Mom Always Said

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

He spotted the first man on the wall fall just as he pulled himself up and over the limit.

"Emma!" His voice was static over the communicator that he had in his ear, but that wouldn't be too much of a problem. Half a dozen bolts flew down towards him, striking just at his feet and around the wall to his back. He scowled, head turning as he twisted and pulled up the blaster he still had in his hand. He pulled the trigger twice, aiming towards a man standing towards the edge of the wall.

Both bolts soared through the air...and then missed.

A curse escaped the young mans throat, and suddenly he whipped his arm back then quickly forward. The Blaster that had been squeezed into his palm went soaring through the air, striking the man in the head and forcing a scream from his lungs. A moment later Jerick rushed forward, striking the man in the face and sending him crumpling to the ground with a heavy thud. A pleased grin fell on his face as he grabbed the next man, smashing his head against the wall.

"Get the guys with the rifles." Jerick said quickly. "I'll handle the rest."

A breath filled his lungs, and then he rushed further into the compound.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

Jerick was getting into it. A glance over at him and Emma recognized the expression that normally carved his bloodied face during a pit fight. He would completely zone everyone else out of his mind and focus on getting his knock-out. How will he do here? Would he turn blind to any nearby dangers?

There was no time to linger and mull over that. Emma adjusted the sniper rifle, moving the muzzle high and up towards the posts where the snipers were at. They would also be looking for her. It was a game of who could get the other first.

Breathing cycles lifted her chest and then fell. Another red outline.

Not other words to be said. Instead, she took another shot. If this were a slugthrower, she'd have to reload by now. Good thing it was a powerpack. However, striking the first sniper gave away her location. Cries called out through an internal comm.

Hit the Coratanni sniper.

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

Jerick cut through the enemy like a knife.

He moved as fast as he could, pushing, driving himself as hard as he could. There was really only one thing on his mind, only one thing that he wanted; to win.

Nikolas wasnt here of course, Teslyn wasnt here, but he wanted to beat them. He wanted to show mother and father that he could do everything they did and better. He grabbed one of the other men, his finger looping around the barrel of the mans rifle as he suddenly yanked and tore him off kilt.

His fist impacted with the mans face, slamming down just in time to see Emma drop another man with a rifle half a second later.

He frowned for just a moment, spotting as the three executioners hopped over the nearby wall.

Jerick looked back fof half a second, trying to spot Emma within the dark cave. The spotlight was not searching for her, likely looking to light her up so the thugs could get her. Jerick frowned for a moment, glancing up at the tower with the light and letting out a sigh. A short jog took him towards the sheer wall, his hands and feet digging in as he began to climb.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

The spotlight swept just about a meter away from Emma, prompting her to duck behind her little nook for a moment. They were searching for her, trying to find where she sat at so they could take her out of the equation. The echoing sound of blaster fire was a cacophony of sounds. Crouched low, the young Coratanni sniper gave a mental count.

One.

A peek to the right caught sight of the beam. Two meters away. Her head drew up, following the light. Off to the left there was another sniper perched. Further still and she caught sight of Jerick's figure alongside a sheer wall.

Two.

Well that's one way to do it, she mused. Mild amusement shone with a crooked grin. Her eyes rose again to settle on another outlined figure.


Three.

Shoulder pocketing the sniper rifle, Emma drew herself out again, bringing the weapon up to look through the sights. Two more snipers left.

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

Jerick crawled up the side of the wall, his fingers flexing as he grasped onto the outcropped stones.

Just below he heard the scream of one of the guards as the Executioners reached the wall. They were a harsh bunch, trained by their mother and father to kill almost as well as some of the children. They rarely spoke, took things to heart, and offered no mercy. Jerick glanced down, catching sight of one of the men fire his blaster three or four times into a gamorrean who had accosted him. A scowl pulled on his lips, a slight run of envy dripping through him.

He'd never quite managed to master the use of a blaster, hell he'd never even got the basics.

Of course few, if any, were a match for him in the ring, but seeing the Executioners brought thoughts of Nik. Without another heartbeat of hesitation Jerick grabbed onto the next ledge, pulling himself up and dragging his body towards the upper ledge of the tower. He hopped up and over, landing with a soft thud.

