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[Thugren]

Years upon years...Test upon test. The days begin to blur in the life of an agent..Especially those sent to monitor the pet project of the director. Operatives Oce and barren, siblings, had been chosen to act as functioning limiters to the newest anti weapon Howl, the only possible resource that could reign in this new weapon, if only just. Normally this wasn't an issue, howl would go to school... Go to his full time job, try his best to talk to women as awkwardly as a bio weapon could, but its when the terrorist element attacked, while the two where at HQ delivering a report, that things began to fall apart.

 

The attack separated the city from the rest of the Japanese islands, trains stopped running, and it took days for the two agents to get reports of... Its activation in the city. Reports of a grey demon, a monster preying on the terrorist cell, and the terrorists responding by executing civilians due to their belief the government council of Tokyo was involved. 

 

 

Oce and barren stand in the mouth of the subway in sapphoro. They had lost sight of their charge howl over the last week, and the tracking had brought them here. To be truthful, it wast so much tracking as it was following the trail of mangled corpses of the terrorist element left behind in howls wake that lead them into the shopping district where the screaming could be heard. Whatever the boy had gotten a hold of was screaming, and it was loud.

 

It was easy to see that even with the beast in control, howl was only targeting enemy elements, feeding and using the terror tactics taught to it to drain enemy morale as its knife in the face of the impossible odds. The deeper the group goes, bodies can be seen, hung from poles and rafters, bullet casings litter the ground as the remains of a massive firefight surround them. Howl must have gotten the jump on a large enemy unit, and the attack seems to have just happened. 

 

moving past the display of power, the duo can see howl crouched over the corpse of several men, feeding. In the pale light, its easy to see why the parasite was called the alien. Its body was sleek and impossibly pristine. Vents like gills can be seen on its arms legs and sides, and its blade like protrusions on its forearms lent it an alien quality. lifting its head, its wolf like maw opens like a flytrap, revealing rows of fangs and three lashing tongues that taste the air, listening, tasting for life among the corpses.

[Armoured Priest]

Standing close to Oce, with hood drawn over he head and his dark cloak closed around him and hiding his slender frame and drawn shotgun, Barren watched the scene with yellow eyes in sunken grey skin with a gleam of child like amusement.  "....And you and him whined about how I eat." the younger boy chuckled, the sound reverberating in his metal mouth mask that was fashioned in a rictus parody of a toothy mouth, pointing at Howl in the midst of what looked like a buffet to the ghoul. It was a good thing he ate a ration before they got here, the hunger was only a slight naw at his concentration with the amount of food on the floor here and they had a job to do. And he didn't want to mess it up for his big sis. "Can we grab something to eat later? I'm huuungry." he asked his older sibling.

[Oce]

Oce allowed Barren to lead the way, hanging back only a few seconds before following the blood smears and shell casings. She didn't really see that much of a reason to waste energy on going stealthy, so she figured Barren would have shot his gun if it was required. As she caught up with Barren, her footsteps light but still there if you were listening for them, she rolled her eyes at the mess in front of them. "... He would probably use a fork if he could. But you?" She cast a teasing glance at her brother, a slight smirk on her lips even as he asked about their plans for dinner.

 

Every exhale she took was visible, the fog-like gas barely visible in the dim lighting. She raised her voice some when she spoke again, her words intended for Howl. "I never knew you liked shopping so much." She gestured to their surroundings with a sweeping motion, barely resisting the urge to smack her brother playfully. "Hopefully next time you'll take us along, Howl." There was a slight edge to her tone that she often used on Barren. "Now can we get outta here?" She shoved her hands into the pockets of her leather jacket, looking not very disturbed by the scene before them. Oce was actually kind of bored.

[Thugren]

howl made a nose somewhere between an annoyed growl and a huff, its head swinging and its mouth closes. almost callously it reaches down and throws a very specific corpse into the railing in front of where they stood, the body being impaled on the glass and its face exposed. The ringleaders Tienen Honsaou, the terrorist commander who had initiated the attack hangs in front of them, and howls turns, grabbing another corpse and tossing it up.

 

This one was a woman, a woman they both knew. The corpse lands with a heavy thud, and long purple hair hangs from the girls head, revealing the cold face of Obor Hinagi, Howls on and off girlfriend.

 

this behavior is odd, howl always came to heel at the tone, especially if oce was the one giving the command. It was one thing for barren to growl, but that would be settled in a show of power that barren knew was one sided, for howl to completely disregard orders, said something very plainly

 

"Its not over."

 

ignoring them both, and the body, howl turns and begins for the terminals exit as a roar of gunfire takes his arm off in a shower of black gore that makes the weapon scream in fury as it falls back into the darkness of the subway itself.

The gunfire follows the weapon deep into the subways as the duos earbuds chip.

