The Mortal Instruments

Arch · Apr 13, 2016

"I don't see a reason why you're wasting time on that." His voice was raised just enough so that Masque could still hear if he chose to listen in. "He'll continue to butcher others for his so called art sooner or later. Even if he changes his way nothing will excuse his actions. Not even if you choose to forgive him." Given Morrigan's current lack of anger towards Masque, Ash was clearly able to see what was going on. With that in mind he knew he had to remind her what the other warlock was. Nothing more than a serial killer. But this was not what he wished to discuss. There were far more important matters at hand that needed to be cleared up and Morrigan was one of three he had any faith in.

"I'm glad to see that you're acclimating well despite..." He turned his head to the bloodbath that lay at the entrance of the safe house. "Hm." He folded his arms, mulling over how he would relay everything he had to say to Morrigan. All of which, of course, were far too sensitive to be heard by unworthy ears. Not trusting Masque to not eavesdrop, Ash retrieved a small satchel from his coat and reached inside to withdraw a small vial containing a dark gray powder. He began to drop the dust around the two in a circle just a few feet in width and the moment the circle was closed, emptying the vial, the powder began to glow red as if comprised of millions of burning embers.

"I never gave this one a name. I suppose one could call it a privacy spell but that hardly has a good ring to the ears. We have a few minutes until this burns out to speak freely without worry of peering eyes or listening ears." Ash eyed the ring of dust-embers around them. "I wanted to tell you this during our first...tryst but it was hardly the time for such a tale. Before we travel, I want you to know everything. All of it. So I'll start from the beginning."

The one who had called him out leaped at Rhett, vaulting over the table that separated the two which gave him just enough time to draw the hatchet Ash had lent him. "Back down and I promise I won't knock you out in front of your posse." The werewolf lunged at him without so much as a response. Rhett knelt down and ducked just under the first swipe of the silver blade, catching the werewolf and using the man's momentum against him by throwing him backwards over Rhett's shoulder. The wolf landed on the bar behind him and rolled off, shattered glass and spilled alcohol tumbling to the floor. During the werewolf's attempt to raise himself to his feet Rhett smashed the handle of the hatchet into the back of his head, knocking him out cold. "Warned you."

Looking over at how the others were doing, he could see Brianne subduing one wolf, Creed pulling off a second from attacking her before sending it crashing into another before being attacked by the fourth. Being too far from Creed to reach him in time, Rhett launched his weapon towards the wolf, striking the one making a move to kill Creed in the shoulder with the silver-edged hatchet. Even before the blade made its mark Rhett could hear the snarl of a changed werewolf behind him.

Rhett avoided the changed wolf as it jumped at him and landed on the bar table before leaping at him a second time. In one swift motion Rhett grabbed the neck of the werewolf and slammed the large wolf into the ground. The wolf changed back into human form and snarled up at Rhett. "Struggle and I'll snap your neck." Rhett growled with uncharacteristic anger. Fighting another werewolf always did this. It wasn't something he was proud of.

Aelin · Apr 13, 2016

Felicia inclined her head towards Athelrick as he spoke. At least he was trying to be sensible and go for the no violence approach too, ready to talk something out. That was a good sign so far. However that didn't last long when a certain high and mighty Shadow Hunter decided to open his big mouth.

"Ignorant? I don't think so sweetie. Do you really think it is the smartest idea to challenge or even insult the alpha of New York in front of her entire pack? You are lucky I don't look for blood, you may have lost your life there for that comment." Felicia replied carelessly. He then went on about how it was her fault they were all damned because she took up residence for a couple hours. Even if something happened it would be her head on the stake, not everyone alive's, and she was not going to die too easily. "Trust me, this is not the tipping point. I don't know what is going on with you and your little puppet master but my doing is far from the biggest concern. If that was all The Inquisitor would return, try to take my head and it would all be over and done with. Though you are acting like it is far more. What is going on then? Why are you so convinced for blaming all your problems on me. Did the big scary shadow hunter get in a fight with someone?" Felicia said making a pouty face.

Of course Clarity had to show up to add to the situation. This only would prove to make things more interesting. Whether that was a good or bad thing had yet to be seen. At least she calmed Alarick down slightly and on top of that forced him to at least talk things through. "I don't know, would a lovely couple end with one killing the other in the end? If that is the case then we would make a lovely couple indeed." Felicia responded in a sarcastic tone before following Clarity inside.

The words the Inquisitor spoke sounded sweet, inviting. A way to rid herself of her sins. She would be able to walk free again and protect those she cared about.... But if she did this then there would be no one left that she cared about. She would have turned her back on them and they would be serving punishment while she would be walking free, free but alone.

"N-no.... No I won't join you." Roxanne stated, still not looking at anyone. "I won't turn on the people I care about. You can't make me." She told Corvo as she moaned and curled up the best she could. It was so hard to keep her mind calm right now and it was driving her insane. "I won't betray them. I won't do anything to hurt them. I am not a complete failure. I won't fail them too! He won't win." Roxanne had begun yelling at the voices in her mind instead of facing what was in front of her. She couldn't face it and it only made the voices worse, giving them attention to torment her. She trembled on the table just wishing and waiting for silence. That was all she wanted, a little silence to calm her nerves. However the likelihood of that happening was slim.