His fist immediately shot out, striking the tower guard first in his chest then his face. There was a loud crack of bone as his blow struck, the man flailing loosely as he fell to the ground and crumpled. His hands unlaced from the controls of the spotlight, and within two steps Jerick took his place. "There you go little sister."

Jerick said as he flipped the spotlight off.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

As soon as the spotlight was shut off, Emma once again drew out of her little nook. TIme to finish the job. This part at least. With a smirk, the young woman took her time to bring into her sights the last two snipers. They were now blind to the direction Emma was at, allowing her to take her time to snipe them down. The two bodies fell forward, crashing to the ground with a loud thud, their blood splatering on the floor as soft organs met the hard slate of the bottom of the mine.

[ Move in. ] Emma ordered through a small headset attached to her ear. The Executioners drew forward, securing the outside of the mine and making the motions to go inside. A line of detonite cord was set against the locked doorway. In a few minutes it gave a massive BOOM, blasting the durasteel door amidst a cloud of debris and dust. Around them the mine shook at the shockwave, scattering pebbles and debris down. One barely missed Emma, prompting her to roll and dash out of her nook.

"Let's get inside!" she shouted, running forward.

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

Jerick heard the echo of his sisters voice over the small communicator that had been pressed into his ear. "Can't disagree there."

He said to himself as he turned.

The man that he had thrown to the ground struggled slightly, reaching up towards Jerick as if he were going to stop him. A small sneer pulled across the face of the Coratanni lieutenant, and before the other man could even react another kick was delivered straight to his face. Half a second later he grabbed a rope from the mans waist, trying it around his throat and using it to quickly lower himself to the ground below. A muted thud rang out as he fell to the ground, a scowl growing on his face.

"To the left." He shouted to one of the Executioners that had just made it over the wall.

The soldier turned and pulled the trigger, striking a guard in the chest.

"Emma." His voice went out over the comm. "East entrance."

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

A crackle came through Jerick's ear wig.

[ Jerick you okay?]

Emma had seen rather than heard the nasty crunch sound when he was kicked in the face. Not that Emma had any chance to really hear a reply. A flash of silver was the only warning before a sharp vibro shiv came humming at her, swiping to catch her throat and slice it open.

"Shi--" the curse was cut off, Emma bringing her sniper rifle up to block the motion. A wince drew across her face as she felt the knife cut deep along her forearm at the subsequent swipe.

Ugh.

The tiny woman caught her bearings in the next second and began to move left and right. Emma wasn't great with hand to hand fighting. She had to place some distance between her and her attacker.

At least she had the short height on her side.

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

"Emma?" His voice rang out over the radio, his lips thinning as he half turned to face where he knew his little sister was. The Executioner that had been there was moving towards him, jogging while holding his rifle. It was one of the stolen one from that Vanir company that his father enjoyed picking on so much for some reason. Jerick frowned for a moment, then pointed to the lock.

The man understood the wordless command, pointing his weapon and then pulling the trigger.

A loud pop resounded, and the disruptor tore its way through the thick iron lock. There was a hiss, then the doors quickly began to fall apart. He smiled for half a second, then turned to the Executioner. It was clear that the man was eager to get on with the fighting, but he had something else in mind. "Find my sister, help her."

This wasn't her area.

Emma preferred to stay far away from the fighting and pick off her foes one by one, combat inside of a castle? Not her thing. It was better to send one of the executioners to her for backup, especially since Jerick didn't need any help here.

Slowly the Coratanni Lieutenent smiled, the Executioner turning and heading off towards the east. Jerick then began to slowly roll up his sleeves, a light fire beginning to burn in his eye as he pulled small bandages over the lengths of his knuckles.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

Clink! Clink! Clink!

Sparks flew in between the battle that Emma and the Paun she fought. By now strands of her hair had fallen over her eyes, prompting her to flick them with a quick jerk of her face so she could see just where the knife would come.

She was already bleeding along her forearm, a bloody line that trickled crimson drops. Man he was fast, she thought, eyes widening. Not exactly what she wanted to be in for but not like she had a choice in the matter.

