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Post by Anna K. on Feb 5, 2017 18:31:04 GMT -6
As the place gets really empty Anna starts to finish her work as well, she sighs when she realizes it's done for tonight, from time to time she thinks about Rick words, he could help her but for how long, she had already been in so many places, many countries, but she didn't get the chance to visit or go out for a walk, a dinner, she thinks as well about Paolo, she must call him, but at same time she wishes so bad he could let her be, but she knows it is not his fault, he just wants to protect her, Paolo was the man in command once, but now, he is just a man, alone and she feels as well she must be with him...But for some reason tonight she won't call him, it is late and he must be really sleeping. She leaves the bar as Conrad closes the door, the streets are calm, she says goodbye and turns to the left going down on the street, same way she goes everyday, there are people on the streets but not too much. She observes the men and women, wondering when she will have a normal life. Sudenly her phone rings.."God.." it was Paolo, she smiles..."Don't worry I am almost there"..The man was really mad at her for not calling him " calm down...I am opening the main door already..." as she turns her face a black car leaves in hurry , the wheels making a weird noise , she gets really nervous and tries to open the manin door but she is shaking and her hands can't find the lock. "Shh..Anna breath.." she says to herself ..after some time she opens it and goes right to her apartment. Turning the lights on she shivers...it was a completly mess...she calls Paolo" I believe someone was here, many things are out of place", she closes the door after her and sits down, waiting for her friend , scared...He was right they will need to go away once again...
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 9, 2017 19:37:27 GMT -6
Rick followed Anna at a distance. From her furtiveness with the car, he could tell that she was paranoid about something. He felt his curiosity piquing even higher than the nearly total lack of information her files contained. On a sudden impulse, he took a quick snap of the rear of the departing car on his special low-light camera, then sent it through his phone to the home office.
He gave Anna a few minutes to get settled in at her home, then approached the door. Finding the button that rang the bell in her apartment and pressed it. He then waited for a reply, not sure exactly what he'd say, let alone just what it was he was doing here. He supposed it had to do with the "problem" his superiors said he had: a "need" to save the world.
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Post by Anna K. on Feb 9, 2017 19:58:02 GMT -6
Anna shivers, eyes close, Paolo, she stands quickly and opens the door, she blinks and doesn't move looking up at the man who was by her door..."Si...Rick?! What? How?" she opens the door as she invites him to come in, at same time Paolo got the apartament, she looks at them both, the place was a mess, her drawers were opened, her clothes, her papers, some pictures all were around the floor, she sighs and sits down, "I don't know what happened, there was a car, I..was dark..." Paolo looks at the man and shakes his head..."Anna we need to go , I am afraid we will need to go as soon as possible, it's not safe her for you anymore...please" the man was scared and so was her, she looks at Paolo and then to Rick, she doesn't want to leave again, it is not fair with her. "Paolo, I don't want to go. Maybe they were just regular thieves, please, it's not fair, I can't take it anymore....I am so tired.." She runs away and slaps the bedroom door....as Paolo stays in the living room with Rick, telling him a part of the story about her family, mafia and all the money she has and some enemies are trying to take away from her...After sometime she lives her bedroom, she took a shower, was in her moleton and t-shirt and comfortable, she has a lot to do, cleaning the mess all around. Her hair was up, making Rick to realize how young she is and how beautiful, her blue eyes so clear, she smiles sadly..."Please Paolo, let's change to another place but I don't want to go away from here, not yet, please?" her eyes were teared, but he said nothing. Paolo looks at her...and nods, "I am going outside, since we have Rick with you, I am just outside", he looks at rick as it was a warning, "I will return as soon as possible, I really need to make some calls now" he kisses her forehead and leaves shaking his head closing the door after him.
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 9, 2017 20:17:17 GMT -6
Rick assimilated all the information silently. Things began to add up to him now. He poked amongst the debris of the search while Anna showered, doubting that he'd find anything of note to help with her current situation.
What am I doing? he thought. I need to be getting myself to the West Coast, and quickly. Yet, he felt compelled to stay, as if some outer force was nudging him toward feelings of compassion for this girl. She was in trouble, and that's what mattered in the here and now.
He felt the need to finally come clean with as much of the truth as he could afford to tell her. However, too much information may put her into further danger. There was mention of the Mafia, and he was, after all, going to be going up against a home-grown version of the group.
