Prey: A Character Driven RP [FINISHED]

[i don't know]

Alec shook. He almost exploded as he drank the brown liquid eagerly; holding the reigns of the beast half-heartedly. A few seconds passed and fire burst from Alec's lips; small but strong, the fire melted the glass container Alec had in his hand. Something clicked and beeped in Alec's head. He took the reigns of the dragon:

"It's ok dragon, I wont hurt you but I will make you work eventually. Nothing too hard though."

He pulled the dragon close.

"Go fly free. I wont let anyone hurt you. All I ask of you is to come to me when I Scream out the code word."

Alec whispered it to the dragon and turned to Rin.

"I always needed to get high, but seriously I'm ready now."

 

[TheDoctor455]

"Rin, I would strongly advise against 'ejecting' me from this facility." Dr. Strauss began, "There is every chance that I would die before leaving the Earth's atmosphere, thus releasing the virus before it is starved in the vacuum of space - assuming that's even possible. In which event, the virus would still wipe everyone out... it would just have a delayed start. And you would also lose your best chance at finding a cure for it as you would've lost the only medical mind that is even aware of its existence, and the source - the only way to study it before it is released. As for containment... well... I seriously doubt you have infinite resources to throw at keeping me alive indefinitely AND keeping my immune system in prime condition AND develop a perfect filtration system to prevent any incidental infection. I know I said that a cure is unlikely at this stage, but it is still possible. And right now it is the best chance we have. Whatever plans you have for the world don't mean a damn if you and everyone else is dead."

Then Dr. Strauss realized he had been shouting at Rin.

Oh just bloody great. he thought.

 

[DktrAgonizer]

"Hm..." Zetta stood with her hands on her hips, looking around the area with narrowed eyes. "Looks like the dragons did some work on this place," she commented, eyeing the various areas of scorched and scraped earth. There was no building in sight, though the facility should be close. Tunnels, then?

Zetta had already laid a blanket of invisibility over everybody, although there had been absolutely no guards in sight the entire way down. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry; Rin and her lackeys were likely to have cameras hidden away to watch the mountain face.

After a few minutes of surveying the area, she spotted a large slab of stone in the near distance. Zetta made her way over to it, wondering if it was a marker to an entrance. As soon as she reached it, her guess was confirmed; there was a large hole in the mountain face by the boulder. There was nobody around it and there were no cameras, and even though she was invisible, Zetta strode forward to cautiously peek inside. The hole was the entrance to a tunnel, sloping gently down into the mountain. It went straight for a bit before turning, and so she could see no farther.

"Guys," Zetta said, waving the others over. "Looks like the place is built right inside the mountain. Should we go? I know we're invisible to anybody who might be watching and all, but..." She paused, taking a deep breath as she scrutinized the tunnel's entrance. "Well, this place looks unguarded. I know it's not like us flying up here on the back of a dragon would be the first worry on Rin's mind, but doesn't this seem almost too easy?"

I hope I'm just being paranoid, Zetta thought as she waited for the others to answer. Then again, maybe I'm not being paranoid enough. We need to be real careful from here on out.

 

[JoJo]

Rin gave Dr. Strauss a look of contempt at his suggestion and tone of voice.

"Don't be silly, you know that's not what I meant by ejecting. Followers!"

She clicked her fingers and a couple of obedient followers appeared, each taking one of the doctor's arms. She smiled maliciously and bent close to whisper in Strauss's ear.

"Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing if the human race underwent a bit of pruning?" The woman then took a step back and spoke loudly to her followers "Take this man to one of the secure air-tight lab rooms, give him anything within reason he requests and don't let him leave until I say so."

The two followers began to tug hard on Dr. Strauss's coat, being careful to avoid touching his exposed skin. Rin turned away without another word to Alec.

"Finally. Come behind here and... wait a minute, where's Chojun and the child got to now?" The woman sighed and rolled her eyes "It's too bad I guess, they'll have to miss the summoning. Look behind this curtain and you'll see my dear Merlin's body. Do... what you must."

