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Askier · **06-24-2014, 03:15 AM**

((Please note, this post regards the aftermath of torture suffered by Askier as part of a present arc.Â I have kept the specifics of what happened vague and only described the results, but I wanted to warn anyone whom might be uncomfortable with such a theme so they could avoid the following contents.))

Pain.Â That was the all-consuming thought present inside the mind of the miqoâ€™te.Â Â His long, brown hair was now oily and wet with the spray of the sea.Â And blood.
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The miqoâ€™teâ€™s left eye was swollen shut, a bleeding bruise encasing the optic while his right eye could barely open, revealing a sliver of gold as the dilated pupil stared out into the dark room, seeing the trails of liquid that pooled around his naked frame.Â RedÂ liquid.Â The miqoâ€™teâ€™s blood.
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The ruined mess of a miqoâ€™te lay with his back pressed against the hard floor, his head dangling awkwardly as the stocks held his neck and remaining hand within their tight embrace, dried blood covering the dark, wooden surface.Â The chains of his shackles clanked as the ship listed to and fro at the seaâ€™s desire, the blood covered tools of torture screeching against wood as they slid back and forth across the wooden deck.Â And all the while, the sound of a strong wind moaned through small slips in the wood.
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Deep gashes and countless bruises crossed, and connected over the ashen flesh of the miqoâ€™teâ€™s body, dried and wet blood both running in rivulets alongside one another, forming waving lines, as if they were rivers upon a map.
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The miqoâ€™teâ€™s tail was still connected to the base of his spine and was wrapped around his left thigh, blood dried on the fur, several of the vertebra snapped in twain from when the monster had tried to rip it off.Â The tail remained attached though, the muscles so cramped that he could not have unwrapped the tail even if he wanted too.Â Though the miqo'te's suffering had increased after refusing to let the tail be torn off without a struggle.Â
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The air was filled with the sounds of the rolling ocean and the agonized gasps that escaped the miqoâ€™teâ€™s ruined lips as the lungs tried to suck in air without expanding or contracting so they would not shift the muscle around them and disturb the cracked ribs.Â

The miqoâ€™te seemed more dead than alive as his chest barely rose over and over for hours on end, limbs bruised and broken. Never stirring.
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Only inside the miqoâ€™teâ€™s mind, in some deep recess, shielded from the pain and agony of the body, was there a part of Askier left.Â A tiny, little portion that clung desperately to what made Askier, Askier.
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Already parts of his ego had been beaten and tortured out of him.Â His arrogance, his haughty attitude, his sly wit.Â Those had been broken first.Â His pride and confidence had failed next.Â
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The parts of his personality that remained were few, but they were strong.Â His intelligence remained, his hatred too, he had re-discovered his restraint, and strengthened his persistence.Â They werenâ€™t much, just splintered fractions of what had once been a whole person, but they were what kept him going and they were safe. Â While nearly every part of his personality was deteriorating, drowning in pain and misery, the parts that endured were sheltered by his promise to Roen.Â

The promise he had made to her during their brief conversation before Crim had tortured him over and over to this stare, broken his flesh and mind.Â
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He had promised not to die and leave Roen alone with the monster.Â
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And what little remained of Askier's conscious had no intention of breaking that promise.

Askier · **06-24-2014, 11:58 AM**

The hyur refugee was walking up the road towards Ul'dah, sweat still running down his brow, despite the late early night's cool wind.Â He had been working all day and would be doing the same tomorrow.Â And the day after. And the next.

The man sighed.Â Life outside the walls of Ul'dah was harsh, but inside the refugee camp it almost seemed harsher.Â Many of his friends were dying due to a disease that left them shrieking and foaming at the mouth.Â The infected numbers came and went, sometimes no one died a day, other days there might be as many as twenty.Â And there was no warning, no symptoms, not until it was to late.

The hyur refugee was saving his gil to move himself and his family away, maybe of Limsa, where he might work as a fisher.Â Ul'dah was the city of lies and false promises.Â And now death.

The hyur refugee was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he did not notice the two men in black robes that suddenly moved out from large rocks behind him and rushed him, seizing him and shoving a cloth smelling of a sweet liquid to his face.

Chloroform.

The man struggled but the two men in black were strong and they spoke to one another as the refugee began to drift into sleep.

"How many is that?"Â the first asked.

"Makes nine refugees and three thaumaturges."Â answered the second.

"Think that should be enough?"Â replied the first as the refugee went limp.

"For tonight."Â The second said as he slung the sleeping man onto his shoulder and began hurrying away, casting looks around to make sure they had not been seen.

"How many does the black mage of Jin'li's need and what the hells for?"Â the first muttered.

"As many as it takes to get the job done.Â As for why, it's a black mage, do you really want to know why he would need living beings?"

Askier · **06-26-2014, 01:10 PM**

"No, Crim!"Â Askier screamed, the Roe with the flaying knife in his hand.Â Askier's tail, the pain, the peeling flesh.Â "Please no, stop!Â I'm begging you!Â No!"

Askier jerked up, cold sweat running down his face, his eyes flung open wide, the flicker from a nearly spent candle reflecting in the golden orbs.Â Askier grabbed the sheets around him, clung to them, and wrapped them around him as he gazed around in terror.

There was no Crim, no ship, no flaying knife.Â Only a simple inn room with a bed, a desk, and a candle.Â The Garlean pulled his knees to his chest, hugging them with his one arm and he let out a pained groan.

It hadn't been a nightmare, it had been a memory.Â It had actually happened, and in the depths of sleep the memory had forced itself upon Askier, made him remember...

Askier swung his tail around and placed it in his lap.Â The tail was hairless currently and covered in pale, fresh skin.Â Skin Kanaria had replaced through long, drawn out healing.Â She had regrown so much skin, re-attached Askier's pulled teeth, mended bones.Â And yet Askier's entire body still hurt, afraid to take a deep breath least this all be a dream and he be back on the boat with Crim.

"Crim..." Askier moaned.Â The Roe was gone, forever, physically.Â But the foul monster was trapped inside Askier's head, trapped on Askier's body with every tattoo the Roe had inked into his flesh, with the metal in Askier's tongue, with every scar upon his body.Â The Roe would haunt Askier for the rest of his life.

