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Pay Disrespect to the Dead
Topic Started: Jan 27 2017, 04:22 PM (1,924 Views)
SoIo
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Eileen had almost winced as she had already accepted the needles to meet its target. Though when the attack did not arrive, she immediately focused her sights back onto Henry who was getting viciously attacked by Red. Letting out a quick sigh of relief, Eileen took the chance of Henry's loosened grip on her shirt and lifted both her feet up. She used Henry's still hand as an axle and delivered a mighty uppercut kick, landing roughly underneath his cheek. Henry released his grip on Eileen and she flipped backwards, skidding against the ground and landing smoothly.

Before Henry could get back up, Eileen rushed over and swiftly let out a punch, hitting his jaw and sending his head back to the ground. Henry coughed out a small spurt of blood in reaction, but he was still conscious. Eileen then climbed on top of him and immediately cuffed Henry's two hands before he could pull off another surprising move. Henry growled loudly as he tried to move desperately with his feet, but Eileen made sure her target was put down.

"I got you!"

As soon as Eileen had declared so, Augusta had used her other free arm to hold out a small knife. Though, Lang was unable to see this as she had camouflaged herself with paint. Quickly, she cut herself loose from the webs and had once again began to hide herself with the elusive paint. In addition, she also splattered Lang's spider webs, making it more obscure for him to see. Before she could retaliate, Henry immediately yelled for her attention.

"NO! Leave, Augusta! You need to carry through..."

Despite his orders, Henry was still trying to escape and he had almost done so by sheer strength. She needed to silence him or he could become a liability. She once again unloaded another strong punch, this time at his temples, and knocked Henry's face down to the ground again. This time it knocked him out cold. Eileen frantically looked around, waiting for an attack upon her. She tried to listen for Augusta as she was well disguised, but it appeared the artist had become more careful, due to being caught easily by Lang. However, there was a brief moment of silence as the criminal did not make her move.

Suddenly, a blast of smoke comprising of vast colors enveloped on where Augusta used to be. Eileen quickly deduced what Augusta was doing; the colors would most definitely obscure the eyes, while the hissing of the gas would cover her footsteps. She was escaping. Eileen helplessly stared at the smoke as Augusta made her escape, with nothing that both Lang and Eileen could do to track her down. The Marine let out a small growl. Based on Henry's words, he was most likely letting Augusta carry through with whatever their plan is. Therefore, she was still a threat. Thankfully, they were able to at least capture a person and could now use him to extort more information out of him. This man was a rather interesting fellow...and she knew why. No wonder Lieutenant Jackson was able to recognize him.

Eileen heard a cry for her name. Turning around, she could see that Marine reinforcements were within line of sight, running towards her. She saw the horizon starting to reveal a sunrise, indicating that morning has risen. Eileen slowly rose from Henry's inactive body patted some dust out of her clothes. As the Marines arrived, she relayed instructions to them. She then looked back at Lang and nodded towards him. "Thanks for looking out for me. We're unfortunately not done yet. I'm going to take him back to base and see what information I can get out of him. In the meantime, you should try to track down Augusta. I'll have some Marines accompany you in your search. We still don't know what plan they have in store, and that scares me. I'll contact you once I get something out of him. I trust you'll do the same. And also..."

She reached out and held out her hand on his shoulder. "Get some rest before you investigate. You definitely deserve it." Quite ironic, because she herself had barely gotten any.
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

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Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

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Lang remained quite still. He was so brazen in fact to keep his hands tucked gently into his pockets. He had several to spare, after all, and Augusta wasn't so threatening that he'd likely need them. Even if she was, his intentions weren't entirely driven by arrogance; she was shaken already by their encounter, to at least act so confident and composed would, in theory, loosen her own confidence even more. There were more ways to convince someone other than just through words, after all.

Still, he slipped up just slightly in narrowing his eyes. That ability of hers was a pain and made let her hide away all sorts of utilities. It was obvious she must have had a knife of some kind; he doubted very much that she'd be able to wretch away his webs so easy, but with er paint running as it was it was damn near impossible to see save for a slight glimmer. In but a moment she was free and about once more. Augusta, however, was a smart individual that learned from her mistakes. She took much greater caution in her movements, didn't trip and blunder a tune straight to Lang's ears. He tensed in preparation of another attempted attack, but instead all he received was another smokescreen and the faint patter of footsteps as she made another break for it. One foot fell forward, about to give chase, but Eileen...

Lang hesitated, and made his choice. It was accompanied by a slight grimace, but he turned around to check on the others. Red was fine, of course, nothing short of a Titanic weapon being able to keep her down, while Eileen seemed relatively unscathed too. Henry had seen better days, but was due nothing more than a headache. All the same, he asked, "Are you alright?" as Red clambered back onto his shoulder. He offered a smile and nod, too, once it was clear she really was unhurt. "Can't be done when there's still a criminal on the loose, certainly," he agreed. "Still, she can't have gone far, and I'm certain she won't try to leave the island. She'd be capable, with those abilities of hers, but by the sounds of it they're too far down the rabbit hole now, far too committed to whatever this master plan is."

Delicate fingers stroked at a smooth chin that had never seen a single hair. The thought train was suddenly derailed by Eileen's suggestion, and her closeness. "Rest?" he parroted, making sure he had heard right. It was true that he'd been up all night on stake out duty; an act that went against his nature. He had learnt to suppress the innate need for a good nap, but on Eileen's reminder it had come surging back and tugged at his muscles, dragging them down into a slump. "I suppose you're right. I'm concerned about our timeframe, however. If Henry - the chemical side of their collaboration - isn't needed for Augusta to continue work or carry it out, then they may be further along than we had anticipated. I'd rather whatever it was didn't explode before we can get them both behind bars. Assuming of course they're the only two." he stifled a yawn and scratched at his throat. "I'll give myself a few hours," he concluded. "But beyond that, we crack this case before sundown. I assure you, I'm very good at rest, when it's warranted, but I haven't earned my treats yet."

The Marines piling into the street gave him a few quirky looks and he realized he hadn't put the accessories away. With a slight cough, the extra arms and hair and abdomen retreated and Lang was human once more. He gave them all a honey-laced smile and began in the direction of the hotel. "Try to get some kip yourself. Lack of sleep can result in addled perception and even hallucinations, you know. Given their arsenal, I don't think you'd be helping us so much as you'd be helping them if you don't let yourself collapse for a while." It was a semi-serious suggestion, gilded with a little humor to ease it from the status of scolding. With a final wave, Lang turned off the street and walked briskly back towards the hotel. He got no comments, lip, or denial that time and was free to walk in the door and collapse onto their temporary bed.
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Eileen let out a soft sigh as she slumped over the body upon the provided stretcher. She placed both of her hands on her hips as she stared at the unconscious Henry being transported away. "Yeah, I'm alright. Thanks for asking." She then turned her head to face Lang and smirked. "Before sundown? I'll take your word for it. In the meantime, you're right, I'll rest too." She lightly chuckled as the two returned to their respective quarters.



12 Hours Later...

"Don't want to play captain obvious here, but it is almost sundown...damn, we still can't find her?" Eileen held the Marine snail transponder close to her as her eyes were closed, intensely focused. She had opened a line Lang. "Alright...well, let me know. I believe you can find her, Lang. I just hope it isn't too late. In the meantime, Henry has finally awoken. It's about time I talk to him."

She tucked away the Mushi and Eileen walked into the room, briskly closing the door behind her. She looked upon the now conscious Henry, who was chained to the metal table by cuffs. She could still see the small wound that she had inflicted to knock out Henry. He was avoiding eye contact. She let out a soft sigh as she approached the seat opposite of Henry. She looked towards the reflecting windows, to which she knew the Marine Captain and a few Ensigns were carefully watching from behind. As soon as she sat down to face Henry, the man redirected his attention and stared at Eileen. It wasn't a cold stare...but rather, one of peculiar curiosity.

Many thoughts raced through her head as much was unraveled during the day. She had so much to say to him, and so much she wanted to know from him. But, she had to take it slow. And so, she spoke, her voice reverberating around the interrogation room.

"Former Marine Lieutenant Henry Koln. Graduated as one of the top students from his class in Silvershine Island, primarily specializing as an Assassin." She paused a bit. No wonder he was familiar; Eileen had probably seen him a few times when she was studying at the same academy. "Went missing for 6 months after defending this island from a pirate raid. Presumed to be dead from a cannon...until now. I assume that cannonball took out one of your legs. As a result of this, you felt the Marines had abandoned you. And so, hidden within this island, you came across Augusta. Both of you decided to team up and enact some sort of vengeance or vendetta by vandalizing all around the island. However..." Eileen clasped both of her hands together. "I don't believe that. You must have another agenda, something I'm not understanding. Perhaps..." She then looked towards the window and coldly glanced at the Captain, reminding him of the argument they had the night before.

