It has been almost three weeks since Ether fully awakened into this world.
Three weeks and he already found himself not liking anything about it. Bleak city streets, idle warfare concealed in shadows and the familiar, cliche and utterly ridiculous inability of magic and technology to get along. He soon found himself haunting the streets, alone and borderline apathetic.
In this world, where something happened every hour, he found himself unable to discover a single hint about her location
( ... )
It is amusing in its own way, is it not? No matter where his journey brings him, he always ends up chasing something. Be it a group of mercenaries in the midst of Chicago or a phantom that keeps lingering in his fragmented memories. He does not remember how he turned out this way. All he can do is keep going until he reaches the edge of the world. That is the only truth he knows right now.
He leans back in his seat and, after a moment of silence and a resigned sigh, speaks.
"It isn't about confidence. I refuse to believe in failure. That's all." It is the only way he can afford to live. By refusing to believe in the possibility of failure, he forces the necessity of success on everything around him. "When do we move out?"
She nods. "We leave as soon as I get back to my vehicle and weaponry." Mei-Xing hesitates, then nods to herself and looks Ether in the eyes again. "Do you require a form of transportation? I assure you, we will not be walking all the way." Hell no. She's got a motorcycle from her prisoner she can lend out.
He wouldn't be using it anymore, especially not with all of the information she pulled from his mind. She'd left him under a magical sleep when she went to go talent scouting, trying to put off the actual act of murder for as long as possible. She had to do it eventually, she knew, but...
Ether doesn't look forward to using transportation. Traveling on foot always makes less noise, not to mention opens more potential shortcuts. But he cannot always resort to traveling the way he wants to, can he? Not when he has someone else traveling with him.
It's funny. Although he never traveled in a group before, his instincts kept claiming otherwise. Is there something he does not remember about his life? Except for his relationship with that person he desires to seek out, that is...
"Sounds like I'll need it." He makes a short pause before he decides to admit it. "I normally travel on foot."
She stares at him, almost as if she doesn't believe it. She can hardly believe going to one side of a city to another without setting foot on a vehicle of some sort. But with the cybernetic enhancements these days... "And you aren't worried about ghouls or sasquatches? Or anything else?"
Either he's lying, spends a lot of time on the run, or... Her mind flashes back to her initial impression of his aura. No, that wouldn't be for show, and most Awakened creatures would be able to see him. Despite herself, she has to admit that it sounds like the truth.
Shaking her head, she stands. "Either way, we gain nothing from sitting around in this greasy stain on the Earth." She looks towards the exit. "Every minute we spend here is a minute of lead they have on us." Mei-Xing and Ether do have the advantage of the other runners thinking that she wouldn't be back, but there's still no reason to waste time.
"I rarely have the time to worry about anything." It is no lie. Ether is far too busy moving through his life, passing through every city he can, listening to every rumor he can. Survival may be important, but that persistent memory of a girl he has never met and the gun he one day found in his mailbox, only to instantly know how to use it...
There is no time to worry about ghouls when he cannot understand even his own memories. And at this very moment, he had no time to worry about even that.
"As long as I can succeed, I shall do things my own way." His fingers graze the surface of the table as he rises from his place, and his coat immediately wraps around his figure. Ether does not look particularly strong, but he looks fairly agile. If his choice of weapon and the modifications in his eyes are any indications, that will be the part to matter.
She gives him a curious look for a moment, then shakes her head. It's probably best not to ask.
"Let's go. My hotel isn't far from here." She adjusts her jacket and steps into the cool autumn night outside. The smell of Chicago creeps throughout the place, and it's all she can do not to wrinkle her nose. At least the bar's noise is dimmed, and the only 'crowd' here is a few people, unconscious from either drink or brawling, laid out across the lawn.
She heads west for a ways, and doesn't speak for the fifteen minutes it takes to get to the hotel. One would be surprised to see that it's actually open, the place is run down and there's only six vehicles in varying states of disrepair lying in the parking lot. Two motorcycles parked next to each other have fresh bullet holes in them, and one has a fair amount of blood dried to the seat and handles. Mei-Xing glances at it, then gives Ether an apologetic look, even as the blood begins to disappear. "Sorry. I hadn't remembered that.She steps up to a room on the first floor, fishes in her
( ... )
The room is small, dingy and disgusting. It reminds him of so many temporary hideouts he inhabited over the months of traveling, none of them being places he wants to return to. In the end, Ether only feels comfortable when his life is spent on the road.
His hand brushes against the clasp of the black messenger back hanging by his side, the kind one would expect to see on the postmen of old. It can be hard to believe that that single bag contains everything he ever needed in his travels. Of course, that can also be used as proof of how he lives.
After taking in across the room, his gaze finally focuses on the man sleeping on the bed.