"I'm a special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation," he said. "My current assignment is to go out to the West Coast and bring to justice a rogue member of the Central Intelligence Agency that has been conspiring with a dangerous group of mob members. It may be that our interests coincide." He showed her the picture he'd taken of the car, including the license tag. "It may be useless, but I have my home office tracking down whatever information they can about that car. They may not even have anything to do with what happened here tonight, or it could be stolen or falsified tags if the people inside had anything to do with this."
He sighed and said, "There's very little that can be done, at least on a legal standpoint. I could find the people after you, arrest them, but this would actually fall outside my jurisdiction. I could place you into witness protection, but that would mean changing your identity, completely relocating you to a different place in the world, but I will be honest with you and say that such protective measures would only delay the inevitable."
Uncomfortably, he added, "I'm afraid the only real way to protect you would be either to bring you into personal custody, put you in a jail cell, or....sanction those that are after you. The word, "sanction", in the language of spies such as I am, means to....to kill them."
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Post by Anna K. on Feb 9, 2017 20:34:21 GMT -6
Anna looks at him as he starts to speak, she sighs and look at the picture for a moment, as he was talking to her, she then looks at him as the words seems to fly inside her head , lots of information, she was understanding all he was saying, the change of the name, the need of leave chicago, for nothing. She stands and walks around the room, and then she stops as he finishes. "I really don't know what do, and go to the jail, really?! I didn't do anything, it is not fair to me. I couldn't go to a regular school, I don't have a normal life and now this..I don't know what do I am completly lost...and about personal custody? I can't. How can I live with a special agent?" she shakes her head..and then she looks at him..."I don't have a clue about that picture, I know nothing about my father's bussiness...his family...I've been Anna for so long, I don't want to change my name..."She sighs realizing she is not helping at all..."Did you know my Family?" as Family she was talking about the entire family her father worked for.."What about Paolo, Rick?" she was really worried because he is a good man, but before, well, he must have a lot of records in his file..she was wondering what could help him, " Let's suppose I let you help me as you are saying, Paolo would be under protection as well? I don't want him to go to the jail, Rick." He takes care of me for a long time, he has been family for a long time, I have no one else". she looks at Rick as she approches .." I really don't know what do..and they have a picture of me , they took it from my bedroom, I took a picture about a month ago and it's not there anymore...."
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 9, 2017 21:00:23 GMT -6
Rick heaved a deep sigh, then said, "Slow down, Anna. The best thing to do in this sort of situation is to stop and think. You say you're tired of running, and I don't blame you. I only mentioned jail because that's the most safe legal option here. But, even then, you still run a risk of being found. Most police forces, as I'm sure you know, are in one way or another connected with any number of mobs. The Chicago P.D., for example, have connections with the Italian Mafia, the Russian Mafia, several home-grown Mafia-like groups, a number of Mexican and South American cartels. And those are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head. We literally have thousands of files on this sort of thing. So, jail is out."
He paced the room, drawing the curtains closed. "Okay. I don't know the specifics of your situation, nor Paolo's. The ones that broke in took your picture, but it seems nothing else. That means that, while they knew where you were, they didn't know what you look like. In situations like this, my office would place you and your friend into protective custody, change your identities, move you out of the country, possibly give you plastic surgery to change your appearance. But, that would only be if you have something of equal worth to offer. And, that's not a guarantee in and of itself. I know for a fact that there are corrupted officials even within the ranks of just about every government agency. Those attached to my office, I know I could trust. I did the background checks on them myself. The only one I don't implicitly trust is my superior, which is why I've kept as much quiet as I can about what's going on."
He peered out the last window as he pulled the curtains closer together, adding, "My suggestion is that, from here on out, you trust nobody. You, me, and Paolo will be the only three to know anything that goes on. I'll even leave my office out of the loop. As a Special Agent, I have that authority. I also have the authority to perform any sanctions needed. My other task will simply have to wait. I can't leave now, not knowing that I could do something to prevent an unjust act." He turned his head toward her and smiled a bit, saying, "It just isn't who I am, you know?"