"You seem angry. Enraged at the current culture of this island. The Marines refused to actively change it because of tradition. Therefore, if you didn't have the support of an organization, then you yourself sought to change it."

Still no reaction from Henry was elicited. Eileen's lips curved as she continued to press on. "Using your advanced skills with chemicals, you made a fear toxin. A very powerful one, bringing out the strongest fears of your enemies and bringing it to life. It affected many Marines, putting a few into critical condition." Lieutenant Jackson sprung up to mind as he was hit the hardest.

"However, I was told that you used the gas upon yourself to release it around you...both you and Augusta were unaffected. You must have come up with an antidote. Both of you used it to resist your own fear toxin." A reaction. Henry's eyes wavered, almost as if it was with excitement. Eileen still continued.

"This fear toxin...it sounds like the main proponent to whatever you have planned. How does it complement your graffiti and vandalizing of tombstones? Are you taking advantage of the people's beliefs here? Make their fears of the dead realized? Proving something wrong to them? Do I still need to keep talking?"

"No. You've already talked enough." Eileen's body almost jumped as the response was almost instantaneous. "I am amazed...I expected nothing less from Captain Falkner's daughter. Your father is an amazing man, many Marines look up to him. And my, oh my. You are smart." He slowly enunciated the last three words. A smile crept up upon Henry's face. Eileen twitched upon the mention of her father.

"Tell me Eileen...what purpose do you think you serve as a Marine? I'd like to know the answer to this question."

She felt puzzled to the question presented to her. "I don't see how this is relevant to what we're talking about."

"Answer the question. If you do, I'll reveal more about my plan."

Both Eileen and Henry stared at each other. Henry wanting to pry an answer out of her while Eileen was trying to take some information out of him. She let out a moderate exhale and responded. "My intention as a Marine is to protect the seas against piracy. But, I want to protect people from evil. Innocent men and women do not have to suffer just because people like to embrace the darkness."

"Even if it's to protect something you vehemently are against? Breaking a moral code, perhaps?"

She felt a bit stiff; this man was talking about a topic she was personally struggling with. "Again, I don't see how this is relevant. I'm here to ask you what do you plan to do to this island. Not talk about morality!"

"You've seen it, Eileen. The priests, the citizens, the children. Why must they all live like this? Perhaps if you learned the true history behind this island, you would understand why I am currently pursuing this...crusade, you could say."

"...What?"

She could hear a commotion behind the windows as the reaction to Henry's words seemed to have evoked a much larger reaction from the Marine Captain than what was intended for Henry. Eileen wavered her eyes between the window and Henry, before deciding to press her irresistible curiosity forward. "What do you mean?"

"...I'm talking about the history that there was a grand war here. That is all false."

(OOC EDIT: Forgot that Eileen opened a line of communication to Lang earlier)
Edited by SoIo, Jul 19 2017, 04:04 PM.
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

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Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

Ray Solo


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No person is invisible, not entirely. Perhaps Augusta had the means to fade from sight, but she couldn't erase all signs of her presence. Every individual was a dripping faucet above a grand ocean, every action a droplet that caused a ripple in the greater fabric. Small, perhaps, often lost among the countless others forming the roaring seas of the Grandline, but the ripple was there and it could be traced with the right technique.

Lang stood quietly in the corner of a post office, quietly leafing through the pages of a local business directory while the small squad of Marines he had been assigned stood around outside trying to shake off the boredom by playing some trading card game on the sidewalk. Eileen was just as busy as he was, and the two had an open and continuous channel going, shared with the other Marines helping them in the hunt. On the one hand Lang was glad of the progress, and glad to have gotten some rest, on the other however was the fact that they may be sitting on a ticking time bomb. Possibly in a literal sense, and he'd had quite enough of being in the vicinity of deadly weapons.

The metal embedded in his chest ached, but forced himself past the pain with a grunt and kept his focus scanning the pages of the directory. He just needed to piece together a trail from the breadcrumbs Augusta and Henry had inevitably left behind. Aside from a few annoying outliers like a particular set of weapons or the more legendary Devil Fruit abilities, island-wide devastation did not come cheap or without a great many resources. If Augusta and Henry's plan really was to flood the island with a chemical weapon, they'd need industrial grade equipment alongside vast quantities of reagent. The sort of thing one couldn't move without records. As his finger crawled down the page, it suddenly came to a stop and Lang's eyes came alight.

Dynamo Chemical Solutions Inc. An international chemical company selling both base compounds as well as the equipment needed to manufacture them. Not based on Cactus, oh no, such a prestigious and wide-scale company wouldn't touch a strange little island like Cactus, no doubt preferring the less insane avenues of Mariejois or St. Poplar or some such. They did, however, maintain a warehouse and outlet on Cactus; where there was a city and sizable population, there was business, after all, even if many of the residents were in the clutches of one of the more bizarre religions the world had on offer.

Confident, Lang strode back out into the street and signaled for the soldiers. They were happy to have something to do, and were itching for a chance at revenge after what Henry had done to their friends back in the graveyard. It was very apparent they had high hopes for Lang, and that relations between them would go south very quickly if he failed to find her. Not that he was afraid of any such outcome. Augusta was not a seasoned criminal, she was a painter that had stumbled into the wrong line of ambition for whatever misguided reason. He was confident the trail would be forthcoming. "You got something, Mr. Spinne, sir, have you?"

"I do. And I'm going to need you and your uniforms with me." That was something of a lie. He didn't strictly need them, but they'd save him the effort of pretending.




The walk to the warehouse was not terribly far, being situated on the docks not all that removed from the Marine outpost. It wasn't much of a store; primarily just a resting stop for ships coming in and out of the Grandline to more lucrative spots, and somewhere they could dump any excess goods. They didn't even have a proper full-time clerk. Instead, Lang had to mash at a bell in the stuffy office. They hadn't bothered waste any beli sprucing the place up or on a fan to stop it becoming an oven. He wondered if any of their product would explode if brought into that room.

Eventually a beefy warehouse worker in overalls and weathered cap emerged. "Help ya?" he chatted, preemptively grabbing at forms and manifests. Lang stopped him by jabbing a finger at one of the very books he was shifting. "Yes, actually. I need to see your local sale records."

They took a moment to stare at each other. Lang smiled all the way. "Uh. Confidential info that is. I divin' think-" The Marines following Lang slowly filed in the fill the room. In reality they only added to the stuffiness, but Lang liked to think they also helped contribute to the bead of sweat that began to drip down the man's forehead. "Ah. O-fficial business is it then."

"That it is, yes."




Augusta, and Henry for that matter, hadn't been very smart when preparing for their big debut. Maybe they thought no-one would have caught on and such caution hadn't been necessary. They'd made something of an effort, using fake names and signatures. But the warehouse was a small one and run by a small staff. When described, several of the warehouse workers recognized them and linked their faces to the names and addresses in their manifests. Another quick check of the local directories and they were on their way.

No. 13, Felt Street, Velvet Tip. Felt Street was one of those still mostly in shambles and hand't quite been restored yet, despite a few scaffolds here and there. No. 13, however, was one of the few buildings still standing intact. It was, ironically, an old medical building Henry and Augusta had told shipping staff was the site of a new start-up research lab. "You sure this is the place?" one Marine asked as he looked the building up and down with scorn. It seemed mostly deserted.

Except for the smell. Copper. Sulfur. Faint, but enough to agitate the sinuses with a deep enough breath. A passerby probably wouldn't notice, but there was activity in that building and it radiated a foul but subtle miasma. "I'm certain. Weapons at the ready. I can't say with certainty what we'll find in there, but no doubt there will be more of that fear gas. You've seen what it does to people." They all nodded, cradled their rifles and tightened their grips on their swords. Cautiously, they began to surround the building and its entrances. Lang followed his nose and the crawling of his skin.

The ground floor was abandoned. Littered with dust and old leaflets almost entirely rotted away. His Den Den buzzed softly and he brought it to his ear. "Pipes, I've found pipes round the back," a Marine whispered. "Look like they might be some kind of ventilation thing. They go underground." Sure enough the smell grew worse as Lang approached a stairway and a brownish cloud rose from below. Cloth to his mouth and nose, Lang descended.

