TW: suffocation, blood.
Accelerator gazed through the office's front window, grasping the handle of his backpack firmly. An odd breeze travelled through the empty area, fogging up the glass surface but not enough for the room to become invisible. Medic's desk was dimly lit by a lamp, forgotten turned on it seemed. The lady herself had left earlier than usual, it was a short shift, a breather gifted to her by her beloved Commander. Oh and how lovey-dovey they always were... Disgusting.
He knew about their close relationship better than anyone. He was Commander's right hand man, stuck to his side just about 24/7. He had caught them kissing or lovingly hold each other in the man's office more times than he could count. And it grossed him out every single time. How could it not? Imagine having this much power at your finger tips, power over a whole base of trained soldiers and state of the art equipment only to waste your time falling in love with some woman. Power was everything in this world, love however, was only ever a distraction. Too bad their dear leader never semmed to care. He scoffed, pushing away his thoughts as he grasped the handle. He had a mission to complete, a true leader to appease.
It was half past two in the morning, not a single soul wandered down the halls this early. Not even the designated guards could fully keep their eyes open. He made sure of that after all.
It helped being on kitchen duty today, a little chamomile tea as a dinner drink with an extra set of sleeping pills did wonders to turn off a human brain.
He slid the key into the lock, creaking the door open.
Accel slipped inside, softly closing it behind him. Walking over to the desk, he pulled out the main drawer. He needed Medic's ID card to make his way to the wing that held the patients' rooms. Only she could enter and leave freely, he too needed that privilege, their plan asked for it. If it had been Commander, he would have given him free access without a second thought, just like he had with the special set of keys he made specifically for him to access all main buildings. But Medic had refused to grant his wish to have the ID card as well... Saying it's "too dangerous for non medical staff to be around sick people".. Pfft- yeah whatever, lady. As if I haven't dealt with far worse injuries and illnesses than you could have ever seen.
Titan born illnesses were harsher, even more agressive than that of the Towers. However, she didn't need to know that so, he never got the pleasure of smacking her in the face with that fact.
Rummaging through the remaining drawers, his fingers slid across the smooth plastic surface of a rectangular object. The image on it was all he needed to see. Found it.
Accel pocketed the ID, turning his attention over to some pre-packed medical tools, laid across a nearby table near a stack of boxes. Among them, a scalpel poked its sharp tip through the packaging. That would do nicely for the ritual. Easier to maneuver than a knife.
He snatched it quickly at the sound of light footsteps coming from down the hall. Ducking behind the desk, he peaked through the window, watching a nurse scuttle by. He breathed a sigh of relief as she departed, waiting just a minute longer before the steps were fully drowned out by his own shuffling.
He got up, leaving the office with a huff. He was wasting precious time. Not going on stealth missions for a while really numbed his skills, huh...
None of that nonsense now. He had a plan to finish. A puppet to obtain.
Pressing the card against the panel of the main entrance after escaping the mess that was Medic's office. Accel creeped over to the infirmary's right wing without further disturbance. These hallways housed the many patient rooms soldiers were usually admitted in. And his target was present among them.
Now, where could that child of Void be...?
He peaked inside, from room to room, door to door. Room 101, had nothing... 124 no,...160 no,...191 nah, ...206. Aha!
There he was!
Accel smiled proudly to himself. He gently turned the knob, stepping inside. For a spy like himself these sort of tasks were baby's first mission despite being a little rusty. He had gone through wars no Commander had ever seen, thrown over battles that had appeared to be won in the last second, stole weapons and machinery Enginner would weep over. So, simply sneaking up on a sleeping man and giving him a small tattoo? That was nothing to him.
The Tower looked over the Titan's peaceful figure. His chest rising with each breath, the blanket neatly tucked around him with great care.
Oh how he would wrap his hands around his neck and just...*SNAP*....Giving his father a taste of his own medicine for all the lives he took.. But that could wait, his lady wanted the man alive...for now.
She said he was the key to finishing the reawakening of their brethren...The first experiment of a game of trial and error.
Accel undid the strap of his mask, leaving it to hang lightly on his face. The safety feature he had built after someone tried to hinder with it could come in handy. He softly pushed the black strands of hair away from Fallen's face, taking the oxygen mask off without so much as a breath. He needed access to the back of the Titan's neck, a perfect hiding spot. The symbol must not be seen by his elder nor that blasted swordsman, they would recognise it immediately. Though, judging by the steely glares exchanged, it would be surprising if Fallen even allowed his father anywhere near him nowadays. The old bastard deserved it...Who was he to force people to do his bidding? To alter their lives and destiny for his own gain? To wreck families and destroy homes?
He was nothing but a tyrant. A tyrant people bowed to mindlessly..
And with any luck, Fallen will agree to their words as well..
Accelerator grabbed the Titan's neck by the side, ready to turn him around when a hand latched onto his arm. Two icy blue eyes stared back at him in shock.
Before Fallen could fully comprehend what was happening, Accel's mask had came off his head. He felt the cold rim frame his own face, as a blast of full force pressed his head against the pillow. What felt like thousands of needles pierced his skin, locking the mask into postion. Fallen wanted to scream as he trashed around, struggling to get away from the Tower's grip.
