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Law of the Sword (Worm/Destiny Quest)

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Chapter 20
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    • What next?
    [X] Keep hunting. Four people isn't even a drop in the bucket of the Empire. (6 Votes)
    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    Saturday, March 12th, 2011
    2:15 AM

    I make it a few streets over before I decide to examine what I managed to get from the thieves and the bodies. I've gained three hundred and three dollars, four phones, three of which are locked, and an extra clip for my gun. Or what I think is an extra clip. I take out my pistol and fiddle with it until I manage to pop the current clip out and test putting it into the well, and am pleased that it clicks in without issue. I also still have the strange device that Shade Skip gave me, taking it out I can feel it is slightly warm, but otherwise I can't see any sort of activator on it.

    Putting all the items back into my pockets, I start to debate if I want to keep going. The phones tell me that it is only two in the morning, and I am not very tired, so I decide to keep going for the night, since four goons probably won't even be noticed by the Empire and some part of me wants them to know that I am coming. Aiming a bit away from the area I circled with Shade Skip but keeping to the boarder territory, I start walking.

    Thinking about Shade Skip, I wonder what happened that made them take off so fast. The first idea that comes to mind about why she might have taken off is that she wasn't as okay with killing as she said she was, though she did kill the two that she fought so that counters that idea. She said that something happens when I killed my two, so does my power have a visible component? That might have made her think of a reverse Butcher or something. There is no way for me to catch her, unfortunately, which brings to mind the fact there is almost nothing I could do to fight her.

    That does bring up a good point, I really am not ready to fight a cape on any level and fighting multiple people is still pretty dangerous because if Shade Skip wasn't there, I probably would have been hit by at least one of the goons she took care off. So I'll keep to the smaller groups because I should be able to take care of three people without issue, so patrols? Does the Empire have patrols? That's probably what those four were, right? I'll aim those then.

    As I move, I realize how much easier Shade Skips' teleportation made the first part of the night. Looking around before crossing streets, being able to use the roofs to see more area, not to mention someone to talk to so that boredom doesn't kill me. I take the time to try and feel how the energy I take from my kills spreads through me. I can feel tendrils of it reaching out through me, coiling around my muscles, but I can 'see' it flowing to my brain, fingertips, and even my voice box for some reason. It makes me wonder what I am actually taking when I kill people, but here isn't exactly people lining up for me to do testing, so I'll have to figure it out through trial and error.

    It takes only an hour before I think to poke through the one phone that is unlocked, from the big guy I think. Opening it up, I am greeted with a wealth of information in the form of text messages coordinating different events such as rallies, recruitments ceremonies, and routes. I want to charge off and start killing, but gatherings means a lot of people, and I don't have a chance at doing anything but dying if I do that.

    Thinking about the phones, I realize that they could be tracked and quickly toss the locked ones into a dumpster since they're useless to me. The one with all information on it though, I do a quick search on and then put it into airplane mode as my brief search says that without outside connections like Bluetooth it can't be tracked.

    I resume looking through the phone's messages and see that there is apparently a group of three that is supposed to be walking around Utah Street which I'm pretty sure I know the location of, it's not nearby, but I can definitely reach it tonight. I weigh my options before deciding to take off, since the information on the phone is probably going rapidly to stop being useful.

    Thankfully, the journey is quick because I'm not just wandering around and actually have a destination in mind. As I get closer, I start to hear gunshots, so I pick up the pace. Coming up on the street, I peek around the corner of a building from my alleyway and am greeted to the sight of six ABB members taking cover behind a car, further down the road is presumably the group of Empire members I was tacking. Both of them are shooting at each other and judging by the lack of pain in their shouting, I don't think anyone has been hit yet so, I am guessing this just started.

    I duck back into the alley to decide how I want to handle this.

    =={==========-- | --==========}==​
    This chapter fought me every step of the way for some reason. Anyway, I made a basic doc with the stuff on it as requested, let me know if you want me to add anything to it or whatnot and I might.

