Log:Ninthmares and Dreamscapes

2015/01/01 Paragon Porter 1

At Porter's apartment...

Porter assured Para that he was fine, and he is. Well, aside from worrying about her. When she arrives following her fun at the firehouse, all looks well. The apartment is in one piece, nothing's on fire, and all of Porter's limbs are attached. All in all, a pretty good day for him. Aside from the fact that Kyssie is not here, having been returned to child services until the regularly-scheduled visit.

He's in the living room, with coffee. The only thing keeping him from pacing and/or chugging the caffeine is that he at least knows she's Ok. And probably that she's on her way.

After transporting Eighth to a Starguard cell and warning Malcolm to prepare the rest of Starguard for a rescue attempt, Paragon went to check on her priorities. She sent a networked warning to Porter earlier to check on Kysmette's status, but she was too afraid to go to social services herself in case she led any other units there.

Outside the window, Porter can hear a hard thud and clank associated usually with one of Paragon's incoming landings. It's about a minute later that he hears a quick knock at the door. It's hard. A bit louder than usual. She must still be in armor.

Porter is at the door between the clanking and the knocking, and promptly opens it at the latter. He doesn't care if she's armored or not. The opening is immediately followed by hugging. "You Ok?!" Not the first time he's asked. Won't be the last. That's normal. He then quickly adds, "Kyssie's fine. Called and checked after you asked."

Paragon wraps her arms around Porter quickly. At least her helm is down. She lets out a sigh of relief as she holds him. "I'm fine, sweetie. Completely fine. Chen formed up as armor around me as extra protection. I think I ended up hurting more people than the unit did." She hugs a little tighter. "I'm so glad you and Kyssie are safe," she murmurs softly, some fear creeping into her voice.

"It's Ok, Sweetie. Come in." Porter insists and doesn't completely let go after the hug so he can lead her in. "Made you coffee. Figured you needed some." Kyssie's Ok, Para's Ok, so everything is now officially OK as far as he's concerned. There is another cup, a full one, on the table. And a plate of cookies. Not homemade, but they're still there.

Paragon keeps her arm around Porter as well as he leads her in and to the table with coffee and cookies. She smiles softly at the thoughtful gesture. "Aww, thank you, sweetie." She lets out another sigh, one to relax herself. Even though she doesn't need to breath. "I can't believe we managed to capture him again without too many injuries. But something was different about his tactics. Something felt...off. I can't really put my finger on it." She only lets go of Porter once she's able to slump into one of the table's chairs, her armor finally retracting. Just as she said, she looks completely unscathed.

"Off? Good!" Porter sits and offers her her cup. "Maybe there was a wire loose or something. You caught him! You're Ok. That sounds like a damned good 'off' to me..." He takes a long sip of coffee before helping himself to a cookie.

Third chuckles and gratefully accepts the coffee and takes a sip, cupping her hands around the mug to warm her up. "Good, or lucky," she smiles. "Either way, you're right. He's caught. Everyone's safe. Thank goodness." She sounds very relieved. And like she's coming down from something at last. Stress? Anxiety? Something. More likely the fear of Eighth's return and the anger that caused. She reaches for a cookie to enjoy with her coffee. Her hand is trembling oh so slightly. "You're the best. You know that, right?"

Porter blushes. "Hey, I'm not all that-ohshi-erk!" His eyes suddenly widen as he looks past her towards the door, tries to exclaim, but it ends in a pained gurgle. His cup and cookie hit the table as he clutches at his chest.

"Yes, Third, there will be repercussions. You are wise to fear..." comes another, slightly familiar voice from the living room. Just inside the wall floats a semi-translucent humanoid form. A recognizable form.

Ninth

This roughly humanoid sized and shaped form is translucent and rather insubstantial, comprised of magenta-hued energy and minute metallic particles suspended within the energy. There are no fine details such as facial features, and the form is rather androgynous.

"Porter!" Para drops her own coffee and cookie as she leaps up to Porter's aid, wrapping her arms around him. "What...?" She's about to ask what's wrong, but then her eyes travel to the source of the voice. Oh no. Ohhh no...not here. Not Porter...

"What've you done to him!?" she demands in a heart-wrenching cry. The only solace is they're the only ones here.

"Flesh is so weak," Ninth makes a snorting noise even if he has no nose or respiratory system. "You treasure his heart? It's now in my grasp." His "brow" furrows, and Porter...spasms. He can't even scream as he clutches at his chest.

"Tell me, Third of Ten... do you enjoy your freedom? Your choices? How does your feeble mind continue to survive without the glorious guidance of the Creator?" "No! Stop!" Para begs in true fear as Porter spasms. Pressure points. They found hers. They already knew it, probably. She may have developed a leak, because tears starts to run down her cheeks. She looks down at Porter, and with a sniff, she tries to reassure him as she wraps her arms around him into an embrace. "I've...I've got you." She bends down a little to get an arm underneath the back of his knees and lifts him up into her arms.

