Classified: A 1x1 RP (Royalburden & Aramay ONLY please)

[Royalburden]

Jack stirred, awoken by the cold damp of water seeping through the clothes he so neatly tangled himself in. His long body writhed and Jack transformed, crouching in the dirt. His shirt slipped off his shoulder and he slipped it on over his head. "Do you mind? In case you haven't realized I don't do so well with cold and wet so please....drip elsewhere."

Jack was in a particularly grumpy mood, it wasn't difficult to tell. He'd awoken in the middle of a forest after escaping a laboratory likely with enough manpower and budget to catch and kill all three of them then start all over with new more obedient victims. This was not the way he wanted things to be. Jack stood up, looking particularly scrawny in the over sized janitor's uniform. He rubbed vigorously at a mud stain on the pant leg. "Now what? You're free just like you wanted, what's your grand plan now?"

Meanwhile, Derek jumped slightly as Aramay barreled past him in a panic and dropped the stick he'd previously been using to corral a beetle into a makeshift arena (really just a circle of twigs). He watched her panic for a moment, knowing it was probably best not to approach her or try to restrain her in any way. She was clearly in shock.

"Are you done panicking?" He asked simply after she'd run into the tree. "Just take it easy, I'm not going to hurt you. If I was I'd probably have done it by now, you where pretty much free pray out there last night."

His accent was very slightly southern as if he'd just recently had a long vacation in the south. He had dark brown hair that looked black when the sun wasn't shining through it that was short but not styled in any way. There where little flecks of gray that made him look older than he was but his face wasn't aged at all. In fact he had the sort of face that always looked like he was making a joke of things, as if there was always a smile hidden under the seriousness. His eyes where a unique breed of hazel that looked almost honey colored against the pupil, as if his eyes constantly leaked wolf into his human face. As for his body, he was built like a stereotypical athlete. Strong and healthy. He wouldn't look out of place with some sort of varsity jacket but of course instead of such he was dressed like some sort of lumber jack.

[Aramay]

"Buh I maed' ah fireh." He pointed out hoping the small act of kindness would get him to act less like he had something up his ass. They were out of there. He didn't have to be so pissed with him. Devan stood there like an idiot when Jack popped the question. What was he going to do now? He didn't think that they would separate so soon. This whole time he thought that there would be more to it than this. Not once thinking that he would be left to fend for himself like this...like this. He then remembered. She was still out there. That girl. He couldn't do it on his own like this but there wasn't much else he could do either.

Without a word he went back to the creek to grab the sheet he left out to wrap around himself. He already tried forcing himself back to a more manageable, look. He only managed to give himself a headache and a nose bleed. So he wouldn't be able to stray far from the river. The best bet was to stay close by and hope she wasn't far from it. He took one more glance at Jack. "She shtill ouh thereh..." With that he started walking alongside the creek.

Meanwhile Aramay fought to open her watery eyes to see where the voice was coming from while making sure to keep her back against something while her eyes tried to adjust. It felt like no matter how much time she had, she kept having to squint through the tears. He smelled familiar. The same as what covered her when she was in too much pain to move last night. He must have been the one who found her. As her heart settled, that same weakness she was stricken with pushed her back to the ground till she was sitting against the tree. Her arms hung limply at her sides. 'Tired'. So she didn't feel pain like before but the lingering soreness did dampen her energy a considerable amount.

Hold on. She looked up, then left to right as if looking for something, or someone. Where were the others? Come to think of it her memories were fuzzy once they went into that maintenance passageway. The only ones she could recall were sounds and smells. Like the smell of fresh air and salty fish. Then she was going through the woods. That's right, she's-no one was still looking for them? No one. She couldn't hear anyone around except for Derek. Funnily enough she completely forgot about the one person who was there with her. Her ears twitched, squinting or not she may as well be looking through the eyes of a puppy discovering the outside for the first time. It was new to her, all over again. Ara hears a bird and looks up the tree that she's resting against with her lips slightly parted.

[Royalburden]

Jack glanced down at the smoldering remains of the fire. "Yeah.....thanks I guess..." He murmured. Truth was he wasn't so much mad at Devan after all it was understandable why in his situation he would want to escape so abruptly. Jack was more upset at being out there in the open wild where there where predators and people searching for them. Unpredictable nature. He watched Devan attempt to shift himself. It reminded him when he was a boy, shifting for the first time was always an interesting experience, though for him the hard thing was keeping yourself from shifting in public. It was like forcing putty to keep it's shape after taking it out of the container.

Devan had muttered something about finding Aramay but Jack wasn't paying much attention to him. He blinked and silently followed him along the stream. "You know....you should try and not think so hard about it. Changing is in your DNA now it will come easier if you relax, your body will start to figure out what to do."

Jack looked forward, arms crossed as he spoke. He wasn't sure why he was giving the man pointers on how to change but he did.

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Derek strode over and squatted next to her. "How're ya feelin?" He asked, looking her over one more time.

"Look, I know someone who knows a lot more than I do about our sort. I could take you to 'im. He'd probably know some sort of herb or....or tonic to make ya right." Derek murmured. He scratched his chin and watched as Ara looked around. He'd seen that look before in puppies and little shifters when they finally discover they can transform. "Everything looks different dunn'it? All yellows and blues. Try to keep your eyes on the ground till yer eyes adjust. Trust me it's beautiful n'matter where ya look."