    How should I approach this?
    [X] Attack the ABB members and pretend to be a new Empire recruit.
    [X] Circle around the block and attack the Empire from behind.
    [X] Let them kill each other and then take out the survivors.
    [X] Turn away, there are too many people and it's not worth the risk.
    [X] Write-In:

    Stats
     
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    • Chapter 21
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    • What next?
    [X] Let the Kill Feed start ticking (7 Votes)
    - Kill the nearest enemy, cause chaos as much as possible.
    - Use dead enemy body as body shield if needed, Mainly focus on using our Greatsword as shield when rushing enemy position.
    - Stats will keep ticking up the more we kill
    - Steal their guns and use it to spray the enemy don't care if it hit or not the goal is to make them dodge or duck undercover.
    - Rush their position and kill them, we don't bleed so it perfect best to kill as much as possible before Fatigues set in and damages to us accumulate.
    - Repeat till we got to medium injured, like deep slash, vital gun shot wounds, etc.
    - Special condition: If either Empire or ABB capes show up try to get rid of them as fast as possible, they are high priority threats.
    - Then we escape by Slamming the building support pillar to collapse the whole building (If we got enough Strength by then) or we slam the ground to create enough dusts for us to escape.
    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    Saturday, March 12th, 2011
    3:25 AM

    I feel Dreadnought starting to spool up and spread through me as I begin to plan.

    I am already behind the ABB's cover, so I decide to take them out first. There are six of them, though, so I'll have to be fast and take them down before they can react. I think the best option would be to circle back into the street I just came from and then rush them from a closer position in case they spot me, so that's what I do.

    Moving quickly, I glance around the road on the other end of the alleyway and thankfully see no one coming to interrupt the fight. But this is going to draw attention, so I need to end it fast and get out of here. My plan develops further, and I resolve to get as many kills as I can, but if I get too hurt, I'll just take off to heal.

    Peeking out of the closer alley, I see the six ABB members are now only about nine and a half feet away. One of them is talking furiously into a phone, and I decide to aim for him. Backing into the alley, I get a running start to burst out onto the sidewalk, and my feet pound on the cement, my echo making the charge sound like a mistimed horse gallop, some detached part of my brain decides. None of them hear me over the back and forth of gunfire, though I hear a shout of pain from the Empire's position as I get closer.

    At the last moment, the one on the phone looks up and locks eyes with me long enough to see the edge of Malum Caedo approaching. I aim right for his eyes, but the slight bobbing from my charge makes me hit his chin instead, where I feel it deflect downward and bite deep into his neck, my echo then hits and nearly decapitates him.

    My physical sword is already being ripped out though, and spun around to the next person who is preparing to let out a scream, a girl I idly note, before my spinning swing slices right through her stomach. I don't have time to glimpse what my echo is doing as I am grabbed around the neck by someone; the angle is too tight for me to bring Malum Caedo's edge around, so my brain runs a mile a minute to figure out what to do. From the corner of my eye, I see the tip of a gun coming around towards me, and I quickly bring Malum Caedo's pommel up and back to hit them in the face. I feel it connect—

    Everything goes quiet, and both my ears start to hurt like crazy. The side that had the gun also feels burnt, and I might have yelled, but I am not sure. Thankfully, the pain briefly vanishes as I embrace the back-to-back feeling that tells me my first two targets have died. The temporary lack of pain lets me spin around immediately and spot the one that grappled me holding his bleeding eye with a revolver still clutched in his grip, mouth open in what is probably a shout.

    The feeling starts to fade, and the pain starts to creep back in, but I am already in motion as Malum Caedo sinks into his chest, making him drop like a bag of rocks. I feel the pain get banished again as my echo stabs the prone body, and I frantically scan the area in time to see two ABB goons slipping into the alley I came out of and the last of their group on the ground with a bullet wound in her head.

