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Lorenial wrote:

-snip-

[Illys doesn't trust him, but as she gazes upon the impassivity of his mask, she considers her alternatives and decides that any help is help she will accept at this point. Her dagger dissolves into a fine mist in her hands, seemingly absorbed back into its wielder, and she shakes the gauntlet of the unknowable man.]

Illys: Deal. Now let's go surprise our Corpo friends. [She looks back at the Masoperderm soldier] What about you?

---

[Emmett Kelariko remembers the first time he witnessed fleshcrafting in action.

It would've been a typical day during break at his preparatory school, indulging in a bit of fun with his friends at their favorite source of entertainment - at the expense of the pathetic little Angelan kid they relentlessly picked on day after day. Kelariko, as was right, had become the ringleader of this group of bullies, his natural disposition towards both persuasion and intimidation placing him at the top of a hierarchy that chewed and spat out the weak. It's not like the Angelan kid had really done anything wrong, but that was besides the point. He was an easy target, he didn't fight back, and he wasn't a god***n snitch.

On this particular day, things had gotten a bit more out of hand than Kelariko would have liked, but apparently one of his friends - Davis, or something or other - had returned from the holidays with a black eye from his drunk father, and was itching to take it out on the Angelan kid. Really, who was Kelariko to stop the surprisingly vehement bloodlust that ensured as Davis began to pummel the kid with his fists, drawing blood and splattering the courtyard ground with crimson. Knowing that showing his reluctance to further this action would've resulted in derision and ridicule, Kelariko smiled viciously and encouraged the beating, settling into a chant as the group of bullies encircled the attacker and attacked.]

Kill the Sarkite! Kill the Sarkite!

[Before any of them could register what had happened, a much more vivid burst of crimson showered the circle, and before Kelariko's very eyes he saw Davis's now headless body slump lifelessly to the ground. Below...the Angelan kid, his face twisted in a snarl beyond reasoning, his hand clenched in a fist, shimmering swirls of invisible energy felt more than seen...]

---

[So one could forgive Kelariko for barely hiding a shudder of disgust as he faced the holoprojection of Sister Nephara before him on his communications console.

Oh, how he hated them. Hated them for messing with the natural order of things. And not just the d**n Sarkites either, all those things that refused to fit neatly into understood science, that categorically refused to be shoved into the little boxes which made the world turn and where each and every phenomena in this universe belonged.

His face, however, betrayed none of this.]

Kelariko: Sister Nephara, I assure you that my organization will not interfere with your evacuation. However, we simply cannot allow you to provide further assistance to the residents of Masoperderm. You have twenty-four hours to leave the planet's orbit before the Grays come upon your base camp...and I will have no choice but to carry out my end of the agreement.

[He hated them, sure...but when twisted, crushed, and forced into the little boxes of order to serve the cause of normalcy...they could be quite useful.]