The lab was impressive, but without Henry to guide her, Augusta was a fumbling mess, constantly running back and forth to check notes and manuals carefully written in case Henry was indisposed. Lang was able to stand a moment and take in every valve, vat and boiler before Augusta noticed him. "Hello again," he said.
Edited by Bright, Jul 19 2017, 04:42 PM.
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(OOC: Giving the Captain a slightly different blue, while generalizing all NPC Marines as the same blue.)

Unfortunately, Augusta had all the time to prepare without Henry. And it was enough. "You...You're already too late!"

She dropped her notes and immediately camouflaged herself to hide out of sight. A few seconds later, a loud CLANG reverberated throughout the room. The fear toxin was released and began to spread around the entirety of Velvet Tip and Cactithedral. It came out of the pipes and even the defaced tombstones. The citizens walking around were hit immediately. Agonizing screams surrounded places as their fears were becoming realized. Visions of pirates attacking and people rising from the dead enveloped the feared priests and citizens. The graffiti drawings on the wall also came to life, with Leander Hasting becoming a reality to the affected. People were driven into uncontrollable insanity, where a few even started to attack each other while others were simply lost and surrendered. While people were safe indoors, everyone outside was affected.



"This stops now."

Eileen's ears perked when she heard the door swung wide open. Alerted, she stood up as The Marine Captain stepped into the interrogation room. He boldly approached Henry and lifted the ex-Marine out of his seat, maximizing the tensions of the chains that Henry was bound to. Eileen acted in alarm as she stepped towards the Captain, but did not dare touch him. Henry wore a smug look on his face.

"What are you going to do...Captain?"

"I might as well permanently silent you before you jeopardize the protocol.

"CAPTAIN! What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Eileen screamed as she watched the tension unravel between the two. The way the captain reacted to Henry's attempts to reveal history made Eileen connect a few more pieces to the puzzle. Not only that, she wanted to hear more from Henry. "You're hiding something, aren't you? There's more to than just this supposed island "tradition". Am I right? You've been lying to me! To us!"

The captain continued to glare at Henry, without even bothering to turn his head towards Eileen. "Are you seriously going to believe this man? He is the one lying and manipulating you."

"He sounds more believable than you do. There are only two types of liars. Ones that lie to protect other people, or ones that lie to protect themselves. Which one are you, Captain?"

There was a brief silence after Eileen's sudden question, until the Captain coldly replied. "Now that is a question better asked to the Vice Admirals."

Before she could press on, a Marine walked in with complete urgency. "SIR! We have an emergency..." Everyone turned towards the soldier. Eileen could only surmise correctly on what this emergency was. "...A gas blast of what is a fear toxin has erupted throughout Cactus Island. It all came from those defaced tombstones! The citizens, everyone is affected. We're all in chaos."

She almost gasped. The Captain's eyes almost twitched. Immediately, he released his grip on Henry and brushed past Eileen and the soldier. He barked out to Eileen and the remaining Marine. "LEAVE THAT MAN ALIVE FOR ME, EILEEN! That is an order!" Now it was just the three of them.

Eileen slowly turned towards Henry with a look of shock on her face as the door slammed behind the Captain. She was breathing loudly. If this is true...then hundreds of people were subjected to the fear toxin...possibly Lang too. She closed her eyes as she recalled the evidence images she had received in her briefing, and the tombstone they had analyzed earlier. She remembered scavenging through the tomb and the corpse that lied there. The corpse...she never bothered looking into the corpse. The fingernails they found, it also contained residue of another person; a corpse in this case. Eileen looked at Henry's hand to see the ripped mark off of his nails. "You...you hid a remote gas explosion inside the corpses. The test tube...you were making the homemade gas explosion on the spot."

"Ahaa...I shouldn't be surprised that someone as clever as you could figure that out. Yes, that is correct. There are some areas that don't have as many pipes, so we decided to hit those areas by putting the fear toxin inside the tombs. Unfortunately, you're a little too late."

Eileen stared at the ground floor before growling at Henry. She slammed her fist against the table, to which Henry barely reacted. "You're harming people out there! I may understand your vendetta you have against the Marines, but why do the citizens have to be affected!? We're your targets, not them! What are you hoping to achieve...?"

"Killing to prove a point is...pointless. The effects are more lasting when people are alive. No one will understand the way this cult has warped their mindset. So, this is my way to force understanding. When you're susceptible to fear, you are vulnerable. Anything you listen to will make sense."

"You aren't any different than the cult themselves. Your attempts to brainwash them aren't ethical. You are making your own cult."

"Ethical!? What has been done to this island isn't ethical! I want to save this island, BELIEVE ME EILEEN! I want to save them as much as you want to! I've thought of this for the past 6 months. The people...the children. They don't have to mourn meaninglessly like this anymore. I can start a new life for them all, and that can be done without killing anyone." Henry let out a soft sigh. "Maybe if I told you the truth, then it could change your mind. The truth about this island, Eileen. And with this truth, you can understand why I want to achieve this goal."

The Marine that was with them was fidgeting uncomfortably throughout the entire exchange. "You seriously think we're going to listen to this guy? Eileen, let's leave and j-" Immediately, Eileen threw a cold look at the Marine. "Leave us. That is an order, soldier. If you trust me, you will let me do what I need to do." The poor Marine froze at Eileen's sudden change in demeanor. Reluctantly, he nodded and stepped out of the room. Eileen then stared at Henry and dangerously whispered.

"I'm listening..."

A slight smile crept up on Henry while Eileen's expression remained stoic. "Now as I said...there wasn't a grand war here. It never happened. 100 years ago, bounty hunters used to rule this place. They would kill rookie pirates and bury them here..." And so Eileen listened to Henry. She listened intently to the history of this island. The bounty hunters under Baroque Works, how they would feign parties and later kill the pirates. And then, the Strawhat Pirates came to stop their antics. And she knew he was telling the truth based on the look of his eyes. But most of all...this story was just captivating. Although this was something normal Bounty Hunters would do (in terms of catching their prey), the fact that the Strawhats had this much of an impact only fueled her interest even more.

Eileen's expression looked incredulous after hearing the story. "The people...while they are mourning for the dead, they are mourning them for the wrong reason. They aren't mourning soldiers who fought for their lives...they are mourning criminals."

The puzzle was almost completed. "And this story...the Marines didn't want anyone to figure out the past King of the Pirates and their history. It's a taboo to them. That's why they opted for this kind of culture instead." Eileen saw Henry nod. So now it was clear. She surmised that Henry must have been sick of the way the Marines dealt with this island. His compassion for other people led him to take action for himself.

There was still one lingering question. "How are you going to have everyone know about this?"

"Remember...when people are in fear...they lose control of themselves and become susceptible to their surroundings. Their surroundings become a warped reality. And I will bring that reality to life."

"You need to broadcast something to let everyone know, at least throughout the island."

"The fear toxin is giving off a radio frequency to everyone affected by it."

"So, you have a radio tuner...tune into that frequency and then broadcast whatever you have to say through that frequency."

"Correct." He laid his back to the seat. "While the tuner is operational, it still needs a few tweaking to make it more effective. And with your expertise...you could help me." Eileen raised her eyebrow as Henry offered a daring request. She twaddled with her fingers against the table, lost in deep thought. Eileen was almost in agreement with the man. Many thoughts raced through her head as she continued to stare at Henry, as if she was studying him. Henry then clasped his hands together. "You're in conflict. I can see it in your eyes. Well, I've already made a recording of what I said. So how about this? You let me go. And once the truth has been all revealed, I will surrender myself and subject myself to any punishment you Marines seemingly like to justify. But I did this knowing that I saved an island." He edged closer to Eileen. "I gave them freedom."

What should she do? She was in agreement with Henry...but she was also a Marine. To Henry, letting him do his crusade was correct. To the Marines, keeping him here was correct. But to her...what was the correct course of action?

"So, Eileen. What are you going to do now?"

She exhaled deeply as she continued to ponder over his question. As much as she wanted to improve this island's culture, it still didn't ignore the fact that innocent men and women were now being affected outside of the base. She approached Henry's side and slid her hands into her pocket, ready to take out something. She could see Henry adjust his mouth into a grin as he was anticipating a key to his cuffs. However, when Eileen took out the item from her pocket, Henry's grin would quickly transition into that of astonishment. Instead of keys in her hands, Eileen took out a Den Den Mushi. The same Mushi she had used to communicate with Lang. And to anyone that was familiar on how to operate one, the line was still open. The snail had absorbed every piece of information ever since Eileen had entered into the room.

