183 Near Disasters

[cal_sitter]

[New York City rarely lies in true darkness, and this is true of the city as Niko dreams it. The lights of Manhattan shine below him by the thousands. Millions more are aglow beyond the portion of the island visible through the tinted penthouse windows. Artificial illumination inverts the night sky, blocking the natural stars from view and

Comments

save me, i am swallowed by the guilt of this

[hundredflowers]

Hong Mei huddles in the dark corner of the room, not really sure how and when she appeared in this area, and not bothering to question it. The smell of blood is, of course, familiar in her nose, coppery and warm, if scents could have temperature. Heavy. But it's familiar and in that, Hong Mei basks, eyes fluttering to a close before she watches, more intently, gaze cutting through the tension of the room, slicing like a knife. Danger is addictive, but danger is something to be taken in moderation.

She moves slightly from her spot, not the queen of stealth by any means.

Who are those people?

save me, i am swallowed by the guilt of this

[cal_sitter]

"Do you see him, Niko?" Cherish pushes him forward, her lips curved in a satisfied smile. "We're not finished. He's still breathing." She crooks a finger at the cat. "Xolo, darling, there's warmer blood in your toy."

Niko can end this if he can reach his knife. His fingers curl around the hilt of the tanto and draw it clear of the sheath, but before he can drive the blade beneath the base of the ccoa's skull, he's paralyzed. The cat paces forward and lowers its muzzle to the wounds that vivisect the dark-haired young man lying on the rug.

save me, i am swallowed by the guilt of this

[hundredflowers]

Her priority still being herself, not her life but instead her identity and the chance of it being compromised, Hong Mei first looks around the room, quietly rising to her feet and padding around, trying to make sure that there aren't others around who might witness anything she does. Or anything that might happen to her. The coast being clear, she feels around for anything that might help, might give her a crucial couple of seconds--and comes up empty.

Which leaves only a small dagger that she keeps under her socks. Hong Mei slips it out, keeps her hands hidden behind her.

"I'm getting the feeling that what's going on here isn't government-approved," she murmurs, loud enough for the woman to hear, perhaps, if Hong Mei is to be heard.

save me, i am swallowed by the guilt of this

[cal_sitter]

Instead of reacting to the comment, Cherish leans into Niko and whispers at his ear. "Are you watching?" She grazes his throat with her fangs before she shoves him forward. Niko stumbles, falls to his knees, and the knife in his hand sinks into his brother's chest.

[winewomenand]

It takes Robin a few seconds to collect himself, realizing the situation he's surrounded by, and another ten seconds to begin to realize none of this is actually happening, that he's trapped somewhere in Niko's mind somehow. Even then he can't pinpoint why he knows. Just the overbearing sense of wrongness that comes in such situations when one has lived as long as Robin has.

Cal's body on the rug is enough to make his stomach turn like he's swallowed a glass of cold water far too fast, but he stays still as a deer in the hallway, falling into shadows and keeping away from Niko until he can suss out what's occuring, and then he watches the other form approach the elder Leandros brother.

Cherish's dark hair and ample curves. The familiar tugs of irritation and physical lust are there for only a moment, replaced by a fury as cold as the feeling in his gut. It draws his lips away from his teeth, like he's smelled something foul, and eventually Robin speaks.

"Traitorous sixameni."

[cal_sitter]

Niko can't do this. He can't watch his brother die again. How many times in one night will he see it? He knows it's happened before, even if he can't remember it, because he can feel the cracks widening again. In desperation, he pulls away from Cherish. Killing her hasn't helped. Her blood is on his hands, mingled with Cal's, and he fears mingled with Promise's, because he knows that Promise is gone. He's on the verge of demanding to know where when he hears Robin's voice.

Cherish hears it as well and grabs hold of Niko's arm, forcing him closer to his brother's corpse. "Wait your turn, puck. He's not ready yet."

[winewomenand]

The first thing Robin does when he catches their attention is lift an arm to pull a short dagger from off of his opposite forearm, but the dagger isn't secured there and, in fact, Robin is wearing a robe and a pair of pyjama pants. Because clearly Niko's subconscious has it out for him, and he'll remind himself to complain about it sometime less stressful.

Well, shit.

He tries to turn the action into something else, crossing his arms defensively, keeping his eyes glued on Niko's face.

"I don't wait my turn, Cherish. Waiting is for normal people."