 

"Hows it looking ."
 

A soft feminine voice says, the firm tone of their mssion director Gabriella hotoko says.

 

"Howls mental state is all over, but its not enough to push to stage four.. What can you give us , and should we send in another team to support?"

[Armoured Priest]

"Uh, he's been sort of....disarmed. I also think he broke up with his girlfriend for the last time." Barren said, trying to not laugh at his own pun as he spoke to Ms. Hotoko. He knew that never goes well for him. He kind of looked over to his sister and just shrugged. "I dunno if we need support, I think we can handle this. Buuut, do I have premission to use Light class Alleyway strangler?" He asked both their mission director and his older sibling with a smile under his iridum muzzle, something obvious for Oce to pick up on even if she didn't hear the enthusiasm in his voice. The boy thought it was a justified question with the dark subway and bad guys they couldn't see, but he really just want an excuse to play around in one of his other forms for a bit. He unslung his backpack in preparation of putting most of his things in it for her to carry with, since he wouldn't be able to if he was allowed to change. 

[Oce]

Oce grimaced at the puns her brother made, flicking his shoulder in a silent reprimand. "I don't believe that we will need support," she answered as she shot Barren a look. One that very clearly said 'you just want me to carry your stuff', as it was something she said frequently. "At least he only lost one arm.. Could have been his head," she shrugged, accepting the backpack and slinging it over one shoulder. 

 

"Just no engaging, okay? Even if one goes missing, it will put them on alert and it will make it much more challenging for us." While her eyes could barely make out Barren's facial muscles, she saw that he was smiling and she already knew that the warning was needed. 

 

Howl had killed his former girlfriend so he probably wasn't having that much fun with this attack, which made Oce sigh. Even though part of her was curious about who else Howl was so set on ending, it wasn't the greatest in terms of preparation. She sighed and gestured in front of her, "let the hunt continue."

[Thugren]

Power level...Blizzard allowed."

gabriella says in her normal tone, in response the machine on her neck slotted a dice of mutagenic nitrogen, suffusing Oces body with powerful shards of the cryo mutagen, also filling her veins with life renewing power.

 

"ALleyway strangler also allowed.... Please extract howl immediately , we beleive rouge elemnents know of his involvement and are closing in."

 

on barrns mouthpeuice a flood of horrid fluid is pushed down his throat as the mutagenic ghoul fluid couses in his veins.

 

 

 

below, howl presses himself deep into a corner. HIs body roils and expainds painfully as the alien creature shrinks, into a more humanoid form.

 

"fuck...I havent eaten enough...."

 

the young man groans in pain as his bloody stump grows back slowly.

[Armoured Priest]

Before the younger sibling could speak about not getting to fight, the bitter fluids forced their way down his throat and choked the words. No matter how many times it happened, he could never get use to the taste but it was something he put up with for what he could do afterwards. With sicking sounds of bones popping and flesh ripping itself apart before sewing itself together in a form, Barren laid himself against the cold concrete as his very genetic code got overridden. Crawling and slithering out of the pile of now very baggy clothes and cloak, the iridium mask clanking to the ground since it did not fit his new face, emerged a white serpentine creature with multiple red eyes around its cone like head structure. Standing one six blackened legs arranged around where his torso might be, His mouth parted to reveal needle like teeth and purplish gums and tongue as it formed a crude curve of a smile. "I dunno, sssoundsss like we'll have to 'engage' if we're getting ssstumpy out." Barren hissed, his voice reflecting his new form. He loved going into different forms, each one let him see the world around him in a different way. With Alleyway, he could see all of his surroundings at once like a panoramic photo, the iron taste in the air by the spilt blood even sharper than before, he could even feel the currents of electricity flowing in the streetlights and signs. He didn't have to even be afraid of the dark anymore like he was when he was a baby, such as the darkness of the subway below. "Come on! It'sss play time!" He declared before he made his way down the stairs. The serpent thing that was barren hugged the ground and looked for all kinds of cover he could use as he searched for the sent of both howl and the terrorist. He wanted to do the job right, not really for command but to make his sister proud. 

[Oce]

Oce tensed at their operator's words, trying and failing to resist the shudder as the additional nitrogen hit her veins. The rush of strength was addicting in more than one way, prompting the blonde to smirk at her brother before averting her gaze as he transformed into the permitted ghoul. She was familiar with the sickening crunching and cracking as bones shifted, or as much as she could be as her brother became a creature most of the world's population would deem revolting. Oce could handle his appearance after the change; her stomach didn't roll in disgust and never had. Barren was still in control. But the noises in combination of witnessing of her brother writhing in pain while she was powerless to ease it was what made her rigid. 