"...This entire conversation was recorded...and relayed to my friend. He's going to stop this. And he's going to stop you and Augusta." Though, Eileen was not aware that the Marines accompanying Lang were also on the same line, hence hearing the entire story.

"You have made a grave mistake, Eileen..."
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

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Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

Ray Solo


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Lang held the Den Den Mushi in his palm, for him and Augusta to hear the whole story as it came pouring, impassioned and enraged, out of Henry. "You know," Lang said, as he pocketed the snail, the tirade over, "when someone discovers a great truth, they tend to publish an article about it. Maybe interview some historians, collaborate research, maybe hold a conference on the matter. They don't tend to resort to all... this," he scoffed, gesturing to the industry filling the room. Of course Augusta was already out of sight, but he knew she was watching and waiting for a chance to strike or otherwise slip away. "It's a bizarre means to an end, even if the intention isn’t one of malice.” Hands in pockets, he took a closer look at some of the equipment; flasks and vats, all bubbling away like the contents of a true lair ought to. Smashing them would be a pointless endeavour at that point. Augusta had already triggered whatever grand event she and Henry had planned, and scrap metal didn’t serve as brilliant evidence, not that they especially needed much more of it. The pair of them had done enough already to ensure they never slept peacefully for the rest of their lives, assuming they somehow managed to squirm their way out of capture.

"Desperate measures for desperate times. Don't you see how necessary this is?"

Lang sighed, continued to walk casually - though mentally alert - around the laboratory. "We've already had this talk, Augusta. I don't think any good can come of this."

"W-Well, maybe you ought listen to your own words for a change. Perhaps this time you thought wrong!"

Echoes bouncing off metal and glass. Augusta had the terrain advantage, that was for sure; pinning her down through her voice alone was tricky, and it seemed to bounce around from several angles at once. Lang sniffed, approached a large switch connected to the biggest of the vats. Pipes snaked out of its top and joined a ventilation system that ran off presumably across much of the island. "Do you remember what Henry said, about being able to achieve your goals without killing anyone? Is that because he has a supply of the antidote hooked up to a similar distribution system, or sheer naivety?"

"W... What are you talking about?"

She was close. With a flick of that switch Lang could turn off the system. Wouldn't help those already effected, but at the very least it'd stop the pumping of yet more toxin into the air. Of course he didn't expect to be able to make a move like that without a sword making a shot for his gut. "Psychology 101, Augusta. People have one of two reactions to fear; flight... or fight. When maggots start crawling out their eyes or demons start chasing them through the streets, people are either going to run away, or start swiping and shooting with everything they have. One poor confused man stumbles across another, who sees him as a pirate come to loot his house and kill his family. What does he do? He whips out a pocket knife and stabs him a hundred times in the heart. 'Anything you listen to will make sense?' Please. I'm getting the impression you two haven't seen a person's world collapse around them, a person who is truly afraid. Nothing makes sense, and they'll kick out, lash out, rebel against everything their senses pick up if they think it'll help them survive a little longer. And this is even assuming your toxin only causes visual effects. Who's to say Henry's 'truth' won't just come across as the screams of the damned?"

Slowly, Lang reached out. But he deliberately paused. There was a shift in the eye, a quiet tapping of feet, and then the touch of steel against his skin. He'd impale himself if he breathed too hard. "Don't. This... this needs to be done. I won't let people suffer this perverted cu-"

"Augusta, they are suffering right now! Can't you hear them?" And though they were hidden away underground and surrounded by rattling machinery, the screams of the people above could indeed be heard echoing from above. The hand holding the blade was quivering. "Let me shut off the machine, Augusta. Let's talk about this."
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"Please enlighten me on how I've made a mistake."

She could hear Lang's conversation with Augusta, signifying that he was onboard to thwart their plans, no matter how morally correct it felt to expose true history. However, she was still in conflict. She heard Lang's remark about just exposing it to the public. But Lang underestimated the Marines' capabilities of silencing anything that appears as a threat to them. This situation was certainly no exception. If Henry had come out to the public, he would have been severely discredited and shamed. No one would want to listen to the minority thought due to bliss ignorance of their majority thought. From what Eileen could see, Henry felt he had no choice. She knew he needed to act in some way, and with urgency.

The Marines have tried so hard to hide this, and yet they were willing to ruin hundreds of lives by enforcing this culture. But Henry's method was still wrong...him hurting hundreds of people was never a good justification to get the point across, regardless of his decent consideration of human morality. Both sides of ideals were in conflict against each other, so why did Eileen choose to continue fighting for the Marines? Was it because she still believed in the Marine ideology, no matter how corrupt it may seem? Did it feel more right to be with the Marines?

Before she could continue pondering, Henry had already responded. The tone sounded disappointing. "I really thought you were going to agree with me, Eileen. I'm sorry that it has to be like this."

The lights flickered. And they flickered continuously. Eileen looked around in slight shock, beginning to fear of the sudden change in environment. She then looked back at Henry, who's expression turned slyer with each light that gleamed. She kept her eye on Henry, in which something mysterious began to happen. Slowly, like leafing through a sequential picture book, Henry was suddenly out of his cuffs! Eileen widened her eyes as Henry slowly rose out of his seat. "You are far from understanding my skill. Allow me to show you."

He immediately made his move. Eileen's adrenaline rushed as she intensely focused. However, the temporal light and darkness almost made it as if Henry was disappearing at certain time intervals. With a swift jab, Henry shot a left hook right at Eileen's face. While she made her attempt to dodge it, she was too slow to anticipate the move and received half the blow. She let go of the Mushi snail upon receiving the attack. She stumbled to the side as she held onto her newly roughed cheek. She quickly looked back to find her opponent, but the man used the darkness to his advantage again.

"The darkness is your greatest ally as an assassin. USE IT!"

Her eyes travelled around. Despite the small room they were in, it felt like Henry was all over the place. Suddenly, she made note of Henry's use of his feet within the switches between light and darkness. Before she could fully analyze, Henry went up again for another attack. This time, Eileen was able to dodge it with one of her arms. But not before Henry used his other free hand to move towards Eileen's right shoulder.

And not just his hand...but also a needle was punctured into her muscle. She let out a soft gasp in surprise. What...we cleared his belongings! How was he able to hide more items!?" As soon as Henry took out his hand, Eileen could feel the effects almost immediately. And the effects were familiar. No...not the fear toxin. No... She breathed loudly as she tried to cycle air throughout her body.

Henry continued to stand next to her as the lights continued to flicker. His expression looked to be ambitious and quite severe. "If you were in my shoes...you would do the same thing. See you around, Eileen." Henry then dealt another blow to her stomach, which caused her to reel and fall onto the floor.

Then the fear toxin took its effect as her vision felt warped. Her surroundings began changing into an ominous color. Her eyes stared at the door, to which Henry began to exit out of. She could barely make out the Marine who was standing guard.

"What do you think you're doi- GAH!!!"

No...No...I...I have to wake up. WAKE UP, EILEEN! SAVE THE PEOPLE!
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

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Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

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Augusta took a step back. Lang raised his hands to his shoulders, and turned to face Augusta properly. She still held the sword towards him, threatening to lunge and run him through at even the slightest provocation. "Stay right there. Don't touch a thing." She stepped and tilted her head to left, then the right, trying to look around him. "Where's that pet of yours? The spider? I know its here somewhere. Don't think I'm going to let a little thing like that ruin my plans."

Lang managed a solitary laugh. "Then you're smarter than some. Don't worry, she's right here." True to his words, Red crawled a little way out of his sleeve to wave and hiss her front legs at Augusta, but she otherwise stayed perfectly still. "Oh, be quiet you little freak," he told his eight-legged companion. "I'll handle this. You just stay there." Red hissed some more, but complied and snuggled back up into the sleeve.

"I'm not stopping anything."

Lang lowered his hands slightly, gazed at Augusta straight on and asked a singular question of "Why?"

"You know why!"

"I know a few cursory reasons. Reasons that could apply to a great many people on this island, but which never quite got them into the conspiracy business. You did, though. I don't know what it was that pushed you that little bit further."

Augusta hesitated, but whether because her arm was getting tired or she didn't feel quite as threatened as a cornered animal, her sword began to lower. Not entirely, not enough that Lang was risk free, but enough that it could classified as progress. "I grew up here, you know. Left a few times, but I always came back. I have a friend; Zoe. Known her since she was..." She sniffed, giggled a little as the memories all came flooding back. "Four? Five? But... she was one of the priests. She-"

Lang held out a silencing palm. "I thought it might have been something like that." Confident, Lang lowered his arms entirely. he even went to far as to hold them behind his back. "Zoe is still alive?"

