Post by The Madness Menagerie on Nov 1, 2020 21:56:29 GMT -5
OOC: Please note the events in this CD happen after the collaboration between Mia and Matt Knox, "Poison." As always, it's a pleasure to work with you!!!
Matt Knox returned to Sinai , not quite sure what he was looking for. He knew who, but not what. More than one who. He headed up toward the common area, meant for smokers first. On a hunch, one of them had to be there. He strode a little less confidently than usual, dressed in Levis and an old Aerosmith shirt. His hair pulled back into a tight ponytail.
Quietly, he reaches a hand and traces his fingers over where Mia had paid him her respects the other day. With a slight snort, he made his way toward the waiting room. Now was as good a time as ever to smooth that over, whether it be by gentle touch or sledgehammer. Shrugging, he enters the waiting room, zeroing in on Mia as soon as he enters, turning her around and slugging her across the face! Mia goes down but before Matt can say anything else, Jimmy Allen and Dorian Hawkhurst grab him and slam him against the nearest wall, Zach Van Owen taking point and Chloe Hawkhurst checking on a quickly recovering Mia.
Matt Knox had just interrupted a meeting between the members of The Forsaken.
“Get the fuck off me, I owe her two! Unless you fucks want to divide it amongst yourselves!” The pugnacious corvid bellowed as he struggled against the two restraining him, managing to throw Jimmy off him but having issues with the similarly statured Hawkhurst. Mia staggers to her feet and seeing her back up, Chloe goes to attack Knox. However, she stops when Mia pulls her back.
“Stop. You can let him go, he owed me that. At least provided that you’re not stuck in a hole of self depreciation and despair while trying to numb it all away with copious amounts of alcohol and pills? Not here to judge Knox, we all have our demons.” She nods to Dorian who throws Knox’s arm away. Jimmy goes back to where he was and Zach stands next to Mia and Chloe. Before anyone can react though, Chloe delivers a sharp kick to the shin of Knox.
“Nothing in this life is free. That’s for coming to a hospital to collect on a punch, you inconsiderate piece of shi…”
She stops as Dorian gives her a warning glare and Mia puts a gentle hand on her shoulder. She gives Knox a gesture to indicate that she’s watching him as Mia laughs lightly. “Gods and goddesses I’ve missed you…” Mia turns her attentions back to Knox, “So… I’m going to assume that you’re at least sober enough to make it here under your own powers. If you’re interested in turning those frustrations elsewhere, I encourage you to stick around because what we’re discussing might interest you. Maybe, who knows.” She shrugs, “But… I need to know that you’re not going to go pushing any big, shiny, red buttons like that in the future. Deal?”
Knox stares at the angry child, shaking his head as he soaked Mia’s words in, eyes twitching to each individual. To each piece of furniture. His mind was still in fight mode, muscles wound up tight after his surprise visit from Miss Jones and her knife. He rests his eyes on Mia then, face going flat as he replies.
“No promises.” he responds, gaze turning to rest a moment on Hawkhurst.
“Good enough for now I guess, allow me to make the introductions. Man that is currently glaring at you is Dorian Hawkhurst, my brother in arms. That glowing piece of angry energy responsible for that sore spot on your shin is his daughter Chloe, and by extension my niece in arms. Harm her and I will see your blood in return. The man in front of you is Zach Van Owen, our ‘game changer,’ and the man to your other side, is Zephyr’s bodyguard until he sees her back up on her feet, Jimmy Allen. We are The Forsaken, family, and most relevant to current events, the only thing standing between Carnage and The Institute.”
The tension shared by The Forsaken only increases at the mention of The Institute’s name. Mia shrugs and continues, “We’re missing a couple members, my fiancé, Ataxia, and our founder Shadow. Until then, the unanimous decision except for yours truly, was to make me de facto leader. Now that you’re up to date on us…”
Zach’s voice cuts through, interrupting Mia mid sentence. “Now that he knows about us, I think it’s only fair we get to know him some.”