The old wizard's body was dressed neatly in clean white robes not that unlike the colour of his beard, his drooping pale skin a light blue colour now and his eyes firmly closed. The corpse was lying on a long table covered by a sheet, a wooden stick lay besides him.

~​

Maya put a skip in her step as she followed Mr. Kimura, she had at-least for now put the events of the previous day out of her mind. She couldn't wait to see her mother again. He led her into a small warmly lit room with a bed and wooden desk and begun rummaging through a drawer for something.

"Ah... here's what I was looking for."

He passed her a faded photograph of himself and a young woman. They were holding each other and smiling happily, like a newly-wed couple on holiday. In the background was a busy city with many tall skyscrapers and shining buildings made out of sheets of black glass. Though it had be taken a decade earlier, Maya recognised who she was immediately.

"Mummy..." the little girl breathed "She... she looks happy."

"Yes. She does." Mr. Kimura said simply and then put a hand on Maya's shoulder, looking her straight in the eyes. "There's something I have to tell you, it's not easy to say but I have no choice. You see Maya... Rin's being lying to you."

"Huh?" Maya stared at the man wide-eyed, apprehensive about what would come next. "What is it?"

"It's your mother, she isn't in hospital... she... she's dead. I... I'm really sorry."

~​

Gabriel looked over Zetta's shoulder and peaked into the tunnel carved into the solid red mountain-side.

"Maybe Rin isn't worried about anyone out here? It's not like this place is teeming with life and I guess since we've come this far there's no turning back. Lily and Blackrose, you guys want to lead the way?"

 

[Cap'n Ninja]

"Very well then. Lead on MacDuff" Lily said, stepping into the cool tunnel, echoing her words from the previous day. That seemed so long ago, it felt like a year had passed because of the sheer volume of things that had happened in such a short amount of time she thought.
The air certainly felt different, as if Lily had just walked into an air conditioned room from a hot day, but... Stranger. She kept going, back straight and head held high. It wouldn't do to let herself falter at a time like this, not at such a late stage in the game. Lily sent out a low level pressure pulse along the walls, floor and ceiling, but felt nothing, and there were no explosions, so she assumed the hallway was safe enough, whatever it might be used for.

 

[TheDoctor455]

Dr. Strauss glared at Rin with a murderous look in his eye... one that was also eerily calm... as if he could see something in her future that she couldn't. He grinned for a moment, and then dropped back into a neutral face as the followers dragged him out of the room. Once he was sure he was out of ear-shot of the meeting room and that there weren't any cameras nearby, Dr. Strauss planted his feet firmly in the floor and used his weight to throw the rather skinny followers off of him. Once they were on the floor, he kicked both of them in the jaw to knock them out.

Once free of Rin's cultists, he started dashing through the hallways to find a way out or a way to sabotage the whole place. Then he bumped into Maya and Mr. Kimura. Dr. Strauss didn't hear much of their conversation, but the look on Maya's face told him enough. He tapped Mr. Kimura hard on the shoulder a few times to get his attention.

"Hey," he said, "what the hell do you think you're doing, scaring Maya like that? What the hell is going on?"

Without waiting for Mr. Kimura to explain, Dr. Strauss kneeled down and hugged Maya carefully.
"Whatever it is," he told her, "I'll do everything I can to help you and make sure you're safe."

 

[i don't know]

Alec found the body of Merlin to be most disturbing. He tried to fix it with life. He raised his hands not knowing what he was doing, and raised Merlin like a puppet by the strings of life. The weight of life was too much and Alec fell as Merlin stood.

"Here's your Merlin, gosh I need to lie down. This never happened before, I think. I never raised anyone from the dead. Merlin must have some sort of power of his own; a will to live again, stronger than most peoples'."

Alec crawled over and grabbed Merlin's hand.

"I have committed a harsh crime. I raised someone from where they belong. You are in debt to me. All I ask now is the freedom of the dragons. Can you do that for me, your savior?"