The Garlean shuddered and felt his breaths quicken and tried to calm himself.Â He felt more flashbacks coming.

"No, no, no." Askier sobbed, trying to get his mind off the coming tsunami of tortured memories.Â Askier tried to think about those whom loved him.Â His sister, Osric, Kahn'a, Kanaria, Hound, Drumstick, Lei.Â Think about his work that Kahn'a was going to give him, about how he was safe, how those whom loved him had come for him.

It didn't work.Â The wave of terror slammed into Askier and he started screaming and sobbing as he hugged himself.Â The Garlean screamed for a long time, and the innkeeper who came to his door to see what the fuss was about, did not enter and disturb the miqo'te.Â No one with a heart could hear that amount of anguish and not feel pity for the broken Garlean.

Askier · **06-27-2014, 01:15 PM**

"When Master Jameson promised me chaos by using Brass Blades, I had no idea he would be so very thorough." Jin'li marvelled as he starred at Ul'dah with his black eyes.

His master's spies, no -his- spies, had learned much and piece by piece, Jin'li had discovered the truth of Roen, Askier and the massive schisms dividing Ul'dah now thanks to the actions of the Crimson Mountain and Natalie Mcbeef. The whole city seemed about to fall off a cliff into anarchy. And Jin'li was ready to push it there.

"The chaos shall be so easy and ssweet, kind master Rema. Ul'dah shall bow, break, and be rebuilt by the Empire, by our hand, by my hands."

Jin'li turned to the short figure at his side. The black eyes looked down at the figure whom had once wore Askier's, but now wore their own face once more.

"Doctor, how long until the changes my black mage researched can be added to Blue Blood Strand 2?"

"They have already been added. Soon there shall be enough." The Doctor answered in their own voice, the robe hidding the short figure's features.

"You honor us by your hard work doctor. Do you have the ability to change back into Askier should we need?"

"I do, though I will have two arms, while the true A skier now has but one."

"We shall handle that should the need arise, Master Rema says." Jin'li turned back to Ul'dah and bowed to the city.

"Forgive me, Jewel of the Desert, but I am about to make you bleed. And it shall be a glorious nightmare made real."

Kanaria Melkire · **06-30-2014, 03:41 PM**

There was a soft gasp as the pearl was pushed at her and looked at it with worry as she scrambled for the words she wanted...needed to say. "Ossy? Ossy? I-I'm alive... I love-..." Was all she could get out before being hushed by a hand that quickly covered her mouth from saying more, the tears from her eyes rolling down her cheeks to the skin that had been pressed against hers.

Lavenders looked between the three that were there, her hands pulling against the shackles that held her down and to the chair she sat in. A slight prick to the neck was felt again and her head slumped, lids drifting down before she fully went limp upon the wooden seat. She could feel herself being moved, before everything fully faded to black.

"She Â wakes..." One of the robed figures spoke up softly.

The flaxen haired Hyur stirred and lifted her lids still a bit dazed from the effects of the drug. "Wh-What did you do..." Hazed eyes looked about, the figures around her slowly taking shape as the three from before. "The Doctor" and the two others that were also shrouded in cloaks, hiding everything save for their eyes from her. From them she looked about the small room, and out what windows she could see from, trying to get a sense of where she was at.

"They need information from you my dear lady,"Â "The Doctor"Â spoke, a voice that sounded remotely familiarÂ to her. "Either you answer them and answer them truthfully... Or you will be subjected to one of my elixirs..."

Hands rose to rub her eyes but stopped held tight by the shackles before eyes rounded toÂ "The Doctor".Â "Been there, done that..." She spoke solemnly. "I'd rather die then give the lot of you information that could potentially harm any of my family." The friends she considered close to her, so close they had become what one could call family.

"As you say..." Golden eyes swiftly turned to the two that stood from their crouched positions as he pointed to Kanaria's head. "Hold, but do not hurt her..." Jin'li had laid down the law, explicitly telling them what would happen if they harmed her in anyway.Â "The Doctor"Â shifted pulling his rightÂ hand back to a vial that was placed on the table, procured it and popped the cork from it. All the while the other two had moved in, one grasping on to either side of Kanaria's head as she refused their touch.

"Leave me alone, don't touch me!" Her soft voice cried out in displeasure as she tried to move, biting at the hands that came at her. They didn't relent though and took hold of her head, tilting ti back some. Kanaria clenched her jaw only to feel it being pried open by another set.

Lavenders eyedÂ "The Doctor", glaring at him as he poured the contents into her mouth. "Close...hold her jawÂ tight don't let her spit it back out." Her mouth was closed quickly, one hand over it, the other holding herÂ entireÂ jaw from moving. Lavenders moved to the three of them,Â staring through them as another and came in, massaging her throat. "Now why don't you be a dear and swallow so you can tell us everything you know about your friends and yourself eh?"Â "The Doctor"Â voice taking on a soothing tone as he worked the pipe.

Kanaria involuntarily swallowed, cursing at herself for doing so in her head. Once she did however she was released. Head moved quickly for fingers to bite at them if they weren't quick enough to move, which they had been, narrowly getting a finger between pearly whites.

Kanaria took in a deep breath and let it out with a soft sigh. "Bunch o'ruttin' shites you are..." She spat as questions came at her from the pair refusing to answer most trying to lie for others but the truth was set free instead. Clearly aggravated with this, Kanaria bent forth and screamed as loud as she possibly could with her quiet voice at the pair that had crouched back in front of her.Â

Bells were spent going from one question to the next, coming back repeatedly to the ones that she refused to answer until she was so exhausted from holding back that she just spat out the information they needed. "We have enough Doctor..." One of the robed ones said softly as both rose. "We just need the vials and then we can be on our way..."

"The Doctor" sat in a chair off to the side, listening, quite amused with the girl, she'd put so much effort into not telling them a single thing and now... Here they were with enough that the orders could be carried out. A hand pushed the two glass bottles towards the pair. "Take them..." His tail curled over his lap as he watched them leave, a hand stroking at the fluffy brown fur. Hearing the door click closed, golden hues were set upon the oddly beautiful, worn down Hyur.