Dorian nods in agreement and Jimmy’s voice echos the sentiment, “I’ve seen bits and pieces of Knox, but how do we know he hasn’t already been contacted by the SSRI to be a spy?”
“Eat shit and die.” Knox responds to Allen, “I don’t even know what these creeps are into, and if you picked up even the slightest bit of relevant ‘bits and pieces’ you know that cults aren’t my thing. Spend the last three months culling Insidious from Carnage, why the hell would I take up with these fucking loonies?” a pause, “No offense to present company.”
Mia sighs, “Enough. Zach, Jimmy, stop. If I didn’t trust him, here with Zeph, here with Belle, now in here with us, do you REALLY think I’d have let him get the drop on me like that? I was expecting him to come and pay me back and the fact that he hits a little like Dorian on a bad day, I’d say he is back to where I’d prefer him to be, if he’s going to be fighting with us. That said…”
Mia looks at Jimmy, who relaxes slightly and she gently pulls Zach back by the shoulder, “Enough with the fighting within this room. Knox is right about spending the last little while getting rid of another ‘cult’ if they could be called as such. He’s set his sights on personal career goals and while he finds another route there, we’re going to need his help making sure The Institute doesn’t get their hands on anyone else on the roster. We all saw what they did at Havoc to The Debaters. We saw that they have new people on their side and we all know how different this feels than the last time we came across them, regardless of how it ended the last time. THIS time, we need to upgrade our own tactics and if that means working with someone who can trust us enough to make sure the rest of the roster knows we don’t pose a threat?” Mia shrugs, “So be it. Bottom line, Knox stays on my invite. If you don’t like it, I’m sorry, but I trust him and I think that he trusts me to a certain extent.”
“Trust? Funny, when I find you in a room full of…” he regards each of them once more “Such colorful characters. Plotting against ‘The Institute’. And I’m guessing at least mentioning me in passing. Or maybe that’s the unchecked ego.” He fishes a pack of smokes out of his shirt pocket, pulling one out and taking it between his thin, pale lips but makes no move to light it.
“I got no idea who any of you are, and All I know about Mia is our views align on Christopher Saint James. This institute? You’re paying them too much attention. People like them don’t last, because they got no fight in them and bluster only lasts so long.”
Mia’s eyes flash dangerously, “First, these ‘colorful characters?’ My family. Second, the bluster you mention? Dousing a man with gasoline and attempting to light him on fire? What if that had happened to someone that wasn’t a person hired only to lose matches and get talent over? What if it had happened to someone closer, one of YOUR family Knox? Should I drop some names or did the point sink into your head? The Institute sounds like nothing more than a fictional cult out of some swanky show with an awesome story. I get it. Newsflash though, they are real, and they pose a very real threat. This isn’t a storyline, it isn’t some fictional game. It’s very real and The Institute won’t stop until they get whatever it is they want. That person currently fighting for her life right now? MY blood sister? She was stolen by them, turned into a monster, and has only just started experiencing life. Knox…” She pauses and shakes her head, falling silent for a short time.
Each member of The Forsaken tense, all of them knowing exactly what happens when Mia loses control of her emotions. Sensing the tension, Knox prepares to defend himself but realizes that all eyes were on Mia.
“I’m not here to force you into anything. You want out, there’s the door. You are free to use it to get the fuck out. Otherwise, it’s time for you to open your eyes to something that might exist outside your realm of understanding. You stay and you believe me when I tell you that the rabbit hole we’re about to embark on? Is something well outside of which you’ve EVER seen before. But…” She gestures around her as The Forsaken turn their back on Knox, Mia the only one still facing him as the rest group around her, “Make your decision quick, we have things that we have to attend to.” She winks at him and waits patiently for an answer.
Knox remains stone-faced, eyes narrowing slightly. He walks right up to Mia, to the rest of them. He kneels down to stare Mia directly in the eyes, before speaking. His tone low, dangerous and self assured.