 

[JoJo]

Merlin turned his head mechanically towards Alec, but immediately it was clear something was deeply wrong. The old man's skin was still just as pale and flaccid as when he had been a corpse on the table and his eyes were missing their pale blue spark. Instead they seemed empty, as if he was some hideously ugly puppet being operated from somewhere above by invisible strings. The wizard, or at-least his body, stared down blankly at the young man holding his hand until Rin pulled the American back by his arm.

"This... this isn't my Merlin!" she hissed in horrified voice, her hands shaking as she gripped Alec "What have you done to him?"

~​

"He... he said my mummy is dead!" Maya sobbed, her short arm's wrapped tightly around Dr. Strauss's neck. Mr. Kimura shifted uncomfortably in his wheelchair, he hadn't expected to be intruded on so quickly.

"Sorry, now I realise that might not have been the best way to tell her... I'm not very experienced with children... but sadly it's the truth. I spent almost seven years searching for Hui and when it was only when the police reported her body as having been discovered that I finally found her again. Rin must have known this, knowing what she could do. She's a liar and a manipulator, as I'm sure you've discovered Doctor, the truth had to be told if we are to have a chance of beating her. I'm very glad you're safe, by the way Maya."

Maya hadn't been listening though, she had buried her tear-streaked face into Dr. Strauss and was wiping her streaming nose onto his lab coat. After the hope that she had been given by the lie that her mother was alive and in hospital, the terrifying truth seemed even more crushing. Until recently her mother had been the central constant in her life: the sole person who provided for her, taught her and was there for her when she was in need. Now the small girl had no idea what would happen to her, even Dr. Strauss's caring hold couldn't prevent her feeling more alone than ever before. The recent loss of her friend Takeda seemed like small potatoes compared to this.

Mr. Kimura reached forward and patted Maya awkwardly on the head, not really sure what he should do, then slowly sat back and took a small package wrapped like a parcel out one of the drawers of his desk. He stroked the brown paper as he addressed Dr. Strauss.

"Rin must be stopped, she won't tell me what she's planning but she took all my records of special people I've collected from across the world. I have something here that could put a big hole in at-least part of her plan. For this I need Maya to use her ability, could you help me convince her what must be done, even at a time like this?"

~​

Down at the end of the tunnel which the four companions walked there was the sound of two voices, both male but a little on the high-pitched side. They were speaking fast and only a few words could be picked out from the distance they were at.

"Yes... I know... Excali... she want... but where?.. I... chamber... "

Neither of the speakers were visible yet, but from the sounds of their footsteps it seemed they would come into sight in any second. Gabriel raised his eyebrows at the others, looking a lot more calm than he felt.

"Ah, looks like we have company, do you reckon it's worth getting information off them or too risky now? Did the dragon say where we actually have to go?"

 

[TheDoctor455]

Dr. Strauss wasn't listening either, as he hugged Maya back. He put a hand on her shoulder from the hug to reassure her... trying to communicate that she wasn't alone in this. He struggled to stay in the present for as long as he could but...

Dr. Strauss remembered trying comfort his daughters when they found their mother dead. Trying to reassure them that things would be fine, that they would have to go on without her... that she would want them all to be happy. But then...

Dr. Strauss started crying as well. Then, a few minutes later, after he could no longer feel the tears that were still pouring out of his face, he backed away a little to face Maya. He handed her some tissues he took out of his pocket. Then he placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Its okay Maya," Dr. Strauss said, "No... no it isn't. Its never right or fair when we lose our loved ones. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. You didn't deserve any of this. You, of all people, deserve to be happy. I don't know if I can give you a happy life, but I would like to try. I would like to take care of you Maya, and I will... if you want me to."

 

[DktrAgonizer]

Spoiler: OOC

I don't know if you're still gonna read along or not, Keelz, but if you are, I'm sorry if I butcher Blackrose or her abilities too much.

"No, Goch never gave us directions," Zetta replied, her voice quiet. While she and the others were still invisible, she couldn't do anything to hide the sound of their voices. "Chances are he himself didn't have any idea where we have to go. Do you think we should interrogate them?"