al215 · Apr 14, 2016

Corvo sighed and shook his head. She was being irrational.
"You're not turning on them. You're helping me save their lives. Right now, I am the one thing standing between them and the Clave. With your help, we can bring them back in line and deal with things peacefully." He explained in his most reasonable voice. He still had one element of power over her, and he supposed that he needed to use it. If she wasn't going to listen to this, considering her earlier display, then she wasn't going to listen to anything else. "If you want your phone back, agree to help me. Otherwise, I will take it and I will use it. You can scream all you want, but you will never get it back." He had to prepare himself for the possibility that she didn't listen to him. He wasn't left with an awful lot of choices. He couldn't leave her in the Seelie Queen's hands and he couldn't let her go free. Distasteful as it was, there was only one option.
"You're going to leave me in a very awkward position at this rate Roxanne. I want everything to turn out as best as possible. Everyone will be alright, especially if you're there to help. No, only if you're there to help. They won't listen to me. They'll just attack like a pack of cornered rats. And they'll doom themselves. You see Roxanne, if they kill me, hurt me, or attack me then their fates are sealed. There will be no choice but to bring the full might of the Clave down on them." Corvo continued. "Redeem yourself. Save your friends. Get your phone back. This is the path that I offer to you. All others are dark. There is no future any other way." He had made up his mind. He looked at the Seelie Queen and back at Roxanne. He reached his hand into his coat where the Contender was holstered. Her final choice was coming.

Vladek515 · Apr 14, 2016

"Well you know what they say, Alarick, ignorance is bliss. The less I know and have to deal with you the better it is. For both of us." Aethelrick said. "And I may have forgot to mention I already have a perfectly signed death warrant before this all even started." Felicia made a threat. "Unwise there wolfie and honestly, I got enough bullets in this magazine to put a good chunk, if not all of your pack out of commision, so please think before making threats." Sure she had helped him and Clarity out on the Cyrus issue however that didn't mean that when push came to shove he wouldn't side with his own blood.

The Shadowhunter laughed at Clarity's remark. "No worries, Clarity, I understand I myself would have been in a strict relation with my bed if I hadn't been stuck with this cold ***** known as fridge, at first it was alright between us, but now I dunno, I should probably look into that when I got some time." Aethelrick joked, then Clarity went in and took over the wheel, telling Alarick to chill and saying she didn't want to be sniped by the Inquisitor. He chuckled about that as he knew the Inquisitor would probably too busy trying to get him than anything else.

Aethel just followed, smiling like an idiot at Clarity's little act as Felicia clearly was annoyed with Alarick, sure his reaction seemed to be a bit intense and there may be more to it, but not his place for that. He couldn't exactly picture Alarick and Felicia as a couple, but then again he wasn't that great with picturing such things anyways as long as they were happy he didn't exactly feel the need to be able to see it. He didn't follow Clarity all the way though, starting to snoop around the Institute on his own seeing if he could find Cyrus' room, which, if he had followed Clarity's acrobatics earlier correctly, would be located upstairs.

Magick · Apr 14, 2016

Clarity ignored any and all banter behind her, beginning to grow irritated with the mortals she led into the Institute. Did they not understand exactly what had happened? Glancing back, she caught sight of Alarick's stoic face. Well...one person knew, at least. She brooded as she led them into a medical room, sitting on a bed, and crossing her arms across her very sore chest.

As she waited for the others to settle, she pulled out her phone and texted Brianne.

At the Institute with Alarick. Come when able. Still bring backup.

There was no telling how much longer she could keep this situation stable, and in her condition she would not be able to stop a fight from breaking out, which it looked like it could any moment.

Alarick waited until they were inside the Institute's familiar walls before he rounded on Felicia. "When you find the Alpha, you let him know I'm here. Because what's standing in front of me isn't anything close." He gritted his teeth, frustrated and angry and more then willing to break the Accords if only to put the werewolf in her place. But he couldn't do that. He couldn't put Clarity in danger, and he needed this woman to help protect Brianne from the Inquisitor while he was gone.

"Clarity says you're staying, and I suppose you're not intelligent enough to understand you would be safer on the far side of the country. Fine. But understand that Brianne is the authority here, and you will be under her command as long as you stay. This is her home, not yours. You are a guest, albeit temporarily. There will be others staying here, our allies. You will not bother them." He frowned. "The only reason I'm giving you this chance is because Clarity trusts you to that extent. Make no mistake on that."

Brianne grinned as Creed and Rhett worked together in tandem; they made a surprisingly good team. Her distraction cost her as the last werewolf leaped towards her, Changing in midair. She landed on her back, wolf's paws on her chest as its hot breath steamed her face. She pressed her arm against its throat, trying to keep the snapping jaws away from her. Her hands were slippery with sweat as she scrabbled for her seraphim blade, knocked from her grasp by the force of her fall.

First cardinal rule, never drop your weapon. Alarick would murder her if he had seen that. She gave up on trying to reach her weapon and punched the wolf in the ribs. "Get OFF!" She yelled, kneeing it in the stomach. That only served to push the jaws dangerously close to her face, stopping her heart for a moment.

All it would take was one bite.

Arch · Apr 14, 2016

And then Alarick became totally fabulous. #TeamSausage

The werewolf Rhett kept pinned on the ground continued to struggle despite his warning. With a frustrated sigh, he drew his fist back and slammed it into the man's face and yet his hands continued to claw at Rhett's arm in an attempt to break free. "Get unconscious, you damn idiot." He growled, lifting the werewolf's head by his throat and crashing him back down against the hard floor. Though the thought crossed his mind to kill him, the last thing Rhett wanted to do was to become another Keller. The world had enough killers. He took the silver knife from the werewolf's side, glad the man had not made the reach for it, and looked around to watch how the others were doing.