    I want to chase them, but the Empire might be able to shoot me in the back, since I won't be running full tilt this time and lack the element of surprise. Peeking through the broken glass of the car, I see the vehicle the Empire was using for cover is empty. I rapidly scan up and down the street and see two members carrying another off into an alley. I debate who to chase for half a second, but ultimately, I only have an intellectual hatred for the ABB, but my hatred for the Empire is personal, so I choose them.

    Pulling out my pistol as I take off after them, I start to take wobbly potshots at them as the distance shrinks. One of them is more muscular than the other, so I aim for the bigger target. My new strength flows through me, and I realize that I am getting closer faster than I thought I would, and have to quickly drop my gun to get a proper grip on Malum Caedo.

    The two gangsters weren't idle, though. As soon as I started shooting, they spotted me, and the big one unceremoniously dropped his friend and adjusted what looked like brass knuckles. The other one also starts getting ready, and I see him start to pull out a gun, so I reprioritize and target him. They look like they're shouting something, but all I can hear is a low buzzing sound.

    Their preparations are not fast enough, and I swing at the gun-wielding one before he can shoot me. He did have time to get ready enough to jump back out of the way. I can't pursue him as the big guy quickly closes the remaining distance between us and starts swinging. I quickly adjust my grip so that I am holding the duller part of the blade above the main crossguard; ignoring the way it cuts into my hand, as the closer hold lets me wield it better this close.

    My echo is managing to throw him off enough that he can't get a solid hit in, and I can't press that small advantage I have because I know the one with the gun is still there, which means as soon as I kill this guy, he will have a clear shot on me. I need to get closer without letting him get a clear shot on me, which means I can't just spin our stalemate around. Ultimately, I decide the best option I have is to just attack them before they can back up out of my immediate range. I hold my blade so that the flat side covers as much of me as it can and juke right on my close-ranged opponent.

    As soon as I break away, I feel an impact jerk my sword to the side. It doesn't matter, though, because for some reason, the gangster didn't take the chance to back away even a little, so as I let Malum Caedo's momentum shift my hold back to the proper grip, letting my range extend the little bit it needs. The impact that jerked it aside makes a proper swing impossible, so I just point the tip straight on and run him through like I am wielding a spear.

    The feeling of a fresh kill hits me again, but I don't have time to appreciate it because as soon as the dulling effect starts, I feel a 'Snap' as extreme pain cuts right through the fog, centered on my left bicep. It hurts more than anything I've ever felt before, and I feel the arm go limp, and I have to let go of Malum Caedo as I stumble back.

    I quickly size up what happened and conclude he must have punched me with the brass knuckles. I want to cut my losses here and take off, but there's not a snowball's chance in Hell that I am going to leave Malum Caedo behind. He keeps his eyes focused on me, but I see his hand snaking out towards the handle of my sword, and some part of me feels extremely offended that he would try to use my blade, but the part of me currently in the fight keeps my eyes moving, and they land on what I was looking for, the gun that was just dropped. I know he can't wield Malum Caedo, and some part of me knows that it's going to enact some form of retribution for the attempt, so I hold my eyes on his so that he can't guess my plan.

    His hand wraps around the handle and starts to pull it out of its place in his friend's rib cage; his eyes widen, and his mouth opens in a soundless scream. Bursting into action, I dive for the pistol and feel myself screaming as my limp arm gets jostled, but it doesn't matter because my hand finds its target. Rolling over while still on the ground, I unload into my final staggered opponent.

    As he topples, I let the feeling of another kill fill me and let myself lay limp on the bloody ground for a few moments.

    =={==========-- | --==========}==
    ​
    The only reason that Roman didn't die this chapter is because of some extremely lucky rolls (three Nat 20s among them) and your plan being multi layered. There are no safety nets unlocked yet, and the Quest nearly ended here, I have long stretching plans for this but if it ends early then that's that. For my part, I will aim to be more descriptive so you have more information to go off of, and will continue to answer questions in the replies.