[Aramay]

Devan had taken it to heart that he would be on his own from now on. Even if he didn't find Ara he at least felt that he had a goal to hold on to and pursue while he figured out what to do with his life next. Playing as the next swamp thing was not his idea of a future goal. No matter what he needed to find a place that he could temporarily live out of until he had a better idea with what to do with his current situation. There was no frame of reference as to where he was. All there was, was the prison they were just in, and the forest they are at now. For all he knew there was a city beyond this or it was going to be vast wilderness for miles and miles around.

Jack's voice could be heard coming from behind him when he had already been walking for a good few minutes already. Yet there he was, plain as day walking behind him. Just earlier he was so content with trying to send him off on his own. He thought the man was happy to be rid of him. Jack wouldn't feel tied down with a fish out of water dragging behind him. So what was he doing following after him? Devan did his best to just try to ignore him. He needed time to think. For once he wanted things to be left to mull things over and now he couldn't be allowed to have that.

Once Jack started giving him tips-there was a sense of anger brewing inside of him. Great, he didn't let the snake have his way with everything and now he was going to follow and torture him out of spite. Kill him with kindness so he couldn't say or do anything because he was making himself out to be helpful. He clenched his teeth and using all of his energy to keep himself from burning up. "Make up your damn mind! I thought you liked having your freedom! Or-" He stopped. Closing his mouth he ran his tongue over his teeth. A breeze sent goosebumps over his skin. Normal. He wrapped the blanket tighter around himself. He got quiet and continued walking.

~~~~~~~~~

"Aurnn." She began to speak. "Uht." Only to realize that she couldn't, she still couldn't. She had lost her voice and it wasn't recent either. "Ngmmm." Her eyes turned glassy and she lost interest. All curiosity died out then and there. She was more content with staring idly at the ground. Nothing could fix this. There was no way. Didn't matter if she could tell him that or not. Maybe her body language was enough to let him understand that.

Now that she was free. She didn't know what to do. In her mind she was still thinking of herself as normal when she got out but this wasn't the case. Ara tenses in discomfort. all at once she didn't feel well again. Her back was hurting her.

[Royalburden]

Jack tensed and stared back at Devan, his emerald eyes sharp and piercing. When he spoke he spoke in a surprisingly even tone. "Look, if you don't what my help just say it and I'll be on my way but in all honesty I've got about as many places to go as you right now. You broke my cell door and dragged me out. They're going to assume, correctly, that I helped you escape and that I wanted to escape, do you realize what they would do if I showed up back there? They had no problem torturing and changing you and they needed you. They don't need me there are lots of shifters out there."

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Derek tilted his head to the side. He looked around the clearing then sat down next to Aramay. "Where did you come from?" He asked quietly. "This place is in the middle of nowhere how'd you get here?"

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Meanwhile, back at the lab orders where being given to start a search grid into the forests and across the fields, helicopters where even being deployed.

[Aramay]

"You were the one doing all but yelling for me to get out of your hair. Didn't think you could stand another minute around me." He let the man have his little tiff. "But, you did want to, and you have-ah!" He winces grabbing at his back as though he was just stung by a bee. Within seconds he started to feel ill. Jack would soon feel the same in the back of his thigh. A compact syringe altered to act like a dart would be lodged was the culprit. That same burning feeling would spread out and up his leg.

"I knew this would come in handy." Dr. Holmes was standing on the opposite side of the bank. He kept himself a decent pace back to keep them from hearing him. "Two out of three, not bad considering I can only track one." Holmes thought of almost everything. Put enough eggs in one basket and you would want to make it so you knew where it would be at all times. It was a wonder why the others didn't have the same idea. Looks like they depended too much on being certain that they wouldn't get free. "You might want to come back with me. You're gonna have a hard time if you stay out here."

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Aramay looked back to Derek with his continuous questions. Her eyes were knowing but she just stared at him. Even if she wanted to answer them it was like she was capable of it. The only things that could really tip him off that there wasn't something quite right, aside from what he already could figure out, were the patient clothes she wore. Her ears suddenly perked up to a faint noise off in the distance. A chill visibly shook her. She twitches again perking up further to the noise.

Before he has a chance to stop her, or if he does indeed tries to grab her, he only succeeds with making her struggle and flail wildly without concern of hurting him or herself until he lets go. She heads off in the direction of the others. She could swear she heard familiar voices. That wasn't what got her all knotted up. It was the fact that when she heard them for a second time, they were in distress.

Dr. Holmes' victory was short lived. His legs would be taken right out from underneath him, knocking him to the ground. Soon as he stopped his head from spinning and could refocus his eyes he would see Ara snapping at his face making him reel back. So she was close by!

[Royalburden]

"What the- AH!" Jack had barely enough time to just register that it was some sort of needle that had hit Devan before he himself was hit. He hissed in pain and bent over to see what had hit him. He pulled out the needle as quick as he could but it was much too late for that to do any good the fluid was already spreading through his veins burning like acid as it went rapidly altering his genes. He hissed angrily at Holmes.
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"Hey woah woah woah wait!" Derek attempted to grab for Aramay, failing miserably. "Yer not well enough to go traipsin' through the forest!"

He ran after her, hoping to at least be nearby to defend her should she run into trouble. It didn't take long until his keen hearing caught the goings on not far from there, he doubled his pace, keeping up well enough to pull Aramay back from he doctor moments after she attacked. "Hey Hey! You can't just go attacking people! Sit still!" He stood between her and the doctor putting hands up. His brows practically met in bewilderment when his gaze fell on Devan. "Nah someone better up and tell me right now what the hell is going on here!"