"Best get your rest now... Dawn will be breaking soon... You and I still have some business to take care of..." Of course he had questions of his own, "We can do that after you've rested though..." An alchemist to alchemist talk? Oh he wanted to know plenty but most of all, how she had broken down his antidote so quickly and how the girl was reproducing it so quickly.

Kanaria groaned and just shook her head, body slumping down in quite the uncomfortable position before she closed her eyes, catching what she could of sleep before the morning came.

Askier · **07-01-2014, 10:23 AM**

((Take place before Kanaria's post.Â Is a mixture of her and I's rp.))

Jin'li wore a robe, the hood up, a scarf over his face.Â Three other figures walked nearby,close enough to help him, but not close enough to be eye catching. Â They followed Kanria slowly, carefully,tracking her wherever she might be going, waiting to make their move, to seize her when they could.Â
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The black eyes of Jin'li watched her as he followed her, waiting to make his move.
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Sway, stop, sway stop, was the movement of Kanariaâ€™s hips and skirt made as she walked down Sapphire Avenue Exchange. Kanaria went through the motions every morning, talking with each of the merchants here in order to get an idea what she should be buying or selling to make a bit of gil.
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A hand lifted slowly to her ear as she came back around to take the side stairs up to Pearl Street.
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"Rabeto... Rune..."
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Two names faintly heard before murmurs, giving them orders. Sooner than later she dropped her hand to her mouth, covering it with a soft yawn before it went back to her side. Some tea this morning was definitely needed...
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And that's exactly where she was heading to her usual spot to have tea, but first she had to make it to the Eastern entrance of the Quicksand before she could do that, and it wasn't even in sight yet.
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She paid no mind to the others around her, hadn't even really noticed anyone following her though her normal routine.
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Pearl lane. Always Pearl Lane. It always came back to this street.
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Jin'li and his goons followed Kanaria up the stairs. And then, after a moment, Jin'li motioned with his left hand as Kanaria rounded the corner. Two of the hooded figures rushed ahead, taking large steps and passed by on either side of Kanaria. Once they were past, they suddenly turned and created an obstruction of robes and muscle. They starred at her but made no effort to move other than block her.
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Meanwhile Jin'li and his third spy moved up behind Kanaria, Jin'li sliding his gunblade out from his robe and then he and the third goon sprung.
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Jin'li reached and tried to seize Kanaria and slammed the barrel against her temple, his left hand trying to wrap around her throat as Jin'li's third goon rushed forward with a wet rag covered in chloroform and tried to press it to her mouth as his other hand would try to grab her shoulder. Jin'li or his goons did not speak as they acted.
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Four against one... This wasn't quite fair...
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"N-no! Je.â€ Kanaria stammered as the other pair sprung. Gun to her head, hand creeping around her throat, she stilled for a moment, then reeled back her head with a gasp as hand and cloth came for her nose and mouth. She held her breath and whined her eyes looking about, wide with terror.
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Lavenders shot down the stairs... as she desperately tried to call for help, the muffled sound much to faint for anyone to here, but she'd breathed in... She was done... The chloroform finally breathed in...
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Her slight form went limp under their hands...out.
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Jin'li felt the woman go limp in his arms butheld her for a few moments lingers before nodding. The larger of the hood figures stepped forward, pulling out a large sack and together Jin'li and the goon slid the sack around her and tied it shut. Jin'li then watched as the big goon heaved the bag in both arms and began walking off.
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The white-haired miqo'te gazed around for moment,noticing a few curious faces looking their way but doing nothing. Jin'li and the others had their faces hidden after all. But the miqo'te was apprehensive all the same. The more that knew his face, the more complex the mission would be, and he and his masters had enough issues.
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"Axe." Jin'li spoke the nickname calmly and the goon who had held the rag stepped forward.
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"Deliver Master Melkire my letter and have the good Doctor meet me. We have much to prepare for tonight when we see Master Melkire."
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With that, Jin'li followed after the goon carrying Kanaria as the other two faded away into the crowds.

Askier · **07-01-2014, 11:47 AM**

((Part One of rp in Central Thanalan, takes place almost simultaniously to Kanaria's above post.))

The most important lesson in war, is to not have anything you would not be willing to sacrifice for victory.Â If you have even just one thing precious, you have already lost.

Jin'li opened his black eyes as the lesson Master Adin had taught him a decade ago replayed in his mind.Â Adin had been wise.Â For ten years, Jin'li had used people and things to make his enemies do things they would never have done otherwise.Â The white-haired miqo'te had become a master of blackmail.Â And tonight, was his masterpiece.

He stood on the mine cart tracks just outside the far end of the rail tunnel that ran southeast of Black Brush Station.Â In his right arm, he held Kanria, bound and gagged, her eyes wide in fear.Â In his left hand, Jin'li pressed his personal gunblade to the woman's temple.

The wind moaned as the pair stood there for what seemed like an eternity.Â But Jin'li was patient.Â The miqo'te had only recently informed Osric that the meeting location between himself and Osric had been moved to this location, and the hyur was taking his time.Â Jin'li had been planning the shift all long, to prevent giving Osric time to set up a possible ambush.

The was an echo inside the cave and Jin'li looked up as a shadowed form cam into sight inside the tunnel.

Osric Melkire's boots clicked slowly, his pulse barely under control as he looked from behind his mask at the pair of figures ahead.Â The hyur felt his stomach knot as he continued to walk forward, looking at Jin'li holding his fiancee hostage, looking at his worst nightmare made real.

"That's far enough, Master Melkire."Â Jin'li said as Osric reached the edge of the tunnel.Â Osric came to a stop, his feet resting before a wooden box.Â The hyur noticed Jin'li wore a rappel system around his waist and torso, the rope coiled neatly by the edge of the cliff that the rails ran atop, the end synched tightly to the railroad tracks.

"Easy, Jin'li." Osric said, raising his hands up past his ears, past his head.Â Jin'li noticed the hyur brush his ear ever so slightly and suspected the male had just brushed a linkpearl.Â A count down began in Jin'li's head, a calculation about how long he might have before Osric's allies arrived.Â

"Good evening, Master Osric." Jin'li said with a small nod of his head, his black eyes never leaving Osric's masked face.Â "Would you kindly open the box at you feet?"