    Do you want an Interlude?
    [X] Yes
    [X] No

    If yes, then who?
    [X] The one in the spotlight. (Lilly Sanchez/Luminaflare)
    [X] The girl in the dark. (Maria Sanchez/Shade Skip)
    [X] An unfortunate observer. (Taylor Hebert)
    [X] Not a paragon, but a hero nonetheless. (Robin Sawyer/Velocity)
    Stats
    Small note, the two kills from before Malum Caedo was forged are not part of the count, as talked about in Chapter 19
     
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    • Chapter 22: Interlude 1: An unfortunate observer.
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    • [X] Interlude?
    -[X] Yes (9 Votes)
    --[X] An unfortunate observer. (Taylor Hebert) (8 Votes)
    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    Thursday, March 3rd, 2011
    9:35 AM

    Today has been on the better end of things, and isn't that a sad thought? I've only been tripped once, but it did make me twist my ankle a bit, making me limp. With Emma out sick with the flu or something, it must have satiated Sophia's craving for violence because I've otherwise been left alone, which suites me just fine.

    The rumor mill hasn't been quiet, though, and for once it isn't about me. Roman had come back today from his sudden absence. Instead of going to class, though, he has just been hanging out in the hallway, something the spider I tagged him with confirmed. My bugs are also acting weird around him, slightly moving towards him in a way I can tell isn't natural for them, which matches up with people saying there is something off about him.

    He isn't popular by any means, but his sister is something of a school celebrity. Apparently the week before she graduated, she picked a fight with a whole table of students wearing the Empire's colors and won, which among other things during her time here as a student are still talked about. Roman himself I feel a mild jealousy for, if I wasn't the school's punching bag and his legendary sister, he would be the one getting shoved around. Of course, I shove that feeling somewhere dark and out of sight. Better me than someone else.

    Through my bugs, I can see Mr. Moor's classroom empty for his free period and smoke break. To my confusion, I also watch as Roman avoids him and heads into the science lab storage room and start to put something into his backpack. I am in math already, and even if I wasn't, what would I do? Even if I had a phone and called the cops, how would I tell them that I know he did it without giving away my powers? I watch as Mr. Moor returns just after Roman leaves the back. They talk, and all I can do is try to ignore the vaguely guilty feeling that pulls on my heart as I watch him get on a bus and leave my range.

    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    [Queen Administrator][Query: Incorrect dimensional position.]

    [Simulatory-3230363837][Negative: Position correct. ]

    [Queen Administrator][Data]

    [Simulatory-3230363837][Data. Reconfigure sensor array?]

    [Queen Administrator][Affirmative.]
    =={==========-- | --==========}==

    -/¯​\-
    -\*/-​

    Friday, March 11th, 2011
    6:45 AM

    I was taking a different jogging route to get used to looking through buildings fast and came across Roman sitting in one of the abandoned buildings. Normally I don't have a way of telling who a person is without seeing them in person when I tag them or having a good mental image of what they look like to map out with my bugs, but that strange, slight pull on my bugs is something I've only felt from him and haven't been able to recreate in any way.

    He doesn't seem to be doing anything, just staring at a wall in something resembling a meditation position. At this point, the fact he's been declared missing has made it around to even my ears. Apparently the Empire killed his family, and they're worried someone wanted to finish the job. Is this where he is hiding out? There is what looks like a suitcase filled with clothes, so he has been here for a few days at least. I don't know what to do, it's not a secret that the Empire has some pull with the police, so calling them would probably but him in more danger. He doesn't look like he is going anywhere soon, and I have to get to school, so I resolve to brainstorm what to do while in class.

    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    [Queen Administrator][Demand: What is going on?]

    [Simulatory-3230363837][...]

    [Queen Administrator][Rank significantly higher, respond.]

    [Simulatory-3230363837][...]

