Broken Wings: Aftermath

Lucius was seriously considering moving to plan B at this point. The woman was in hysterics, and the looming tendrils that lashed out at him were proof of that. They burnt his suit, his shoes, and everything else, all but him and the one that was creating them that is. He kept his hand outstretched the whole time though, determined, even if it did get him impaled. He was fearless, and he stood his ground. It was easy to do when you were invincible, but like this he could be killed with a thought, yet he remained his imposing and unrelenting self. All that stuff people called pride wasn't, it was will, will and determination, at least in Lucius' mind.

"Here. Take them." He said through slightly gritted teeth as smoke came off his clothing. The tendrils were so close, but he wasn't backing down. Eventually she did take them, and they did their work. Lucius sighed in relief, looking to the girl who had just looked, indeed, like a monster. But she wasn't, she was just a hurt child. A victim of his devices.

".....Because they feel obligated to. They want to make it so no one else feels their pain.... That's what drives you, and it's what drives me. We don't want people to hurt anymore." Lucius said, keeping his distance but also putting his hands up, doing a sort of calming motion. He took a few steps forward, trying to place his hands on her shoulders as he looked at her and spoke.

"I can figure out what's going on with you, and in the process, i can make you not hurt anymore. After that, you never have to see my face again." Lucius would say, pale grey eyes looking down at the girl with a pity. As if he were watching a child or animal in pain. Once she pulled away, he would respect it and take a step back. He just hoped, now that she was mostly calm, she would accept his offer.

Lucius could have kept her sedated, could have just done whatever it was he was going to do. It would have been easier, less so close to killing him. But he wanted confirmation, even in the slightest, that this is what she wanted. There was no point in taking her pain away if it wasn't what she willed, but, from what she said, deep down he knew it's what the girl wanted and what she needed. The pills she took, four of them in total, would likely cause her to pass out any minute, and Lucius could tell she was already drifting off.

"You'll know him....... I promise." He said as she slowly fell to the ground. She would most likely loss consciousness soon after that.

"Rest easy, Tyuki Gold." Lucius said just as the drugs took her. He then backed away from her asleep form, picking up a knocked over chair and sitting down on it, rubbing his face and taking a deep breath.

"Hector..... I need you in here." Lucius said, addressing the nigh omnipresent AI that resided in the facility. Despite his influence over the Sanctuary, he was very respectful of privacy.

"Yes, Lucius." Hector said over the intercom. It would take a few minutes, but the AI would eventually make it to the room and step in, looking at all the damage the female had done.

"Forgive me, but how do you still have a head?" Hector asked, a half smile on his artificial but totally lifelike face. Lucius chuckled in return. It wasn't his usual, arrogant chuckle. He actually found that quite funny.

"Perhaps i have a way with words. That, or this girl truly is a good person." Lucius said. He then gestured to her, and Hector knew immediately what he needed. The AI would then move to pick the girl up and carry her. She seemed to be out like a light.

"Where to?" Hector asked. See what i mean about privacy? He could have listened in on this whole thing, but he didn't. He had no idea what Lucius had in mind.

"To the lab. I'm going to give Miss Gold a little gift. When she wakes up, she'll be a free woman, she'll be happy." And with that the two walked out of the room. The light flickered a moment, and the containment room was then left, in the dark, with all manner of damage done to it.


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Tyuki would find herself in a dream, but one more lifelike then she had likely ever experienced. It was a grassy meadow, with grey skies casting a dreary light over the area and adding a little chill to the air. Despite it being slightly gloomy, it was indeed quite pretty, in a way. In fact, it didn't look unlike the battlefield she had just been not to long ago. There was total silence over the area, all except the air passing through the grass and pushing pine cones along. The high trees cast faint shadows along the edge of what still looked like an arena of a field, and in the center, where Tyuki was, the faint clouded light was at it's brightest.

It's over.

The faint whisper echoed through the field, which seemed now as if it were slowly spinning. The wind picked up, and a somewhat unsettling vibe rested over the area.

You can give up. You can give in. It's what you want.

The voice whispered again, sounding like it was quiet but somehow it would reach Tyuki no matter where she went. The field continued to spin, the wind continued to pick up, and the feeling in the air seemed to be able to bring practically anyone to a panic.

You lost me once...... You don't have to again... You can let go.  

That's when the field looked as if a darkness were sweeping over it, still spinning, until all Tyuki would be able to see was black. The wind was gone, the smell of the trees replaced with that of cold tile. The chill persistent, becoming less refreshing and more nagging now. The unsettling vibe was now what you might feel in your worst nightmare. Anyone here would likely want to get out, and get out fast.

