No Sleep for the Wicked!

[Evelyn Amtrum]

There was no warning. No sense of the world going still except in her mind, no clouds to mar the sky of an otherwise perfect day. Laughter filled the air, her sister's eyes sparkling at some shared secret she couldn't remember. A grin on her own face as she nudged Arianna, their mother's voice in the background.

"So, what do you think?"

But there was no answer save the flash of steel in her twin's flesh, the sound of a body hitting the ground echoing for seconds that stretched into lifetimes. Another body, dead, at the corner of her vision as she screamed and reached out to catch her sister. The figure of the Beast behind her as she called out, the sound stuck in her throat like a rock, sharp and unmoving. Suffocating.

The bodies rotting before her eyes. The hand that she reached out with rotted along with them as the decay spread up her arm towards the rest of her body.

The sound of laughter.

The crash of thunder woke her, the light unnoticed as Evelyn woke with her face buried in her pillow and the blanket twisted around her legs like a pretzel. Groaning, she pushed herself up on her arm and shoved her hair out of her face, looking down at the same hand she remembered reaching out with. Of course it was normal.

"Fuck." She slid back onto the bed with a groan, closing her eyes as she listened to the storm outside.

She missed being able to sleep like a normal person.

[Tina Bennet]

Something was wrong. Where was everyone? Tina's breath burned in her chest as she ran across the badlands, no shade for miles and no other signs of life other than the ones she left behind. She looked behind her at the sound of one explosion, then another, but nothing remained but a cloud reaching up to the sky in a familiar mushroom shape.

Then she turned back around and found a note in the sand, half buried under it and her foot. She pulled it free, kicking at the sand as she looked it over, brows knitting together as she tried to make out words she'd never seen before. But there were a few she recognized, and she knew the handwriting.

The storm woke her, raindrops splattering her face as she opened one eye and looked around. Back in the caravan, but at least it was shelter. Groaning, she rolled so that her back faced the outside world, curling her tiny body around the massive egg in a protective way as she stared at the back of the wagon.

"What the fuck's butterscotch?"

[Allison Kazim]

"Don't..." Ali twisted in her sleep, frowning even now as the entire council stood before her. Mocking. Staring. Her cheeks heated bright red as she tried to cover herself, including with her sword. Which was no longer a sword. Not in traditional sense.

"Stop laughing at me!" She tried to cover herself with the purple weapon of choice, beet read now as she failed and made the situation worse.

She woke in a strange room to thunder strong enough to rattle the walls of the inn she was in, breathing ragged as she listened to the rain outside. At least no one she knew was around to hear her and ask questions.

Thank goodness for small miracles.

[Bailey Oleander]

The faces swam in a sea before her. Some a mottled shadow, others standing out in sharp contrast. Bailey walked the halls of the facility, sometimes seeing the rubber walls, sometimes the caves of her homeland. Other times, Cabal's walls surrounded her, or an endless woodland. No matter what path she took, she felt like she was no closer to the center of the labyrinth, let alone the end of it.

The face of her father, long thought dead and only recently revealed to be alive. A man she had yet to reach out to, wondering if she should. The face of a friend, betrayed, still laying in a hospital bed, alive but with empty eyes that stared at her as if she were nothing. As if she weren't even there.

An endless wall of Ferals reaching out to her, and experiments she knew by name. Eric - no, Mathew's - face, harsh and unwavering, instructing. Every time she looked back, every time she tried to change or look away, the hall behind her was a dead end wrapped in shadow.

Loki's face, or at least what she imagined it looked like. Blake's, frowning, telling her to try harder. To move her feet. Formless faces, small and young, that made her gut twist.

She ran. Blindly, following whatever path lay open to her first. Twistng and turning, looping back on herself and the faces she had already passed until they, too, were a blurr.

"Liar." The path behind her began to close, faster as it chased her, catching up with her. Shadows loomed over her, drowning out the light. Taking her sight.

"Coward." Each face had an arm associated with it, all pointing to her as she pushed on. "Failure. Selfish.

"You promised."