Augusta nodded, a lump in her throat. "Yes. She wasn't killed by pirates or- or, died of some horrible disease. She's alive, she's healthy. yet all she can do is mourn. Her whole life is a tragedy."

"And you really feel this is the way to solve that?"

The sword flashed upwards again. "Henry knows what he's doing! We've planned this for months, gone over every possibility with mathematical scrutiny. It won't fail. There... there might be some sacrifice. But its for the greater good, like any fight, any war."

"'We' or 'Henry' has gone over every possibility?"

"What?"

"Did you crunch the numbers yourself, too? It's a very diverse skillset you have, if so."

"What's your point, bounty hunter?!"

"My point is that I think you're being used by a very angry man looking to lash out at something he feels is an injustice. I can't say why, or what, exactly, but I don't think improving the quality of life on this island is entirely what Henry cares about, even if that's what he tells himself. I've said it before, Augusta; there are better ways than this."

"There isn't! This is-"

"When this is all over and done with, and if your plan succeeds, do you think Zoe will not have to mourn anymore? Or do you think she'll simply have to start mourning the injured, the dead, the terror of tonight... and how far her friend has fallen, instead?" Augusta was struggling to hold back tears, her mouth scrunched up in defiance of her feelings. It was a fragile lock. Lang raised his hands again. Red was in the same place as before. He was not going to touch anything. "Shut it off, Augusta."
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"AAAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Eileen slammed her fist to the floor as she struggled to raise herself back up. She let out small noises of effort. As the fear toxin was beginning to take effect on her body, her vision became more warped, her muscles became weaker, and tears almost welled up to her eyes. Eileen tried her best to dig into her consciousness to find whatever could fuel her rise. Flashes of Henry's face appeared before her. She widened her eyes as courses of energy ran through her veins, giving her enough energy on her legs and allow her to sit up against the wall.

Her eyes were heavy, her breathing was loud and inefficient. She began to reach towards her pocket, digging into what was the solution of her current situation. However, she could see...snakes. Snakes that transformed from the chair legs and table legs. They slithered dangerously towards her. Eileen's wind pipe choked up as fear began to overcame her, causing her hand to freeze before reaching into her pockets. Suddenly, she could feel the snakes wrapping around her arms and legs. Their lethal expression stared at Eileen as they slithered their tongue out. Eileen closed her eyes as she was in the brink of accepting her fate.

Eileen...fight...FIGHT!

The thought of Eileen's father momentarily breathed new life into her. The snakes were about to make their attack on her as they arched their neck back. Eileen closed her eyes and took out what was in her pocket. A needle with bright blue liquid. With the last of her remaining force, she injected the needle right into the veins of her right leg.

The effect was almost instantaneous. The snakes dissolved into the air, Eileen's vision returned to its normal coloring and hue. She let out another gasp as she stared into the ceiling, looking into the bright white lights. She closed her eyes and thanked the heavens. The antidote...it worked...! She succeeded. What a relief...she wasn't sure if it would work. She had spent the last few hours in the laboratory while waiting for Henry to awake. She worked tirelessly and was determined to make an antidote. Her biggest asset was extracting Henry's blood, which already contained his own antidote to the fear toxin. All she had to do was dissect and replicate it.

Her ears perked upon hearing heavy breathing. She turned her head towards the door, seeing the other Marine who was suffering the same effects as she was. She scrambled towards the Marine, taking out another antidote vial from her pockets. She injected the healing liquid at his upper arm into a vein. Immediately, the Marine calmed and opened his eyes upon reality. Eileen examined the Marine's lost expression to see if the antidote had worked. She nodded with confirmation as she stood up. "Great. Stand down, Marine. You need to rest."

"E-Eileen...he got away. Henry..."

I know...I have to stop him."

"What the hell happened!? HOW DID HENRY ESCAPE!?"

The Captain boomed in as he entered into the interrogation room. Eileen slightly gulped as the Captain looked lost into the empty room, his eye twitching uncontrollably. She then spoke up as she helped the other recently affected Marine up to his feet. "You underestimated him...He got away and poisoned us with the fear toxin. Luckily..." She held out the now empty vial in front of the Captain's captured attention. "I was able to make an antidote out of Henry's blood. We should be immune to the toxin now. We can make more at the lab if we follow my procedure!"

A light of hope could be seen from the Captain's eyes. Immediately, he barked out orders. ]You help our scientists to replicate this antidote and administer it to our Marine forces! We're getting this son of a bitch!"

Eileen widened her eyes before the Captain could march out. She grabbed onto his bulky arms, abruptly interrupting him. The atmosphere around them tightened as the tension reached a boiling point. "NO! Make the antidote and help the citizens! They are suffering, do you not care about them!?"

Shock quickly turned into anger as the Captain blubbered. "WHY!? THERE ARE PEOPLE SUFFERING OUTSIDE AND ALL I CAN DO IS HELPLESSLY WATCH! The sooner we get this jackass, the faster we can resolve this! Kill the root, and you kill the entire disease!"

It was suddenly clear to Eileen on why the Captain felt so urgent in capturing Henry. He held impervious information that would change the island. Growling, Eileen yelled back. "Are you that scared about him sharing this island's past history!? He's going to do it either way!"

The Captain froze, his expression turned into lost surprise before twisting into contorted rage. "Y-You know...that bastard, he told you everything, didn't he!?"

"LISTEN TO ME! I know his plan! His toxin is allowing the brain to give off a frequency, in which he intends to resonate by sending out a radio frequency, revealing this island's past! You have no antidote and a simple replication by following my written instructions will take at least 15 minutes! If you wait by that time, you've already been too late!" The Captain stood silently as he was now absorbing Eileen's words. "I and this Marine am currently the only ones in this building that are immune! I will hold off Henry for as long as possible, while you make the antidote and come up with a plan to efficiently deliver the doses to as many people as possible."

Eileen stepped forward and boldly approached her boss, almost startling him. "Captain...I need you to think clearly and assess what is more important! We are Marines! We protect citizens from all sorts of evil, not JUST pirates! I am begging you...prioritize the citizens first with the antidote, and then move onto Henry."

The Captain's foot tapped uncontrollably. Eileen's expression remained steadfast. Honestly, this kind of defiance would have gotten her reprimanded or demoted. But she was being dutiful and being selfless. Then, the Captain conceded. He loosened himself and heaved out a relenting sigh. "Fine. We will focus on the citizens and try to minimize the damage. I am trusting you to keep him busy until we arrive, Eileen. After all this is said and done, I will need to talk with you." With that, the Captain walked away.

What a relief. Although the Captain's ending sentence was concerning (most definitely related to the knowledge she had accrued from Henry), she put it at the back of her head. As Eileen watched him walk away, she felt a tug from the other dreary Marine. "Thank you for saving me...I do have to ask though. Am I going with you, Lieutenant?"

She was slightly taken aback by the sudden question. However, she quickly thought of a different purpose for him. "You should stay around for the scientists. Now that you have the antidote, they'll need to collect blood samples from you to produce more." The Marine was unsure if he should feel grateful or used, but he merely nodded and walked off. Eileen felt slightly bad for using him like a guinea pig.

But now time was against her. She needed to move with urgency. After gathering her gear and weapons, she stormed out of the building and made her way towards the gaseous Velvet Tip. Her face became more determined as she entered into the gas, becoming unaffected by its effects. She spoke into her Mushi, hoping that the line was still open.

"Hey Lang! Tell me where you are! Henry is coming your way now! Be careful!"



But it was already too late.

Lights turned off in Lang's building without any warning. Before the detective could react, a sharp pain was met on his lower tendons. Soon after, the lights turned on and there he was; Henry stood next to the upset Augusta. Small droplets of Lang's blood dripped from Henry's needles. Henry had inflicted the fear toxin upon Lang.

"Hmph. Had to clear out a few of the Marines to get here. What a nuisance."

He then knelt down to Augusta and tenderly placed both of his hands on her cheeks, carefully wiping away her fresh tears.

"Augusta. We tried. How could you forget? We tried our damndest to convince Zoe that what she was believing just wasn't true. And she refused! She refused to listen to us because all she did was mourn! I know this is not what she wants, and she will feel pain. But she's like a child. Even though children are stubborn, sometimes you need to force the information in order for them to learn and understand. Trust me...Zoe will be fine after I convey the information. She will awaken to a new world. She will be what you dreamed her to be: Normal." Although there was a slight hint of regret, Augusta nodded and accepted Henry's words.