Despite the adrenaline running through his system pain from the old wounds sustained in his last battle flared up. His own blood stained his shirt when one of the larger gashes reopened during the brawl. "Oh come on. Useless body." Rhett clutched his side in order to slow the bleeding. "Great. Isn't this magical?" Looking from Creed, who seemed to be handling himself, to Brianne, who was in a spot of trouble with trying to not get her face eaten by a changed wolf, Rhett eyed the knife in his hand. If it worked once...

With a twirl and a flick, the silver dagger flew threw the air and into the back of the wolf trying to munch down on Brianne.

Magick · Apr 14, 2016

Brianne saw what Rhett meant to do and moved her hand, gritting her teeth as her fingers stung. Yanking the blade out by the handle from the wolf's fur, she stabbed it again, twisting to drive the small weapon towards the creature's heart. Suddenly, the fight left, and the wolf shifted, collapsing on top of her. She wiggled out from under it, her heart racing as she slowly got to her feet, looking down at the weapon in her hand.

The blood on her palm was mostly her own, stemming from the gashes created on her middle and ring finger when the blade had sank between them. She looked from the stained knife, slowly up to Rhett, her eyes widening as she leaned against the wall to support herself, her legs suddenly weak. Which hand did you use to throw the knife, Rhett? She wanted to ask so badly, her lip trembling as her hand began to burn. His dominant hand was covered in blood, most of which seemed to stem from an open wound on his chest. The other was clean. She dropped the knife to the floor, tearing off a part of the unconscious man's shirt and using it for a bandage, her hands trembling.

She didn't need to ask, because she knew. Her phone blipped, and she pulled it out, forcing her hand to steady as she quickly read the message from Clarity before typing a reply, and shoving the now bloodstained phone back into her pocket. "Alarick needs us." There was a hint of a shake in her voice, and she cleared her throat. "Let's get this over with,"

Aelin · Apr 14, 2016

Corvo's voice barely made it through the voices that tormented her own mind, but it was enough to get to her. If she didn't help they would die. She could only protect her friends by helping him. She had no choice of staying out of this like she would have liked to. At this point it wasn't really a question anymore. On top of that she would have her phone back, everything that kept her calm and tied her to her fiance.
"Fine...." She said though her voice was shaky and didn't sound as willing. It sounded more like a forced choice, but she didn't have a choice in the matter when it came down to it. She was not fighting for her freedom, she was fighting so her friends might live. And if they were captured, even alive she didn't much care for her freedom. But it was better for them to live in captivity than die a horrible death delivered by the Clave and his puppet.
"I will help you. I will save their lives. I won't lose them too. I can't lose anyone else." She agreed. Though this still left Slavko free to run around, but perhaps someone else would eventually be able to deal with that before he caused too much more issues.
"Please can I just have my phone back. Please. I just.... I just need to listen to an old message. Please." She begged Corvo. She had saved a message on her phone for nearly two years. It was a message her fiance left her once when she was upset and wouldn't answer her phone. His voice and soft words always helped sooth her, no matter how depressing it was to listen to. It calmed the voices in her mind just slightly and that is what she needed more than ever right now. It might just give her the strength to stand next to this man, though he had pretty much kidnapped her and tortured her. She had to stand beside him. It was for the sake of Hendrick, who was so kind to her. For Nick, though young and naive, always had a way of lightening her day with his quirky attitude. And it was for Brainne. Despite their falling outs, when she spared with Brianne or when Brianne gave her orders, it made her feel not so different from everyone else. They were the reason she was going to do this, she just needed a little boost of strength to get her started.

"My dear boy, you have been to angry and intent on throwing insults to bother listening to anything I have to say. If you would listen you would know that I have no plans on staying long, and I would leave now, with my entire pack in tow, if you would sit down and help come to an agreement. But you haven't listened thus far so why would I try now. Now that you have offered I suppose I will remain here as a guest for a little while. I never did plan on settling anyways. Don't worry I won't be too in the way. I will even send out part of my pack to scout and keep watch, make sure everything is safe. Help clear some space." Felicia spoke her voice not really irritated but disinterested. She lounged in a seat. There was no way she would seem threatened by this shadow hunter even though she knew she was walking on thin ice. She already had one very powerful shadow hunter out for her head. She really didn't need more. What she did need however was safety from the first till she could settle her pack. Things were still too up in the air right now with all of it to be confident.

Resting her eyes on Clarity Felicia then spoke up again. "I suppose I owe you some gratitude for this, though only a little. Also I am impressed with how you put up with these two. All the threats and brash anger. Perhaps it is just names beginning with A that do that? Huh. Who knows." Felicia spoke to the other woman.

Arch · Apr 14, 2016

Once more, Rhett clutched his wound until the bleeding stopped, his eyes wide with shock as he saw how close he had came to missing his mark and hitting Brianne. His unsteady hand, a side effect of his blood loss, had caused him to make a poor throw. He rushed over towards Brianne's side, his eyes now fixed on the cuts left on her fingers from the knife he had thrown in her direction. "I'm so sorry, angel. It was a stupid move." His eyes fell to the knife in her hand. He could smell his own blood on the blade. His sight flicked between Brianne and the blade several times.

Rhett said nothing. Maybe it was all just nothing. He had to hope so. Brianne's voice redirected his attention towards the larger matters at hand. Rhett ripped Ash's hatchet out of the shoulder of the werewolf he had thrown it at, finding that the wolf was still alive as the man yelled in agony as he did so. "Next time play nice." The music was still blaring in his ears and was beginning to give him a headache. Once more Rhett looked Brianne in the eye, concern clearly struck across his face but she was right. They had no time to wait around.