"Wait." Blackrose held up a ghostly hand to signal to the others to stop. She closed her eyes, opening her mind to the thoughts of the men at the end of the tunnel. Most of the thoughts at the forefront of their minds weren't all that clear to her. There was one, however, that stood out. Blackrose wondered if she should dig a little deeper to see if they knew where Excalibur was, but her head was already starting to hurt.

"I don't know where we have to go, really, but Rin has Strauss working for some cure in a lab somewhere," Blackrose finally said.

"A cure for what?" Zetta wondered, but the other girl shrugged. "Well then... We've got a choice to make, I suppose. Either we hurry up and get answers from those men down there before they walk away, or we sneak around invisibly and find the sword by ourselves. What do you all think?"

 

[JoJo]

Maya sniffed loudly and looked up at Dr. Strauss, her lips were still quivering but she had stopped crying. She reached up to hold one of his hands that was resting on her shoulder.

"Yes..." Maya said simply, she didn't know much about the doctor but from the brief time they had spent together she knew that he was kind and would look after her. That was enough. "...Daddy?" she said hesitantly for the first time in her life.

"Sorry, that probably wasn't a good idea to tell you that now, I didn't realise how... greatly that would affect you."

Mr. Kimura's nasal voice yet again cut into the emotional scene, an unconvincing smile upon his lips as he watched the odd pair.

"Now that's all well and good but we're still being held in Rin's mountain. Dr. Strauss, if you really want to help your new... daughter" he seemed to spit out this word, as if it pained him to even speak it "then be a man and assist me bring the old witch down!"

~​

Gabriel shrugged and put his hands in his pockets casually.

"We haven't exactly shied away from attacking them before, it's not our fault they're working for a psychopathic time-travelling woman who wants to kill us. It's not even like we have to kill them back if we don't want to."

The voices were getting louder, in a few moments the followers would pass the four companions by if they didn't reveal themselves first.

"Let's call it... collateral damage!" Gabriel whispered to the other three as the two robed men came back into sight.

 

[i don't know]

"I...I never did this before. Merlin wasn't supposed to be raised I know, but I couldn't reach him any other way."

Alec crawled away from the zombie.

"He will never be the same again, ever."

"LANDING!"

A dragon scooped up Alec and flew high into the air out of Rin's reach.

 

[TheDoctor455]

Dr. Strauss took hold of Maya's hand and smiled at her, trying both to express his own joy at becoming a parent again and his knowing sympathy for what Maya had just gone through, as he got up, and made a point of putting himself somewhat between Mr. Kimura and his new... daughter.

"Just..." he said, "Just back up for a moment. What are you talking about? What 'has to be be done'? I don't trust Rin at all, but why would I trust you either? You could be working for her or something... or maybe you just want to get us out of here so you can carry out your revenge in private." Dr. Strauss gave Mr. Kimura a brief glare that said 'stay vague about what happened between us or so help me...' and silently hoped the CEO would get the message.

 

[JoJo]

Mr. Kimura indicated the package sitting on his lap, which had no distinguishing features other than being wrapped in light brown paper marked with the letters TCR.

"Well well well, funny that you should be the one asking me why I should be trusted" he tipped his head but didn't say any-more on the subject, instead passing the package to Dr. Strauss. "There's no point beating around the bush, what you're holding there is a bomb. I've been making it over the last few days, with the help of a few extra things I managed to smuggle in when Rin took hold of my data on magical people. There's a location where if this was detonated it could be a potential ender for Rin's plan, I hope. However all it's entrances are guarded by followers so I'd need someone small who could avoid being seen to sneak in and place it there, someone like Maya here. I wish there was another way but you must have realised this woman is crazy and who know's what she'll do to either of us, or the child, next? From what she's told me, Rin's kidnapped you, sent you on a wild chase after a sword, attempted to use Maya and her late friend as assassins, lied to you about your family and doesn't take the infectious risk you pose seriously, which after our last... meeting... I certainly do! Why would you trust her over me?"