“You trying to scare me into your side is no different than shit people like them do, Mia. If you don’t realize that? You’re a fool, a blind one. If these people are who you say they are? If they are really here to cause untold, wanton destruction? Then I’ll inevitably be in their path, and then I’ll solve it for the lot of you, free of charge.”
He stood up then, back to his full height “Belle and Zephyr still around?” he asks plainly, eyes shifting around the group once more.
Mia shrugs in response, her voice icy and cold, “There were no scare tactics in my words Knox. Only the truth you want to turn a blind eye to until it’s ‘convenient’ for you. I’d wonder though if this conversation would be any different if I had cut Levi loose. Maybe Bert from whatever sacrifice The Institute had planned." She stops herself and watches Knox before continuing, meeting his steely gaze with one of her own. "I don't know where Belle is, you know as well as I do that she has yet to forgive me for any of this. She doesn't often keep me updated on her whereabouts as you might imagine, and you MIGHT even find that in common with her. You’ll find Zephyr in the same place she’s been since she got here, in her bed, strapped to monitors, and in a never ending sleep.”
Chloe snickers, “‘Seemingly’ never ending.” Mia cuts her off with a glare before addressing Knox again. “Anything else I can do for you future hero of all of Carnage, or are we all dismissed from your presence?”
Knox remains silent, giving the room a final once over, before turning toward the door and opening it to leave. He pauses, lifting his head a moment.
"I'm no hero. You know what I am."
And with that, he steps out to find Belle Silva, briefly favoring his knuckles. Mia stares after him briefly, watching the spot where he had been standing just moments before. She’d be lying if she didn’t feel a pang of sadness that Knox wasn’t at least willing to hear her out, but she couldn’t let that stop her now. Now was the time to make moves to get ready for the future. After ensuring that no one else would intrude, Dorian leans up against the door as everyone relaxes and Mia finally flops down into a chair. Pressure got the better of her as she slumps, but her resolve takes over and she finally picks her head back up.
“He's a friend, that will have to come around later, right now there are more important things to consider a priority. As I was saying before being interrupted… I think I have a way to wake up Zephyr.”
Matt Knox returned to Sinai , not quite sure what he was looking for. He knew who, but not what. More than one who. He headed up toward the common area, meant for smokers first. On a hunch, one of them had to be there. He strode a little less confidently than usual, dressed in Levis and an old Aerosmith shirt. His hair pulled back into a tight ponytail.
Quietly, he reaches a hand and traces his fingers over where Mia had paid him her respects the other day. With a slight snort, he made his way toward the waiting room. Now was as good a time as ever to smooth that over, whether it be by gentle touch or sledgehammer. Shrugging, he enters the waiting room, zeroing in on Mia as soon as he enters, turning her around and slugging her across the face! Mia goes down but before Matt can say anything else, Jimmy Allen and Dorian Hawkhurst grab him and slam him against the nearest wall, Zach Van Owen taking point and Chloe Hawkhurst checking on a quickly recovering Mia.
Matt Knox had just interrupted a meeting between the members of The Forsaken.
“Get the fuck off me, I owe her two! Unless you fucks want to divide it amongst yourselves!” The pugnacious corvid bellowed as he struggled against the two restraining him, managing to throw Jimmy off him but having issues with the similarly statured Hawkhurst. Mia staggers to her feet and seeing her back up, Chloe goes to attack Knox. However, she stops when Mia pulls her back.
“Stop. You can let him go, he owed me that. At least provided that you’re not stuck in a hole of self depreciation and despair while trying to numb it all away with copious amounts of alcohol and pills? Not here to judge Knox, we all have our demons.” She nods to Dorian who throws Knox’s arm away. Jimmy goes back to where he was and Zach stands next to Mia and Chloe. Before anyone can react though, Chloe delivers a sharp kick to the shin of Knox.