Eventually, a red aura broke through the shadows, and the tap of fancy shoes echoed through the room. Lucius came into view, his eyes red, the evilest smile you could imagine on his face. Blood was literally on his hands and some on his face, and the devilish look he had seemed to enjoy it. The sounds of all those he had ever killed filled the room in a wave, screeching, begging, sobbing, and accepting. To top it off, the aura he projected sent a deep dread over the room, and his voice boomed, almost demonically hissing.

"After all, if you don't, you could end up just, like, me." Lucius said, almost excited at the prospect. That's when he lunged forward, and in a flash of red and a haze of corrosive pain, she would be jolted awake. She would realize it was a dream, as she wasn't dead, she wasn't corrupted. She was merely laid on a lab bed, screens and equipment all around her. Lucius had already finished.

Tyuki would remember who Phoenix was, know him and even his story and all he had ever told him. However, she would feel, what's the word? Indifferent. She would feel detached from him, as if he were someone she never gave a second look. He was less significant then the cashier you like at your local supermarket. No matter how much her brain fought it, she wouldn't be able to feel anything for him. Maybe a little 'shit happens' about his death, but other then that small amount of disappointment, she wouldn't care. Her mind would literally reject him, put up defensive barriers against any emotion he or his memory may inflict. Phoenix wasn't the center of the universe to her anymore, he was Pluto.

Dad. That was the second time she had said that, and it shocked Lucius both times, but he didn't say anything. It was normal for her to be experiencing slight lapses, but that didn't really take the awkwardness away. It brought up a few curious questions, but ones that didn't need to be asked right now. She commented on the gown she was wearing, asking if he put it on her in the most sassy way imaginable. Lucius laughed.

"No, i didn't. Hector did. And don't worry, he's an android." Lucius said, gesturing to the AI who stood at the other side of the room. Lucius himself sat at a desk, looking over a few scans of Tyuki's brain and fumbling through papers. He then turned to her when she asked another question.

"You're alive, you did almost kill me, and you did cry, a lot." Lucius answered, deciding to might as well meet the questions with their exact answers. He then stood up.

"How do you feel, Tyuki?" Lucius asked. looking at the woman slightly concerned and slightly curious. She should have felt pretty much normal, just emotionally disconnected from one individual. Even if she wanted to deep down, it would hard to be anything but indifferent to him and his memory.

Well, it seemed she didn't remember much. That was expected sure, but it was a little more then Lucius had calculated. He sighed a bit, then turned his attention to the high tech computer in front of him. He typed a few things on the keyboard and a video feed of the cell was shown. It was just one of Lucius' cameras that Hector had no access to. Even though he trusted his creation he tended to enjoy privacy to the degree he gathered his own info as a back up, just in case.

"Your powers were fluctuating and becoming rather agitated, likely due to emotional strain. I managed to level them out, you should have better control now." Lucius said, the video of the tendrils lashing out at him playing. After a good thirty seconds the screen went black and he turned around to face the woman.

"To do this, you had to be emotionally stabilized. The cause of the distress had to be, well, removed. You're chains are broken, Miss Gold." Lucius said, a little proud of his work but all that showed on his face was a true sense of helping another person. Even if what he did wasn't exactly cool with some.

She was calm, collected. From what Lucius could tell, this was a successful operation. She even thanked him, sticking out her hand for a shake, which he accepted and gripped tightly, a smile on his face as he shook the offered hand. It was over, he had done all he needed for the girl. She wouldn't be grief stricken, her life wouldn't be ruined, she could forget and move on. This was the point where she could really start being herself, start moving out of the shadow of Phoenix and the rest of her peers. Lucius' smile widened slightly when she asked if she could leave, and Lucius pulled his hand away.

"Of course there isn't a catch. I saw someone in need, someone broken, and i fixed the issue. You aren't eclipsed anymore, you can shine as bright as you want." Lucius said, a truth to his eyes that showed he wasn't being deceptive about this. He truly did it to help her. But, once she turned her back, Lucius would speak up.

"But, if you ever want help honing your abilities, or your skills, I'm easy to contact. It's the least i could do." He said with his back turned as he looked at the monitor and the scan of Tyuki. She truly was an amazingly powerful being, just a tad unskilled. With some honing, she could be a force to be reckoned with. If Tyuki chose to stay and speak, he would listen. If she chose to leave, the door would lead straight into a teleporter that would take her straight to New York City.