CHAPTER FOUR ♔ does it run in your blood to betray the ones you love

[coldheritage]

♬ The Truth - Nonpoint

WHO || Failboat, Rafael, Isabella, Nadia  [Closed]
WHAT || After an exciting Grammy night, the Knights meet up with Nadia to hear what she has to say
WHERE || Staples Center, LA -->  Warehouse
WHEN || Feb 8th, 2015  [back dated]
HOW || Actionspam

[  The Knights' mission to stop the signal and prevent Draken's cult from spreading whatever subliminal message  was lurking beneath Keijen Blade's performance was a success.  It didn't come without its bumps in the road, however:  Alexander Anderson showed up, and the Knights ran afoul of the Mind Master.    Buffy nearly died fighting Anderson, but in the end, he was defeated, beheaded, and hopefully put to death forever.   Finnick, though, found himself thrust into a mental illusion that convinced him he might still be in the Hunger Games, and left him uncertain about whether any of his life here was real.  

Another surprise came in the form of an announcement by Nadia Reichenov, an artist working with Crombe and company, that she was changing her band name and taking things in a 'new direction'.   This direction was perhaps revealed when after her performance, she approached the Knights in Rafael's dressing room - and handed them the necklace that connects her to the Nightmare God Malaak'a, saying she was willing to tell them everything.  ]

Comments

[nothingsodivine]

[Des sticks his tongue in his cheek as he steps further inside, giving Elena sidelong glances.] The Mind Master's thing? Shouldn't that have worn off by now?

[chessing]

Unless what she did wasn't temporary. [ jack casts an unsettled look around at them, eyes settling on the closed doors as if he wonders where finnick is rn ]

[graveflowers]

He's in the bathroom and he doesn't want to come out, so don't... try. It upsets him and he's as calm as he's going to get right now. [ it comes out more tersely than intended, but this night has been incredibly trying for her. moving to the couch, she puts her hand on kat's shoulder and that same cool green glow flows from her palm, healing kat for +21 hp. (infuse with life) ]

[nepotism]

[ kat squirms at the touch but fred sits on the other side of her and gives vi a grateful look on her behalf ] Not that I'm in any way an expert on this stuff, but... who could even do something like that? Just break a guy's brain without ever touching him? [ he casts a worried look at them all ] No one knows what the hell she is?

[nothingsodivine]

She's bad news. Maybe she's got god juice like Blade does. Or something worse. [he flops down on the couch and looks deeply uncomfortable, opening his mouth to say something else, and then deciding against it.] Did Rafael and Isabella cut and run?

[doubletake]

All I've got is that she's hiding her true form and she's got crazy reptile eyes.

[From her fun little run in with her on Andres.

She looks at Des, shaking her head and gesturing vaguely towards the other room.]

They're talking.

[graveflowers]

[ while they talk about the mind master, vi edges around the uninjured (or less injured), in order to get to the one that look like she needs to be healed stat. she reaches out to touch alainn tentatively, not wanting to hurt the woman's seared skin more as she wills the healing magic to flow from her and into the terribly injured woman, smoothing out some of the scrapes and burns. (+ 21 hp from heightened transfer wounds, lesser) her eyes close as she feels the pain pass into her own body, but she opens them with a weak smile directed at the half elf before moving back to where finnick is hiding to retrieve her now cold tea. ]

[bigbad]

[Spike opens the door, holding it open for the rest of team successboat.]

That worked well. Everyone make it out alive? [His eyes skate over, taking stock of everyone. He doesn't see Rafael or Isabella, but they could have buggered off to do celebrity things. He doesn't know. Not everyone looks in one piece, though, so he steps aside so Myri can get in.]

[slay]

[ Buffy whips her head straight towards Elena at that, brow furrowed. ]

Here? Now?

[ God fucking damn jesus christ Rafael literally cannot leave you alone. Buffy blinks quickly, bumbling through her response and settling on a grimace. ]

Maybe we should clear out before things get— [ She's never been so happy to be interrupted in her life as Spike pipes up, and she glances quickly back to look at him. Relief washes over her and she crosses the room back towards the doorway. ] Spike! Thank god—are you guys okay?

[witchwoman]

[As Spike steps aside, Myri slips into the room, glancing over her should briefly to make sure the other women are close behind. She looks to Buffy as she hears that question but... doesn't say anything. "Okay" is a hard thing for her to confirm when all she can feel is a pit in her stomach at the fact that her husband hasn't rushed to greet her yet. Glancing down at the floor, she continues to walk into the room until she's basically in the center of the group.

She can feel the aches of all the various injuries tugging at her in all directions. It's hard to focus to know where to even start. Without a word, she drops both hands to her sides, fingers splayed. Her hands take on a soft blue glow as the magic flows to touch each of them (except Spike) in the room, a healing energy restoring at least some of the damage (20 HP to anyone who needs it. She can hit up to 13 people with it at this point so we should be fine).]

[rationalizes]

None of them came after us - none that could catch us at least. The plan worked. [ she casts a grateful look at jack, and then looks past him at kat and alainn. even healed, their clothes still show signs of the blast, and fred and buffy are probably still caked in blood too, hooray. FRETS. ]

[coldheritage]

Vladislov said he'd meet me at 3am at an address not far from here. I'm going to ... try to get some sleep before then.