"Now then, without any interference overcoming us...let's handle this bounty hunter and finish our plan!"
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

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Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

Ray Solo


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He knew the moment the lights went out that he ought have moved, dodged in some direction or even just ducked down to avoid some imminent projectile. But he didn't. Perhaps he was just too slow, or perhaps he gave Augusta the benefit of the doubt. A sharp prick was all he felt, and it lasted barely a second at that; nothing more painful than a routine injection. If only it were routine; the lights came back on in a blinding haze that seemed to char and crack the nearby machines like a desert sun. Augusta and Henry - for it could be no other who would inject him with such a thing - were blurred, their flesh shifting and melting in the sudden, burning light.

Lang knew what was happening. The toxin. Nothing else could explain the visions, the feeling of terror trying to claw its way up his throat and out his mouth. Only Henry - whose voice he could just make out over the waves of light and heat descending from the bulb turned inferno in the ceiling - could deliver such a thing. Lang stumbled back, but caught his feet at the last moment. Sweat was starting to trickle down his brow, down every inch of skin, and the feeling kept gnawing at his insides, begging to be let out and sway him into full on panic. He took long, deep breaths trying to keep his sanity intact, even as the two lumps of smoldering flesh began shambling towards him.

His own skin burnt and felt like it was going to burst into flame. It was obvious what fed the toxin; his own memories of Merrimont, and Helios. Still sore wounds burst open, and the pain of that Titanic Weapon detonating above his head flooded back as if he had once again cradled that damnable aeolipile in his fingers. Limbs started to shake, his throat went dry. Calm, he ordered of himself. Calm. It wasn't clear whether they were merely thoughts or if he was saying them, shouting them even. All he knew was that he needed to see those illusions for what they were; fakes, fakes that could not stand up to the real thing which he had been dragged through kicking and screaming, and he had survived.

Henry made the mistake of thinking that, in his inebriated state, it would be an easy fight. He came casually - a slowly bubbling monster in Lang's eyes - and went to swing. It was his turn to be surprised when Lang ducked the blow and landed his face square in Henry's face, or at least what he thought could have been. Every one of their features had disintegrated, leaving only running blood and gore in their place.

"Augusta," Lang coughed. He experimented with closing his eyes, but the visions were burnt into his retinas and it did little to dissuade them from reaching into his skull to pluck at his rationality. "Think about this. Are your actions any different from the religion you're fighting? 'Zoe is a child,' he says," Lang spluttered. fighting back the urge to vomit. He stumbled again and needed to grab at a series of nearby pipes to support himself. Red was all over him, desperately trying to calm him down. "Zoe is an adult, and even if she wasn't, her choices are her own! Your partner claims these people are enslaved by their beliefs, yet you'd ensnare them in your own? You are an artist, one respected and loved throughout this island. Just ask Hope, the sweetest old lady you'll ever meet!" It was difficult, but Lang managed to laugh. He hadn't regained his footing, but he didn't see much of a point.

"You have a power, Augusta, and you can use it to give this island a choice, to let them choose what to believe and how to live, rather than forcing them through literal fear! It might take time, decades even, but better a decade of frustration than a lifetime of trauma." He could barely see, the light was so intense. He could feel his skin sizzling, but with a mighty heave Lang lifted himself up. It would take a mighty force to make him look down at his own skin, for he could imagine what the toxin would make him see. "Just remember, Augusta; the road to hell is paved with good intentions."

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Lang wasn't acknowledging her call. Even worse, none of the Marines stationed with Lang were not picking up either. She was left in the open and had minimal clues to pick up on.

Eileen swore under her breath as she tucked away the Mushi. She ran through the gaseous Velvet Tip as helpless screams and shrieks echoed throughout. Eileen looked towards the graffiti painting of Leander, with countless amount of white cladded clothing citizens all meaninglessly begging in fear. They begged for their life to be spared by the dastardly pirate.

Then, she noted a priest driven to madness. Condemning one of the citizens to be Leander, he took out a knife and prepared to assault his fellow islander. Eileen reacted immediately; she rushed towards the priest, disarmed his knife by swiftly hitting his wrist, and using her other free arm to knock the man into unconsciousness. Normally, she would receive a 'thanks' from the victim, but the mourner looked up at Eileen as if nothing had happened. He continued to blabber out unintelligible words, unphased by the fact that he had almost been murdered.

Eileen growled as she walked away, no longer wanting to watch. This has to stop...where could Lang possibly be? She stood in the middle of the chaos and closed her eyes. Her tired brain processed through many logic gates, trying to piece together whatever clues for a complete answer. Painter...art building? No, there isn't any here. Fear toxin, underground? Pipes. Has to come from a place with pipes. But almost every industrial building has them. There's four of them. I don't have time to check all four. Where could he set up a lab? That narrows down to two buildings. Medical and Mining...which one though!? If I guess the wrong one, I'll be too late!

She bit her lips in frustration as she tilted her head down. The helpless screams around her was disrupting her thought process. People were suffering...people could be dying! With each scream that passed, she became more upset. More hopeless as she was unable to help them. Her heart began to mentally choke her. Feeling severely desperate, she let out a dismayed grunt and pulled out the Mushi once more. She opened her eyes, tears beginning to stream out, and screamed into the mic.

"LANG! TELL ME WHERE YOU ARE! MEDICAL OR MINING!?"



"You seriously think this island has a choice!? This island never gave them a choice in the first place! I AM GIVING THEM A CHOICE BY TELLING THEM THE TRUTH! This island has never changed for at least 5 decades, and it will remain that way as long as the Marines enforce their rules! I am done trying to convince them, of anyone!"

Augusta was clearly conflicted as there appeared to be an internal tug of war fighting between Lang and Henry. However, Henry was the primary focus as he was the only person she was looking at. The power of touch seemed to have compelled her momentarily out of Lang's words.

"Do not listen to him, Augusta. It'll all be over, I promise. You can talk to Zoe soon...like a normal human being. Without mourning."

He stood up and began to approach Lang. Henry made quick work of the distracted Red by swatting him away, slamming the poor spider against the wall and away from his owner. Before Lang could speak up while he was affected by the toxin, Henry grabbed the man by his neck, preventing him from making sentences.

Henry attempted to make eye contact as he coldly stared at the poisoned Lang. "It'll be over for you too, bounty hunter." Henry was about to wind up for an attack. He was unaware of Lang's Mushi as Eileen's plea happened while Henry was trying to comfort Augusta.
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

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Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

Ray Solo


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"No, Henry," Lang huffed, stiffening his muscles to stand while his eyes flickered in a constant desire to shut out the horror being poured into them like a bucket of vicious tar, "all you're doing is scaring people. And the world has enough bogeymen." Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to provoke someone with both the will and the means to kill while largely incapacitated and, for lack of a better term, so high the walls had turned to brimstone and green hellfire. It was, however, a far better plan. Henry, as a shrieking goliath of corrosive flesh and pit black eyes, closed the distance, swatted away Lang's friend and began to choke the life out of him. The man really ought have carried a sword or better yet, a gun. Lang had been listening to his mushi the whole time, and though not in a position to speak, that didn't remove his ability to reply. As Henry, in his toxin-induced garb, was too concerned with spitting bile and blood and being up in Lang's face, he simply didn't have the perspective to notice the mushi held behind Lang's back or indeed the word "medical" being rendered in morse code and rapidly clicked into it by a dexterous thumb.

Lang managed a smile, even in the face of such a terror as the message was done and sent. His breath was coming short and a tint of purple had started coloring his face, but he was in no real danger, not if Henry's only plan was to take the sadist's route and wait the long mile needed to walk Lang to asphyxiation. With a small poof, Lang was gone and free of Henry's grasp, his body having shrunk down to a far more minute form that wasted no time in scurrying away under some of the larger apparatus like a coin rolling under the fridge.

It wasn't easy keeping up the pace, and little Lang couldn't help but vomit slightly and take a short rest as the toxin continued to addle his mind and make even layers of dust seem like the scorching sands of an unforgiving desert. All the same, he didn't want to risk the possibility of a broom and forged onward, if a little more slowly. He did not go straight for the opposite side of the machine, preferring instead to slowly weave his way between devices, along the rear end of pipes, and to stick firmly to the shadows while he made his way to the exit.

It was not what he would call a pleasant experience, but he'd certainly gone through worse. The hope at the end of the tunnel being, of course, Eileen. If she was in a position to get to him through the toxin-flooded streets then she must also have found some way to negate or even cure it. Hopefully, despite the little bumps their brief relation had encountered, she'd be more than willing to share. Quietly, quietly he crawled up the stairs around the side of a dusty box and, once free from Henry and Augusta's immediate vicinity, transformed back to his human form to sit. He breathed in through his nostrils and out through the mouth. If he could stop himself having a heart attack by the time Eileen got to him, that would certainly be a bonus.