Mei-Xing glances to the sleeping man and lets out a long, ragged sigh, running a hand through her hair. She keeps it short, out of the way for when she has to see, or avoid security lasers. "I don't know." If she erased his memory, he would still find out about his friends, possibly find a mage who could restore it. If she let him go, he might come for her, seeking revenge. "I suppose I'll have to kill him before we leave
( ... )
Ether responds with a shake of his head and a faint, almost tired, sound. In his mind, her offer is almost silly. The idea of carrying back-up weaponry on one's person is ridiculous. In his world, you bring what you need and rely on your surroundings for the rest.
"There is no need to," he observes in a dull voice. "He's already dead. Once his mission and team are done for, revenge will be the only thing capable of keeping his situation afloat."
It is a simple statement without a hint of doubt. There is no room for that. He doesn't choose missions so he can consider a possibility of failure. The only thing that concerns him is a chance of success. It is with that set of mind, that Ether turns toward Mei-Xing and comments idly.
She shrugs at his denial, and closes the door. None of the weapons can be traced to her or her team, she likes to think they were too professional for that. And she never really plans on coming back here again.
Such confidence. Ether speaks as if their mission has already been completed. Mei-Xing doesn't like that, she's always preferred not to tempt fate. The spirits knew, it had a nasty sense of humor. "Revenge can be powerful, especially when one has the right group of contacts." More than once, a careless slip, letting someone live when they shouldn't have, has ended a runner's life.
Really, he has a point. But her pride, her belief in her face demands the other man's death. Still, best not to argue with her new partner. It would be better to just use a bit of magic... Yes, perhaps send him into a coma while she's riding off. That would do.
Mei-Xing steps outside, tossing a leg over her motorcycle, and checks her map of Chicago again. They're probably still on the move. "Let's go. Every second we waste here is a second they
"Revenge is a dead end," he echoes as he approaches the motorcycle. Golden eyes look over the machine with mechanical precision, as if making sure that nothing is out of place, before he finally mounts it and rests his hands on the controls.
"Nobody needs a Runner who is too concerned with chasing yesterday enemies to focus on today's job..." He seems almost tired for a moment, almost as if he personally experienced that far too many times. Even with his aura and that faint air of wisdom, it's hard to believe. The way he carries himself is tired, but far too young.
He shakes his head as he forces focus back into his eyes. "Lead the way."
He misses her point, she thinks. Surely the runner would come after her, to save his face after she'd humiliated him like that?
Eh. Whichever. She revs the bike, using the moment to reinforce the sleeping spell. It's tiring, boosting it to the levels of a coma, but the bike ride should let her rest up a bit. Without further ado, she lets the back wheel spin and zooms off. It's not a particularly safe speed, but she's actually rather good with a motorcycle. Her father taught her that much, when she'd visited him
( ... )
The way she maneuvers her bike is familiar. He's not sure where he had seen it in the past. There are too many glimpses of memories in his head that don't feed with where he grew up, what he had done until this point and the reasons why he set out on this journey. He isn't sure why it became like this. Too many things about his existence stopped fitting together since that night several years ago.
It's alright, he tells himself as he focuses on the road in front of them. The answers will come on their own if he keeps moving forward.
Unlike Mei-Xing, he doesn't seem to worry once he notices the crowd in front of him. Worrying before the actual confrontation is more danger than it's worth. He tightens his hold on the controls and pronounces firmly. "Want me to talk to them?"
Mei-Xing flips up the visor on her helmet and squints, peering into the astral realm. Some of them had cyberware, she can see the dimmed areas in their auras. None of them were Awakened, however.
After a moment, she nods, snapping back into real space and closing her visor. Even closed, she can see the glint of binoculars from the crew ahead.
"Yes." Ether was, after all, the more human-looking out of the pair of them. Besides, this way she can learn a bit more about how he operates. If things went to drek, well... She'd handle that when it came up. "Will you need nuyen?"
Three weeks and he already found himself not liking anything about it. Bleak city streets, idle warfare concealed in shadows and the familiar, cliche and utterly ridiculous inability of magic and technology to get along. He soon found himself haunting the streets, alone and borderline apathetic.
In this world, where something happened every hour, he found himself unable to discover a single hint about her location ( ... )
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It is amusing in its own way, is it not? No matter where his journey brings him, he always ends up chasing something. Be it a group of mercenaries in the midst of Chicago or a phantom that keeps lingering in his fragmented memories. He does not remember how he turned out this way. All he can do is keep going until he reaches the edge of the world. That is the only truth he knows right now.
He leans back in his seat and, after a moment of silence and a resigned sigh, speaks.
"It isn't about confidence. I refuse to believe in failure. That's all." It is the only way he can afford to live. By refusing to believe in the possibility of failure, he forces the necessity of success on everything around him. "When do we move out?"
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He wouldn't be using it anymore, especially not with all of the information she pulled from his mind. She'd left him under a magical sleep when she went to go talent scouting, trying to put off the actual act of murder for as long as possible. She had to do it eventually, she knew, but...