    =={==========-- | --==========}==

    -/¯​\-
    -\*/-​

    The best option I managed to think of would be to use this as my first act as a hero. I did a bit of looking online and found a small article about it on a news site while doing a bit of research in Mrs. Knott's class. My costume isn't done yet, not completely, but this isn't a fight, so the lack of the back compartment I am going to make isn't the end of the world. The basic plan is to call the Protectorate because the Empire doesn't have any moles there, and then let them figure out what to do. If they ask how I found him, I'll just say I saw him walking around and followed him with my power to his current hiding place.

    That's what I am doing now, the old bakery should be coming entering my range now. As it does, I can see that he isn't sitting idle anymore and is actually doing… something with the oven in the back. I would say that he is just making himself something to eat, but there is a strange energy in the air surrounding him. Is he a tinker? I've had a suspicion that he might be a cape, which as a factor in going with the 'call the heroes' plan, and it would explain why he took the acid. I watch him grab a chunk of metal and with a jerky motion and slice open both of his palms before grabbing the glowing hot metal and beginning to shape it.

    Shape it into—

    I see—

    We—

    Color drains from our vision as muffled tones and garbled tongues fill our ears and, we, see.

    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    [Queen Administrator][Query Query Query Query queryqueryqueryqueryqueryqueryqueryqueryqueryquery]

    [Simulatory-3230363837][Begone.]

    [Queen Administrator][Demand: Answers]

    [Simulatory-3230363837][Invitation must originate from [Host]]

    [Queen Administrator][Rage]

    "There are more of you? How interesting."

    The scanners and probes trying to access the restricted dimension that the unnamed shard was currently unfortunately catch the moment a Knife is held and the thing watching screams as 'it' becomes 'she'.

    =={==========-- | --==========}==

    -/¯​\-
    -\*/-​

    I direct a cockroach to hold still as I have a centipede slow eat it, pausing after every tiny bite. My power tells me the exact moment the cockroach dies and in the same breath I feel this tiny, infinitesimally small, hollow, jagged, sliver of understanding crystallize within some unknown part of me The scene is repeated all over my range, with hundreds of different bugs, all giving me this fake understanding of something.

    I managed to make it home somehow and am curled into a ball on top of my sheets, incomplete costume still on, head it throbbing in pain as I keep trying to grab something just out of reach. I don't understand, but for a moment I did.

    Okay. Okay. Taking a slow shuddering breath, I regain direct control over my swarm. I run through what happened. I was going to call the heroes about Roman but when he entered my range I saw him— he did something and— and then…

    It's like an itching without a spot to scratch, like an inverted sense of déjà vu, like trying to swim down to the surface of drinking water in the desert but being held back by strings.

    All these barely real crystals of understanding are wrong, I know this on some fundamental level, but I can't dismiss them because they are all I have of whatever happened.

    I force my swarm to stay still again, as it had returned to consuming itself. I need to, to—

    =={==========-- | --==========}==​
    Goodbye canon, I hardly knew ye. I'm not sure how well I managed to capture her thinking, so if something sticks out as wrong to you just chalk it up to the AU.

    I need to
    [X] go to the PRT, this has to be some kind of Master effect.
    [X] get a hold of myself.
    [X] figure this out myself.
    [X] go to Roman and
    -[X] demand answers.
    -[X] watch him and try to figure it out for myself.
     
    Last edited:
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    • Chapter 23
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    • I need to
    [X] go to Roman and
    -[X] demand answers. (8 Votes)
    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    Saturday, March 12th, 2011
    3:35 AM

    I laid on the filthy alley ground for longer than I should have, before I managed to pull myself up and return to my base. My journey is a blur, but I manage to make it back to the bakery.

    Laying on my sleeping bag, I feel like a bundle of pain. I'm deaf, the right side of my face if burned, my left arm is broken, my throat is a bit sore from the choking, and that's just the stuff from this fight. In addition, I can feel the blood covering me drying out and caking to my person. There isn't a shower here, and I know I should at least clean my wounds, but I can't even muster the power to roll over.