The woman in Jin'li's arms stared at Osric and whimpered softly behind her gag as Osric looked down at the box and spoke:

"I'm not going to find a bomb in there am I?Â Leaving you to shootÂ her and rappel down from the railroad?"

"No harm will befall her if you obey."Â Jin'li explained calmly.Â "Now would you kindly open the box?"

Osric knelt down and, with a grimace, opened the lid.Â Inside the box was a mechanical collar and a smaller box.Â The collar had what appeared to be a magitek explosive and a speaker system built into it.Â Once locked, Osric could not see a clear way to unlock it.Â

"Would you kindly put the collar on?" Jin'li requested as his eyes watched the crouched hyur.

Osric Melkire looked up to Kanaria.... "...Alright." the hyur male said slowly.

Osric slowly reached into the box and pulled out the collar holding it in his shaking hands as he spoke:

"What's in the other box?"

Jin'li pulled the hammer back on his gunblade deliberately, the weapon clicking ominously as the hammer locked into place

Â "We will come to Rema's box after you put the collar on." Jin'li replied dryly, his black eyes fixed on Osric, the woman in the miqo'te's arms squirming in fear, eyes wide.

Osric placed the cold metal to his throat and swallowed before he fastened the collar. The collar locked shut with a hiss and there is a burning smell as the collar welded itself shut. The front of the collar glowed blood red for a few moments and then the light went out. There was a single, mechanical beep and Jin'li nodded in satisfaction as he spoke:

"That collar contains a linkpearl that allows me to hear what you say should I desire to listen in, and will inject my voice through your neck into your head. I wore such a collar once. They cannot be undone without the key, which I have, far from here. Now, before I let her go, whom do you serve, Master Osric?"

"You, ser." Osric replied despairingly. "Gods damn you, you."

"No." Jin'li shook his head. His face suddenly contorted and when he spoke again, his voice was a perfect mimicry of his dead Master Adin's tone. "You serve me again." Jin'li's face twisted again. "And you serve me," came out the imitation of the dead Lady Rema's voice. Jin'li nodded and then spoke in his own, flat tone. "There is an explosive in that collar I can set off should I choose. Do not forget whom you serve. Swear your loyalty to this slave."

Osric Melkire clenched his fists and huffs a breath. "I swear to Adin. I swear to Rema. I swear to Jin'li. As... as I live, I'll serve."

Â Kanaria Galanode could feel the tears slip from her eyes and roll down her cheeks only to soak into the cloth of the gag. A murmuring could be heard from behind the gag, yet not a syllable understood.

Â "You are a slave. We are the masters. Say it.Â Please." Jin'li commanded, his mind knowing what a master should say to a slave.Â He had been the slave all his life.

Â "I'm a slave. You are the masters." Osric answer despairingly and Jin'li felt a smile try to flick over his mouth, his subconscious giddy with the power he felt, the fact that he was a master.Â But Jin'li's conscious mind strangled his emotions and he spoke calmly, his face blank as he spoke:

Â "And as a slave, you are given what the master thinks you should have, and you will lose what the master thinks you should not have. This is the truth. Master Melkire. Lady Rema wishes you to take that box and open it once our business here is done, for she is kind and you will need it. As for Master Adin, shall I give you his gift?"

Osric Melkire swallowed nervously, the collar tight on his throat. "You are the master, ser."

A faint scratching of boot grinding on the wooden post that held aloft the metal rail track caused Jin'li's left ear to flick.Â Osric's allies were close.

"Then embrace the gift of suffering, Master Melkire. Remember, the box."Â Jin'li said sternly as he released Kanaria and shoved her forward towards Osric.Â In a fluid motion, the white-haired miqo'te hefted his gunblade, the polished metal glinting wickedly in the moonlight as Jin'li pulled the trigger.Â Bright orange, like a small sun, erupted from the end of the barrel. The projectile slammed into the back of Kanaria's head. The woman jerked back, blood and grey matter splattering the rails as she fell face forward onto the tracks.

"NO!" Osric screamed, his voice loud and shrill, his heart tightening as he raced toward the body of his love, the pain inside his heart a million times worse than anything a mortal could suffer physically.

Jin'li raced to the edge and threw himself over the lip of the rail and fell like a comet towards the earth.Â The rope snagged and went taught and if Jin'li was not a eunuch, he might have let out a whimper as the girdle pinched his groan.Â Jin'li sliced the taught rope with his gunblade and started running, plunging into the darkness of the the long cave before him, water splashing around his ankles.Â

Osric Melkire knelt down beside the body of the woman and pulled Kanaria to him, cradling her in his arms.

"Please gods... please... this can't be real... no...." Osric choked, tears streaming from underneath his mask, the sounds of running feet surrounding him, paniced voices all around him

Askier · **07-02-2014, 10:31 PM**

Osric Melkire pulled Kanaria to him, cradling the limp form in his arms, tears running from underneath his mask as he shook
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"Please gods... please...this can't be real... no...." Osric choked over and over in shocked denial, the world around him shattering and becoming a distant blur as his agony consumed him.
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All around Osric, people moved: his friends, his allies, voices.Â All speaking to him, all frantic.Â Coatleque Crofte leaned in, saying something, trying to examine the body, but couldn't see anything with Osric cradling her.
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"Please, Ser, let us see her!"Â Crofte said, almost like an order.
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Mechanically, unwillingly, Osric laid the still woman down on the tracks, crimson covering his jacket from the bleeding wound.Â The male hyur looked down, buried his face in his hands, and sobbed as the others moved around him.Â Osric hear Alexei speaking, moving, dropping a bag full ofÂ medical devices and digging through it.Â Lannis spoke, then Sizha'to began yelling, screaming, as Alexei tried to examine the woman bleeding all over the tracks.
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Inside Osricâ€™s mind, everything was unraveling.Â He was numb, unable to grasp the reality of what had just occurred, his mind sealing itself off from the rolling waves of agony that threatened to drown him.Â He was saved by a voice, shouting his name, forcing him to turn his watery eyes up at Tana Firesong as she spoke:
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"Osric, where did he run?"
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A hand was on his shoulder, Osric realized.Â Junichi Mitarashiâ€™s hand, comforting the hyur as Osric spoke, his words chocked off by sobs.
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"I... I don't... he..."Â Â Osricâ€™s words died off as he shuddered.Â He looks at the dead form of his love, his eyes fixed on the motionless form.Â His friend were moving, poking, talking urgently.Â They were trying to help but it didnâ€™t seem to be working.Â Nothing was working.Â Osric felt his stomach tighten and he tore his eyes away from the body, looking off, trying to denyÂ the realityÂ as a faint whisper, a plea, rasped off his lips, tears rolling form his eyes.
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:"...p-p-please..."
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The wind moaned low and softly as Osric stared without seeing, his mind unable to comprehend it all.Â There is no hope, no light, there was only....