Down! said a strong feeling inside of his mind. Reaching out, he pushed Anna to the floor, dropping on top of her just as the window beside him shattered and a bullet spanged into the far wall, leaving a hole behind. Following closely behind it was the sharp crack of a high-powered rifle firing from a significant distance away. He glanced up at the broken window, his right hand drawing the .50 caliber hand-cannon that was his preferred weapon. "Damn," he muttered, sliding from atop Anna over to the wall, placing his back against it. He watched the door warily, gun trained in its direction, waiting to see who would come in first: Paolo or perhaps even an entire group of armed men. If he were in their place, he'd send in an entire platoon of gunmen to make sure the job was done, especially after missing with a sniper shot.
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Post by Anna K. on Feb 9, 2017 21:33:28 GMT -6
Anna was sure the man was really wanting to help her, life was funny, all this time she didn't let no one to be close and then when it happens it is a Special Agent, she blinks and she thinks about, what if he is not an agent, what if it isn't a plan to take her with him and kill her, but doesn't make sense, if he wanted her dead by now she woudln't be alive and talking to him. Maybe there is a plan...she stops thinking as she observes him closing the curtains, she really needed to think and fast. She sighs..."I don't know who I can trust enymore, I believe it is the best that I leave ....alone without...." as she was going to finish she feels the entire world spin as the man kickly pulls her down, feeling dizzy she is trying to understand what's happening, she moves her head as she sees the hole on the wall, as well as her face turns to him again , he was already up and armed. She moans lowly by instinct, since the back of her head touched the floor suddenly and hit it, was not his fault but she was a little stunned, trying to move her body from the floor, almost passing out Anna looks at the door as she whispers.."Paolo..." and then again..."Paolo"....she wasn't hurt or anything but the last events were something she was not prepared for, she has been changing from place to place but that was the first time she was really facing the danger she was running away, she looks at Rick again and then eveything starts to become dark, by the door a loud noise and then steps running away, she tries to turn her face, but it hurts, she can't stand.."Paolo..Rick" she whispers ... a box was left there , with some pictures and some money, a passport with Paolo's name, and some documents and papers, a note.."Sorry Anna, being around is not safe anymore, run girl, I am not able to keep them away for so long..I lied saying you're dating this one, so no one would think about his identity, let the man help, I checked, he is a good man and a really good Agent, love you girl but life is not save for us to be together anymore...The time I feared the most has come, sorry little girl, you are on your own now" she tries to look at Rick once again but her mind was far away from there....as she passes out completly.
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 9, 2017 22:02:46 GMT -6
Quickly, Rick moved to catch Anna, checked her condition, carefully touching the lump on her head. He frowned, then moved to check the contents of the box. His frown deepened as he read the note. I don't trust this... he thought as he tossed the note back into the box. He reached into a pocket, pulling out a small mechanism and passed it over the contents. When the light that would have indicated a tracking device didn't flash, he put the machine away and began to cross the room back and forth, hunched to prevent any clear chance at being shot. He gathered a few changes of clothing, tossing them into the box and closing it.
Going back to Anna, he kneeled next to her, gently pulling her head to cradle it on his leg, then pulled a small paper packet from another pocket, breaking it open and passing it beneath her nose. The smelling salts within should bring her around within a few seconds...
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Post by Anna K. on Feb 9, 2017 22:34:28 GMT -6
Her eyes start to open as she inhales the little paper, her hand moves as her fingertips touches his hand.."What?Why?" she blinks slowly and mover her eyes as she looks up to him.."What happened? Rick...the shot..It...I got .." she tries to stand but it was to fast and moaning she goes back again touching her nape, remembering the wall and the window.." Slowly she grabs his arm and tries again sitting up.." Paolo...he was outside, is he alright?" she stands using Rick as a support..and looks at the wall... she gets better fast..."Rick..what is it?" she walks to the box and opens it, she knew that box, many times she saw it on Paolo's bedroom, when she opens it there is many pictures of her since she was five, on the back the places she was , she blinks and then she grabs the passport as the note falls...she reads it and shakes her head.."No.." she looks at Rick and walks over him.."what did you do? Why did you make him to do this?" the letter inside her hand as she punches his chest ..."I asked you not to" Anna didn't realize Paolo was one of them, was really hard to believe that the man , her dearest friend was involved and betrayed her like this.."He wouldn't leave me..Why are you doing this? why are you here?"..Anna 's life now was really a mess just like her apartment...all the feelings comeing over again, first her father, then her adoptive family...now Paolo..."I can't believe it is happening again...Damn you Rick...nothing happened till you appeared...who are you? What do you want?"