...Well. It could wait.
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It's funny. Although he never traveled in a group before, his instincts kept claiming otherwise. Is there something he does not remember about his life? Except for his relationship with that person he desires to seek out, that is...
"Sounds like I'll need it." He makes a short pause before he decides to admit it. "I normally travel on foot."
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Either he's lying, spends a lot of time on the run, or... Her mind flashes back to her initial impression of his aura. No, that wouldn't be for show, and most Awakened creatures would be able to see him. Despite herself, she has to admit that it sounds like the truth.
Shaking her head, she stands. "Either way, we gain nothing from sitting around in this greasy stain on the Earth." She looks towards the exit. "Every minute we spend here is a minute of lead they have on us." Mei-Xing and Ether do have the advantage of the other runners thinking that she wouldn't be back, but there's still no reason to waste time.
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There is no time to worry about ghouls when he cannot understand even his own memories. And at this very moment, he had no time to worry about even that.
"As long as I can succeed, I shall do things my own way." His fingers graze the surface of the table as he rises from his place, and his coat immediately wraps around his figure. Ether does not look particularly strong, but he looks fairly agile. If his choice of weapon and the modifications in his eyes are any indications, that will be the part to matter.
"Shall we go then?"
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"Let's go. My hotel isn't far from here." She adjusts her jacket and steps into the cool autumn night outside. The smell of Chicago creeps throughout the place, and it's all she can do not to wrinkle her nose. At least the bar's noise is dimmed, and the only 'crowd' here is a few people, unconscious from either drink or brawling, laid out across the lawn.
She heads west for a ways, and doesn't speak for the fifteen minutes it takes to get to the hotel. One would be surprised to see that it's actually open, the place is run down and there's only six vehicles in varying states of disrepair lying in the parking lot. Two motorcycles parked next to each other have fresh bullet holes in them, and one has a fair amount of blood dried to the seat and handles. Mei-Xing glances at it, then gives Ether an apologetic look, even as the blood begins to disappear. "Sorry. I hadn't remembered that.She steps up to a room on the first floor, fishes in her ( ... )
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His hand brushes against the clasp of the black messenger back hanging by his side, the kind one would expect to see on the postmen of old. It can be hard to believe that that single bag contains everything he ever needed in his travels. Of course, that can also be used as proof of how he lives.
After taking in across the room, his gaze finally focuses on the man sleeping on the bed.
"What are we going to do with him?"
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"There is no need to," he observes in a dull voice. "He's already dead. Once his mission and team are done for, revenge will be the only thing capable of keeping his situation afloat."
It is a simple statement without a hint of doubt. There is no room for that. He doesn't choose missions so he can consider a possibility of failure. The only thing that concerns him is a chance of success. It is with that set of mind, that Ether turns toward Mei-Xing and comments idly.
"It's like shooting an old dog."
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Such confidence. Ether speaks as if their mission has already been completed. Mei-Xing doesn't like that, she's always preferred not to tempt fate. The spirits knew, it had a nasty sense of humor. "Revenge can be powerful, especially when one has the right group of contacts." More than once, a careless slip, letting someone live when they shouldn't have, has ended a runner's life.
Really, he has a point. But her pride, her belief in her face demands the other man's death. Still, best not to argue with her new partner. It would be better to just use a bit of magic... Yes, perhaps send him into a coma while she's riding off. That would do.
Mei-Xing steps outside, tossing a leg over her motorcycle, and checks her map of Chicago again. They're probably still on the move. "Let's go. Every second we waste here is a second they
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"Nobody needs a Runner who is too concerned with chasing yesterday enemies to focus on today's job..." He seems almost tired for a moment, almost as if he personally experienced that far too many times. Even with his aura and that faint air of wisdom, it's hard to believe. The way he carries himself is tired, but far too young.
He shakes his head as he forces focus back into his eyes. "Lead the way."
Reply
Eh. Whichever. She revs the bike, using the moment to reinforce the sleeping spell. It's tiring, boosting it to the levels of a coma, but the bike ride should let her rest up a bit. Without further ado, she lets the back wheel spin and zooms off. It's not a particularly safe speed, but she's actually rather good with a motorcycle. Her father taught her that much, when she'd visited him ( ... )
Reply
It's alright, he tells himself as he focuses on the road in front of them. The answers will come on their own if he keeps moving forward.
Unlike Mei-Xing, he doesn't seem to worry once he notices the crowd in front of him. Worrying before the actual confrontation is more danger than it's worth. He tightens his hold on the controls and pronounces firmly. "Want me to talk to them?"
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After a moment, she nods, snapping back into real space and closing her visor. Even closed, she can see the glint of binoculars from the crew ahead.
"Yes." Ether was, after all, the more human-looking out of the pair of them. Besides, this way she can learn a bit more about how he operates. If things went to drek, well... She'd handle that when it came up. "Will you need nuyen?"
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