[cal_sitter]

Why the hell did Robin come to the penthouse in his pajama bottoms and with no weapons? Niko registers the oddity only long enough to be annoyed before Cherish's nails dig into the skin of his bare arm (he'd been meant to sleep in Promise's bed that night, after all).

The cat pads across the room and rubs its head against Niko's leg. Cherish stands on tiptoe and brushes a kiss against Niko's jaw. "Kill him."

[71_chevelle]

Bobby's not sure where he is, that's the first sign that this ain't somethin' normal goin' on. Still, he walks around looking for some sort of landmark, or a familiar face.

[cal_sitter]

What he gets is a body being thrown through the window of a bar. The wings strike the wall across the street first and shatter with an audible series of cracks, and then the peri drops to the sidewalk, drawing his last breaths before the puck, already dead, is thrown after.

[71_chevelle]

"What in th' name of Christ!?"

Bobby spares a glance at the mangled and bloody bodies, vaguely recognizing one as the new resident of Niko's place. Whatever was going on, it wasn't good, an' there was a good chance someone he knew was part of it. Another glance at the puck told Bobby he was far beyond help - and whatever did that to him was strong and angry.

Cautiously, unsure if Niko or his brother are in trouble, or if they're the cause of the carnage, he moves to the side of the bar and a side door. he knows better than to walk in where someone was thrown out.

He enters, and heads toward the main room.

[cal_sitter]

All of the patrons are dead, as well as the peri staff, their wings now visible and mangled. At the back of the room, draped over the bar's counter, is the body of a woman. Promise was ripped apart, and a handful of her pearls is scattered and bloody on the floor beneath her dangling feet.

There's movement in a corner, a slight body, pale-skinned, with gossamer hair, gleaming red eyes, and serrated teeth that reflect the bar in their metallic surface when the creature smiles. It drags something forward: Niko, bleeding and weaponless. Another of the creatures laughs from the shadows, and young man with the same pallid skin but dark hair and eyes as grey as Niko's throws himself against the monster's restraining hold, spitting words at it that sound like glass against the ears.

[starchilde_lost]

Rachel's slowly getting with the program, realizing that all the whacked-out thing's she's seeing is the result of dreamwalking. It still doesn't help when she sees the blood-soaked rug. Oh, yeah. Niko's got issues, is all she has time to think before the woman catches her attention.

Rachel has the distinct impression that she'll regret this in the morning, but she's never been one to stand idly by and let friends and acquaintances be hurt, even in their dreams.

"What will be over sooner?"

[cal_sitter]

"Hush, pretty thing," Cherish scolds, her fingers stroking idle paths down Niko's bare arm. "I'm working. You can have your turn in a moment." She tugs at Niko's hand, pulling him a stumbling step closer to the body on the floor. "It's only a broken promise, Niko. Nothing to fear. Let go. He's not here to see the rest of your failures."

[starchilde_lost]

There's a context here that Rachel just isn't getting, possibly because the dream won't quite let her see what or who is on the floor.

She reaches out with her mind, hoping she has power in this dream. There's not much, probably because Niko doesn't know the full extent of her gifts and this is his dream, after all, but there's enough to pause the woman in her tracks. It probably won't hold, but it will certainly get her attention - whatever she wants to show Niko, Rachel's certain she doesn't want Niko to see.

"But I want my turn now, sweetheart."

[cal_sitter]

Another power reaches for hers, pushes feebly at the psychic as the cat turns to face her. It's a power wielded without intelligence or knowledge, questing for her weaknesses. It wraps around Niko's mind in the dream with a single purpose: to break him. Behind that power, Cherish is safe, her eyes clouding black with anger as she bares her fangs at the intruder.

"Go on, Niko,"she urges. "Draw your sword. Cut them all down."

[reginagloriae]

Initially, she's confused. This curse is confusing, so real and so fake. She looks around if she finds anything familiar. Dreams are real for Youko ever since her visions began, she had been connected deeply to them.

In dreams, she always carries her sword and sapphire.

"Hey! Leave him alone!"

[cal_sitter]

In so many of the dreams, Niko has fought. Not this time. This time, Cherish turns to the newcomer, smiles, and walks away, leaving her victim alone with the body of his brother and the unexpected spectator.

[reginagloriae]

Oh god. God. That's... Youko didn't know Cal very well, but she can guess it's his body for sure. She runs at Niko. "Niko!" If Cal was still alive, she could do something for him.

[cal_sitter]

"Stay away," Niko cautions numbly. "You'll get blood on your shoes."