“Nothing in this life is free. That’s for coming to a hospital to collect on a punch, you inconsiderate piece of shi…”
She stops as Dorian gives her a warning glare and Mia puts a gentle hand on her shoulder. She gives Knox a gesture to indicate that she’s watching him as Mia laughs lightly. “Gods and goddesses I’ve missed you…” Mia turns her attentions back to Knox, “So… I’m going to assume that you’re at least sober enough to make it here under your own powers. If you’re interested in turning those frustrations elsewhere, I encourage you to stick around because what we’re discussing might interest you. Maybe, who knows.” She shrugs, “But… I need to know that you’re not going to go pushing any big, shiny, red buttons like that in the future. Deal?”
Knox stares at the angry child, shaking his head as he soaked Mia’s words in, eyes twitching to each individual. To each piece of furniture. His mind was still in fight mode, muscles wound up tight after his surprise visit from Miss Jones and her knife. He rests his eyes on Mia then, face going flat as he replies.
“No promises.” he responds, gaze turning to rest a moment on Hawkhurst.
“Good enough for now I guess, allow me to make the introductions. Man that is currently glaring at you is Dorian Hawkhurst, my brother in arms. That glowing piece of angry energy responsible for that sore spot on your shin is his daughter Chloe, and by extension my niece in arms. Harm her and I will see your blood in return. The man in front of you is Zach Van Owen, our ‘game changer,’ and the man to your other side, is Zephyr’s bodyguard until he sees her back up on her feet, Jimmy Allen. We are The Forsaken, family, and most relevant to current events, the only thing standing between Carnage and The Institute.”
The tension shared by The Forsaken only increases at the mention of The Institute’s name. Mia shrugs and continues, “We’re missing a couple members, my fiancé, Ataxia, and our founder Shadow. Until then, the unanimous decision except for yours truly, was to make me de facto leader. Now that you’re up to date on us…”
Zach’s voice cuts through, interrupting Mia mid sentence. “Now that he knows about us, I think it’s only fair we get to know him some.”
Dorian nods in agreement and Jimmy’s voice echos the sentiment, “I’ve seen bits and pieces of Knox, but how do we know he hasn’t already been contacted by the SSRI to be a spy?”
“Eat shit and die.” Knox responds to Allen, “I don’t even know what these creeps are into, and if you picked up even the slightest bit of relevant ‘bits and pieces’ you know that cults aren’t my thing. Spend the last three months culling Insidious from Carnage, why the hell would I take up with these fucking loonies?” a pause, “No offense to present company.”
Mia sighs, “Enough. Zach, Jimmy, stop. If I didn’t trust him, here with Zeph, here with Belle, now in here with us, do you REALLY think I’d have let him get the drop on me like that? I was expecting him to come and pay me back and the fact that he hits a little like Dorian on a bad day, I’d say he is back to where I’d prefer him to be, if he’s going to be fighting with us. That said…”
Mia looks at Jimmy, who relaxes slightly and she gently pulls Zach back by the shoulder, “Enough with the fighting within this room. Knox is right about spending the last little while getting rid of another ‘cult’ if they could be called as such. He’s set his sights on personal career goals and while he finds another route there, we’re going to need his help making sure The Institute doesn’t get their hands on anyone else on the roster. We all saw what they did at Havoc to The Debaters. We saw that they have new people on their side and we all know how different this feels than the last time we came across them, regardless of how it ended the last time. THIS time, we need to upgrade our own tactics and if that means working with someone who can trust us enough to make sure the rest of the roster knows we don’t pose a threat?” Mia shrugs, “So be it. Bottom line, Knox stays on my invite. If you don’t like it, I’m sorry, but I trust him and I think that he trusts me to a certain extent.”
“Trust? Funny, when I find you in a room full of…” he regards each of them once more “Such colorful characters. Plotting against ‘The Institute’. And I’m guessing at least mentioning me in passing. Or maybe that’s the unchecked ego.” He fishes a pack of smokes out of his shirt pocket, pulling one out and taking it between his thin, pale lips but makes no move to light it.