Â "...the box." Osric said softly.Â The hyur slowly turned and, almost in a trance, approached the box.Â Inside, there was the smaller box, sitting there, unassuming.Â There was aÂ commotion behind Osric but he focused on the tiny box. Rema's gift.Â The hyur male knelt and opened it.

Osric swallowed.Â There was a lavender linkpearl inside the box.Â Lavender, the color of his love's eyes.Â The hyur mechanically retrieved the linkpearl and placed it into his ear, his voice strained as he spoke:

"Hello...?

There was a gasp from the pearl. Kanaria's voice could be heard scrambling for words. "Ossy? Ossy? I-I'm alive... I love-..." Was all she could get out before being hushed once more.

Osric Melkire blinked, his numb mind slowly awakening, letting himself feel the world again as he swallowed, and turned to speak, his voice a half-sob.

Â "It's not her."Â

Â "W-what?" Coatleque Crofte said in disbelief at what she was hearing as she stared at Osric.Â The others present all turned to gaze at the hyur male as he went on slowly.

Â "...whoever this is..."Â Osric motioned at the dead body his friend's and allies huddled around, his mind letting in reality as he plucked the lavender linkpearl from his ear and held it out for everyone to see.Â "It's not her.Â This was hers. Hers and mine. ..it was in the box that bastard left for me."

"That does not make me more at ease..." Coatleque Crofte said.

"I heard her voice. HER voice." Osric said, a mixture of joy and sorrow leaking through with his words.

Meanwhile Sizha'to Chalahko poured sweat from his brow from the intense effort of trying to gather gather enough aether to heal her the woman before him.

"Sizzie...let go, man." Osric ordered with a raspy voice.Â Â

Sizha'to Chalahko was not paying attention, he continued to try and mend her shot wound.... but he begins to cave in.... the light he's using to heal begins to dim... until the light is gone and he falls to the side, unconscious.Â The others mill around, speaking quickly amongst themselves.Â Suddenly, a voice, calm, and polite whispers into Osric's ear.

"Kanaria lives, Master Osric." Jin'li whispered calmly, using the device.Â "Master Adin took away that which you loved, and Lady Rema as given her back, for she is kind."

Osric Melkire collapsed onto his ass and broke into sobs again. "She's... she's not... oh thank... oh gods.. Rema is kind...I... I should've... should've remembered...."

"Yes, you should have.Â Do not doubt your Masters again for we give with one hand and take away with the other, for we are kindness, and we are wrath.Â And you are ours now."

Â "I don't... I don't know how he did it..." Osric stammered as his allies looked over at him with intense stares.Â "But this isn't her."Â the was relief in his voice, relief that was turning to anger.

"As if that should make a difference now! This girl was just murdered in front of me. I care not who she 'could' have been!" Lady Crofte shout in indignation, appalled at that Osric seemed to dismissive of the dead woman before them.

"IT DOESN'T!"Â Osric bellowed.Â "WE'RE GOING TO FIND HIM, AND WE ARE GOING TO KILL THAT BASTARD!"Â Fury pumped through Osric like fire sweeps through dry grass.

"I second that." came Tana Firesong's voice.Â The rest of the group began speaking but the whisper returned, and it was stern and disapproving

"There will be no hunt.Â Call it off.Â Go home.Â Do not threaten to ever harm your masters again.Â Or we will harm Lady Kanaria."

Osric felt the fear, the memory of the anguish returned and his fires of vengeance went out immediately.Â He swallowed and realized the horrible, awful truth.Â He was Jin'li's. He was...

Compromised.

A liability.

Security leak.

His network....

Â "...no more. It's over. Call it off. I'm done." Osric ordered with a croak, trying to hold himself together.

Osric's allies stared at him in dumbfounded amazement as the hyur walked over to the limp Sizzia.Â Osric pulled a green linkpearl out from his ear and slide it into Sizzie's before slowly walking away, giving only a single sentence answer to his friends' questions.

"I'm going home."

The hyur slowly plodded away, his mind wrapped within a shroud of numb pain and confusion.Â His entire world was changed.Â Just hours before, he had been one of the most powerful people in Ul'dah, with connections running throughout Eorzea.Â And in a single moment, Jin'li had shattered him, shattered his power, shattered his life, shattered his piece of mind

"Well done, slave. Now go home and rest well, Your masters require you kill and soon. Do you understand?"

"Yes, master."

Osric then opened his mouth in a silent scream of frustration and anguish as he fell to his knees,Â as the desert winds blew around him.

What was it Askier had said to him, just hours earlier? WhenÂ Osric had let Delial Grimsong walk?

"Sooner or later, you are going to regret letting someone you should have killed when you had the chance go free."

Askier · **07-03-2014, 01:06 PM**

((The following post was inspired by an rp event between Osric, Askier, and Alexei Volkov in the airship landing restaurant/tavern where the trio were using quill and paper to communicate things while Jinâ€™li listened in on the collar Osric wears as Osric pretended to be ordering food and receiving terrible service.Â Point of this post?Â Show how coo-coo Jinâ€™li.))
Â
For nearly four bells, Jinâ€™li had sat at the table, reading a book.Â He had ordered a new cup of tea every bell and sipped on it gently until right before the next bell, when he would finish it and order another, paying for the cup as the waitress took it away.
Â
Jinâ€™li recalled how he had heard Osric struggling to receive good service though the linkpearl in his ear, how the waitress had token far to long, and how Osricâ€™s order wasnâ€™t right.