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 9, 2017 23:13:39 GMT -6
He took her words, her attacks. He understood where she was coming from, what her feelings were. He knew that he wasn't the true target of her hate.
He pulled her close to his chest, not so much to hug her, but to just give her a sense of being wrapped in a protective shell. "I'm here because fate willed it, I suppose. You needed help. You needed to face this, to find an end to it. I don't know where Paolo went, I don't even know if he actually had anything to do with this or not. For all I know, he could have been taken and the box left by those that are after you. Right now, what I want is to make sure that you are going to be safe. The only way I know for a fact that you'll be safe is to take you with me, that's why I put your clothes in the box. We're taking it with us, just in case. I can trust myself, I trust you. Right now, that's it."
He let her go, pushing her gently on her shoulders to arm's length as he stood to his full height. "This only applies if you wish it to. I'm going to leave, now, before I become more of a target. I've no wish to be shot at more than need be if you don't want my protection. If Paolo was against you, but protecting you, it had to be for some reason. If he really was against you, he could have killed you at any time. That, alone, means he's not automatically a target for me. If you come with me, and someone comes after you, I'll sanction them and damn the consequences. It's your choice, though. Stay, take your chances on a very bad bet. Or, come with me to the West Coast. You might become a target in something that's none of your concern, of course, during the course of my mission. But, the bet is a much safer one that you'd survive. Besides, it's only fair...If I'm to take a risk on trying to protect you, you could take a risk for me." He said that last with a crooked grin, but his blue eyes bespoke his actual seriousness.
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Post by Anna K. on Feb 10, 2017 16:32:24 GMT -6
As his arms embrace her, she was desarmed and she allowed herself to cry after sometime, he pulls her away gently, she cleans her face with her hands...and sighs...thinking for a little bit and then she raises her eyes over him and without a word she nods, it was really fair, she would take the risk for him, but now she wasn't wanting to talk, she already said enough, Paolo was gone, maybe now after all she was going to have a normal life, well a different one for sure she is going to have, without a word she goes to her bedroom and grabs the backpack she already have prepared for situations like this, with her docs, some pictures , some money and passport. Some clothes as well, clothes is always needed, she sighs and gives another look around the place, taking her purse and the backpack she walks back to the living room.."We can go.." She looks around once again....and walks to the door as she waits for him to lead her way. she will miss Chicago, the bar, her friends there, but she knew that it was going to happened sooner or later, it has been her life since forever, but for good now maybe she will have another chance.
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 22, 2017 21:03:15 GMT -6
Rick followed her around the apartment, warily watching the windows for further attacks. He forced back the preoccupation of just what that voice was that had spoken to him in the back of his mind earlier. He knew that he had felt impulses before, but had assumed that they were flashes of precognition...which was a large part of why he had received the position he had in the Bureau...that had saved his life more than once before now.
His eyes narrowed slightly, however, as he also fought off a slowly-building headache. He suspected, at first, that there was some sort of nerve agent being pumped into the building, but he shook off the thought as he was able to notice that Anna, herself, seemed unaffected.
He went over to the box he'd gathered, picked it up, and nodded to Anna, saying, "Let's go, then." He carried the box under one arm, leaving the other free to open the door, as well as in case he would need it for defensive purposes. He led her outside, pausing for her to lock her door, as useless as that might be. If someone really wanted to get in, a lock would barely slow them down.
Being careful to watch up and down the street, he then led Anna to his car, setting the box down on the hood. He shook his head warningly at her, however, before she could get into the vehicle. Pulling a phone from his pocket, he began to dial a cab company, one that was directly controlled by the Bureau.
Within ten minutes, a cab pulled up. Ten minutes of a headache that creeped up from a 4 on the pain scale to a 7. Rick approached the cab with the box under his arm, opening the door for Anna to get in. Once she did, he got in himself, behind the driver, the box on his lap. He directed the driver to continue on to the airport, then settled back to wait for the drive to be over, closing his eyes.