Raising her tear-streaked face to Ninth, she says, "I value my freedom. And my choices." But of course, with Porter in danger, because of her, she regrets some choices. "And I'm strong enough to not need Mechaneer's commands to tell me what to do," she says defiantly.

"Excellent!" Ninth sounds very pleased(?!) His low-detail expression even adjusts into a wide smile. A hand gestures and the door opens. In floats the other object of Third's recent concerns. Complete with knit pink cat ears. If it could be considered a consolation, she is fairly quiet and appears unharmed. She's also still swaddled in blankets.

"You can now exercise your strong will... Tell me which should continue to function, and they shall..."

Whatever blood Porter had left in his face drains and his eyes widen further. They are in danger of bulging out of his head. He looks to Third and manages to shake his head violently negatively, but can't get out any words beyond a gasping grunt.

The floor feels like it just dropped out from beneath Third. It's her worst nightmare realized. She stares at Kysmette, then back to Porter as he shakes his head, then to Kysmette. She says something, but her voice is so hoarse it can't even be heard. A tense swallow. "Both..." she pleads.

"You cannot have both," Ninth's amusement grows into a laugh. "That is no choice. " Kysmette floats closer and he absently pets one of the ears on the hat. "There are many other mortals in the city for you to choose from, why are these more valuable than... Ah!" The sound of an epiphany.

"Very well, I will indulge you. If you wish these two to survive, then name another... or I can select one at random."

There is no delay before the hand formerly stroking Kysmette's hat lifts and a finger extends to waggle scoldingly. "You may not choose yourself. Your self-destructive malfunction is no true choice, either."

"You won't understand why so long as you've got your strings," Third remarks raggedly. It takes a great deal of restraint to not lunge at him for daring to touch Kysmette. But he's holding all the cards right now. So she stays still. And holds Porter.

Her eyes widen slightly when she's offered to choose another so they may both live. She's ready to lay down her life for her loved ones. Anything for them. Ninth's evil game surprises even her. And then he announces she can't choose herself. And her heart sinks.

"You're...asking me to choose some innocent to die...to sacrifice a life that's not my own to save others?" she breathes in disbelief. She looks conflicted. Her eyes go from Kysmette to Porter. She'd do anything for them. But she's not sure if she could do that. "Forgive me..." she whispers to Porter, then raises her face to look at Ninth. "I choose..." she pauses to think. To weigh her decision.

"Chen Li."

"I'm asking you to choose, yes. Do you foolishly believe that you can protect all at all times? If so, you are deluded. Sacrificing yourself is a waste. It could delay, but it would halt nothing..."

Her choice could possibly be a surprise, as Ninth pauses. "Your adopted sibling? A fascinating choice! So be it." The child floats over to be placed gently upon the table where she and Porter stand. Porter coughs, but straightens, and stops grasping his chest. Though he's left panting.

He then proves to be less surprised, after all, as his hand gestures to the open doorway once more. In floats the volunteered Chen Li. "Now you will observe the results of your choice..." That is when the screaming begins. Chen's screaming. The exact nature is difficult to discern, aside from her body rippling and distorting from within...

Once Kysmette is set down and Porter is released, Third steps forward to put herself between them and Ninth. "Porter...take Kysmette and go. Run!" she says urgently. She cringes at Chen's screams. "I'm...sorry, Chen. I'm so sorry," she expresses with remorse, her heart breaking at causing her family so much pain indirectly.

Now, Third may know or believe Chen to be immortal, but that doesn't make things painless. Very much the opposite. There is a look of ... well, it could just be pain in Chen's eyes before she closes them. Then it seems that Third must have closed hers, too, as everything suddenly goes dark. Dark and silent.

After several moments, neither the darkness nor the silence proves absolute. There are some textures and forms in the darkness. And sounds emerge. One sound, repetitious. An annoying yet familiar sound.

Snoring. Porter's snoring. From next to her. In bed. And this is when a number of recent recollections come flooding back. Coffee and cookies. A comfortable and quiet, if Kyssie-less, evening. And eventually bed.

It takes a while for Third's brain to finally wake up, even as she hears what to her is familiar. Maybe not annoying this time, or most times. It's actually comforting. When her brain sparks a few times enough that her body is finally awake too, she suddenly awakes with a gasp and a start. And then a sigh of relief when she realizes it was just a dream. But the tears were real. They're still staining her cheeks.

And Porter is real now. And safe. She rolls over on her side to gaze at him, studying him sleeping for a few moments. Worried. Relieved.

You treasure his heart? She hears the words in the back of her mind. Faint, but still so vivid. Yes. Of course she does.

Third slides her arm around Porter and snuggles up against him, trying not to disturb his sleep. It's not like she'll be getting any sleep anytime soon. She just stares off in the darkness for a time, her head resting against his chest so she can listen to his heartbeat and his breathing. Just to know he's safe. Just so she can treasure every beat and breath. As she tries to dispel her worries and fears.