Her head swung back, barely missing the sharp edge of that vibroshiv as it went humming along her face. Just as he was coming in for another strike, the burst of blaster shots rang out. The Paun's body gave a series of jerks, falling to Emma's feet dead.

"About time." she managed to say, glowering if but only for a moment. Glancing up, she barely caught sight of her sibling as he went inside. Alright. Time for the big show.

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

All they had to do was reach the man at the center of all of this.

Jerick had already forgotten his name, but his face was burned right into every crevice of his memories. A fire burned inside of him, a need to prove himself, and as he dashed through the middle of hall one could practically see his urge to prove himself. One of the guards stepped out into the hall, his rifle already up and pointing at the young man. Before he could pull the trigger however Jerick grasped his weapon by the end of the barrel and yanked it up.

The sound of a blaster going off echoed in his ear and he could feel the stinging heat of the barrel in his palm, but it was already too late. His off-hand went crashing into the guards face, knuckles burying deep into the mans jaw. A loud crack rang out within the hallway, and the man fell to the ground with a thump.

Jerick peered down at the man for a second. "Emma?"

He called out over the comm-link once more, receiving only a thin line of static in return. His lips thinned for a moment and he peered around the hallway, taking a calming breath before slowly pacing forward. If the blueprints they had were right, the 'throne room' of this place was straight ahead of him.

"If you can hear me" It was unlikely that she could, but Jerick wasn't just in this for himself. He wanted more than to prove that just he was up to the task. He wanted his little sister right by his side. "I'm headed to the throne room."

They would finish this together.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

There was a slight grimace at the bloody aftermath. Not because she disliked seeing the end results but more because her arm was stinging from the cut. There was already a trickle of blood trailing down her arm, dripping along her fingertips.

"Man, this is going to make my grip slippery." she was more pragmatic when it came to being able to do her job as intended. For now, as the crackle of Jarick's voice came through her earwig, the girl gave a wipe of her hand along her thigh. No time to stop now. It wasn't serious, just a flesh wound. She'd be able to take care of it later.

"Got it." she said in a bubbly huff, her breath coming in a little faster than normal.

"Gonna secure the front. I'll come behind to make sure you don't get any surprises."

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

Jerick began to barrel through the compound.

There was no other word for it. He made no attempt at subtlety, at sneaking, instead he just rushed through the compound as quickly as he could. He met guard after guard, blaster bolt after blaster bolt. A few of them caught him on the side of grazed him, the asheran armorweave underlay that he wore being enough to stop him from falling to his death.

His progress was swift, harsh, and cruel.

Around the corners of the manor he could hear guards screaming, caught out by the Executioners or meeting their fate at the hands of his little sister. He frowned for a moment as he spotted something strange, something he had no real explanation for. It was a shadow, but no other being was around, nothing else living. His fingers tightened for a second, and he stepped into what appeared to be a large lobby directly before a huge pair of double doors.

His lips thinned. "Emma..."

Jerick trailed off, his head whirling as he spotted the shadow once more.

"There's something here." The words were mysterious, but he didn't know how else to put it. A breath filled his lungs, and slowly he looked around the room, trying to spot what had been making those odd movements.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

Emma was still grimacing about her wound. It would be fine, but it was more of an annoyance. It was also likely that once they returned home, her sister was going to be scolding her for getting hurt. She did that all the time.

A huff came from Emmas lips, wide eyes glancing up as she made to join her brother.

[ what is it?] she asked, snapping her rifle on her back. She instead chose to pull out a smaller blaster, holding in between her bloodstained hands.

They crept in, keeping an eye out.

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

He paused for a moment, then caught sight of another blur.

Jerick couldn't have said what it was, it managed to stay out of his sight, peek in and out of vision...not human. He frowned for a moment, his lips thinning as he glanced towards the corner of the room and tracked whatever was stalking him. "I..."

He trailed off.

Personal cloaking device? That seemed the most likely option. There were dozens upon dozens of organizations who built them, he even knew that Felix and SIN itself was working on that type of technology for Matthias and the other Enforcers to use, but this...this was something else entirely. He took in a small breath, his fingers tightening into fists, and then suddenly a hiss echoed behind him. His eyes snapped open and he whirled around in place.