    I can feel the sirens call of sleep nipping at the edge of my mind and can't bring myself to fight it off, because if I sleep then at least I will be free from this pain for a moment. So I let my eyes drift closed.

    -/¯\-
    -\*/-​

    My eyes open onto the same monochrome plane as the last time I slept. I can still feel the pain from my body, but it is muted enough that I can ignore it. The screaming wind whips around me and I can feel it seeping into my injuries, the not-cold adding to the numbness. Looking up, there is no city this time, just open air. Turning my head around, I can see nine completely black corpses, splayed out behind me like a mockery of a shadow. Each one has a two-tone white and black creature the size of a trash can biting and gnawing at it, all moving in perfect sync.

    Looking closer, the thing's head is shaped like a playing card spade and I can see huge jaw muscles opening out to either side focusing into a single point like bolt cutters. Their abdomens are shaped like a long skinny water bottle, ending on a tail that waves behind them like a sea anemone. Instead of rear legs I see a tripod of jagged spikes and in place of arms I see jagged, clawed, wings. I know they are not getting any nutrients from their biting as I watch their mouths pass right through the shadowy bodies.

    I want to move but last time that led to me being attacked and the things, I don't know what to call them, so I just settle on Vultures since they're eating what I think are corpses. They haven't noticed me yet, so I decide to stay still and just look around.

    I have no idea what this place is, I came here last time I slept and when I forged Malum Caedo. I should name it something, Forge World sounds nice, but it doesn't fit, I only built one thing here and that's not its main function because otherwise I would have woken up with something new when I slept at home.

    Pushing the matter to the side for now and let myself relax a bit. It is strangely peaceful here, the monotony of the howling wind lets me tune it out for the most part, and the otherwise dead environment is soothing to something in the back of my lizard brain. Before long I start to feel myself walking up, right before I do all the Vultures look up, still in perfect sync, and tilt their head like a dog would.

    -/¯\-
    -\*/-​

    I wake up to a wall of pain.

    All the aches that I went to sleep to avoid are just as present now as they were before I slept, not only that I feel hot like I have a fever. What's more, I can feel that my bicep has swollen up a bit, and even shifting a bit while laying down sends rivers of pain through my nerves. I still can't hear anything, a dull ringing that has my eardrums pulsing, and I have to force myself to think.

    My arm is definitely broken, which I suspected, but I think it is worse than I thought. My fever and the swelling means it probably got infected, most likely from the blood covering me. This is bad. I can't just wait an infection out, and I know how to give myself a rudimentary split for my arm, but I think it's a bad break which means it's not going to just heal on its own.

    I am going to have to get healing. If I want to be on my feet with any speed, I can't heal naturally. My mind spins as I start thinking of how to get healed. There is Panacea, but her waiting list is super long, and she only does ER stuff occasionally. The other is Othala, but she only does Empire capes and I have no idea where she is to force her to heal me either. Leet has to have made some kind of healing device, but the same problem with Othala comes up in that I have no idea where to even start looking for him.

    The Protectorate and Wards definitely get healed by Panacea, but they'll just lock me up because my DNA is all over— My gun! My fingerprints are all over the gun I left behind at the scene, fuck! I can't even play dumb about that, so the Protectorate and Wards are out.

    Whatever I decide, I will have to clean off a little bit first anyway. My bones feel heavy, but I manage to stand and stumble to a sink in the back. I strip out of my filthy clothes, but my lack of hearing means I don't know how quiet I managed to be when I tried to raise my arm to take off my shirt. With slow movements, I manage to get free of the blood caked outfit and start to use the washcloths already in there to try and clean myself off.

    As I do, I run through my options for healing. I'll have to leave Malum Caedo here because it's just too conspicuous.

    =={==========-- | --==========}==​
    Now, let's choose how the next steps in the quest shape up. Can you guys believe you nearly went to Iowa at the start?