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To her dismay, she didn't hear Lang's soothing tone in response to her plea. Is this it...Do I have to guess? Though, there was unusual pittering pattering sounds soon after she felt hopeless.

Dah, Dah...Dit...Dah, Dit, Dit...

She widened her eyes. The Mushi's mouth was spouting out the communicative tone. This sounded familiar! Soon enough, she recognized it to be Morse Code. Oh, thank God! Lang, you are a genius! I never doubted you! However, there was a heavy implication behind that. If Lang was so occupied into silence and instead had to issue out a coding text, it could only mean one thing: Henry was at the site and the two must be fighting each other. Even worse, Lang may have been gravely injured. She quickly tuned in and paid attention, considering that she had most likely missed the first few letters due to lack of focus. However, she only needed to pick up at maximum two letters.

Dit, Dah...Dit, Dah, Dit, Dit...

...A-L...

Soon after, the Mushi remained silent. No takebacks. No repeats. But already, it was enough for Eileen. The word 'mining' didn't have the letters 'A' and 'L'. She knew where they were located now. With renowned determination, she rebuilt her resolve and stood on her feet. Dashing away, the Marine made her way towards the abandoned medical building.

I'm coming! Hang in there, Lang!



"Where are you!? Coward!"

It almost took Henry by surprise when Lang was able to transform into a much smaller form. He whipped his head around the floor, desperately trying to locate the spiderman. Unfortunately for him, Lang was gone and out of sight. Growling, Henry instead went up to the befallen Red and picked up the poor spider. He then walked towards Augusta and helped her up. Henry gave Augusta the weakened spider.

"If he comes back and interferes...you know what to do with this animal of his."

He then began to soothe Augusta by placing his arms around hers. "It'll all be over, I promise..."

And Augusta merely nodded as she looked at the nearly knocked out spider.



"LANG!"

Eileen walked into the medical building and had routed her way by following the pipes, leading her to the entrance of the basement. Upon going down the stairs, she saw Lang in a severely injured state and progressing through what was evidently the fear toxin. She knelt near him and placed her left arm behind his head for comfort. She felt his pulse, noting that his vitals were exponentially increasing. His breathing was already losing control.

As much as she wanted to save a life outside, she had to trust in the Marines that they would assess the situation outside as soon as possible. That's why she kept her third and final vial of her concocted antidote unused. In the long run, Lang would be the most effective person to assist her. Whenever it came to preparation, Eileen had always prepared in amounts of threes. Taking out her last and final vial of antidote from her left pocket, she prepped a clean needle, rolled up Lang's sleeve, poked the needle into his armed veins, and injected the clear blue antidote.

Only time would control the factor of how Lang would recover. She felt Lang's pulse again, breathing out a sigh of relief as his vitals slowed down from its frenzied rate. As soon as Lang's eyes flittered open, she briefly embraced Lang.

"Oh thank goodness, you're alright. I'm really sorry for being late."

She stood up soon after and looked down into the underground entrance. Eileen knew what Henry was going to do next. Considering that Lang had already compromised the full extent of their goal, it was quite likely he would bypass the upgrades and move forward with sending out the radio frequency. He could easily do it with the flip of a switch.

"I need to go now! Lang, I need you to rest for a bit. You were poisoned for a really long time and not in optimal shape to fight! Let me handle this. The Marines should be coming soon too! I'm sorry again, I gotta go now!"

Without hearing what Lang would say, Eileen took off and into the room. She took out her pistol and quickly loaded it. She took a quick scan of the lab, noting some components and chemicals that would contribute to making toxins. Though, she was more on the lookout for technology.

"Power it up, Augusta!"

A whirring noise ensued throughout the room as power coursed through electrical wires. Eileen shifted her head to one of the larger harnesses, looking upon Henry who had just finished configuration. About 50 meters away at the end of the room, the radio broadcast system had also lit up in response. It was now enabled. All that was left in the plan was to load Henry's recording and push the button to activate. The ex-Marine lifted his head to see his newcomer. An expression of surprise illuminated his face as he saw his familiar foe point a pistol at his head.

"H-How...how could you have made the antidote so quickly!?"

"Ask yourself, Henry. You were out of commission for at least 6 hours, you didn't think I would use your blood to engineer an antidote?"

Before Eileen could advance on Henry, Augusta moved at a fast pace and jumped in between her and Henry. She took out her colored sword, throwing out a slash towards her direction. Promptly reacting, Eileen stepped back and avoided the attack. Irritation grew on Eileen's face as she stared at Augusta.

"GO!"

Without a single word, Henry ran towards the radio system. Unfortunately, Eileen could not reach him as Augusta stood in her way.

"...Augusta, let me through."

"No...I can't. I can't! Zoe...This is for Zoe."

As much as Eileen wanted to help her and this Zoe, she had a much more urgent problem at hand. She began to calculate certain moves in her head, pondering if she could sneak past the artist or deal out a blow that could knock her out. Though, as far as she was concerned, she knew Augusta was much stronger than she was. Relying on dumb was too much of a risk. She growled as she fiercely screamed out.

"DAMMIT! I am running out of time! Let me through!!!"
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

OPRP Character Builder Tool (Last Updated: June 2017)

Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

Ray Solo


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"Please, not so loud," Lang groaned as Eileen came hurtling towards him, needles at the ready. At first he hadn't recognized her, his addled brain masking her identity behind another assortment of hallucinations. Some kind of nurse, though morphed into something that would make the best slasher stories jealous. He flinched at the sight, instinctively pulled himself away until her voice cut through the fear like a blazing sword of justice. Appropriate, really. As she knelt down beside, he did his best to look away and focus on something else that might help calm the shakes that were rattling his bones like a xylophone. All the adrenaline and whatever other miasma of chemicals were pumping around his system made the pinprick of the needle piercing his skin forgettable to the point of non-existence. The relief, however, was instantaneous and hit nearly as hard as morphine. Lang sighed, visibly and loudly as his system was purged. The light blinding him grew soft and pudgy and gradually began to melt away back into reality.

He tentatively returned the embrace, too weak and more over too surprised by it being given at all to properly reciprocate. He wanted to say more, ask more, but Eileen was on a timetable and left before he could so much as properly get his breath back from the sudden squeeze to his lungs. She rushed off, leaving Lang to pull himself up with less dexterity than a ninety year old. Pull himself up he did, however, Eileen's advice about rest be damned. Running in to face the pair of them, antidote or not, was ridiculous. Running in after her in such a state was also ridiculous, but Lang's maladies were more of the mind than the body. Once the antidote kicked in properly there was no reason he shouldn't be able to take part in a scrap, at least in theory.

So whether she approved of it or not, Lang stumbled after her back into the basement, balance returning with every step. And as Henry made a break for that radio and its insidious intent, a certain little spider previously thought disarmed and no longer a factor wriggled free from Augusta's distracted grip, pounced, and sank her fangs into his ankle. "Two things I'd like to announce to the people of this room. First, Henry, don't underestimate the tenacity of insects. They'll certainly last longer than you," Lang said, a cruel smile playing on his lips as Red tried to savage the man's heel. "And second, Eileen, is that there's more than one way to have a fight." His eyes locked on Augusta, standing resolute to block Eileen's passage. In a flash the extra arms came out and he was already whipping one of them toward her. The trail of web hit home and Augusta found herself violently pulled from her spot, giving Eileen a clear passage toward the real mastermind behind the whole scheme.

It wasn't a wall, a machine, or any other particularly hard surface Augusta was flung towards, however, even if her body tensed and prepped her for such. Instead she was reeled straight in towards Lang, and before she could raise her arms in either defense or offense, Lang's own were wrapped tightly around her. "L-Let me go! Let me go! This-"

"No."

"Then fight me, if nothing else! If we're really wrong then we deserve to be punished!" Still Lang held her close. True, it was tight enough to restrain her squirming for a time, but all the same Lang treated it as more of a friendly embrace.

"No. That'd just be another thing Zoe would have to mourn, wouldn't it?"

Augusta broke down into tears.

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Dammit, Lang. I told you to take it easy!

With that thought, Eileen couldn't help but smile at Lang's persistence in wanting to fight and help. She honestly shouldn't have been surprised: If she was ignorant with her own cause, Lang wouldn't have been any different. As soon as Augusta had been cleared out of the way, Eileen dashed her way towards Henry as he was already at the radio system.