~​

The dragon let out a roar and tried to rise into the air, but it was hemmed in by the relatively low ceiling of the chamber meaning it's legs were barely 5 feet off the ground. A couple of the followers leapt for the beast's hind limbs in an attempt to bring it back down to earth but they were bowled over by a flick of his tail.

What yer planning? the dragon urgently asked Alec through his mind Flying out of 'ere won't be easy and Mrs Rin won't like it either, if she asks me to do something I have to do it!

Rin meanwhile was still transfixed by Merlin's apparent revival, the pale old man was standing in front of the kneeling woman, staring down at her with empty blue eyes. After a pause, he spoke one or two sentences in an unintelligible language, or at-least it was for most of the room's inhabitants as a shocked-looking Rin nodded in reply, apparently struck dumb by the unexpected turn of events.

 

[TheDoctor455]

"I don't trust her any more than I trust you," Dr. Strauss replied, "You've both sent me after Excalibur. Of course that was bloody pointless. And yes... I kind of always had a feeling that she couldn't help my family come back... but, what other hope did I have exactly? And wait a minute... RIN told you all of that? How... how long have you been working with her exactly? You... you knew didn't you? You're the reason I was kidnapped in the first place, aren't you!??! And now you want me to set off a bomb here? Are you mad? What would that "

Dr. Strauss unconsciously held onto Maya's hand a little tighter as he struggled to calm himself. Then he remembered something else that had been bugging him about what Mr. Kimura said.
He kneeled back in front of Maya and looked at her.

"Rin did what!??! She tried to use you for what?!?!?"

To convey that he didn't blame her for having been manipulated by Rin as he had been...
he hugged Maya tightly and carefully.

After a few more moments, Dr. Strauss turned his head towards Mr. Kimura and stretched out one hand while still hugging Maya with the other.

"Give me that," Dr. Strauss, "I've had enough of Rin."

 

[i don't know]

"Dont listen to her, listen to me! I own you now. you are my property. If Rin asks you to do something screw it! Be a man Mr.Giant Magical Lizard Thing! Also, that dragon brew is really making the gas come up. I wonder if-BEEELLLLLCH"

A Alec's belch had caused the dragon brew to ignite once more sending a fireball at the followers coming to try to catch him.

"My stomach feels like it's on fire, oh god the pain!"

 

[DktrAgonizer]

"Yeah, you're right," Zetta said to Gabriel. "Alright then. I'll drop the illusions and--"

Before Zetta finished speaking, Blackrose had already moved ahead to take one of the followers in a chokehold. The man tried to shout, but her grip on his throat was too tight. The other follower just stood there, looking baffled. "What--?"

With a short sigh, Zetta let the invisibility fall away from everyone. As she felt that tug on her mind disappear, she went forward to take the other follower in a similar grip that Blackrose was using, but her hold wasn't so tight. She wasn't even sure she had the strength to keep him there, but the man was clearly too shocked and scared to try to break away. "What's going on?" he gasped.

"We want to know where Rin is, and where you're keeping Excalibur," Blackrose said. She'd drawn her knife and was holding it up to her captive's throat, having relaxed her grip on him somewhat. The man's adam's apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed nervously.

"And where you're keeping the dragons," Zetta added.

"Right, that too. Tell us and we may not kill you," Blackrose said.

"I... we don't know where the sword is," Zetta's captive stammered nervously. "It, ah, she never told us where she put it. She... she was in a lab somewhere, last time I heard anything about it."

"Where? And what about the dragons?" Zetta prompted. Since all Blackrose's captive was doing was staring nervously at the knife being held at his throat, Zetta flashed a toothy grin at hers. The man gulped and, after a none-too-gentle nudge from her, continued talking.

"T-the dragons are being kept near the middle of the building, and the lab's on the other side. You can follow the signs, there's some in each hall to point the way. Please don't k-kill us."

"Well," Zetta said, looking to Gabriel and Lily. "What do you think? Anything else we can get out of these guys?"

 

[JoJo]

Maya had lost track at this point on what the conversation was about other than Rin being mean but Dr. Strauss seemed concerned about something to do with her so she looked up at him apprehensively for guidance on what to do next. She didn't mind the extra attention he was giving her but she was worried about what Rin might want with either of them.