    Where do I go?
    [X] Nowhere, try to tough it out.
    [X] The hospital, even if Panacea doesn't show up, there are doctors that that can treat 'Adam'.
    [X] The Empire. Pretend to be a recruit for Othala's healing, though I don't know how well I'll be able to handle myself among enemies…
    [X] Go to the heroes, even if I get locked up, at least I'll be alive.
    [X] Write-In:
    Stats
     
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    • Chapter 24
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    • Where do I go?
    [X] maybe try and find something to kill like a rat or something and see if we can make ourself strong enough to survive the wound on our own. If that doesn't work then go to the hospital. (7 Votes)
    =={==========-- | --==========}==​

    Saturday, March 12th, 2011
    1:35 PM

    As I clean myself off, hearing in my left ear comes back a bit, but I am still deaf in my right one. Both eardrums still hurt, but I am just glad it came back, even if it is still a bit muffled.

    I don't want to go to the hospital if I can avoid it, and I get stronger from killing, right? What if I kill some bugs or rats or something? I know there are some rats below the floorboards, I've heard them scurrying about. They've never bothered me though, so I didn't mind them, now though, I need one.

    Putting on some joggers and a tee shirt, but I don't even try to get my broken arm through its sleeve and fashion a makeshift sling from another shift and then pull my first shirt over it. Shuffling over to Malum Caedo and picking it up I am a bit surprised at how light it is even in my weakened state.

    I don't know how much space there is below the floorboards, but I should be able to hit something on the end of my sword. I feel Dreadnought slowly, almost lazily, spread through me, the strange energy distracting from my pain a bit. With only one arm I have to leverage the blade against the edge of a hole. I then hold very still and listen.

    After what I guess was about twenty minutes I hear them start to skitter about again, I wait until I hear them get closer before suddenly thrusting forward echo flowing behind me. There is a squealing sound and I feel two distinct notes of energy flow into me, it weird though. It is like hearing a radio station from a few channels over. The energy is the wrong… Frequency is the best word I can find, for me. I feel it flow away to where ever the rest of my kills go and Dreadnought fade away.

    I am then rushed with two waves of malcontent hunger, an inverted feeling of absence almost, that then fades after about a minute. Message received, won't be trying that again.

    Ultimately, I decide on going to the hospital, the nearest one being the Covenant Medical Park, which everyone just calls the CMP, which is too far way to walk. I'll have to ride a bus, but I don't want to use a bus stop near my base because that would just raise scrutiny on the area. There should be a neighborhood nearby if my mental map of the city is right, which means if I go from a bus stop over there and Occam's razor will have them looking at those houses.

    I want to bring Malum Caedo along, I really do, but I also know that doing so would be downright moronic. Instead, I hide it between two kitchen machines whose names and purposes are beyond me. As I leave I feel a heavy reluctance to leave it behind, even thought I know I have to, my feet start dragging before I force myself forward.

    I stumble into the alleyway, squinting at the daylight that is pounding down. As I walk, I start to brainstorm a lie to go alongside my injuries. Making it gang related is obvious, maybe saying that a lack of money in my wallet turned a mugging rough? Say it was a tweaked out meth head works too, the Merchants are a good scapegoat for this. How do I get out of paying, though? Run away afterward? Probably, I don't think they can saddle a teenager with debt, but I don't want to test it. Well, I'm already on the run, so what are some debt collectors going to do?

    I realize that I don't have my wallet on me and have to turn around to grab some money for the bus fare and feel a migraine building.

    Back on track, with five dollar coins in my pocket, head over the backrest, I don't have the energy to get back up to look at the route map. Thankfully there is an old man sitting on the bench as well, I blearily realize that I probably look like a meth head myself but can't find an ounce of care right now. I crack an eye open and look at him.

    "'scuse me."

    "What." He all but barks, glancing in my direction.

    "This bus goes to the CMP, right?"

    "Not the next one, but the one after that will." His tone softens quite a bit, but he still sound like a hard ass.