The waitress had been rude, and Jinâ€™li did not appreciate rudeness,especially when it was to his mastersâ€™ fellow slaves.
Â
The white-haired miqoâ€™te had been listening to her for the past few bells as he had sipped tea and had determined several things.
Â
Fact one:Â she was rude.
Â
Fact two: she often got orders wrong, she had given him the wrong tea twice.
Â
Fact three: she was a hyur and her voice became somewhat disdainful when serving miqoâ€™te.
Â
Fact four: she was now the only member of the staff for thesmall bar left working.
Â
Fact five: she was staring at him right now with a scowl of annoyance because she wanted to go home because the sun had long since set and the airship landing was practically deserted save for the two of them and the Brass Blade life operate across the landing, but Jinâ€™li had not paid for his last cup of tea.Â On purpose, to keep her there.
Â
The miqoâ€™te casually took a sip, making sure to produce no slurping noises as he polished off the cup and gently placed it back down, his black eyes reading the print on the page.
Â
The hyur sighed in exasperation and walked over, her feet making sharp slapping noises as she moved.
Â
â€œYou done?â€ the hyur said, placing a hand on her hip,looking into the cup.Â Jinâ€™li lifted his eyes from the book.
Â
â€œIndeed I am, Lady Waitress. Thank you for serving me this evening.Â Please take your payment.â€Â Jinâ€™liâ€™s free hand dug into his black coat and pulled out more gil, which he held out to her.Â â€œThe payment for the tip and thegil for your service.â€
Â
The woman snatched the gil up and began counting it as Jinâ€™lirose to his feet, picked up the tea cup and walked past the woman.Â Jinâ€™li walked over to the bar, opened the counter door, and walk behind the bar towards a water bucket.
Â
â€œHey, what the hells are you doing?!â€ the hyur woman exclaimed as she rushed over.Â Jinâ€™li looked at her blankly as he spoke:
Â
â€œI have made a mess of the cup and the table and been a rude customer by doing so.Â This humble slave was going to wash the cup out for you and clean off the table as thanks for you serving me.â€
Â
â€œForget it and get out!â€ the woman snapped with a growl.Â Jinâ€™li placed the cup down and bowed his head.Â
Â
â€œMy Lady Waitress, I have offended you. Please forgive me.â€Â
Â
â€œLook, the woman said with a shook of her head.Â â€œItâ€™s been a long day and I just want to go home.Â Just get out.â€
Â
â€œAs you wish, Lady Waitress. May I be so favored to ask you a question?â€™Â Jinâ€™li inquired as he placed the cup down and began walking around the bar, his black eyes looking around, noting the landing platform, noting how no one had a line of sight to the bar at that moment.
Â
The wind gently blowing across the stone platform, rustling ledgers at the counters.
Â
â€œWill you just leave then?â€ the woman scoffed as she pushed past Jinâ€™li into the bar and went tograb a bag of her belongings.
Â
â€œI shall. My question is this, would you kindly remember your manners when you meet my masters?â€
Â
The woman paused. Before she could reply, Jinâ€™li leapt forward,the metal wires that ran throughout his body conducting electrical current, sparking his coiled muscles into action.Â In a single instant, the white-haired miqoâ€™te reached forward with his hands, seized the womanâ€™s head in his grasp and jerked it around violently, a snap echoing around the room.Â
Â
The hyurâ€™s body fell to the floor, twitching.Â Jinâ€™li stepped over the limp form to the tea cup and began cleaning it in the bucket of water, his black eyes surveying the room, making sure he had been unseen.Â
Â
Once the cup was clean, he placed it on a drying rack before he took a rag, dipped it in the cleaning bucket and then went over to the table and wiped it down until it was clean to his satisfaction.Â The white-haired miqoâ€™te then returned the rag to the bucket and closed the counter door, leaving the dead woman on the floor.
Â
Jinâ€™li calmly strode across the platform, coming to the elevator, a single brass blade blinked at him with sleepy eyes.
Â
â€œThe bar closed?â€Â the Brass Blade yawned.Â Jinâ€™li nodded as the lift operator opened the door to the lift.
Â
â€œIt is, Master Brass Blade.â€ Jinâ€™li said softly as he stepped onto the lift.
Â
â€œShould I wait for the waitress?â€Â the Brass Blade yawned again.
Â
â€œI fear she will be a little bit.â€Â Jinâ€™li explained calmly, his face blank as he reached out a pale skinned hand and closed the door to the lift.Â â€œShe made a mess.â€

Austurmax Laforet · **07-04-2014, 07:56 PM**

The screams echo off the dungeon walls as the body of the refugee twists and contorts before Laforet. Once this had been a young hyurman from the highlands, probably from Ala Mhigo. Now, it took on a form more fitting the thaumaturgeâ€™s purposes, a grotesque and twisted vessel for a voidsent.

The monstrosity lashes out at its creator. Voidsent had no sense of loyalty after all. But such was not required, for with the power to summon creatures from that realm came the power to control them. Laforetâ€™s hands reach out through the Aether to take ahold of the creature, forcing it to take a knee before him. Another soldier, he dismisses it to join its fellows for now.

She didnâ€™t like it. She understood that what he was doing was sick and wrong. And somewhere, buried deep in his blackened heart, he agreed. But he didnâ€™t care any longer. These poor, wretched creatures existed only to live, suffer, and die. In the end they all longed for death. Yes, it was mercy for them to come to it now. Perhaps even greater mercy to break them first so that they may spread this mercy to others before their sweet release.

He muses over these thoughts as he considers the implications of the slaveâ€™s plot. He didnâ€™t care who ruled Ulâ€™dah. And he didnâ€™t honestly believe it would change anytime soon. Terrorism had worked to weaken Ala Mhigo, but because it divided the city from within. This was more like to unite the city against a common foe. But when it came right down to it, he didnâ€™t care if the Empire was successful or not. They had given him what he needed, and he enjoyed giving them what they wanted. After all, one must never break a bargain, for in this world where everyone lies he alone must speak only truth.