 

She bent down to scoop up Barren's mask and shoved it into the backpack before she sighed. "Howl could have came out of the subway a few exits down, but considering how quickly he lost an arm... He won't be able to keep pace. Just try not to get us shot at more then we need to be." She released a puff of air as she began creeping down the stairs into the subway almost regally; it was a challenge to move more than necessary. The coldness made her muscles slightly stiff, not making it challenging to move but instead requiring a bit more energy which could always be saved for combat. 

 

Oce actually enjoyed having her temperature so dramatically lowered compared to standard humans. While her transformation wasn't as dramatic as Barren's, she could mostly understand what it felt like to 'have unlimited power at your fingertips' as the saying went and thus never teased him excessively nor judged his forms. Their manifestations of power was different and she understood that if she reacted negatively, Barren wouldn't take it well. 

 

Her jaw clenched at the thought of harm coming to her brother because of she failed to protect him. Her failure led to him working alongside her for the Ho Siht. While she enjoyed his company, she viewed it as him becoming a pet of theirs and that would always be the reason why Oce never fully trusted their employers. She was waiting for the day they would be tossed aside for something they deemed more powerful. There would be no way for the Ho Siht to just allow the two to just walk away from this. And Howl? The poor bastard was condemned already and Oce pitied him for that. 

 

Howl was used to having the two siblings clean up his mess- as well as order him around. The cryomancer was simply thankful that he wasn't arrogant about it. She felt something between annoyance and rage at their charge being injured, and she was glad that she and Barren would be able to make the terrorists pay for the offence in blood.

[Thugren]

Howl.... in bringing your comm online."

Gabriella says, and soon the boys labored breathing can be heard. He's hurt, and bad.

He locks himself into a closet as he drags a fresh corpse in with him, his hand becoming a long blade as he jabs the weapon deep and the blood begins to siphon. Slowly, like a plant taking in water the symbiote feeds as he croaks.

" permission for level four... ripping roar..."

He croaks as his arm slowly regrows, and Gabriella tuts.

" allowed..."

She says with the simple strike of a keyboard , and the boy let's out a pained groan as his body tightens and the parasite reacts .

Barren and oce may have been used to all this, but the boy who was known as howl, a young man named tsyua wasn't. He wasn't a killer, or an operative . He was a boy, a boy with good grades that had just happened to be there when the damn thig got free and attacked.

A pained groan fills the comma feed as the boys bones hardened and erupted from his skin, mimicking the armor of the head takers with long bonelike protrustions from his arms. The chintinous mass covers his face like a porcelain smoothie mask and with a ragged gasp he says.

" beginning attack."

He erupts into the hall like a bundle of gnashing fangs and brings down one of the men with a scream. Long lengths of sinew and bone lag out, striking at his enemies as he leads them deeper into the subway yard , giving barren and oce room to move in.

Barren moves along the ceiling, moving through ducts and soon finds himself in a room. Two men stand over some prisoners, mostly children and women, and more than once he hears them say something to the effect of " hostages."



Oce on the other hand manages to move in behind the men as they follow howl. Four chase after the wounded weapon as two morebtry to get into a room that would give them access to the subway switching board.

The work with their backs to you, throwing their weight against the door with loud bangs as another scream down the hall speaks of howl getting another kill in his flight

[Armoured Priest]

Clutching the concrete ceiling while watching the two terrorist below, he thought on what he should do as the ghoul instincts keep rearing its head in his mind. One wouldn't be much of a problem, but the other guy would be able to act still. He needed to isolate them, get one of them to walk away or something. Thinking on the training he was given, and possibly movie inspirations, Barren decided on moving back to find something to cause a ruckus just outside line of sight of whoever stays to guard the hostages while the other one hopefully checks out the noise he was about to make with his hissing. Maybe they'll mistake him for howl too.

[Oce]

Oce's lips twitched as Howl's comm line opened; the closest she would allow herself get to a grimace in her current state. She was rather tolerant of the noises of the two ghoulish boys shifting, but knowing that the mass wasn't there to allow an 'easy' transformation and having a concept of the additional pain that brought made her the tiniest bit uneasy. It would be like being denied food for several days and then told to run a few miles; the energy wasn't there. 

 

As she crept down the subway line, her steps quiet and thus overwhelmed with the sound of gunfire and two bodies slamming against a heavy metal door, her 'prey' were completely oblivious to her presence. She hung back some, not desiring to breathe down their necks as she momentarily pondered how she wanted to kill them. Oce finally decided on being simple and efficient, allowing two ice spikes six inches in length form in her palms before easily launching them towards the men, each aimed towards their lower spine.

[Thugren]

one of the men looks up and says something to the other who nods. He moves out into the hallway and looks around, standing just out of the safety of the light as he looks around, saying simply.

 

"I dont see aanything.."

 

 

-----------

 

Both icicles find their mark, and the men scream, their bodies seized in pain as the ice begisn to eat and grow along their spine, paralyzing them.

