Forum Thread

Marusaki went to hide in an alley, since she couldn’t do anything to help. She sat, and controlled the bird zombies.

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19 barely reacted to the sudden hold on his neck. Fed up with the fighting over the object he had tried to lift, he abruptly let go, sending it crashing back down. Slowly, he turned his head to face who had grabbed him, his eyes with pinpricks for pupils meeting those of the escapee. Up close, his vision was less foggy, and he could perceive the features of the other's face, albeit still not with total clarity. 12. This one also had to die. 5 was forgotten for the moment, as there was a more immediate goal in sight. Granted, the boy was gradually loosing all control of the windstorm, and it was beginning to take on a life of its own, but none of that bothered him, and neither did the lack of the ability to breath due to the pressure 12 was exerting on his throat. With a flick of his wrist, the platform of air that he was standing on snatched his feet and flipped him upside down, twisting him out of the choke hold. He ended up behind his attacker, who now had no air platform on which to be supported. However, something within the recesses of his mind prevented him from allowing 12 to fall, as he knew he ought to have done. Hesitating for a moment, he pulled the same maneuver as before, but this time on 12 instead of on himself, flipping the escapee upside down and staring at him with a gaze void of all emotion, eyes still abnormal. The surrounding wind whipped 19's black hair around his face and messed with his sleeve, rendering his scar even more visible, but still, he reacted not.

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A yelp that sounded foreign to Jonathan escaped his dry lips as he felt himself being flipped - an unpleasant experience that brought a warm liquid to his mouth which he absentmindedly swallowed. Once again, not the best decision he had made. Through the thinning veil of dust he attempted to peer into his assailant's eyes, but what with the waterfall of blood tumbling to his head and the screams in the distance he was understandably distracted. It was normal to have pinprick-sized pupils, right?
Once the immediate shock had disappeared, Twelve tried to figure out what had happened. The traitor had somehow broken his grip and twisted him upside down. For a moment Jonathan had been sure that he was falling, though in his mind he might as well have been drowning, for he could remember very little of what had happened. The past doesn't matter now, he thought, trying to clear his mind and search for a way to escape his current predicament, preferably without killing himself in the process. Unfortunately, thinking wasn't exactly one of Jake's strong points.
Help, he thought. If he couldn't think, perhaps someone else could. But who was there to help? The civilians certainly wouldn't; they were as good as useless to him. Surely they had people that would normally handle these situations. Well, judging by his current position, he wouldn't live long enough to find out. The team he had escaped with were all dead or hiding. Apart from one, but she was trapped... No, she wasn't. Tempest must have released his hold on her whilst he was attacking Jonathan.
"Mor-" He hesitated. Silly of him to be correcting himself in his moments of death. "Five!" He yelled, his tone somewhat desperate. Surely she wouldn't abandon him.
Surely.

19 froze, something strange screaming into his mind at the words of his opponent. A name, a figure, someone important. Someone he had to help. Someone he had wronged. But the haze kept pushing it away, kept hiding it from him; it was something he shouldn't know. Wasn't it? It would just be for a moment, he told himself, that he would defy the orders in his head and try to remember at least what 12 had said. 5; he'd called out for 5. But before that... he'd said, "Mor". It felt like everything was fighting to keep him from thinking about that; the boy's head didn't just ache, it throbbed in agony, screaming that this was information he wasn't allowed. Shutting his eyes tight and further losing control over the storm, the answer suddenly came rushing in. Mora. That was 5. 5 was a person, a person he knew. All of these 'numbers' he'd been sent here for... they were people. People he needed to help. People he would help.

Biting his lip so hard that it bled, in his mind he fought away the foggy mist, all the memories coming rushing back in. Memories of who these people were, of who he himself was. He was Tempest. Opening his now-normal eyes in shock, he glanced around wildly at his surroundings. Everything hurt, and he could feel complete and utter exhaustion taking over now that the commands in his head were gone. But a boy hung in front of him, suspended upside-down.

"I'm... sorry," Tempest rasped, darkness beginning to cloud his mind once more. Carefully, he stretched out a hand and caused the air holding the other boy up to release him, letting him free-fall before catching him right as he was about to hit the ground. There; at least one person who wouldn't be hurt by him. The last thing Tempest saw as his strength finally gave out and the swirling winds came to a sudden halt, the block of air beneath him vanishing and causing him to fall as well, was that the bracelet, the one he had made together with his sister so long ago, the one relic of his old life, was gone.

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Despite the pain that was raging through her, Johnathon's scream alerted 5. But how was she supposed to transform in mid-air? She didn't have a choice. She was going to have to push her limits. But that's when she witnessed what had just happened. Cloud Boy had..saved him? What? But now he was going to die! She couldn't let this happen. He may be a tratior but she couldn't let him die anymore then she could let Johathon, or Marusaki, or any of them die. At least not like this. He'd pay once he was safely on the ground. She took a deep breath, and plunged down, using the support from the wind to push herself torwads him. She just barely managed to reach 19 in time, diving underneath him to slow his fall. Slamming into the ground, Mora finally changed back to human form, unconcious. The last thing that she thought was, "He better be alive so I can murder him for what he did," before blacking out.