From a distance, Eileen could see that Henry was fumbling through the system by connecting a square plate device. She could surmise it was the recording. Now all he had to do was activate it with a push of a red button. But thank Lang for his little creature. Red became a pain to Henry's side once again by pecking away at his ankle. He shrieked in pain as he looked down, clearly irritated upon seeing the spider. Taking out his needles, he delivered a swift motion towards his ankle. The spider was unfortunately slashed and had let go of Henry's body, but not with the cost of Henry hurting himself in his own attack. A moderate gash appeared on his only ankle. With the distraction gone, the desperate ex-Marine limped towards the activation button and he raised his right hand.

"THIS ENDS NOW!"

"NO!"

With Red's distraction, Eileen was able to catch up. She placed both of her arms on Henry's shoulders and immediately held him back. Henry's hand nearly hit the button before he was dragged away by Eileen. With a triumphant effort, Eileen then twisted her body and threw Henry to the opposite direction. Now she stood between him and his goal. The Marine took out her poisonous knife, holding it with a reverse grip.

Henry looked up and growled with a raucous noise. He got up from his spot and viciously screamed. "Why are you against this, Eileen!? I KNOW YOU WANT TO SAVE THEM TOO!!! Why do you want to continue their suffering!?"

He was right. Eileen's eyes wavered as she stared at Henry. The islanders were indeed suffering from this brainwash cult of mourning and dullness. It wasn't how they should live. But... "They are still human beings, and they still have a free will. Why do they deserve to be in pain? They never asked for it."

"They've always been in pain! This wouldn't make it any different! This is only more beneficial for them in the long run for changing the culture!"

She hesitated. As much as she wanted to change the island like Henry is doing, it just...it just wasn't right. "Look, Henry. I know I can't convince you out of this. And I do agree with you...the people deserve to know the truth instead of mourning over a lie. I know you care about them. I know how much you hate the fact that these people couldn't choose their life. And I know that you want these people to choose better lives." She was sharing her exact sentiment of the islanders. "But you...you aren't giving them a decision to make, you're forcing it! This method isn't any different than the controlled environment of this island! You aren't any different than the Marines themselves!"

Henry didn't take any of that. "Hypocrites! You think the Marines fight for justice!? They are enforcing an environment to cover up what the past king of the pirates did! They want to cover up history! They do it without any regard to the thousands of lives afflicted. You call THAT justice!? ...Ask yourself, Eileen. What are you fighting for as a Marine? Is justice the truth?" He pointed to the radio system. "...Or is it a lie?" He pointed outside, signifying the people.

Eileen was silent. Justice was meant to strive towards a better good. She's always believed in that ever since she joined the Marines. A method where innocent lives did not have to be harmed. But different Marines have had different approaches to justice...and these approaches have unintentionally harmed many innocent lives. Either method, piracy or for justice, there didn't seem to be difference: Innocent lives were always in jeopardy.

But she wasn't better off as a pirate to fight for good. No one was. She firmly believed in that. "I have faith in what I believe is good and moral...not evil and what you define as necessary. You're not wrong, there are terrible people, even in the Marines." She thought of her corrupt Captain at Loguetown. "But there are good people too! Good enough people to make a difference out there to outweigh the evil! I want to be that difference!" As she spoke, the Marines began to take action after successfully replicating Eileen's antidote. Outside, they were administering the antidote, successfully rescuing people. She could even hear the screams beginning to lessen. "I've made my decision in my life. I am a Marine! I will not fight for whatever is legacy, but I will fight for the people and the innocent lives now!"

Henry let out a sigh as he closed his eyes. "If you truly fought for the people, you would have let me follow through with my plan. Regardless, I have already made my decision. People deserve to know the truth and I will continue fighting for the truth. That's all that matters!"

Eileen's eyes widened. Henry shifted through his pockets and briefly held out a spherical device. Pushing the button, the lights went out dark once again. She immediately recognized the method as it was primarily used earlier against her in the interrogation room. She knew Henry was going to employ an attack through the darkness, hopefully using it to mask himself and bypass her to get to the radio system. She fought against and lost previously...but she wasn't going to lose this time.

She closed her eyes. The darkness is your greatest ally as an assassin, USE IT! The thought reverberated aruond her head. She inhaled...and soon exhaled after. She didn't need sight if it was already blackened out. Instead, she laid out focus to her other four senses. She could hear him making his move, stepping off his normal and wooden foot. Be one with the darkness...

Another step from Henry. This time more aggressive. He was already making his attack. His arm movement, the air blew past it. He was striking with his needles toward her side, swinging horizontally. She opened her eyes into the darkness. She stepped back, barely dodging the attack. Her eyes locked in the darkness in front of her, just sensing the shape of her assailant. She responded quickly and outpaced Henry, slashing him right on his side.

The hit was clean; the lights turned on as soon as she made her successful attack. Her poisonous knife afflicted the ex-Marine as he was afflicted by Eileen's own poison. Henry coughed violently as his knees gave out to the ground. His body shook uncontrollably as he tried to keep himself from completely collapsing.

Tech Used
 
Tender Reprisal (15)
Type: Offensive
Range: Melee
Power: N/A
Stats: -10 Sta

Description: Whenever Eileen successfully attacks her opponent with her poisonous dagger, she applies a strong poison that weakens the opponent. This is more intended when hitting precarious spots, hence heightening the potency.

"How...?"

Eileen knelt down and held him by the neck of his shirt. "I'm not as weak as you think I am!"

Evident panic had spread across his face. His face looked as if it was about to turn blue. "No...no, no...NO! You will not get in my way...I WILL GET THE TRUTH OUT!"

A flash of bolt crackled throughout his clothing. Eileen caught the change; it was a Marine safety mechanism, but she was too slow to react. With a determined yell from Henry, his clothing released a course of electricity. With Eileen's hands in contact with his clothes, she received the shock. She screamed out in pain and immediately let go of Henry. With Henry released from Eileen's grasp, he quickly focused his attention back onto the radio system. He stood up and limped his way towards the system, approaching to his goal. Even with wounds and poison hampering his body, he still had enough energy to do one last push.

The Marines began to file into the underground lab, with the captain leading the way. He saw Henry already a few feet from the system. He nor his men could stop him. His face was struck with fear. "No..."

Eileen twitched and jittered as she was sprawled on the floor. Her consciousness was stable enough to keep herself up, but she was no longer fast enough to catch up to Henry now. There was only one thing she could do. She slowly rose up from the floor and took out her only ranged weapon: Her one shot pistol. She pointed it right at Henry, carefully aiming the pistol.

"TAKE HIM OUT, EILEEN!" The Captain roared as soon as he saw her rise.

The Captain's order seemed to have put Eileen in a limbo. Time slowed down for her, her heartbeat accelerated. She came across a decision. The decision in front of her (Henry), and the decision behind her (the Captain). The truth or the lies? The people or the Marines? It was a Catch-22 for her. Truly, she wanted to agree with Henry. He was arguably more correct than the Marines. She wanted him to expose the truth. Letting him go would force the Marines to reevaluate their methods. As much as she wished the Marines were better...as much as she wished the Marines were perfectly good, there was no such thing as being 'perfectly good'. Eileen had already experienced that before the Grand Line. Between being a pirate and a Marine, the Marines were inherently more good. But no matter what decision she made...nothing was going to result in good.

...What do I do...?

...

...

...

She remained dutiful.

*BANG*

The hammer went off and the bullet was released. Travelling a hundred times faster than Henry's pace, the round lead met its target's head. Henry's whole body reacted violently as the force of the bullet threw his head down, splatting against the ground. After his body bounced off once, he remained forever still. The radio system remained idle. Eileen dangled her firing arm as her expression remained lost.

This was her first confirmed kill as a Marine. A kill over a lie. A kill for the Marines. A kill for what seemed to be the right choice. The internal conflict within her finally reached its boiling point. She fell to her knees. She loosened her grip on the unloaded pistol, which it bounced off the ground. A wave of emotions overcame her as she bowed her head down. Tears uncontrollably fell out of her closed eyes. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't. The Marines quickly filed past her as they went to check on the lifeless Henry.

She did her duty as any loyal Marine would. Following soon after, she proceeded to do anything a normal person would do when someone died.

She mourned. She mourned like the islanders. But she didn't mourn over a lie; she mourned over the truth.
I'm going to be less active as of 9/25/17. Kinda hitting a point where I'm contemplating why I'm here while having a full-time job.

OPRP Character Builder Tool (Last Updated: June 2017)

Eileen Falkner

Jessabelle Adams

Ray Solo


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