Once at the airport, a trip that had taken about fifteen minutes longer than a direct drive to the terminal, he got out, holding the door for Anna again. Shutting it behind them, he headed toward the private jet sitting outside of the Bureau-controlled hanger. They were quickly ushered on board, the door shutting behind them. The crew looked askance at the presence of Anna, but were satisfied by Rick's assurances that it was absolutely imperative that they bring her with them.
Rick took his seat, buckling in, after making sure that Anna was secure in her own seat. He kept his eyes off of the windows as the jet began to taxi down the runway, closing them as they began to rise into the air, breathing deeply in through his nose and out of his mouth. His expression indicated that he was unafraid, but was in extreme pain. As the jet climbed further into the night sky, his jaw muscles clenched tightly, a low moan slipping past his lips. On the pain scale, he was definitely into a solid 10 out of 10.
He opened his eyes, turning them to barely focus on Anna. He unbuckled the safety belt, tried to rise...then toppled over and lay face-down in the aisle, unmoving.
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 24, 2017 0:51:38 GMT -6
Rick....Rick...
Wh...what? What's going on? What happened?
Rick, you must remain calm. I will explain everything.
I don't know what's going on or who you are, but how can I...
Trust me? You already know the answer to that. You've heard my voice countless times before, all through your life, and you know, inherently, that you can trust me. I will tell you a story...from the beginning.
800 years ago, give or take a few decades, I was born Kokukai Koryukai. I was born as a human, or so I thought. I never knew my parents, I was raised by...brace yourself, and keep an open mind...by elves. It was not on this world that I was born, but one very similar to it, in an alternate dimension, or "Realm". I'm sure you are aware of the concept, I believe there is a tabletop game you were more than passingly familiar with that dealt with similar premises. Well, what if I were to tell you that it was far more than a simple game, that there really are Realms out there that are simply separated from this one by a thin veneer called "dimension". A "veil", if you will. One Realm that connected all of the others was known as the Astral Plane. That, I KNOW you are familiar with, you've made extensive study of it due to your particular career choice.
There, I became a member of a group known as the Astral Guardians. With the Astral Plane having connections to every other possible Realm, it was a choice locale from where invasions, attacks, or even simple murders could be orchestrated and launched. Without the Guardians, your own Realm would have been wiped out a hundred times over before I had even been born. It was during my training as a Guardian that I discovered my true heritage. I found that I had dragon blood mixed with my human. I don't know how far back it went, but it did mean that I could, at will, change my form from human to dragon. A rather handsome black one, if I might be forgiven a moment of vanity. I served, and served well, I thought. I helped stop many a conspiracy from denizens of other Realms, even from a few that were native to the Astral Plane. One in particular, by the name of Kublicon, was a rather nasty creature, one that would trap and consume the...."spirits", "souls", "essences"? I'm not entirely sure how to put it to fit your world's current framework, but it was the part of a being that had learned how to traverse the Veil in discorporate form, leaving their physical shell behind on whatever world they were native to. Astral Projection, I believe you would call it. Me, and my fellow Guardians, had learned to enter the Astral Realm in our own physical bodies, which allowed us far greater power than just our "souls" would have.
Kublicon would also consume those "souls" that would enter the Realm through dreams, for the Dreamscape is but the outer limits of the Realm. I ran into him, alone, and managed to best him, though it took all of my power, skill, and guile to do so. I very nearly died from my wounds. Wounds that took a very long time to mend.
It was not long after that we began to hear rumors of an even greater evil that could be found in the Realm, a truly malicious Astral entity that had horrifying amounts of power. One whose goals were not simply the consumption of life, but the utter destruction of ALL Realms, and the complete domination of every living being found in them. One that actually fed on negative emotion, though we did not know this secret at that time.
It was decided to go and face him. I was left behind, due to my injuries, and the fact that I was actually the lowest in terms of power on that particular totem pole. There were five of us in those days. Four left....one returned. Horribly mutilated, I still do not know how she survived long enough to return. It was then that I learned true evil had a name: Ludious.
Latha died in my arms. It wasn't the injuries, gruesome as they were, that had killed her. Her very essence had been sucked out of her. Ludious then appeared before me, smirking. He attacked, injuring me still further. He left me alive, mocking me with the fact that I was too weak to offer him any sport, let alone challenge.