"Will Rin let us go home soon?" she asked in a quiet voice "I really want..."

Mr. Kimura coughed to interrupt the child's question and then ignoring her passed the bomb to Dr. Strauss with a frown, he looked somewhat peeved at the doctor's accusations.

"I'll have you know she kidnapped me too and it was her power which led to her tracking you down, how you think she first met Maya and the kitsune? I didn't know the whereabouts of either of them before this damn affair began!"

He said the last part angrily, but then recomposed himself and spoke in a calmer voice. Maya glared sulkily at him for interrupting her, she thought he was a very rude for an adult and couldn't imagine why her mother had ever supposedly liked him in the past.

"Okay, here's what you must do. Take Maya up to the dragon chamber in towards the top of mountain and get her to sneak past the guards, place the bomb in the centre chair-shaped rock, retrieve Excalibur from there and then sneak back out the way she came with the sword in hand. I understand it'll be heavy for her to carry but it won't be that far and it should be covered by her invisibility. You'll have five minutes from when the bomb is unwrapped to both escape before it detonates. Once that happens the base will certainly be destabilised with the central part collapsing inwards, leaving those at the edges such as us safe. I also hope it will affect the magic which binds the dragons to Rin's command, but I've never seen anything like it before so I might be wrong. Have any questions?"

~​

The dragon turned around with Alec still on it's back and started to fly down to corridor it had arrived through, it's wings brushing against the ever-thinning tunnel. The footsteps of angry followers receded into the distance, as did the voice of the reanimated Merlin as he continued to speak to Rin.

It's not that simple yer see? the disembodied voice spoke in Alec's head If the mistress tells to do something I have to do it, or else I'm a goner! Lucky right now she's thinking about the old man back there but if she puts out an order on the loud speaker... let's just say it ain't going to be pretty. Where do yer want me to take yer now?

~​

Gabriel looked swiftly between Zetta and her captive and stepped close to him.

"I have one more question" he said and bent close to the frightened follower "Have you happened to see anyone who isn't one of hers around here recently? A man with blond hair in a grey suit, another with white hair in a lab coat, a little Asian girl with them?"

The follower nodded hastily and with yet another gulp spoke stuttering.

"Y... yes. The doctor man and the girl were in the lab when I was last there about an hour ago, eh... I haven't seen the blond one though I swear. Can... can I go now please?"

"Sure" Gabriel replied and without hesitation struck the man across the face and then turned on the other in a similar manner, leaving both unconscious on the rocky floor. "I read somewhere online that it's difficult to be knocked out for a long period of time without suffering permanent brain damage... let's hope these guys put points into their luck stats recently" he mused to the others "So it's up to you guys where we head, the dragon chamber where we know Rin will eventually end up or the lab where the doctor, the kid and possibly the sword were last seen?"

 

[i don't know]

"Take me back to Jinan!" screamed Alec; still spitting small fireballs.
"It hurts so much! I need a hospital! I think I burned out my intestines."

 

[TheDoctor455]

"Kitsune? What?" Dr. Strauss distractedly asked as he took the packaged bomb from Mr. Kimura, "Never mind... she kidnapped you too? Oh whatever."

Dr. Strauss carefully set the bomb down for a moment to give Maya another hug.

"Maya, sweetie," he said, "I don't want to scare you but... I don't think we can count on Rin to keep any of her promises... not even something as simple as letting us go. I don't think she cares about anything other than her own goals... so we're going to have to escape... and this," he pointed to the package, "will at least serve as a distraction. I don't like this... I don't like that I've been forced into this position... I don't like that Rin has apparently kidnapped both of us... again. I don't. We don't have any choice right now. We have to get out of here... and we have to stop Rin from doing... I'm not sure what... but I don't think we'll like finding out. So... Maya, once we do get out of here; where do you want to live? I could probably get an apartment somewhere in China if you're more comfortable with that... or I can take you to my home in England."