He made his way towards the DJ, the waves coming from the speakers making him feel as if his entire body was going to vibrate until it exploded, and went up beside the strangely-dressed werewolf. Despite the DJ's protests, Rhett threw the wolf overboard off the raised area where his equipment sat and, with the click of a button, shut off the music. Finally. Peace and quiet. Well, it would have been if not for the quickly angering werewolves casting hateful glares his way. Rhett took up the DJ's microphone and tapped it to make sure it was on. It was. "Are you all done having fun watching your brothers and sisters die?" He spoke over growing boo's and curses thrown his way. "No? Seriously?"

"Keller's gonna rip your throat out when he comes back!" One particularly angry werewolf shouted.

"And how many of our kind is he going to kill if he shows up? Alphas like him give our kind a bad name. How many of your friends will die when he decides to subjugate a new pack? Hell, he's not even the biggest fish around town. Things are about to get a whole lot messier." Once more, the crowd was riled up and only grew angrier as he spoke. "My friends and I are here to fix things. Right now some bad shit is going on at the Institute and the nephilim need our help." The jeers only worsened. "We need to help them. If we don't, we'll be standing in the middle of a bloodbath between the Clave and the Seelie Court with no one else to turn to. All of this fucking political garbage has to stop. Your damn packs don't mean a thing if we're all dead tomorrow. War is coming and we need to be standing together instead of bickering with each other over which alpha has the biggest dick. Once it's all over, then we can settle our differences once we make it out of this alive. I fought Keller. I nearly killed the damn bastard and he nearly killed me too but I can tell all of you that he is nothing compared to what's to come. So join us and help me make things better for our kind. Don't let hate drag us further into the gutters."

The werewolves shifted uncomfortably with the weight of his words. Rhett said them with total confidence in his voice but even with the gravity of it all, he was still unsure of how it would sit with them. He hoped they would listen to reason...or the need for self-preservation.

CrownMoksha · Apr 15, 2016

Right as Creed had managed to grab his weapon, Rhett had assisted him with the werewolf by throwing a silver hatchet into his shoulder. This cause the beast to cry out in pain, which granted Creed the perfect chance to strike the beast with his sheated weapon. Creed made sure to hit it hard enough that the werewolf would be knocked out. Downside with his plan was the the unconscious body fell right on top of Creed, providing him with a different issue. Welp, that sucked.

By the time Creed had managed to get the werewolf off of him, a lot had happened. Another were wolf had pounced onto Brianne, Rhett had thrown yet another weapon at the beast, which Brianne proceeded to use to finish it. And now Rhett was trying to convince all of the other werewolves to stand together as oppose to fight one another. Creed didn't know whether or not that would work given what had just happened, but you never know. Getting back onto his feet, he turned to Brianne and said. "Lead the way."

al215 · Apr 16, 2016

"Thank you Roxanne. We're going to stop them from making a mistake and acting against the Clave, before it's too late to save them." He smiled and took one of her hands, placing her precious phone into it. He then set about erasing the Rune of Binding from her body. "By all means. We are a team now, and hopefully with your help we'll be able to convince the other Nephilim to stand down." He put his Stele away and straightened his coat. He did not however, give Roxanne her knife back quite yet. He needed to be sure that she wasn't just saying that. If there was trouble, he'd hand it back in a heartbeat. Right now though, the Inquisitor knew he was on icy ground. None quite so icy as where he was standing at the moment, in the lair of the Seelie Queen. Now that Roxanne had decided to co-operate with him, he couldn't let her keep the Shadow Hunter. He evaluated his chances of getting out of here alive. If it came to a breakout, there was a fringe possibility that he could run for it and blast his way through Seelie Knights until he reached the exit. Assuming of course, that it wasn't closed which was possible. He could kill her, but it would be a near impossible feat considering he didn't have any iron on him. He reminded himself to get ahold of some. He was going to need some new equipment, and a glamour if he were to walk around unnoticed by humans when he was fully equipped.
"When you're ready Roxanne, we shall make our exit." He spoke. He looked to the Seelie Queen. "Thank you for your help. Rest assured, the Lightwoods will remain unharmed from this point onwards. Now I should be able to reach out to them without them immediately trying to kill me." As soon as I get ahold of them, your plans are over Titania. They'll know you're coming, as do I.

Magick · Apr 16, 2016

Titania's lips curved in the barest of smiles. "Leaving? Oh, I don't think so." Without any discernible movement on her part, five Seelie Knights stepped forward, circling around Corvo and Roxanne. "I was promised something in return for my help. And now you think to deny me?" She tutted, stepping towards Corvo and brushing a fingernail down his cheek. "That is unwise, Inquisitor. I thought you to be a more intelligent individual then that. You're lucky I'm used to being disappointed in that regard."

She stepped back, the smile disappearing in the flickering of an eye. "No, I expect to be repaid for my help, and unfortunately for you, I learned a thousand years ago to stop taking...how do you say? Rain checks." Something flickered in the back of her mind, and she stilled, before whirling around, walking quickly to her bowl. The plants began to move around her in agitation as she waved her hand over the water, creating ripples on the still surface. Her eyes glowed an ethereal green as she stared into the depths. It's not possible...