Perhaps here I should explain what I mean by “my power”. You're aware of ki, correct? At least the concept of it? Well, it exists. Mortal-kind...you, your boss, everyone...has the potential to use it. Your own body produces it. It is the flow of energy...some cultures name it as the chakra flow...through your entire being. Some become so in-tune with their own energy flow that they can "bring it out", utilize it in awesome ways. It was through my training with ki that allowed me to unlock my draconic form, which made me unique among my fellow Guardians. I also learned to take on a wolf-like form, one that I used for situations that stealth and subtlety was necessary.
It was using that draconic form that allowed me to fight Kublicon, who was an actual...well, a TYPE of an actual dragon. He had feathered wings, rather beautiful, like a cobra's dance is beautiful, that were colored in the various shades of the rainbow, as well as a similarly colored fringe of feathers around his serpent-like head. Well, that's going off on a bit of a tangent, but I want you to have the proper visualizations.
Well, long story short, it was through that form that I discovered that I could access the energies of the Realm of Shadows. See, there are a number of elements, much more than the paltry four that are commonly known and utilized in both fiction and reality. Shadow is one of them, and there is an entire Realm made up of that element. My draconic forefather was from that Realm. I could use those energies to support, even enhance, my own ki energy, effectively increasing my power a hundredfold. That, however, was actually rather small in comparison to the Guardians, and almost insignificant next to Ludious' power.
He was nightmare given form. Or, rather, evil. See, he was the culmination of millenia, eons, of strife and aggression and evil throughout the multiverse. Fear, anger, aggression, horror, hatred...All these and more types of negative emotion, some that have yet to be given names, feed his power, making him stronger. If you fight him with ANY of those negative emotions in your heart, you will only make him stronger, and he will eventually kill you. Again, we did not know this. I had allies in the Material Planes, scattered throughout them all. I gathered as many as I could, while I trained and increased my own skills and power, and we settled in a Realm known as Raeyan. It was there that we suffered our first real defeat. By that time, I had increased my powers exponentially, learning to access other Planes and utilizing their energies, one by one. Still, the only entity that could honestly be stated to surpass my potential at that time was known as Shakaar Galeed. He was defeated and seemingly killed.
It was then that I became desperate. Against all common sense, against all the pleas from my comrades, I surrendered to Ludious, who had already taken my adopted sister, Elenlas, among several other of my comrades, captive and had turned them into his slaves. I knew the only way to defeat him would be to learn his secrets, to submit and pretend to be his tool. He, being arrogant, taught me much, allowing me to fully explore the limits of my power, and I discovered the secrets of how to access the entire multiverse's power at will, all at once. Yet, I knew that it would not be enough. It was then that I discovered his weakness, but was dismayed because I knew that, for all my power, I could not overcome my own emotions enough to defeat him.
It was during this time that my body went through a transformation. I became truly half-draconic. In body, I was mostly human in appearance, but I had horns that curved from my head, scaled wings, and a dragon's tail. However, with this new body, I lost my ability to transform to a wolf. I was shunned by the ignorant as being of demonic origin, though I suppose that might have been a matter of perspective, as I had been doing work similar to that of the infernal kindred. Still, I persisted in trying to keep my heart pure, subverting those assignments that I was able to without Ludious' knowledge. I even faced against several of my former comrades. Their perspective was that I had betrayed them, and I suppose I had in a way. Yet, I would not kill them. I fled, time and time again I fled. Then, one day, I faced the mother of my soul-brother, Jason. Her name was Morrigan, and we battled, though I did not wish it. I could have killed her at any time, and I think she knew that, but she still persisted in attacking me. I lowered my defenses, allowing her a true shot to my heart, a free chance to kill me. She did not. It was then that I revealed all. Ludious, of course, found out nearly at once. He was furious, and set about a chain of events that would culminate in the destruction of Raeyan.
I helped to restore Shakaar's essence to his body, for he was not truly dead. Comatose, I suppose, would be closer to the truth. Between all of us, we began a massive effort to evacuate as many as we could from Raeyan to Earth, to here. This was during your Dark Ages, circa 1200 or so. I gave what aid I could, but I had to try and retrieve my sister and friends from their enforced servitude to Ludious. I was able to free Elenlas and a few others, but many were slaughtered by the Dark One in a ceremony that generated a LOT of power for him. I....understand that there had been tortures that would make a demon go pale. Ludious used this power to create a massive energy orb that he'd placed at the center of Raeyan's core, set to explode upon the stopping of Ludious' heart. See, Ludious, as a purely Astral Entity, cannot affect the Material worlds unless he is inside of a living host. He effectively possesses mortals, reshapes their bodies to his own. He can bypass the reshaping at will, however, giving him a very effective means of disguise.