"Murderer." The hands reached out and grabbed at her, pulling at her like thorns and vines, tripping her. She stumbled, fell, and reached out to the hand that held itself out to her rather than pointing.

Her own face grinned at her when she looked up, a gaping maw tht spilled black shadow, eyes black holes and cracks forming along her skin. Bailey screamed.

"So," it said, her own true face suddenly staring back at her, "who's next?"

[Krane Asiv]

Krane is in Olympus during the war, as Barker and Prota soldiers invade, Titans attack. Gods, Heroes, and Mythicals die all around him. He can't use his powers, he doesn't have a God Right to call on, he is useless. Each God that falls, each person looks to Krane with pleading eyes. Why didn't he try? Why didn't he move, or fight?

He looks to the top of the mountain where Zeus laughs a thunderous laugh.

"Useless anyways boy!"

It is then Krane realizes Zeus planned this attack, the downfall of mount olympus. Krane moves to attack, but is suddenly a child once more striking at Uncle Zeus' thighs before looking up as Zeus summons a bolt of lightning and slams it down onto Krane face.

The large male sits up slowly holding a hand to his face, only opening them when Marin runs in. He decides to console her as his mother once did long ago. It appears no one in his house was going to sleep well tonight.

"Mister Sun is okay. I will show you tomorrow, the bright and shiny people of the sun."

[John]

It's a nice day. John is in a dress uniform, his hair is combed and cut, he has a smile on his face, nothing can go wrong today. It's graduation time. John's meritorious service has granted him the highest rank and now he will be taking over as Supervisor of Cabal Academy. He is checking himself int he mirror and making sure his uniform is straight. The door behind him opens and Rhona sticks her head in.

"Hey hot head, everyone is waiting, it's almost time."

John looks back with a smile.

"Alright Sun Spot, I'm on the way."

He begins walking out and Rhona opens the door fully, she is wearing a wedding dress and pulls John to her.

"You never were good with ties."

She adjusts his tie for him before they walk out. Onto a stage where high ranking Cabal officials are there, people gathered as he makes a speech about his time. Zack Asiv steps up and talks about how proud he is of his son, never once calling him adopted. How his service was recognized through the war and even now to be above and beyond. John steps back up to the podium after a loving hug from Zack.

"It is my honor to accept this position to lead the young and sometimes lost Qi users of the future. I know my record isn't spotless."

John gives a nod to a section fo the people that showed up to his promotion and acceptance ceremony. They are mangled, bloody or bleeding people. John knew some of them by name as a flash of him wearing a ballistics mask in all black comes to mind. Killing and attacking old friends from phs 259 who had chosen different sides during the war. People he had to get close to when infiltrating enemy territories. People he had to assassinate knowing they were innocent people who simply had too much influence.

"But, it has all led to this day. Thank you all for your support, your love and caring. Thank you all for being there when I need you."

The thunderous applause is what wakes him as the rank is pinned to his pristine uniform. He sits up and turns out of his single bunk, knocking his hammer to the floor as his first instinct was to find Rhona. Looking up from his small room at his stolen officers uniform... His little shack like room, all alone. A heat rises from behind his eyes, but it isn't the fire Qi he is so used to. It's wet, it's pain, realization strikes fast as tears flow down his cheeks. He puts his face in his hands letting out a sob which turns into unrestrained crying. He looks up quickly at his side table spotting some pills and his inhaler. He rakes a hand on the table picking up some pills, throwing them into his mouth he bites down on the end of his inhaler and puffs heavily at it.

After a moment the sobbing turns to soft chuckles that shake his body a bit. He stands up, going to his dresser. Putting on clothes he walks to his door and slips into his boots. Holding a hand out his hammer shakes a bit before flying to his hand, latching it to the magnetic back plate as he thinks.