“I got no idea who any of you are, and All I know about Mia is our views align on Christopher Saint James. This institute? You’re paying them too much attention. People like them don’t last, because they got no fight in them and bluster only lasts so long.”
Mia’s eyes flash dangerously, “First, these ‘colorful characters?’ My family. Second, the bluster you mention? Dousing a man with gasoline and attempting to light him on fire? What if that had happened to someone that wasn’t a person hired only to lose matches and get talent over? What if it had happened to someone closer, one of YOUR family Knox? Should I drop some names or did the point sink into your head? The Institute sounds like nothing more than a fictional cult out of some swanky show with an awesome story. I get it. Newsflash though, they are real, and they pose a very real threat. This isn’t a storyline, it isn’t some fictional game. It’s very real and The Institute won’t stop until they get whatever it is they want. That person currently fighting for her life right now? MY blood sister? She was stolen by them, turned into a monster, and has only just started experiencing life. Knox…” She pauses and shakes her head, falling silent for a short time.
Each member of The Forsaken tense, all of them knowing exactly what happens when Mia loses control of her emotions. Sensing the tension, Knox prepares to defend himself but realizes that all eyes were on Mia.
“I’m not here to force you into anything. You want out, there’s the door. You are free to use it to get the fuck out. Otherwise, it’s time for you to open your eyes to something that might exist outside your realm of understanding. You stay and you believe me when I tell you that the rabbit hole we’re about to embark on? Is something well outside of which you’ve EVER seen before. But…” She gestures around her as The Forsaken turn their back on Knox, Mia the only one still facing him as the rest group around her, “Make your decision quick, we have things that we have to attend to.” She winks at him and waits patiently for an answer.
Knox remains stone-faced, eyes narrowing slightly. He walks right up to Mia, to the rest of them. He kneels down to stare Mia directly in the eyes, before speaking. His tone low, dangerous and self assured.
“You trying to scare me into your side is no different than shit people like them do, Mia. If you don’t realize that? You’re a fool, a blind one. If these people are who you say they are? If they are really here to cause untold, wanton destruction? Then I’ll inevitably be in their path, and then I’ll solve it for the lot of you, free of charge.”
He stood up then, back to his full height “Belle and Zephyr still around?” he asks plainly, eyes shifting around the group once more.
Mia shrugs in response, her voice icy and cold, “There were no scare tactics in my words Knox. Only the truth you want to turn a blind eye to until it’s ‘convenient’ for you. I’d wonder though if this conversation would be any different if I had cut Levi loose. Maybe Bert from whatever sacrifice The Institute had planned." She stops herself and watches Knox before continuing, meeting his steely gaze with one of her own. "I don't know where Belle is, you know as well as I do that she has yet to forgive me for any of this. She doesn't often keep me updated on her whereabouts as you might imagine, and you MIGHT even find that in common with her. You’ll find Zephyr in the same place she’s been since she got here, in her bed, strapped to monitors, and in a never ending sleep.”
Chloe snickers, “‘Seemingly’ never ending.” Mia cuts her off with a glare before addressing Knox again. “Anything else I can do for you future hero of all of Carnage, or are we all dismissed from your presence?”
Knox remains silent, giving the room a final once over, before turning toward the door and opening it to leave. He pauses, lifting his head a moment.
"I'm no hero. You know what I am."
And with that, he steps out to find Belle Silva, briefly favoring his knuckles. Mia stares after him briefly, watching the spot where he had been standing just moments before. She’d be lying if she didn’t feel a pang of sadness that Knox wasn’t at least willing to hear her out, but she couldn’t let that stop her now. Now was the time to make moves to get ready for the future. After ensuring that no one else would intrude, Dorian leans up against the door as everyone relaxes and Mia finally flops down into a chair. Pressure got the better of her as she slumps, but her resolve takes over and she finally picks her head back up.
“He's a friend, that will have to come around later, right now there are more important things to consider a priority. As I was saying before being interrupted… I think I have a way to wake up Zephyr.”