Clarity glanced at Felicia, raising her eyebrows. "They don't yell at me because of my impressive breasts, of course." She heard Alarick choking, and let the barest of smiles cross her face for a moment. At least that would distract him from his anger. "And because I don't stroll into their homes and insult them. I usually knock first." She lay on the bed, turning her face to the ceiling. "You'd best get your... pack, under control, Felicia. We've got a couple or friends coming, and they're bringing some....rivals. Wouldn't want you to get blood all over those clothes of yours." Clarity had no intention of getting in the middle of a pack fight, but neither did she deliberate on putting her entire faith in one side.

Felicia had plans and ambitions. Ash wanted Rhett to have plans and ambitions. Both would involve bloodshed. Somehow, the ifrit was determined to make sure the majority of the people she cared about survived the next ten minutes. Somehow.

Brianne smiled thinly at Creed, her uninjured hand unconsciously clasping the wrist of her injured one while she listened to Rhett. He didn't act like an Alpha, but he sure could pull out the commanding voice when he needed. She watched the other werewolves, wondering how well it would work. For her sake, for Rhett's, for Clarity and all the others she needed to protect, she hoped it would help them. If they decided to turn on her, Rhett and Creed, she wasn't sure they would make it out.

She flexed her injured hand, her breath hitching as the injury twinged. Her heart hadn't stopped pounding since the battle, and the tempo felt like it increased. Despite that, she remained where she was, feigning calm and patience as she watched Rhett's words work on the wolves around them.

"Come on," She whispered to Creed, heading for the door. "He'll follow us with the wolves." She pulled out her cracked phone, sending a quick message to Clarity.

Be there in a bit.

She hesitated, then sent another one, her hand shaking before she turned her phone off and stowed it back in her pocket.

Need to talk to you and Alarick. Alone.

Arch · Apr 16, 2016

Rhett stepped down from his elevated position. A dozen or so of the wolves were totally oblivious to his speech due to their intoxication or the fact that they were too high to know what was going on. Still, despite everything, perhaps it was his own conviction that changed their minds and made them follow after him. He could almost smell the agression in the air from some of the wolves who he knew would wish to use Rhett as a stepping stone to jump-start their own career into being the alpha of this "pack". Rhett was certain the wolves would separate as soon as their job was done however. His words might have convinced them for now but for how long would they put themselves in harm's way for words alone?

For now, he could only hope they would trust the nephilim long enough to keep from anyone dying. Through the crowd, Rhett spotted Brianne. He smiled. Trust was something that was always in too short a supply. He led the group of werewolves forward, glancing over his shoulder to see how many were following. While it wasn't the entire club, which consisted of at least over sixty wolves, the majority did follow him. And Rhett followed Brianne, all the way to the Institute, bringing a whole lot of backup. Well over thirty, he guessed. Strangely, Rhett felt saddened by the thought that the quasi-pack following his lead would dissolve as quickly as it gathered, even with the threats facing their kind he had spoke so strongly about.

Relatively Sane · Apr 16, 2016

Masque followed Morrigan, his gaze wary of the other warlock. As the man spoke, Masque narrowed his eyes at him and hissed "I don't want forgiveness" he muttered. Clearly the man was only interested in Morrigan, and she would probably want to talk to him. Masque slowly shuffled away. But when the man created a barrier around them it was a step too far. Something in Masque snapped. He bared his teeth and hissed loudly as he approached the barrier menacingly "Is that what you think of me?! HUH?! I'm just some animal to be cast aside?! I'm not privy to your super secret stupid plans?! I'm fucking tired of being treated like this!" Masque yelled "I'M A PERSON! Not a "thing", not a "that", I'm fucked up in the head, I know it! I'm a horrible person, but I'M A PERSON!" Masque suddenly realised what he was doing, he was making a scene. He was drawing too much attention to himself. What was he doing? He was doing it all wrong again. But he was too stubborn to stop now.

After ensuring that Paragon's agency had the demon secured, Nick began to make his way back to the safehouse. However, one of Paragon's men told him that Alarick had gone back to the institute, so he changed his course. He drove back home first and changed clothes, Alarick would probably be suspicious if he showed up in date clothes. He returned to his normal outfit, shirt and waistcoat, and once again exited. As an afterthought, he asked the neighbour to feed the cat while he was gone, he had no idea how long he'd be Somalia. He eventually, after heading back into the apartment and making sure all the lights were off and all the doors were locked, got back to the institute.
"Sorry I'm late, I had to sort out feeding arrangements for the cat. I'm ready to head off no-" Suddenly, as Nick took a proper look around he noticed the lobby was filled with wolves "...Oh... Hello. Sorry I was expecting someone more... humanlike. Does anyone want a cup of tea? I don't think we have enough cups for all of you"

"Mister Slavko, I'll be honest with you, I don't care if what happens to you is hellish torture or a walk in the park for you, I'm just here to get a job done. And we're certainly not going to let you die here" Doctor Bishop told the man "And don't even bother trying to escape, this is a very secure facility. Mister Keller could tell you that. I just want to know some things while you're here: What is your mission? To clarify: what did your Demonic Master tell you to do?"

CrownMoksha · Apr 16, 2016

Creed nodded as he followed behind Brianne. Shortly afterwards they were joined by Rhett and a whole lot of werewolves. Like he didn't doubt Brianne when she said that he'd follow behind them with wolves, but he certainly wasn't expecting this many wolves to show up. During the walk back to the institute Creed had caught up to Brianne and started walking alongside her. "You okay?" Before they had left and Rhett brought the wolf army with him, he'd noticed that her hand was shaking. This brought some concern for Creed about her well being.