[slay]

[ With Myri's healing, aside from a second ruined dress and bloodstains, Buffy's looking good as new again but for some lasting scrapes. When Nadia makes her presence impossible to ignore, Buffy turns to Jack. ]

Can I talk to you for a minute?

[ Concern is written all over her expression, tense and ill at ease. ]

[graveflowers]

[ now with her tea held between her hands, vi leans against the opening to the bathroom area. ]

Nadia. [ she doesn't really know the woman, but she can't deny she feels something for her, some sort of sad familiarity, and that bleeds into her name as vi says it. she knows that there is a loop and that she is miles out of it so the question may have been asked already, but she can't help voicing it herself. ] Do you know if Dumage is okay?

1/2

[coldheritage]

[ nadia pauses from where she was moving towards an empty room, one hand on the door, and looks back at them. ]

If there's one thing I've picked up about Dumage... [ she diverts her gaze again ] -- it's that she's a survivor. [ she shrugs slightly ] The fact that you're asking after she claims to have abandoned you all tells me that she's playing a very dangerous game with him.

I just hope she knows what she's doing. [ with that, she heads into the room and the door closes softly behind her ]

[dragonsclaw]

[ jack nods to buffy, indicating the balcony after he pauses to hear what nadia has to say about dumage. he doesn't comment on that, but he does glance at gar for a moment, and they share a concerned silent stare, before he goes out. ]

[nothingsodivine]

[Des twists his wedding ring around his finger, eyes glued to the floor, only sparing a glance up when Buffy asks to speak with Jack. Only after they've left does he manage to find his voice and it's a little strained.]

We're all playing a dangerous game. We're in so deep.

[witchwoman]

[With one spell done and out of the way, Myri scans the room, trying to pick out who need additional healing (and by that I mean hey guys, come tell me if you do???). She keeps her gaze moving until she spots Vi, guarding the bathroom door. She knows the woman well enough (and remembers what happened at the last concert) to guess just what's on the other side of that door (wis 22).]

Is he..? [Truthfully, she doesn't know what the rest of that question is going to be. Any hope for additional words choke on the lump that's quickly formed in her throat.]

[littledhampir]

[I'm thinking even with all the healing, Alainn will look like she's been left in the oven for too long, Rose finally stepping into the room now that Nadia has safely tucked herself away to survey her friend.

Despite the sight she'd see, visible relief etches its way across her features because no matter how bad it is, at least she isn't dead.]

D'you pick a fight with a Molotov cocktail? [That's Rose for; I'm really glad you're not dead.]

[bigbad]

[Spike's sobered at the mention of Dumage. It's good that she's surviving. He's not sure he wants to think about how far she'll go to stay that way. He glances up at Gar.]

I could go with her, you know. Not a one of the rest of you'd be able to pass for groupies of her kind of music. [He nods to Elena.] Except Elena, of course.

[graveflowers]

No.

[ her head shakes the tiniest bit and any resolve she had in keeping her composure is lost, eyes dropping to her tea, unable to look myri in the eye as her own well up with familiar tears. her knuckles turn white around the mug, grip crushing as she struggles to get a grip on her emotions as well. after a moment of indecision, she steps back, turning to step over the teapot (she should pick that up probably) and knock lightly on the door. ]

Finnick, it's me. Can you unlock the door again?

[65]

[it's not like he hasn't been listening; he already knows what's waiting for him on the other side of the door. at least in the sense that the rest of the party is back at the hotel and he's going to have to talk to them and the entire thing just makes him want to throw up. good thing he's already ... here in the bathroom. he just can't live the lie anymore, he can't go along with the dream when it feels like the capitol is in his head, picking apart every single detail. planting things to make him feel safe and comfortable and then twisting it around to be anything but. ]

Why?

[graveflowers]

[ her eyes close and her forehead drops against the door. all she wants is for finnick to feel safe and she knows this is the last place for that. ]

Myri wants to see you. It's just Myri. And, well, me, I'm here, obviously. I'll keep everyone else away, I promise. But Myri needs to see you.

[ (diplomacy 20 total) she feels so bad, like she's forcing this upon him, but her heart is hurting for myri at the same time and it's impossible to not at least try. ]

[65]

[his will save was a crit fail :( even though he thinks myri is just a construct of lies, he can't turn her away. so the door makes a small clicking noise as he unlocks it.]

[nothingsodivine]

[As Des watches the scene unfolding in front of the bathroom, Des's expression falters even more and his hands stop fidgeting. For a second, he's eerily still and when the door clicks shut behind Myri, he flinches.]

I think... I think I'm gonna go back to Manhattan. Not forever. Just until we move forward again. This mission... It's not what it started out as. It's so much bigger than... [his tongue catches on the words he's about to say] ...than some dream I once had.

[♫ this beggar's heart- amy bishop]

A few years ago, I would've left it alone, felt like I'd lost something because I'd been chasing ghosts all this time, but I... can't let this one go. But it can't be my whole life, anymore. I look around and I see everything this whole clusterfuck has done to everyone and it kills me. And sometimes I think it honestly will, now that it can. [He holds up his hand, displaying his ring finger.] Isabella's right. I'm not one of you. And I owe him so much more than what I've given him, while I'm off trying to fix things that I can't fix. And I'm honestly sorry I can't.