I fought him, sublimating my emotions as much as I could. I opened a portal to Earth, allowing Elen and a few more survivors to escape, then closed it behind them. I did not want Ludious to escape, himself. As I fought, I prayed that my beloved wife, Brandy, whom I had married while I was training and gathering allies, had escaped.
Ludious had already made the threat that, one way or the other, Raeyan would be destroyed. If I didn't kill him, the energy orb would simply gather more and more geothermic energy in the core until it overloaded and exploded. If I did kill him, his heart stopping would cause the orb to begin the process of overloading even faster, exploding within minutes instead of hours. Without much choice, I fought him....and I won, without killing him. I knocked him unconscious, then left him and raced back to my home in the forests.
Once there, I discovered that Brandy had not even been at home, had not escaped with the others. Fearful, I used my powers to teleport across the planet to Shakaar, who used his own abilities to locate her. I was about to teleport there when we felt the ground begin to shake so hard that nearby mountains toppled, some exploding as volcanoes would, though they were in no way volcanic in origin. I knew that Ludious had made his move, exploding the energy orb. Desperate, I began to open a portal to retrieve Brandy. But, Shakaar took advantage of my inattention and hit me from behind, knocking me unconscious. He took me to Earth, knowing that it was too late to save my beloved...as well as his own second wife and twin infant children.
For six months, we existed here on Earth, healing our injuries, both physical and emotional. Then, it became apparent that not only was Ludious still alive, but had followed us. To summarize, it took many sacrifices, including that of my closest ally Shakaar, to defeat Ludious once and for all. It even took one more sacrifice, one needed to save the life of my sister, the only one remaining that I loved, from a last-ditch attack by the defeated Dark One....My own.
I died that day. However, my spirit, my soul, it did not move on to any sort of afterlife. It was decided by the Ruling Council of Elders...the government, so to speak, of the Astral Realm...that I was to be kept in a sort of stasis until I was needed again, and a suitable host could be found. That host was you, and that time is now.
Ludious has returned.
It is not known where he is, or what form he has taken, but it is known for certainty that he is operating from behind the scenes, gathering more and more power. The Elders knew that, should enough of a concentration of misery and evil be amassed, it would resurrect Ludious even from the complete annihilation that he suffered in my last battle with him. It has been surmised that it was during your world's World War II, or close to it, that he was given such a concentration. The attempted genocide of a single race of your fellow humans, orchestrated by the hatred by one man, coupled with the fear that act and the utilization of a horrific weapon of mass destruction engendered, was what brought him enough power to incarnate again. It is theorized that Ludious, himself, influenced human interactions at that time to make it inevitable, doing so so subtly that even the wisest of the Elders failed to notice. Whether or not he did is immaterial. What matters is that he IS alive again, and he IS out to destroy your world.
I had been "spliced", for lack of a better word, onto your soul. Or, to clarify, your soul IS me. You and I are one and the same. If it helps, think of me as an alternate personality that you can actually converse with...though I don't recommend doing so around others. You might get a few funny looks if you're seen talking to yourself. But, I am much more than a simple split personality. I AM you, you ARE me. Rather, you are my reincarnation.
Here, we have a choice, Rick. You could refuse to believe any of this, turn your back on the risk of your entire universe either being destroyed or enslaved...and destroyed anyways...or accept. Refuse, and I will be forced to try and take over fully. Our abilities, at least inside of our own mind, are roughly equal, so it's a coin flip as to which of us would dominate. If it is you, and you still do not heed my warnings, your entire species, and eventually ALL species, everywhere, is doomed. If it is me, I will be handicapped, for I will have lost much of my ability to utilize my powers in the physical realm, having "killed" you.
Or, we can fully merge. On the outside, we will remain Rick Holmes, at least in appearance. Inside, and in terms of power, we will be SO much more, and be much more likely to be prepared to face whatever threat Ludious presents.
Choose!
*ten-fifteen second pause* You have chosen well, my friend....