~So many fun things to do, so little time.~

[Cillian McWolfe]

Bright lights shone down on Ardan from inside of the tent.  The roar of the crowd's cheering was enough to dampen down the sound of the music that played as he stood up on the platform, the thin rope in front of him was tied tightly to the platform on the other side.  With a smile and a wave he took his first step on the rope, pulling out ball after ball he began to juggle as he made his way across the rope.  Shifting his weight to sway as he walked with practiced grace.  The oohs and the ahhs from the crowd filled his heart to bursting.  They were happy, and he was doing it.  He was bringing this light back into people's lives.  When he reached the other side safely he'd let the balls drop around him, bowing deeply to the crowd only to feel a sharp pain in his ear.

"So this is how you choose to spend your days', young man!?"  

The familiar gruff voice brought him out of the dream and caused Ardan to sit up in his wagon with a start, a hand moving to rub his ear.

[Preston Salabim]

Preston observed the way that the energy moved and coiled around itself.  The confined essence of the Lightning Dragon, one of the puzzles that he needed to unravel and unscramble.  The strength of the Dragon's was something that could not be questioned, but he had always been of the opinion that their power could be replicated, disseminated, and dismantled.  Baker and Asiv had made great strides forward with Qi, the Dragons were among the first to learn how to wield that power devastating effect.  But unlike all of them Preston was not stumbling forward blindly. 

On his desk was all manner of ingredients and tools, many of which would be unfathomable outside of the flying island that was his home.  And some of them would surprise even his advisors.  Before him was Roz's eye patch, taking just the smallest sample of it he would fuse it with the energy of the Lightning Dragon,.  The power that erupted was blinding forcing him to shield his eyes with his arm before the light dimmed and before him in the courtyard stood Roz, a wicked grin on her face as she radiated with power.  Something new, something dangerous, something beautiful.

Preston awoke with a start, a parchment sticking to his face from his desk.  

"That's it!" 

He exclaimed as he peeled the parchment from his face, straightening his glasses before jotting down the theory about fusing a symbiote with the Lightning Dragon energy along with a rough idea of the formula he would need to use to make it work.  He'd revise it later, for now the important thing was getting it down. 

[Mathew Amtrum]

It was a peaceful day like so many others.  Mathew had sequestered himself away from everything to reach deep inside of himself in meditation.  Keeping himself centered was important, and remaining clear-headed was how he made it as far as he had.  He refused to fall into the same traps that the other Dragons had.  And so he remained.  The spot he had found was a nice private rocky outcrop surrounded by several small waterfalls. the trickling water into the stream was almost zen until suddenly his eyes shot open in the dark room of his house.

"I gotta piss."

Rolling out of bed Mathew would quickly make his way to the restroom! 

[Rozalin Kendal]

A soft humming could be heard on the wind, the rickety rowboat beneath her creaking as it struggled to move forward as the familiar song grew louder. Rozalin stared out at the misty night with a frown as the voices became clearer and the boat stopped, bobbing uselessly in the ocean. Looking down, a massive shadow lurked in the deep, but there was no sign of any paddles or loot. Hells, even her armor was gone. Instead, sh was wearing a fancy evening gown, a tower of etiquette books weighing down the back of the poor boat. On the other side lay a dinner setting, correct save the fact the butter knife wasn't on the plate.

"What the hell?" Shadows lurked in the mist, but it was the sudden crack of the rotted wood beneath her that caught her attention, a leak now sprung in the bottom. Frowning, she tried to stop the leak, but nothing worked. No amount of books or dress or anything else could plug it. She tried to find other ways of moving the boat, but slid and fell, knocking one of hte forks askew and sending the rowboat surging forward as if it had a qi motor attached to it.

The shadow moved with her.

The song grew louder as a woman's figure formed in the mist, part bird but definitely a woman singing with the haunting chorus. At least, until Rozalin laid eyes on her. The woman wore a wedding veil, pulling it back and revealing bulging eyes, water bloated skin, and a smile too large for her face.

"WHAT WILL WE DO WITH A DRUNKEN SAILOR," it squawked in a perfect imitation of John's voice. The voice rattled the sky, distracting the pirate from the fact her boat was still sinking, still breaking. Without thinking, Roz reached back and grabbed the first book she could, hurling it at the creature without bothering to see what her ammo had been. If it could have helped somehow.