His hands shot up, and in that moment he managed to grab the jaws of a massive Hssiss.

"KARK KARK KARK!" Jerick called into his mic.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

That sudden bark of cursing send chills down Emma’s spine.

“Jarick!” Her voice resonated from the comm, “what is going on?!!” Her lips twisted into a thin line. The group of executioners beside her waited for instructions. Turning towards them she made a wave of her hand.

“Well don’t just STAND there! Go help him!” She exclaimed, bringing her blaster up. Worry for her sibling drew them forward, nearing to his location.

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

What in the fuck was this thing?

It was the only thought that floated through Jerick's head as his fingers gripped the edge of the Hssiss' jaws, his pads digging into the creatures teeth as it tried to snap it's mouth closed and bite him. A soft curse escaped him as he felt the force of the creature press itself into him, clearly trying to push him over and onto the ground so that it could consume him.

His fingers tightened. "IT's...KARK I DON'T KNOW!"

The creature hissed, and then suddenly snapped forward. It's tail smashed against one of the walls, leaving a pocket mark of impact in the steel wall. Jerick cursed, and then managed to roll back, unhinging himself from the creatures grasp and rolling away.

Blood dripped from his fingers and the creature sniffed the air, a low growl entering it's throat as it stalked towards him.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]


[SIZE=9pt]Karking HELL!![/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Damnit Jerick don’t fucking die!” Emma shouted through her comm, the group coming right up towards her siblings location. At that point, Emma had to thank the fact that a line of Executioners had gone in front of her first -- because the first one to step into the fray had the shock of his life. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]As soon as the group came into the room, the creature swung its head, turning away from Jerick towards the new arrivals. It gave a hiss, only to jump forward and attack.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]It struck the Executioner by the throat, clamping its jaws around with a vicious snap. The body dangled for a moment, the gurgle of a scream choking out of his mouth. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Emma’s eyes went wide. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Shoot it!” she cried, a wave of blaster fire errupting towards the Hssis. [/SIZE]

 

[Subject 37]

[member="Natalia Thawne"]

Jerick didn't even have the wherewithal to respond to Emma as she called out to him, a stark look of bewilderment sliding across his features. He had never heard of a creature like this, much less seen one. The great beast seemed to be a lizard of some sort. That much was obvious, but it's skin changed colors rapidly, it's eyes were black, and it's teeth were sharp enough to rend flesh with just the slightest bit of contact. He had no idea what it was or where it came from.

Yet he knew they had to kill it.

He frowned for a moment, catching sight of the creature tail whipping back towards him. He half jumped to the left, avoiding the snap of the Hssiss' tail crashing into the wall where his head had been. A low groan escaped the executioner as the beast bit down on him, killing him instantly just as Blaster fire erupted in the small chamber.

The Hssiss' let out a whimper of pain, whipping around and dropping the executioners as it lunged towards it's new enemies.

"Emma!" Jerick called out, scrambling to his feet. From his pocket he pulled out the small phase-knife that Nikolas had given him. The blade had been meant as a taunt, mostly since Jerick hardly ever used such things, but now it was just about the only weapon he had. With a roar Jerick activated the energy knife, bounding forward and pouncing onto the Hssiss. He stabbed it through the neck, slicing skin and hanging on as the Hssiss reared back.

It screeched and roared, wildly swiping it's claws and snapping it's jaws at anything and everything.

 

[Noire]

[member="Slevin Thawne"]

It was chaos.

All Emma could hear was the echo of Jerick's cry. Her own growing fear for her sibling. "Jerick!" she cried out again. She was caught between the desire to start shooting at the beast and that fear that she just might shoot him instead.

"Get it!" they had to put it down. With a twist of her mouth, the young woman brought her blaster out. She was better with the rifle, but she could still use her skills to help her sibling.

Breathing in, she took aim. As well as she could while the body was writhing. At least there was enough light to catch the outline of Jerick's body. In the next few seconds, she began to send out a volley of four shots right at it's head. If that WAS a head.