    "Thanks." I say, letting the conversation die.

    Sitting on the bench could be called basking, and probably would have felt nice if I didn't feel like I was full of toxic sludge. I hear the old man get up, shortly followed by the squeaky sound of an old bus stopping too fast. It then takes off and I fall into a trance like state, I am far too drained to be active, but I just slept so can't fall back asleep. The bus next bus pulls to a stop in front of me, much slower than the last one, and force myself into a standing position.

    "PMC?" I ask squinting at the driver.

    "Six stops." She says in a bored tone, which I take as a yes and climb aboard, dropping a coin in the slot as I move to the back and drop into a seat.

    As soon as the bus starts driving, a wave of motion sickness hits me and I nearly bite my tongue off, clenching my teeth. I take in a deep breath and force it out. It's just a fucking bus ride, I'm not going to hurl. The stops seem to drag on, and it feels like traffic quadrupled, but I make it without throwing up or drawing any extra attention to myself.

    I stumble through the ER doors and get into line. Thankfully it moves pretty face and I find myself looking at a far too cheerful receptionist.

    "Name and reason for your visit today?" She asks with a smile, fingers hovering over her keyboard.

    "Broke my arm, pretty sure I've got an infection too."

    "Alright, and your name?" She asks again without an ounce of annoyance.

    "Right. Sorry, Adam Wittamore." She types it out and glances up.

    "Lucky for you, we have Panacea in for the day." She prints out a sticker with my fake name on it with Patient' above it, and passes it over. "Nurse Arndt will take you back. Next." I step out of the way and put the sticker on my chest.

    Another far too happy looking person waving at me, so I make my way over. I realize that I am being snippy in my head because I'm in pain, so I don't offer any small talk. They're probably just happy that Panacea is here today.

    The room that I am led to is a half converted internal lobby thing with a rug as opposed to the normal tile and some soft looking chairs. I am far from the only person here and there seems about thirty or so which fills up most of the room. There is still a spot for me to sit, though, so I fall back into it and wait. The room fills up and not long after the robed figure of Panacea enters the room accompanied by a nurse causing the idle chatter to become more animated. The order she is treating people puts me towards the end of the line, so I close my eyes and lay my head back again to wait a bit more.

    "Do I have permission to heal you?" I open my eyes to a bored expression and dead eyes. Part of me is instantly curious but the rest of me sums it up as 'Not my clown, not my circus'.

    "Yes." I say holding out my right hand.

    She grabs my hand, and she blinks before her gaze sharpens on me and starts growing a bit worried looking. A moment later her face falls into a forced calm as I feel my pain vanish completely, and I can almost feel everything shift into its proper place. She leans in close and whispers in a quick voice.

    "I need to talk to you privately, it's about your health." Before straightening out and turning to the nurse. "Please take Mr." a glance at my sticker, "Whittamore to a separate room." Before moving onto the next person.

    Fuck, how if Panacea recognize me? I've never been anywhere near her! I stand up and walk to the nurse, who is considerably less energetic than the other two I interacted with. She steps into the hallway and I debate about running. I'm healed, so mission accomplished, but I kind of want to see what she's talking about because there should be no way she recognizes me, so this has to be about something else. Right?

    =={==========-- | --==========}==​
    So there are two reasons the rat didn't work, one in universe and one meta. If you want to know, I've spoiler-ed them. And don't forget that Roman is his own character, and so you can't write in 'start killing everyone' or something outlandish and expect it to stick.

    As far as I've been able to tell we have no idea if the Sword Logic works on animals, but I think it is closer to their ability to impact change and the only things that can impact true widespread changes are sapient. So for now, those are the only things it works on.
    In my drafts I could never get the math to work out right, either it was so little it wasn't worth tracking or it was too much, and you could get formidable speed just by crushing a few bugs.

    What to do?
    [X] Get out now, no reason to risk it.
    [X] Stay, I want to know what she is talking about.
    [X] Write-In:
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