Seti Kleon - Carnarium, Kell District
A sly smile spread across Ina's face at the mention of 'incident'. She leaned forward slightly, as if eager to pry more into his day. She kept her mouth shut, though her grin clearly reflected a sort of well-intentioned taunt.
"What's been going on?" she thought to herself, "Well, pretty crazy stuff. You haven't heard yet?" She figured he wouldn't have had much details if he were asking, and continued. "A building in Central Babylon collapsed about an hour ago, not sure what did it. Some people've been saying it was just a regular old bomb, others say it was a spell of some sort." She shrugged.
"Can't be sure right now. Lot of people died though," her voice became sullen and her eyes trailed to the ground. "Oh well," she perked up again, "So, Seti. You're a courier right? What did you transfer this time around? Take a peek?" The hospital doors were automatic, and as Seti and Ina approached, they slid open with a ding, opening into a small lobby room already heavily filled with a variety of injured folks, some much, much worse off than Seti. It would probably be awhile till he got the attention he wanted. A few eyes turned to him and looked him up and down, as if checking out his health; entering these sorts of place often had an unspoken 'game' of deducing who was most likely to die.
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Sparkle Bell Lovejoy - Field Hospital, Central Babylon
Barenna took a moment to notice Sparkle, her eyes watered and lowered to the ground. As soon as her junior called out, though, her head shot up. Ren? Since when did she call her that? Barenna rose an eyebrow briefly until Sparkle decided to sit next to her. When her hand was held, her expression turned to one of surprise rather than confusion. It was strange, but she didn't pull her hand away. Pulling the plastic breathing apparatus from her face, she made room to speak into open air.
"I've been much better, thanks," she said weakly, "You're not hurt at all?" she asked, seeming more surprised than concerned. Letting go, the mask returned to its snug place, and she turned away for a moment, and retracted her hand. There was silence for a good amount of time, but she finally spoke up again.
"Hey uh, Sparkle..." she paused, "Sorry for those death glares during the show. It... wasn't right." There was a clear difficulty in finding words for her, Sparkle could tell. More than likely, she was coming to realize her treatment of the junior star, but wasn't quite ready to full on admit her personality was so sour. From beneath the mask, Barenna smiled lightly at Sparkle. "How's your manager?" she asked.
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Kheda - 99 Ramp, Occam-Central Babylon District Border
As Kheda descended towards the lower floors, a low hum behind her became a near-deafening roar. In a burst of wind, a massive vehicle soared right by her in the air, quickly banking and stopping several yards in front of her. The VTOL that hovered before her blocked her path, and for a moment it seemed as if the Policus had caught up, but as the bay doors slid open, she was pleasantly surprised.
Standing on the deck of the airship, a woman stood, hand gripping the bars along the edges of the bay. With a flourish, she removed the sunglasses from her eyes and gestured at Kheda with her chin. "Kheda'Ahn Garuda, good to see you're bold and capable." Kheda had nary a clue who the woman speaking to her was, but she instantly recognized her voice as the very same that had communicated to her telepathically on the ninety-nine ramp.
"We could use your help, as fellow Cleaners," she shouted over the engines. She knew, then, what was going on. Kheda was a Cleaner, but she was far from a notable member of the lose organization and could recite few names. On the flipside, it was obvious the greater names were well-aware of
her presence. Whoever this woman was, she knew Kheda, and likely her ventures just as well.
"Hop on in, it's much faster on this thing," she patted the metal frame of the bar door. As Kheda entered, the woman pressed a pad on the interior of the ship and the door slid closed as it took off. "You know who I am, Kheda?" she asked, still standing amidst the angled flight.
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Evenrue Seele - Central Babylon
Even without Evenrue's direction, the crowds of individuals at her level were already well aware of the direction they needed to go, and while not quite as organized as she intended, they were willingly going. In a slowly diminishing sea of hurried individuals, Evenrue caught sight of one in particular she could easily recognize; he obvious both for his attire and his slow, deliberate walk, not to mention his extreme height amidst the crowd. Stopping before Evenrue, he ruffled his jacket and cleared his throat before speaking in a particularly deep voice.
"Miss Seele, you remember me, no?" Indeed she did. Crux Samul was his supposed name, though he overtly stated several times he shed his true birth name. A Cleaner of huge height and equally massive strength, whom Evenrue had met in the past if only by coincidence. Dissociated as they technically were, Cleaners rarely got by without knowing a few names. Crux rolled his shoulders and continued before she could answer, as if deciding for her.
"A few associates and I need as many fellow Cleaners as we can get," he was silent for a moment, "I assume you know what I'm going to ask." He turned his head to the smoke cloud still persisted in Central Babylon and spoke in a hushed but still clear voice. "This wasn't a mundane bombing. Soem of us have already caught wind, a literal smell, of something far fouler than explosive material in the city. Have you not sensed it as well?"
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Elizia - Home
As soon as Elizia had spoken back, the man seemed much more keen on becoming
even more care-free in his movement around the house, as if it were his ticket in. Stepping to the side and further into the home, he clapped his hands together at his waist level and rubbed them briefly.
"I got a call from someone awhile ago," he sounded enthusiastic, almost like a teacher about to start a lesson, "saying a certain Elizia was interested in Cleaner activity. Raising his eyebrows and smiling, he looked as if he were trying to sell a product to an uncertain customer. "If you want in, it's better now or never!" He looked to the other parties within the room briefly before turning back to Elizia. "What do you say?"