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Scarlett scrambled over, hurriedly dragging 19 and 5’s bodies out of sight. Why were people so heavy?.......She let out a little hmphh of annoyance. She took out a secret pouch, of little trinkets/trash she had collected, which wasn’t important, and began using a particular sharp piece to hack at her overly long, shirt. She used it as bandages, soaking them in a water, as she really had no clue of what to do

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Tempest lay still, limp and unmoving, not even stirring when grabbed by Scarlett. Blood trickled from multiple gashes and scrapes where shrapnel had grazed him, and his sleeve hung tattered, leaving his scar visible to anyone who should so much as happen to walk by. However, the boy's face was relatively peaceful, at least for one who's mind had been not his own for such a period of time.

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As Breeze and her mother walked through a quaint alley with decorative ivy growing from flower pots and small potted trees all the way down, she noticed that the wind had picked up considerably, almost as if they were back in Chicago. Mom didn't appear to notice, though, and the girl herself hadn't at first. They were both used to it, she supposed. As her black-and-silver hair was blown about her face, the sudden burst of wind started to calm, but not before she noticed a small flash of black it carried through the air. What appeared to be a scrap of fabric drifted down out of the air and caught on a tendril of ivy about 20 feet behind her. Her mom's flip phone suddenly started to vibrate, and the woman turned to her daughter, motioning that she had to take the call before walking a couple feet and answering it. Unable to restrain herself, Breeze discreetly backtracked, gently lifting the item. It took her a moment to register was she was seeing; an old, tattered, dirty black paracord bracelet, sliced neatly through one of the sides.

She almost couldn't believe her own eyes. Slowly, she help it to her own, comparing the two. The longer she considered it, the more doubts and certainties flickered into her mind. It couldn't be, but it looked like it was... Glancing at her mother, she could tell from her body language that she would be on the call, which was most likely for work, for some time. Besides, it looked like the bracelet hadn't come from too far away. She could be back before Mom even knew she was gone. With that settled in her mind, she took off at a brisk walk down a side alley to the left, breaking into a run the second she was out of earshot.

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After a minute, 5 started to come to, evreything blurry and dizzy for a minute. She was vaugely aware of Scarlett wrapping a bandage around her arm, and not much else. What had happened? Her head ached, and evrey inch of her felt like it was on fire with pain. Trying to move, 5 bit her lip. She was vaugely aware of footsteps coming from behind, and the most she could do was groan in pain, trying to shapeshift and failing miserably.

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The scene that the girl came upon was total chaos. There appeared to be two overturned cars, shattered glass and broken metal littering the ground, people running for their lives, and multiple civilians on the phone with 911. Slowing her pace to a steady walk, she glanced around, confused, eyes wide. No one seemed injured, at least. What happened here? she thought, thoughts of the familiar bracelet returning to her mind. Now she wondered if she DID want her suspicion to be true. The bracelet had clearly been sliced off of its owner; what could that mean for whoever had been wearing it? Breeze was now in the midst of the pandemonium. Various people called out to her, telling her to get away from something. She ignored the warnings, too focused on the mission at hand. Just when she was beginning to psych herself out, however, a flash of red down a dark, discreet alley caught her eye, and the girl turned to see a red-headed girl kneeling beside what looked like multiple people. Frowning, she began to approach.

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Mora could hear the footsteps getting louder, and despite the fact that she probablly had broken her leg or at least discloated an arm, She tried to speak, this time actually able to form words. She didn't know if Scarlett or any of the others could hear her, but she spoke, managing to get out the words, "Someone...coming.." And even that was a difficulty, she couldn't tell how loud she was being, so whoever was walking may or may not hear her.

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Natalia heard Mora speak, and whipped her head to the side so fast it nearly snapped. She pulled them further into the alley, and used the shadows to shroud it, creating false paths and twists and turns with one that led to them, which glowed slightly

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Breeze gaped in shock when the girl disappeared suddenly, unsure what she had just witnessed. Hurrying forwards and into the alley, she knelt to the ground, touching her hand to a soft shadowy shimmer trailing into it. Her mind struggled to comprehend what she was seeing; the alley appeared riddled with shadowy pathways and walls. Afraid to proceed, the girl's next action surprised her a bit; uncertainly, a name she hadn't used in years escaped her mouth as she called, "Tempest?"

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Kaida and Loni were in the alley as well, the former of whom back in her human form.

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Now this was a suprising turn of events. Whoever that was must know Cloud Boy. How, she had no idea. It didn't register to her that they might be a sibling, mostly because she was still exhausted. But exactly how close would they get?