Aelin · Apr 16, 2016

Roxanne felt slightly calmer as soon as her phone was placed in her hand. When the binding rune was removed from her skin, she brought the phone up so she could look at it, besides that, there was very little other movement on her part. She should get up, stretch out her stiff limbs, but all she could do was unlock her phone and stare at the picture of her fiance that served as her background. Everything around her faded at that moment as she looked at his face and thought about him. Whatever was happening around her was bad, she could tell that much. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the Seelie Knights closing in around them and heard the Queen talking, but even if she did pay attention Roxanne didn't know much of what was going on anyways.

Her mind was almost in autopilot as Roxanne started to call her voicemail. "You have no unheard messages, and one saved message. To hear saved message press *beep beep* First unheard message." Roxanne's voicemail spoke to her on speaker as she followed the instructions. Suddenly a soft male voice started play though the speakers on Roxanne's phone. "Hey Roxi. I know it has been a hard day today. I wish I could be there for you, but I will be waiting for you when you get home okay?Just take it easy and know I still love you, no matter what happens I love you and always will. Never forget. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for. You will make it to the end of the day, and when you do I will be waiting at the door with chocolate and a big hug for you. I love you and can't wait until you get home. Stay strong Roxi *click*" "To erase this message press seven to save it press ni-*beep*" By this point tears streamed down Roxanne's face as she gripped her phone tight. The message brought sorrow, but it was a sorrow she had learned to handle and live with. In the meantime it helped quiet the demons in her mind.

Feeling slightly better Roxanne sat up on the table, her red, teary eyes scanning everything around her. She didn't understand the situation, but she didn't think she wanted to. What she did understand was that whatever was going on was not going to be pleasant. Roxanne kept very still as she watched and waited. On her own strength she knew that she couldn't manage to get out of the situation, not after everything that had happened. Even with the runes gone, her legs still felt slightly shaky and part of her wasn't confident that she could keep her balance upon first standing. It was better not to do anything that seemed to be a threat. She had no way of protecting herself at this current time so perhaps it was best not to fight it. In her mind that seemed like the best way to live through this.

Oh how Felicia wanted to say something about the fact that Clarity was the first to walk in to their home and how she just followed, but Felicia didn't bother, not when there was another issue at hand. They were bringing in another alpha and his pack. While Felicia had no right to argue and knew that there was some sort of matter of safety at hand, though she didn't fully understand it. It was a safe assumption to assume this had to do with whatever bigger problem was going on. "I will warn my pack, but if the other pack picks a fight, then I am not going to hold back mine. We cannot show sign of weakness. I cannot show sign of weakness, no matter what. We will play nice but only if they do." Felicia told Clarity before she strolled out of the room to start talking to her pack. It was hard enough as it was to get respect being a female trying to be alpha. Most females were not alpha and never would be, most wouldn't try. However that was the difference between her and most. She was stronger than most and would do what it took. There was no way she would bow to another.

Prowling through the institute Felicia let each member of her now larger pack know individually what was going on and her thoughts on the matter. When that was done, Felicia took her place near the entrance in her wolf form. If anyone was going to cause problems it would hopefully be with her at the beginning when she could sort things out and she wouldn't have to run and break up something between one of her pack members and the other persons. She would rather have it sorted quick and easily, ahead of time.

As she sat and waited for the people that were said to come, another person wandered in on his own. This one was not a threat it seemed, thank goodness. At the comment of expecting something more human like, Felicia shifted for the moment so she could face Nick in her human form. "None of us need tea thank you, but I would suggest you get inside and find your friends. None of my wolves will hurt you. However one of your friends is said to be showing up with another pack and depending how they react things may not be pleasant. I don't think you want to stick around for that." Felicia advised Nick. Hopefully he would take her advice then she would shift back. It was almost better to face other werewolves in her wolf form, so that is what she planned to do when it came time, but while dealing with Shadow Hunters, that was not as much of an option.

Slavko sat against the back wall with his hands clasped behind his head. He stared at the doctor as he spoke wondering if it was possible to posses his body. Chances were it wouldn't be, but he would love to try. If he did, leaving would be a walk in the park for him. However now was not the time to try, instead just to see what he got himself into. "I didn't expect you to be stupid enough to let me die, but can you help it?" Slavko asked with a wry smile. "As for your question. What my demonic master, as you put it, comands me to do is irrelevant. I am not much for following specific rules. I don't much care for them I just would rather do what I want. His agenda is second to mine." Slavko replied, which was mostly true, but his master did approve of him tearing apart the shadow hunters from the inside, causing discord among them and making them unfit to rule. Destroying any sense of authority they had. Though what he was not happy about was how long it was taking Slavko to do this since he messed around pointlessly half the time.

al215 · Apr 16, 2016

Corvo stopped and reached for his Contender as soon as the Knight came in. A quick appraisal told him everything. Five Seelie Knights and the Queen herself versus two Shadow Hunters, one tired, tortured and unarmed. Their odds weren't great. He knew what he was getting into before this, but before this the situation was different. He made a mental note for himself in the future - Don't mess with the Fae or the Seelie Queen. Not until he was ready to depose her. Part of him wanted her dead. He placed himself protectively in front of Roxanne, knowing that she was wounded and far, far beyond helping at the moment.
"I see. Well, I have no choice but to accept your grace." His tone of voice would make his exact opinions on the present situation obvious. "Sadly, I haven't the immortality required to learn not to deal with your kind. It seems that my job has denied me a little practical experience. No matter, this will be a valuable learning opportunity. So, what do you have in mind, o' Seelie Queen?" He released his grip on his pistol, as it was clear that he wasn't going to be able to get out of this alive if he tried anything. They had no choice but to go along with things. At least for now. Once he was out of her clutches, he could deal with the situation. He had to make sure that Roxanne came with him. She was now a piece on his side of the board - A rare luxury at the moment.
"Something wrong Titania?" He said casually, with his arms folded across his chest as he leaned against a table. "Your plants seem angry. Maybe you should give them some sunlight or water?" She was going to realise that though she had outmanoeuvred him this time, she certainly had not tamed Corvo Eismauer.