The lack of introduction was almost laughable. A heavy wind was kicked up outside the house, and from the windows Elizia could see an airship of some sort hovering at her floor level. The man inside turned to the vehicle and back to her before pointing with a thumb. "If you want in, there's our ride. Would appreciate it if you decided quickly." He looked a tad bit nervous.
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Nechronica - Ruruen District, at the site of the Arcane Anomaly
For a time, things were quiet, despite there being an occasional shard of building debris being shredded off of the structures around her; the arcane anomaly, yet still, did not seem to be keen on stopping its growth. As the fence line was finished, and the civilian world outside was shut off, Nechronica was simply told to remain there for guarding's sake. Her superior officer didn't sound to pleased with her prior loose-cannon actions, likely briefed on them by the Warden who spoke on the comms to her before.
Progress was clearly slow, but the danger wasn't all too evident at the time. It would be awhile before they had to move another floor lower to escape the anomalies growth downward. She looked up at its glowing form before the sky suddenly became dark. At the height of the city above her, a massive ship had blocked out the light, casting a shadow upon the study site. Confused mumbles filled the scene as the ship came to a halt.
In a flash, everything had gone to shit. Within the fence-line, countless armored figures had suddenly appeared and summarily attacked the Policus stationed there. Lithe forms and red blades dashed about, butchering the unwary officers into heaps of limbs. Reacting, some of them immediately called for backup, though nothing in the world at the time seemed like it would save them.
Nechronica, too, was eventually targeted. A faceless, armored individual -clearly female due to the shaped bust of her chestplate- dashed for her with a red dagger in hand. Mid way, the woman seemingly disappeared into thin air.
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Koi Ross - Ground Floor
A growing crowd looked over her crumpled body as she tried to untangle herself, some of them mumbling suggestions of aid or calling the Policus. The net was heavy but far from impossible to solve. Were it to hit her body perfectly, she'd have been bound totally, but as it was her legs could slip through the holes present. It only took a minute, but it seemed to be just in time; what were undoubtedly her pursuers had already made it to the ground as well in a crash of metal.
Men in power armor, bearing a large gun packed with nets, she would assume, had made it down to the Ground Level and were already motioning to try and snag her again. Their appearances were unfamiliar, but it didn't take recognition to realize she was in deep shit with them, one way or another. Recalling mistakes she might have made with powerful people in the past would have to wait.
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Armel Lienstrug - Central Babylon
Armel's ground pursuit was unhindered for a majority of the time, and while the girl he was attempting to follow had already disappeared from sight, the radar on his trike did clearly point out a non-Policus vehicle he didn't notice earlier, headed in the same direction as his target initially took.
Set on following the new lead, he continued onwards through a Ground Level street. The sound of a sort of metallic screech cried out several times in quick succession, and then his tires gave out. The trike's forward motion became hampered until it stopped entirely, sliding to a stop on the street. Surveying the vehicle, Armel noticed three crystals, one for each tire, embedded in the now-deflated rubber.
The street was otherwise empty, save for a single figure that quickly disappeared into an alleyway as Armel caught their eyes.
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Jhanuis Bedniv - Prime Hour Tower
Just as weak as before, the man's incessant mutterings of thanks were barely heard to Jhanuis, especially as they made their way further outside. Sirens and the shouts of an entire city at the scene made for a near-deafening orchestra of terror. With a single good leg, the man hobbled around Jhanuis' arm, barely hanging on as his entire body slumped low. His whole form was on the verge of becoming dead weight, almost literally it seemed.
Fortunately the two had made it out, and just as the hope of finally retreating from the mess had reached them, Jhanuis collapsed upon the ground, his rescued hobble-partner falling all the same. A dizzy spell overcame Jhanuis as his consciousness slipped, the sight of barely-lit concrete swaying and spinning until it was lights out.
---
The barest memories could be recalled in his injured stupor, but Jhanuis answered them it seemed, regardless of his hazy waking status. "Are you okay? Where does it hurt? How is your breathing? Do you have anyone we can call?" Eventually he slipped once again, the distinct memory of painful coughing reminding him he had indeed woken up temporarily.
When he finally came to, he found himself in a hospital. Tucked away in a medical bed, he was in full view of a large number of others in the same situation. Nurses and doctors walked about, not too hurried. How much time had passed? He turned to the side to find his friend, Jin, miraculously present and seated. He must have answered at least a few of those questions, it seemed.
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Felicia Bell - Home
"Probably a good idea, Miss Bell," the officer responded to her plan of calling the manager, "With this drone around, though, you won't have to fear too much. We'll be on ready if the drone detects any sort of disturbance again. Thanks for your time." The two officers nodded and waved goodbye before stepping outside, their menagerie of little drones following in tandem. Shutting the door behind them, they left Felicia with the 'protection' of a torso-sized hunk of metal. Policus wasn't known for being a pushover in terms of technology, so she didn't doubt the lethality of the drone, but being given such a small thing after getting a threat... just didn't seem proper.
In any case, the drone was well out of sight by then, having crawled off to some location outside her home to wait for trouble, which hopefully wouldn't actually come.