(Sorry for the short post >-<)

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Tempest's eyes flickered open slowly. He was staring up at a spinning sky. Everything ached, and he felt more drained, more exhausted, than he could ever recall feeling in the past. It took him a moment to even recollect what had happened. When he did, his first thought was, How am I alive? Had they actually saved him? He sure didn't deserve it... His whole body screamed for him to shut his eyes, to rest more, that he was only putting himself and others at risk by forcing himself to not do so, but a voice both familiar and not seemed to have called his name, one that he had only heard within his own head for quite some time. He tried to push himself up to a sitting position but couldn't even make it off the ground, and the effort left him to gasp for breath.

Still determined, the boy turned his head in the direction of the voice to see the form of a young girl kneeling at the entrance to an alley that he was apparently in. She was older, certainly, her hair had a new silver ombre to it, and there was an odd discoloration on her right tricep, but it was clear, even to his utterly fatigued brain, who he was looking at, though more doubts clouded in with each passing moment. "Breeze...?" he muttered, his voice hoarse and somewhat disbelieving.

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Though barely audible, his response reached the girl, and, eyes lighting up, she darted into the alley, almost tripping over her own feet in her excitement. She had been so sure it couldn't be, but who else would know her name? Certainly no one this far from home, or at least no one important. As far as she knew, when her friends, 'friends', moved, as most did, they moved in the complete opposite direction. There seemed to be a cluster of at least four or five people in the alley, with two lying down. As she came closer, she slowed. Was he hurt?

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“Stay there for a moment would you?” Natalia’s voice carried just a hint of threat. “19, who is she? A sibling? And you’re hurt, stop moving, for god’s sake.” She dabbed at Mora and Tempest’s bruises and wounds with a damp piece of cloth, before looking towards Kaida and Loni. “Are you guys hurt?” She asked, thickening the illusion of the alleyway, so no one else could pass “Where’s Murasaki?” She asked again, though to no one in particular

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"It's Tempest. Please," he winced. He was fully, completely involved now, willing to fight with this rebellion, should they let him. He hated everything that had been in his head, couldn't believe he'd ever let it beat him. However, as if refuting his own guilt, the spot on his arm where the needle had breached the vein still ached; he could feel the bruise, though it certainly wasn't the only ache or bruise he was dealing with. The wet cloth that the red haired girl pressed against some of the wounds did help, though, at least a bit. "She's... Breeze," was all he could manage, stars sparking in his vision. Yeah, he probably shouldn't be moving about right now.

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Breeze put aside any of her misgivings, and perhaps also her caution. Since when had she been one to follow directions, anyway? She didn't really care about what the girl would do to her; Tempest was alive, for goodness sake. Darting forwards when her attention seemed to be turned away, she hurried to kneel beside him, throwing her arm over him and burying her face in his shirt. As the tears fell, she let out a muffled, "He's... my brother." She felt him hug her back, though it seemed to be a struggle. He was clearly hurt, and she had no idea who these people were or what on earth was going on with the weird shadows, but despite that all, she couldn't remember a time she'd felt this elated.

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“Bro-brother. Oh, so.....a family relation?” Natalia asked cautiously, relenting, seeing as tempest was friendly with her. “Tempest, stop moving, stop talking. Sleep, you can chit chat later. I need to make sure all of you are okay, well to the best of my abilities.” Turning to Breeze, she asked, “Do you not know of your brother’s past?”

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Tempest tried to protest, but Breeze could tell he wasn't in any sort of shape to do so, and after a moment, he seemed to have slipped into a sort of half sleeping, half awake state. Sitting up, she shook her head. "He- supposedly- died. In a fire. Mom and I saw them take him away for 'questioning' after he made some storm clouds when a kid punched me. Then the building burst into flames. They told us that he and the people hadn't made it out. He was eleven. I was seven." Her face contorted with pain; it had been seven years since and the memory of the event still hurt. The reality that it must have a ruse, a lie, hadn't quite sunk in yet.

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Mora laughed bitterly. She was starting to regain her strength, and mention of one of the Masked Man's many, many lies filled her with anger. The same anger that had kept her going for so long. She struggled to sit up, and bit her hand to keep from screaming in pain. Speaking in her usual throaty voice that made her sound like she had swallowed sticks, she said bitterly, "It's standard procedure. Once those monsters find someone with an ability, they take them away. Usually make sure there's some kind of accident to excuse it. I myself turned into a rabbit and tripped five people, knocking them unconcious. Of course, that was the perfect reasoning for the Masked Man to send his people after me." Despite having the energy to sit up, Mora gasped, her right hand moving to her side, her left one unmoving. "Even if you hadn't been punched, he would've found a way. He's been living like a brainwashed person since he left you, and he just tried to kill me and my friends." She tried to glare at Tempest, but for two reasons, stopped. One, her neck felt like it was going to snap, two, there seemed to be more to it then that. And Mora wanted to know what.

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