Vladek515 · Apr 16, 2016

Aethelrick soon found the broken down doors of his parabatai's room. It was a garden, well then Cyrus getting busy here, not that different from the past, Cyrus was always busy. There were obvious signs of a fight here, with the blood on the floor, spent shell casings laying there as well it was a mess. His stomach growled, getting all his plan in motion must have made him more hungry than he expected oh well. He loved it when a plan came together. Seeing he hadn't poked around any of Cyrus' belongings only made a quick stroll through the garden, that the Nephilim appeared to have claimed. He hadn't known Cyrus to be particularly into plants and 'erbs Look at it and despair, Relatively Sane but since he had gotten here, he started to doubt how well he actually knew Cyrus, did he take up an entirely different identity with that new name? He wondered as he walked down the stairs headed for the kitchen to raid the fridge.

Magick · Apr 16, 2016

Titania stared into the bowl, her hands clenching the side as the movement of the plants became more erratic, more violent. She waved her hand, watching the scene over to completion. Then again. And again. When Corvo spoke, it was the end of the line. She slammed her hands down on the table, the wood disintegrating and running in small, sand-like particles down the sides of the stone.

Whirling, she moved faster then the human eye could follow, standing front of Corvo with eyes that leaked green light. Vines shot from the wall, the wooden beams creaking underneath the weight as they wrapped around the Inquisitor, pinning his arms to his side and lifting him off the ground. Roxanne was put in the same predicament, thorns pressing against their clothes and neck. The Seelie Queen hissed, her hands clenched at her sides as more and more plants filled the room, leaving barely enough space to breathe.

One Seelie Knight wasn't so lucky, his scream echoing off the walls as the plants shot up through his feet, both rooting him to the spot and threading their way through his body.

His comrades tried to hack him free, but to no avail as the roots shot out spines. Titania glanced at him, barely giving him a second of her time before she turned back to Corvo. The Seelie Knight screamed one last time before exploding, little chunks of fey landing everywhere. The vines, glistening with blood and organs, continued to work their way upward, becoming a pillar of death.

She turned to Corvo, her gaze sliding up to his face as she examined the now captive Shadowhunters."She," her gaze turned to Roxanne, and she smiled now, an angry, deadly smile, "is next. And I'll be slower. Much slower." Grabbing Corvo's chin with her hands, she brought her face very close to his. "Hear me now, Shadowhunter, and hear me well. I was ready for you to be a disappointment and a disgrace, but I was not ready for the stupidity of your associates, or the Downworlders. Believe me, they will pay."

Her grip tightened to the point of drawing blood, her eyes never once leaving his face. "You will kill Brianne Lightwood. As long as it's painful, I don't care how. I don't care where. But best believe me when I say if it's not done soon, well..." she smiled sweetly, kissing Corvo's cheek before letting go, stepping back. "It would be interesting to see what would happen if the girl ran out of time, wouldn't it? Oh, and if you don't do it..." She paused. "I've got quite a bit of curiosity, concerning the Nephilim physique. From what I've heard, she's quite the speciman. I was far more excited to have you, dear." She addressed Roxanne. "But it seems even a Queen can't get everything she wants."

The vines slowly withdrew, depositing the two Shadowhunters on their feet. "Three days, Corvo. I look forward to you disappointing me this time."

Clarity stayed behind, raising her eyebrows at Felicia's back before turning to Alarick just as her phone buzzed. "Something's up." she told him, frowning. "Brianne wants to meet alone before you go." She sensed an immediate rise in tension from the Shadowhunter, and sighed. If Brianne was telling her too, it was most likely not good. Had she gotten pregnant? Poisoned? Clarity could feel a headache coming on. Only she and Brianne had been capable of calming Alarick when his rages came around, and she shuddered to think what would happen if he went to Somalia and things went south.

But she knew that Alarick wanted her to stay with Brianne, and she wanted to stay with Brianne. Alarick was far more capable of protecting himself and those around him. She opened her mouth to try to reassure Alarick, when a strange voice echoed from the front hall.

Alarick strode out into the hall, Clarity in tow. He recognized the voice immediately, and gritted his teeth. "Good to see you've still got your humor." he said gratingly, folding his arms across his chest. "Where were you? And why have you changed?" His eyes narrowed suspiciously. He could feel Clarity's eyes on his back, but ignored her. This was none of her business. This was between him and Nick.

Perhaps the Shadowhunter had changed his mind about going to Somalia. If that were the case, he was going to have to recruit Clarity, something that set his teeth on edge.

"Alarick, you're being rude. And I'm the one saying it." Clarity stepped forward. "Ifrit. Friend. I like to drink. And Alarick is upset, so please forgive him." He wanted to smack her. Very badly. But that would not end well for either one of them, especially in a room full of werewolves. He turned, seeing Felicia in wolf form, opened his mouth to ask, and then closed it. Clarity's smile flickered over her face before she turned back to Nick. "If you need a teacup, I've got....fifteen." She pulled a knife out of her boot and offered it to Nick. "Clarity. My name."