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Post by Anna K. on Feb 26, 2017 18:33:12 GMT -6
Anna follows Rick outside, she looks around, looks at Rick and sighs. She thinks he is strange but thinks is better not ask. She enters the cab as he waits for her to do, and watches him, as the car starts to move she looks at him again and then outside, by the window she says goodbye to the city, it is weird to think she must go away again. Closing her eyes she sighs and tries to rest. After sometime she moves her face , Rick is really away, she frowns thinking he is acting strange, but she says nothing again. After sometime she realizes they are at the airport, she follows Rick as he opend the door to her. Following Rick he enters the airplaine, probably it is the agency´s airplane. Her eyes move all the time from Rick to the floor, he makes sure everthing is alright to her and he sits, but she knows his eyes are strange, they are no longer funny and full of life, she observes him, they are connect and them she blinks as he seems to disconnect and falls down. "Rick...Jesus"...she from a moment is not able to take the seat belt, she was tied to the chair.."Rick"..she was really screaming, and then she was free, and goes down on her knee.."Rick for God sake wake up....please, please"... The crew was paralyzed, watching him, and watching her.."Come on Rick...she looks over them "Come on...what are you looking....please help him". Anna was now with Rick inside her arms, sitting on the floor, his head on her amrs, as she caresses his hair, his upper body inside her arms, she was talking to him..."No..no...no...that's too much, I am not prepared, first Paolo now you, come on..." and them holding him she cries, words leaving her mouth...."Rick, I need you...please". She knows he is alive, his heartbeat against her chest as he is unconscious...."Rick..." her voice now is low and rusky.."do not do that.."..she holds him as she wonders what is going on.
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Rick Holmes
Junior Member
That's interesting...
Posts: 62
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Post by Rick Holmes on Feb 28, 2017 16:15:05 GMT -6
The flight crew, seemingly shocked into a momentary stupor, snapped out of their trance-like states as Anna held Rick against herself. One went to the cockpit to alert the pilots of the emergency, while the other went to the supplies cupboard and retrieved the medical kit from inside. She ran back with the suitcase-sized kit, opening it as she knelt beside the pair in the aisle.
Rick, for his part, stayed completely silent, save for rapid, shallow breathing. His eyes, though open, were rolled back into his head, exposing the whites totally.
The stewardess, the badge on her shirt displaying her name as "Mona", pulled a set of white patches that were attached to electric leads. She ripped free the plastic backs that protected the sticky side of the patches, then attached the patches to various points on Rick's forehead, then glanced critically at the readings displayed on the screen inside the kit. She read off the readings to the other woman, her badge identifying her as "Hannah", who relayed it to the co-pilot, who was speaking to medical personnel on the ground via the jet's radio. The word that had been relayed back was that the readings were normal....for a man having a nightmare. While awake. And being stimulated by playing a violent video game.
Mona's brows creased, as this made no sense. She hooked up other patches and leads to various points on Rick's body, then explained that Rick's vitals expressed that his heart seemed to be palpitating, seemingly "skipping every other beat", but was actually quite low in beats per minute. His oxygen levels, as expected by his breathing pattern, were high, indicating that he was hyperventilating...as if she really needed to be told that.
She pulled a packet of smelling salts from the kit, opened it, then waved it beneath his nose. No reaction.
Mona then began to rummage inside the kit for a syringe and a vial of stimulants. She stuck the needle into the vial, drawing into it about ten cc's of the clear liquid inside, then began to push Rick's sleeve up, exposing his arm.
As she started to press the needle into Rick's flesh, his free hand crossed over and grabbed her wrist. Gasping, she drew back as far as she could while still gripped tightly enough to cut off the blood flow to her hand, letting go of the syringe as she did so. Rick's eyes fluttered closed as he took a slow, deep breath inward. He held it for a second or two, then released it just as slowly as he'd inhaled. He then opened his eyes, revealing for a split second a cobalt flash that seemed to be deeper than his already-naturally blue ones. He looked directly upward into Anna's own eyes, his returning to their normal shade.
"I'm okay," he said to her. Then, glancing to the crew, he said, "Do not land. I'm all right. It won't happen again. I know what happened." Then, looking back to Anna, he said softly, "I promised I'd protect you, and that's what I'm going to do. But, I think I may have to expand that statement to include the entire world. But you, Anna..."
"I've lost too much in my past to want to lose any more."
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