 

they spasm and groan o nthe floor, before a horrible scream fills ths the comm from howl.

 

He was screaming... Not in anger or fury, but in pain. His vitals where going insane and the mental state that kept him under control was being pushed incredibly fast.

 

"No no no no no.."

 

Gabrielle yelps as she begins working, using her tools to pump hjowls body with the painful stimms that would bring him back down into manageable levels.

 

'The enemy has predator ghouls.... An alpha.. FUck... The mission timer has been pushed, oce, i want you to  get into that switching room now, if we can we need to buy howl time before.."

the c omm cuts breifly leaving only static

[Armoured Priest]

And with those words, Barren dropped from the ceiling and hopefully straight down onto the guard that just spoke. He imagined it like the scene you would see in a scifi horror movie where the sneaking monster would get the 'drop' on one of the human characters. It would have made him giggle, if he wasn't already intent on wrapping his body around the neck and then chomp his mouth over the guy's face to choke him out, his six arms ready to latch onto the terrorist's incase he tried to shoot or stab barren off.

[Oce]

Oce twitched as Gabrielle yelped in her ear, Howl's almost pitiful scream prompting her to approach the door quickly instead of finishing off the two men paralyzed on the ground at her feet. Hovering a hand over the door's lock, she quickly tried to freeze the metal until it was brittle enough to be broken with a sharp yank to the doorknob. 

[Thugren]

you land with a heavy thud and he lets out a muffled yelp as he is born down, your hands strangling the life from him. He quickly dies, his eyes bulging and straining as the life slowly leaves him, leaving him still.

 

"Koya?"

 

the man in the room asks, looking at the wall of shadow.

 

"Koya  where are you?"

 

he asks as he comes out of the room, standing in the doorway.

 

 

----------------------------------
 

 

 

the door snaps and opens as you move up.

 

YOu can see the entire ralway switching station, lines and lines of the unmoving carts, and standing in the middle, holding howl impaled like fish on a hook is a massive bewast.

 

It stands at least twelve feet tall, it stands on two hooved legs and long bone blades protrude from its forearms. It has a bull like face, and you can see it smirking with its vicious lips as howl struggles with the blade in his stomach.

 

"OF course.."

 

gabriella huffs as she begins tweaking howls body, earning more pained screams as howls body shifts to meet her demands.

 

'Oce... There should be a computer there in a locked state.. I want you to activate it and send the track that thing is standing on into maintenance mode."

 

to your right you seee a computer blink to life and you can see that it is simple, a touch screen that has all the tracks marked. On the middle of the screen you can see the words 

"Obstruction found.. Enable maintenance?"

[Armoured Priest]

Barren uncoiled him serpentine body from around the corpse's throat, unlatching his claws from the now rigid arms, and tried to resist the urge to feast. The body was still warm and it was his kill, unlike the cold cuts up above made by howl. If he was in a larger strain of ghoul, his stomach would have growled with insistance on giving in to the instinct. With eyes on the other guard and on the body, his mind reached an impasse on what to do, making him freeze where he was, till he heard a soft feminine voice whisper a single word. 'Kill.' 'Mother' told him, an answer rather than a command, and the Alleyway strangler coiled itself up before launching at the remaining terrorist like a spring loaded jack in the box with jaws agape to snap over the man's face.

[Oce]

Oce's body instinctively gravitated towards the consoles even as her gaze was focused on the screen displaying her charge. Her arm was already moving as Gabriella's words reached her, immediately jabbing the on-screen button to enable maintenance. She was already backing out of the room before she forced herself to stand still, her voice low; "Is there anything else to do in here, or shall I go assist in person?" 

[Thugren]

DO not engage that beast Oce."

Gabriealla commands as the tracks begin to whir, soon there is a loud clang and a train whirs across the tracks, slamming into the predator and smashing it in between another train car. crushing it .

 

Howl is flung across the room and lands in a broken heap not too far away from you, clawing at the ground as he weakly tries to stand, his body working to repair the incredible damage.

 

"Take howl and move deeper into the subway, I will have simulate a prompt of the mother and send barren that way as well."

TO your left a maintenance door opens leading down a dark length of hallway

----------------

 

your jaws engulf the mans head and snap it free, and soon another command pulses in your mind.

 

"Retreat.."

 

 

it says, as the hostages look at you in terror. The body falls and you can hear the death wail of something big as a loud bang can be heard.

[Armoured Priest]

Barren lifted his conical head up from his second kill as he heard mother speak to him again, giving him a command this time instead. He gave a quick glace to the hostages. "You all need to run, like right now. Go!" he told them, flicking his tail towards the exit before hauling off down deeper into the tunnel to find Oce and howl, lifting this body off from the ground and using his arms for faster locomotion instead of slithering there.