Morrigan listened to Ash's tale with a growing horror, though she kept it hidden behind a smooth and emotionless face. It was only at the end, her eyes lifted to his and she stilled, feeling her face pale. She might have fainted, or at the very least collapsed under the weight of those few words, but luckily for the fey, the warlock behind her gave her something to grab onto. Literally. She whirled around, wrapping her arms around Masque and pressing her hand to the back of his head.

"You're not a thing. You're not a that. You're a person. And I see you." She whispered, tears spilling down her cheeks, tears she wouldn't let Ash see. She wiped them away quickly before pulling away from Masque. As much as she wanted to cave in on herself, as much as she wanted to replay what had been said over and over in her mind, analyzing and trying to understand why he had said...but she couldn't. Instead, she turned to Ash, the color still gone from her face but her eyes full of indescribable emotion that only lasted for a few seconds. Such strong feelings were weakness, and she couldn't afford to reveal that particular weakness for long. Not when it meant so much.

"I think the one called Brianne left with Rhett and another to get help and then go on to the Institute. Should we go make sure they're alright?" She asked quietly, wrapping her arms around herself. She needed the support, at the moment.

Brianne glanced over at Creed, both surprised and grateful for his concern. "Thank you. I'm...." What was she? She wasn't okay, she wasn't even close to okay. But he couldn't know. No one could know. But they would soon enough. She didn't know what to do, she hadn't been trained for this, she hadn't even imagined this...."I'm alive. That's enough, right?" She replied quietly, reaching out her uninjured hand and squeezing Creed's. The Institute was just up ahead, and she withdrew the gesture of affection as quickly as it had come.

Stepping inside, she noticed the wolf; familiar in its markings. "There's no need for that, unless you're here to tear my throat out." And it wouldn't make a difference in this case. Turning, she saw Nick, and breathed a sigh of relief. Alarick and Clarity were also there; the latter looking a little worse for wear, but waved when she saw her. Brianne nodded and turned back to her immediate problem.

"It would be more helpful if you could be a human. I don't imagine Rhett is going to come in speaking wolf." She commented, folding her arms across her chest, hiding the bloodstained bandage under her arm. It wouldn't mask the smell, but at least she wouldn't have to look at it.

Aelin · Apr 16, 2016

While Corvo seemed so calm about everything, Roxanne was far from it. She wasn't in a position to do anything and was letting the man who had kidnapped and tortured her be the only thing protecting her at this moment. She couldn't even bare to look, so instead she looked down at her phone in hand. Two people's faces were on her phone, her sister on the lock screen, and fiance on the background screen. She had failed them both in different ways and now she was given a chance to actually save someone but that was going to fail soon too.

Corvo's attempt at talking with the Queen was turning sour and even Roxanne could tell why and knew what he was saying was wrong. She didn't have time to react before vines came from numerous directions and hand her pinned once again. Free from one form of being bound, only to have it replaced right after so it seemed. This time unfortunately, instead of laying on a table, her restrains had her suspended in air while the Queen spoke. When the vines came from her she had dropped her phone once again. She could only watch as it hit the ground and disappeared beneath vines growing ever thicker. Vines used to kill a man.

Though the words were mostly for Corvo, it seemed she was involved with them. A threat. The Seelie Queen was using her as a threat, bargaining with her life. There was a threat that what happened to one of the queen's own men would happen to her. Roxanne's eyes were fixated on the blood though. Usually her mind could pass it off as something else, something innocent that you would see in a game, but this was not a game and her mind couldn't make it into one. Each time she tried to let her mind wander to something else, let another side of her take over, the prickle of thorns brought it right back to what was really happening in the world that her mind rejected.

It was all playing at her. The situation intruded her mind and made her panic slightly. She was trembling as her eyes then began to search the ground for her phone. For her once source of comfort in this foreign dangerous place. Even if she found it though she couldn't reach it. Roxanne knew this but she still tried. Right up until she caught the Seelie Queens demands.

"You will kill Brianne Lightwood. As long as it's painful, I don't care how. I don't care where."

The conversation returned to threats on her life, but that was all Roxanne could focus on. Those words. When they were let go of, Roxanne's knees buckled beneath her feet, not allowing her to stand. Her legs were sore from the torture she had endured and her mind and body were failing her at this point. "I-I won't do it." Her voice was soft and shaky. How broken that those lines had caused her to become was becoming clear. It was worse than when she first woke up here. It was worse than anything that had happened over the last few days.

"I am not going to Kill Brianne. I want no part. I can't hurt anyone else I care for." Roxanne had both hands over her head as she shook. Her mind raced with images of her killing her fiance, her dead family, her sister being taken from her, and her killing her first boyfriend. All these played at her mind as she was on her knees shaking. "I can't do it... He won. He won! I can't stop him anymore! No matter how many times I killed him he came back! I can't do it! I won't let anyone else die! not at my hands! I can't do it!" Roxanne was yelling. Whether it was to the voices in her head, or to the Seelie Queen, Roxanne didn't know, nor did she care. She knew she wasn't going to make it out of this alive anymore. She was just a pawn, that was all she ever was. She was a pawn who refused to pay the price, and she didn't even want to know what the Queen had up her sleeve for her now. Whatever it was it would not be pleasant. It was probably perfect punishment for her, it was not like she hadn't been punished enough in her life as it was.

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