The wood beneath her snapped, sending the boat and its contents, including Roz, into the depths as the siren cackled and hacked like it had a sudden sore throat.

The faceless danger beneath the depths waited, a sunken ship with ghosts and skeletons making up its crew, oblivious to her growing closer until her feet touched the sea floor, struggling for breath, unable to figure out why she wasn't already dead.

Or was she?

The thunder that rattled outside woke her as she struggled with the sense of suffocating instead of drowning when underwater, jolting Roz awake and out of her dilemma. Eyes wide, she stared up at the ceiling, taking deep breaths to force herself to settle even as her heart hammered in her chest.

After a moment, she got up, wrapping a robe around her so she could step out for a glass of...something. Something strong to take her mind off the weird dream and hopefully let her go back to sleep?

Bottles of wine and champagne waited for her, the one bottle she kept of rum spilled on its side. Looks like it would have to be wine. She sighed.

"Why is the rum always gone?"

[Cecelia Riddel]

It was a beautiful day, sun shining, birds chirping. The important folk had come out from all the Territories to celebrate the royal wedding of Aurora, a beautiful ceremony that had Cecelia tearing up a bit as she watched the vows to commit to their heart's chosen. Even if the blood still made her a bit squeamish.

But that was over now, a glass of champagne in hand as she smiled and spoke with the High Chancellor of Ayatlan, a bit of flirting and light banter, testing the waters to see who knew what. Promising her home was doing well as was the land she watched over. Everything was perfect.

Until the doors exploded open, a ruckus of shouting and laughter as drunken apes entered the room, screeching and hanging from the chandelier. Dime danced, mostly naked, on a table. Jericho Did things no decent man did in public. The curtains were torn, the crystals were covered in blood. Debris was thrown at anyone chosen at random.

All of them, chanting her name. All of them celebrating and laughing, not taking the event or the implication seriously. The damage to her reputation done, she still fought to deny that she knew any of them, her voice silenced and throat tight as she started to weep.

Waking with a start, Cecelia watched as the sky, crimson even now, was illuminated with forked lightning. She sniffled and wiped her face with the back of her hand as she hiccuped, a bubble escaping her throat with the motion, hanging in the air for several seconds before popping.

"Savages," she whimpered before laying back down. Hopefully her next dream would be kinder.

__________________________

Zero Ability: Bubble Betrayal - Every time Cecelia hiccups, burps, or farts, her body lets out bubbles of various sizes.

UP 1/15

[Kyla Himura]

Leaves rustled overhead, the crackling of a nearby fire drifting further away as Kyla stepped past the threshold of the village and into the forest. A familiar figure could be seen from the shadows, growing closer. Her heart hammered in her head, a smile already spreading on her face as she saw the usual posture, the normal gait that covered so much space in a single stride. Her own quickened.

"Dad!" A mop of dark hair, almost nothing but a blur, darted in front of her, laughter in the trees as the celebration continued behind them. A hunt that had gone better than they hoped, their enemies not a threat that night. She walked alongside him, the backs of their hands touching as Skylar bounded around them, telling his parents about their training as Kai's arm slid around her waist.

"Welcome home."

The thunder woke Kyla as she opened her eyes, unmoving as she stared at a wall. Tears streamed down her face as reality sunk in, the wall in front of her more than the hut that she had lived in with her family. It had been some time since she reamed of them. she stared at her palm for a moment, recalling the vows that Blake and Bailey had made not so long ago. Perhaps that was why.

She rolled over onto her other side, curling up to try and relieve the pressure in her chest and burying her face in the pillow, the other half of the bed cold and empty as Kyla cried herself back to sleep.

[Jericho]

"Jericho. I'm gone. I'm not coming back. And that's okay," a familiar voice assured. All that could be seen of the one that spoke was his lips moving to the words, and the occasional strand or two of black hair brushed across the mouth the statement flowed from.

All that Jericho could feel was a single tear slide down his face.

