mansion she was assigned to live in. But she also did not intend on running into such a fascinating target. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights the moment he'd spotted her. Eyes large, terrified and innocent. And she was pleasantly surprised to find he's much more agile than he appears. She's never liked easy targets. After a while it becomes much too tedious. Too boring. But this one, she decides, is worth keeping. There had been another outcast with him, but the two ended up splitting ways and Arabelle's interest was fixed on the smaller of the two from the very beginning. A refreshing change from her usual targets.

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S I R E N

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June's round eyes zero in on his attacker the moment her pale looks come into view and her thin lips twist into a pleased glim. She takes calculated steps towards him, cornering his body between a rusted old car and the decaying cement wall. "You're quite the fighter, I see." He knows reaching for the pocket knife at this point is useless. A slash of the small blade would be like a minor paper cut to a hunter seraph. His fists tighten around the knot of the sack, more than prepared to aim a swing at her head. If he can't use offense, he'll have to settle for defense. But of course it's never that simple. The moment their skin comes in contact, everything is forgotten. Including the fact that he's in deep shit if he doesn't move. His entire body is paralyzed down to the smallest muscle, eyes focused on her face. That's his first mistake. Never look a Seraph in the eyes. "Such a pretty face..." She coos. her voice is soft and soothing, very fitting to the way she looks, while her fingers brush against the side of his face. "I'm definitely keeping you."

One index finger slides under his chin while she carefully studies his face, smiling in satisfaction. As much as he wants to argue that there are much more handsome men in no man's land that she can "keep", his tongue much like every other part of him, is numb. He can't feel or hear a single thing, and all he can see is her face, lips poised and ready to attack.

N I K ANika should've known it was a bad idea, a very bad idea but yet no one expected that the
simplest mission of retrieving firewood would turn out so incredibly wrong. When the boss
told her Jun-Soo would go with Bryant, Dominika tried to talk them out of it, and obviously
her attempts failed dramatically. Now she was the one in charge to find June, as they had
been communicated.

"Oh, of course! I'm the Tracker so I'm the one who must go save the lady in danger." The girl
rolled her her eyes and sighed. That was no sacrifice for her, Nika did her job very well done
and she would never complain about it, but that was just her using the natural sarcasm that she so loved. Putting a black jacket on, Nika walked out of their base and started looking for June. After what seemed to be a decade but was actually just twenty minutes, Nika noticed a change in the environment - an ability that not even herself could understand, a mix of intuition and observation skills. The silence started to be broken by almost unhearable whispers. In the exact minute the Seraph attacked June. Sneaking through the abandoned building, Nika slowly moved closer and closer to them.
Finally, once she reached a good distance, the woman grabbed a brick and hit it hard on the Seraph's head. Not even having time to look back to check on the girl, Nika grabbed June's hand and ran inside the building, towards the opposite exit so they could escape and mislead her. She quickly entered another abandoned building a little further and once they could finally breath calmly, Dominika stared at the boy, with intimidating and angry eyes. "What the hell were you thinking?!'

The shiny, marble floors of the mansion darkened as Valentina's boots tracked in mud. She pouted as she thought about how much better it would be to stay outside. Why did she have to stand on carved stone when plenty of rock existed outside of this stuffy mansion? She loathed the indoors. It felt like a cage. Her alias may be a bird, but that doesn't mean she wants to be treated like one. Valentina couldn't wait for the hunting time to begin. She would do anything to escape this prison.

"Arabelle did you have to scare the outcasts so much? I was planning on studying them."
She didn't expect Nathaniel to be watching them torment the outcasts. He was a mystery to Valentina. She never felt he was never very upfront with her or any of the other Seraphim. She didn't trust him.
"Do whatever you want with them, love." Valentina scrunched her brow, watching as Arabelle tapped her long fingernail against the Nathaniel's lips. "But do keep in mind, the little lost boy is mine." Valentina heard the unsaid ownership in her voice. Arabelle is very possessive of any human that captures her attention. Valentina preferred to play with all of them. To her, focusing on one target may help you, but it gives the human a chance to observe you too. Valentina wouldn't allow consistency to be her downfall.
"Also, must you always watch what I do? One of these days you're not going to like what you see."
Valentina was very familiar with how Arabelle played with the humans. She was a twisted woman, one that Valentina was tasked to be her handler for by the Chief. She started off the assignment with bad intentions, but Arabelle and Valentina clicked in a odd way. Opposites attract she assumed. She had seen Arabelle at her worst and it terrified her in a satisfying way. She was glad to have someone so twisted in her corner. Valentina glanced at the clock on the wall. The chief expected them to meet in the library to discuss strategies or whatever he felt like. He expected everyone prepped and ready before the meeting, almost like a father. She glanced at the pair in front of her. She'd have to be the mother this time.
"Arabelle, go wash your hair. I can see the blood. Nathaniel, make sure the library is straightened up." Nathaniel had a tendency to leave things in disarray. "I'll check on Ramiel."
As she ascended to the bedrooms, Valentina thought of Ramiel. He was the most nonsocial seraph in the group. Valentina was second purely, because of her lack of speech, but she would try to spend time with other seraphs. Ramiel was fascinating in a unique way. She wanted to figure him out. Like her partner in crime (Arabelle), both of them have been know to be stubborn. She went into Rameil's room, unannounced. He was still sleeping. He looked like a sweet angel when he slept. She smiled, tousling his hair while he was unconscious. He's such a precious boy, a key to a new puzzle. She shook him slightly, rousing him from sleep.
"Be grateful it was me who woke you up instead of The Captain."