â€œBut so much more work to be done.â€ He exhales and turns back to the holding cells, watching his future servants cowering in the corner, each hoping the one next to be them would be chosen. Fear not little mice. Your pain will be over soon.

â€œNext."

Askier · **07-08-2014, 01:02 AM**

(Based on rp between Raven and myself)

The storm was howling, wind and rain slamming against the stones of Highbridge.Â The river beneath the bridge was swollen from the hours of ceaseless rain; and the nearby town of Drybone was no anything â€“but- dry.Â Lightning flashed across the sky and roaring thunder echoed across the land.Â A figure stood on the bridge, her clothes soaking wet as she stood at the railing in the middle of the bridge.

Raven Gorehandâ€™s lips were pursed and she was scowling.Â She was supposed to meet her contact here.Â She had information about what was going to happen to Ulâ€™dah and she needed to pass the information along as soon as possible.Â Her hand was on the linkpearl in her ear and she was yelling over the wind and rain.

â€œAlright, Iâ€™ll see you soon. Thanks for making me wait in this!â€Â Ravenâ€™s voice was sarcastic and she turned around.Â Lightning flashed and Raven saw a second figure standing there.

The figure was dressed in a black coat that billowed about the small frame wildly as water dripped from soaking, white hair.Â Lightning flashed and a pair of onyx black eyes stared at her calmly, a silver gunblade shining bright in the flash of light.Â The figure bowed and then spoke,loudly, but without emotion:

"Forgive my presumption, but are you the Lady RavenGorehand?

â€œI am.â€Â Raven answered apprehensively, her fingers flexing as she noted the weapon in the figureâ€™s hand.Â â€œDonâ€™t I know you?â€Â The white hair, the voice, the silver gunblade, why was it familiar to her?

"Forgive me for not introducing myself, for you certainly do know of me.Â You served Askier Mergrey once, whom in turn served my masters.Â You are now considered a threat to our operations and I have come to handle you myself."Â Jin'li raised his gunblade and pulled the hammer back, thunder roaring overhead.

"Any last word, Lady Raven?"

Raven Gorehand smiled and shook her head. She had no weapon,she left them on her chocobo on the other end of the bridge.Â She sighed, her mind accepting her impending fate as she looked up at Jinâ€™li and replied:

"Death to the Empi-"

Without emotion on his face, Jin'li pulled the trigger, sending the projectile straight into the woman's chest.Â Raven Gorehand 's body was sent flying backwards, blood spraying from her ruined chest as she toppled over the side and plummeted towards the swollen river far below.Â
Â
There was a flash of lighting and a roar of thunder as Jinâ€™li turned and began walking back towards Drybone, Â the smoking barrel of his gun slung over his shoulder.Â Jinâ€™li walked until he came to the edge of the bridge and looked back, his dull, black eyes gazing at the puddle of blood that was being washed away by the rain.Â Jinâ€™li bowed and spoke calmly.
Â
"Please forgive me, Lady Gorehand, that was rude of me."
Â
Jinâ€™li turned back around and resumed his walk.Â In the distance, Jinâ€™li could see the distantglow of lights from the town of Drybone.Â Jinâ€™li squinted against the rain and thought.
Â
He needed to reach his agent inside Drybone, to discuss a new development.Â Word had reached Jinâ€™li that a man called â€˜hope incarnateâ€™ had returned to the streets of Ulâ€™dah.Â A piece which might threaten his masters' entire operation.Â A man whom had made Askier nervous for his chances of success back when Askier had still served Jin'li's masters.Â

Â
A man named Erik Mynhier.Â

A man Jinâ€™li needed to meet.

Aya · **07-08-2014, 12:08 PM**

(07-03-2014, 01:06 PM)Askier Wrote: Fact one:Â she was rude.
Â
Fact two: she often got orders wrong, she had given him the wrong tea twice.
Â
Fact three: she was a hyur and her voice became somewhat disdainful when serving miqoâ€™te.
Â
Fact four: she was now the only member of the staff for thesmall bar left working.
Â
Fact five: she was staring at him right now with a scowl of annoyance because she wanted to go home because the sun had long since set and the airship landing was practically deserted save for the two of them and the Brass Blade life operate across the landing, but Jinâ€™li had not paid for his last cup of tea.Â On purpose, to keep her there.

(( Should have come to the Quick Sand ^_~ ))

Askier · **07-17-2014, 12:28 PM**

Jin'li stood in the middle of the room, his black eyes staring wide-eyed at the wall, which was covered in calculations and numerical values.Â His left arm moved furiously as he played a violin, the bow screeching back and forth across untuned strings, blood dripping from the finger tips of his right hand.Â For bells on end, he had stood there, staring, and playing, violently. The cacophony his instrument had been making had forced the two assassins whom had stood just outside to distance themselves from the open door.Â The miqo'te was lost in his own mind.

Jin'li's mind saw the face of his dead master Adin, standing over the mental image of the dead, headless, corpse of Lady Rema, his second master.Â Adin was smiling.

"Rema is no more.Â We are done with plans of conquest, Jin'li.Â Ul'dah's destruction awaits."

Adin's voice whispered in his mind, causing Jin'li's right ear to twitch.Â The white haired miqo'te played on, the notes growing louder.

Jin'li." the mental voice of Adin said as the imagined face turned into a scowl.Â "Stop that insufferable noise."

Jin'li played on, silent, his face emotionless as he gazed into his first master's eyes.

"Jin'li that's an order!"Â Adin barked.Â Jin'li blinked and then played faster.

"You are no longer worthy of service, Master Adin." Jin'li said in his monotone voice

The imagined Adin blinked.Â

"You will repent for your backtalk slave, do not forget whom saved you."

"This humble slave saved himself by impressing you with my skills ten years ago.Â You are not worthy of service.Â This humble slave has broken Ul'dah with his hands and Lady Rema's plans.Â You are just anger and failed plans.Â I rid myself of you."

"And then whom will you serve?!Â A slave must serve Jin'li!" Adin snarled.

"This humble slave shall serve himself for the first time in his life that soon shall end."