As lightning struck, Jericho sat up within the flash of a moment the blue light flooded the room. The inhale he took was as sharp as the several protrusions that shot out from his finger tips. His breath was quickened and heavy; sweat covered his body. After taking a second to assess the situation, Jericho pulled the bone back into his hands. The sheets he slept on were now pierced and torn. With each second that passed, the cloth got increasingly bloodstained as well as blood dripped from his fingertips. He sat still until his breath returned to its normal rhythm.

Another crack just occurred and he knew it. They began at the return of the king. Here was yet another one; a sign of emotion. He couldn't let it take control, or get anywhere close. Emotions were unnecessary at best, and primarily detrimental.

Now wide awake, Jericho picked up a block of bone, dyed red, and continued his project: a carving of a dragon.

[Triton Augustus]

"WHO GOES THERE!" The words erupted from Triton's breath as he arose from his woolen head rest. Oceanus sounded a squeak from his fright.

Triton's eyes danced across the room, seeking to find intruders. The only sound that met his ears was the great roar of the heavens, Poseidon's blessing meeting the top of the structure with mighty cheers, and the stone that erected by his bedside in which water ran down and trickled. Like the glow of the jellyfish within the deep, a glass vessel filled to its brim with water sat with deep blue glow about it from a light that sat within. Suspended within its water, the inhabitants of the glowing liquid were the only beating hearts in the room, except for a particularly gladdening reptilian heart.

The little marine iguana that Triton now knew as his friend gazed upon its friend, awaiting a word. Resembling water filled by crimson blood, its eyes were nearly imperceptible in the shadows of the room, but their red hue revealed itself with each light the clouds sent to the earth.

"Oceanus, my friend," Triton began, sitting in a position that gave him comfort. "A vision was put forth before my eyes while I slept. You had become a great beast! What might had you! But, we were tossed into the depths of the sea, and the waters were angry with us. You fell deep within the black of her depths, and I followed after you. My lungs could not breathe the breath of life, and nor could yours. What fear was within me!"

The creature blinked, and its head tilted.

"Strange, indeed!" Triton responded. His heed turned to the fish that swam across his room. "Let us feed our finned brothers, lest we return to our slumber bearing this fear and behold another vision."

Oceanus crawled to the end of the bed expectantly as its master arose and carried on with the custom.

[Soni Vox]

Laughter. That was the first sound Soni heard, and she loved it. The rest of the atmosphere was filled with the sounds of birds in the air; the wind softly brushing by her ears and her face; the blades of grass whispering secrets to each other as the wind spurred them on.

The most calming sound was the laughter; it wasn't just hers. It was harmonized with the sound of male laughter. A boy sat next to her, but she couldn't see his face. She just loved being with him, and felt at peace with him. She didn't know why they were laughing, but they were.

His hand held hers, and the two hands sat together on his knee. After a moment, he turned to her, and her to him.

Silence. The song of the birds, light brush of the wind, and the whispers of the blades of grass gone. The laughter, gone. But peace was still in the air suspended. He smiled and began to lean in. She felt his breath against her smile-

She gasped sharply as she shot up from her sheets. The only sound she heard now was rain and thunder and her intense and irregular breaths. Tears began to roll down her face, and her nose began to sniff. She put her face in her hands and breathed in deep, wiping her tears.

"ahhh," she muttered quietly. "not- again." The words were almost hard to get out without opening floodgates releasing more than words.

She scooted herself back against the bed frame and wrapped her arms around her legs. "Pull yourself together Soni," the girl assured herself, her forehead up against her knees. She wanted to utter more assurances, but nothing came to mind. There was nothing she could say. She couldn't tell herself it was bound to happen one day. She couldn't tell herself there was a light at the end of that tunnel. She couldn't tell herself there would be anyone to fill that hole in her heart. Because the truth was that there probably wasn't, nor would there ever be.

That laugh was the one sound she couldn't recreate. There was something about it that erased it from her memory after every dream. But the fact she couldn't recreate the sound didn't hurt. It was the fact that she could never recreate the feeling. And no one ever would.

Soni would slowly slip down back under her blankets, keeping her arms wrapped around her legs. Over time she would fall back asleep, missing the nights that her head laid on a dry pillow.