Suddenly Jin'li bent over, adjusted the angle of the violin and the bow and then shoved forward.Â The bow pierced his left ear violently and then tore most of the left ear off.Â Crimson immediate stained his white hair but Jin'li's black eyes gazed at Adin, an imagined spear now thrust through the imagined hyur's chest.Â Adin gasped in surprise and Jin'li bowed as he kept playing the violin.

"That was rude of me, Master Adin.Â I'd ask your forgiveness, but, I no longer need your approval."

The imagined forms of master Adin and Rema faded away and his black, dull eyes focused on the wall.

The defenders of Ul'dah had counter Jin'li plans well.Â The numbers of dead were low, between a few hundred to a thousand had been slain by the Doctor's poison, and that estimate was a best case scenario for Jin'li.Â The chaos it had created had been pleasing, however, and even a few hundred was more than Laforet needed.Â The black mage was already altering the dead remains for the next assault upon the Gate of Thal.Â

The plan of his masters...no...HIS plan...it was working.Â He was doing so much.Â He only wished that he had more time.Â The Doctor had come to him just last night.Â The blood work the Doctor had done on Jin'li showed what Jin'li had already suspected.Â Jin'li had less than one moon cycle to live.Â The diseases he carried in his veins were finally catching up with him.Â He was going to die.Â Though the white haired miqo'te had no plans on dying alone.Â As the violin screeched in protest to it's harsh treatment, Jin'li blinked and then smiled.Â

The smile was awkward and contorted.Â He had smiled less than five times in his entire life.Â But he did it now and he suddenly giggled.Â An energetic, youthful laugh, one that mixed with rancor of the groaning violin as he played on.

From the doorway, the Doctor watched his fiddling patient in silence.Â The Doctor's golden eyes held both pity and fear in that moment as they reflected the lamp light.Â The Doctor had already packed and held his bag in his hand.Â His patient had long since gone insane and the Doctor no longer felt safe.Â

Without a word, the Doctor turned, his tail swishing as he walked away, outside the compound, and into the light of day.Â The Doctor sighed as he approached his chocoholic, which was pulling a wagon.Â The wagon was loaded with the antidote and more vials of his Blue Blood Strand 2.Â The Doctor smiled.

He had already sent letters to Rae and Kanaria.Â His employment to the Garleans was at an end.Â His poisons, his antidote, and his skills, were once again at the the service of the highest bidder.

The Doctor mounted the wagon and cracked the reigns and he rode off, constantly looking over his shoulder, at the two assassins that watched him leave.

Askier · **07-17-2014, 01:00 PM**

Askier's golden eyes opened slowly, and blinked.Â The Garlean used his right hand to rub the sleep out of each eye as he yawned and rolled his neck.Â The table he had slept on in the basement of Red Wings HQ was far from comfortable, but he hadn't had a chance to set up any kind of personal quarters yet with everything that had been going on.

Askier sat up, his spine popping in protest and his muscles were incredibly stiff.Â He felt the left half of his body dragging behind and his tired mind was momentarily confused.Â He looked and then remembered why.Â Â

His golden eye saw the metal, magitek arm hanging limp at his side.Â The shoulder mount had been bolted and grafted to his bones and muscle tissue, wires inserted into tissue and nerve endings.Â The arm itself was attached to the metal mounting base and was a simple appendage.Â There was a tingle of electricity as Askier stared at his mechanical hand and watched the fingers slowly open and close as he made them, feeling nothing.Â

The woman Alexei had brought him to meet the night before, this Oria, had informed Askier it would be years before he had full, functional control over the limb and he might never be able to move the limb without looking at it.Â Askier had been a bit disappointed, but between Oria's promise to tweak the settings of his new limb, and the fact that he didn't have to gaze at an empty stump anymore, Askier was willing to wait years.

The thirty-one year old miqo'te looked over at the sleeping form on the floor and smiled.

None of this would have been possible without Alexei, whom even in sleep seemed to be frowning.Â The man was a skilled surgeon and had installed the arm well enough.Â Askier looked at the sleeping hyur's face and marveled at how that man had gone from stabbing Askier in the stomach to acting as Askier's bodyguard.Â Life had a weird way of working and Askier was glad it did.Â Alexei was the most honest man in all Eorzea in Askier's mind.Â Not a great conversationalist, but if he said something, you just knew it was true.

There was a jolt of electricity in Askier's muscle where a wire met his muscle and he tensed.Â It had been that stray wire that had prevent him from using the new arm at all last night when he finally got to use the tool he and his small band of allies had stolen from the Castrum to disarm Jin'li's collars.

Askier looked down at the black bag resting by the feet of the table and the tool that was poking out of it.Â It was a simple, crescent shaped piece of metal, attached to a handle, not unlike a pugilist's weapon.Â

Askier closed his eyes and thought back on the tense moments in the Golden Bazaar last night when he had completely removed Kiht's collar and disarmed the explosive in Miah's collar.Â It had taken three people, Kahn'a, Alexei, and himself to disarm them, but it had worked! Soon the other collars would be disarmed and removed as well.Â He wasn't sure why Miah had requested her's left on, but she seemed to have a plan and any plan against the white-haired runt was a good plan.

Askier kept gazing at the tool and smiled to himself.Â For the first time since he had been carried, bloodied and broken, like a babe from Itar's clutches, he felt a sense of pride and confidence in whom he was.Â He still had nightmares, he still hated surgery equipment, he still had to sleep with a stuffed animal, which currently rested beside him, but he had used his knowledge and skills to help someone in need, and it felt good.

It made Askier smile.Â Maybe he really was worthy of the rank of engineer that Erik had bestowed upon him.Â Just maybe.

Askier · **07-25-2014, 02:18 PM**

The Doctor sat on the edge of the dock, the sun sparkling as it rose over the ocean. Crescent Cove was peaceful early in the day and the Doctor enjoyed the lapping water.

After the Doctor had been dragged over the edge of the cliff by the lalafell, he had been picked up by fishers and been slowly recovering, nursing his broken arm.

The Doctor lifted a vial in his right, unbroken hand and examined the vial of Blue Blood Strand 2, the sun light dancing off the liquid.

The Doctor was planning to recover and then move on to the next person who would buy his talents and his posion. The Doctor smiled behind his mask as he put the vial away in his coat and sighed.

But first, he was going to enjoy this well deserved vacation.

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