But to no avail... Accel pressed the mask even harder against his face, pushing down on a button atop the main visor.
A toxic gas filled his lungs as he fought the man's further pressure. He wanted to cough, to gasp for air but his mouth was sealed shut, the mask suffocating him agonizingly slow. The oxygen had long since left his chest, leaving it to overfill with the poison of his enemy. His weakened lung was only adding to the pain, another stab into the throbbing mess. The face of his attacker was burned into his mind perhaps out of pure terror alone, the pale green skin, with a black blindfold across the eyes...this was no Tower. He had met this man before, he had fought with-
Fallen's vision blurred, darkness engulfing him like the cold water of the ocean as his eyes rolled back lifeless. His arms went numb, letting go of the Tower, and his head fell limp back onto the soft pillow.
Accel had to give it to him, he clashed against the effects of the gas for far longer than he had seen anyone attempt it. No wonder he would make a good king. Not backing down easily in front of the enemy? A skilled fighter too. Not to mention pretty handsome, with good features, too bad Accel had to bruise his soft cheeks and plump lips a little. But oh well, a job must be done.
He flipped the senseless man onto his side, pushing his hair over his shoulder to uncover the back of his neck.
Grabbing the scalpel, he began carving into the Titan's skin a strange symbol. Accel murmured in an ancient tongue, to most these words would be gibberish, but to their ancestors they were sacred. A sacred spell to bound the warrior to their inner nature, their savage roots. To command their every move as they the let their fighting spirit run free.
Thin traces of blood fell down Fallen's neck, staining the tool, and sending a small shutter down his back but not enough to wake him. The scalpel was masterfully wielded, cutting an intricate design of the ancients, a ritual lost to time and ignorance...
With many swirls and lines, a cubical shape was formed, telling of great power coming from the heavens, the Creator himself granting them.. A mark only the finest of warriors used to wear...most of them had been eradicated in the Ancient War. Yet, now, Accel had the chance to award this honor again. If only Fallen had known what a sacred thing he would be helping to achieve... Maybe one day he would understand, they all will...What they lost during the war, was power far greater than they could ever imagine...
He cleaned off the blood with a cloth, finishing off his lady's task. The ritual had been complete in a somewhat timely fashion, without anyone knowing of it. The Tower grabbed his mask off of his victim, securing it back onto his face. Finally, he felt so naked without it...
Pulling Fallen onto his back, he placed the oxygen mask back onto his face, drapping the blanket over him.
No one would ever know of what happened tonight...The CCTV cameras had been off ever since he left the security room. Speaking of, he should probably turn those back on before he left the base.
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Accelerator trudged through the thick forest on the northern side of the base. His lady had found a lovely cabin to reside in, courtesy of an "old friend" of his. He walked up to the wooden building, a shattered window showing him signs of a struggle, claw-like marks adorning the front door only confirming his assumption. No doubt his lady's weapon of choice being the culprit. A gauntlet with a retractable blade hidden by an innocent black glove.
And if it was her wielding it then he already knew who won the battle.
He grasped the handle, hearing the muffled voices of a man and woman combined. He stepped in, right in the midst of an interrogation.
"I will not ask you again, Necromancer, where is the journal? I know you made a copy of mine when you befriended the new Commander"
Void Caster's tone was dark, sharp as a blade despite the rather relaxed expression on her face. However, the cuts smeared with blood on Necromancer's grim face revealed her previous anger. The man sat quietly, bracing himself for what seemed to be another hit. His resilience was admirable, thought Accel, once he aligned himself with a cause not even blatant torture could get him to betray it.
"Uncooperative is he, my lady?"
Caster turned on her heel, facing Accel with great delight, allowing Necro to slump back into the chair,
"Ah, finally, a man worth talking to!"
She walked over to him, pressing her forehead against his for a moment, in greeting.
"The mission did not give you much trouble I hope?"
"Of course not my lady, everything went perfectly. He is ready for your call." he answered, bowing to her.
The lady's eyes glimmered in the dim light of the moon, seeping through the window. She smiled, "I knew I could count on you from the day we met! Lovely too see I was yet again right!"
A cough had her turn back to Necromancer. He was panting, his hands tied with rope behind the chair being the only thing keeping him upright.
Now, that Accel could focus on him a bit longer, he noticed the bruises starting to form. His left eye was swolen, his lip was bleeding and his cheek was turning purple. He was pale, no doubt on the verge of falling unconscious.
Caster strolled back, clutching his face firmly, her pointy nails digging into his skin, as little dropplets of blood slithered down. "Hey now, don't you go passing out on me just yet. We still have a lot to discuss."
"I...*huff* I...am tel-telling you... *huff*..nothing!" he forced, clenching his teeth at burning sensation in his cheeks.
"Oh hun' we could have been done ages ago if you just answered me...No pain, no struggling...I came here peacefully! I asked you as my friend to help me! But noo...you just had to refuse.."
The Tower grimaced, "S-stop it with *huff* with... y-your charades! Your manipulation does...*huff* d-does not work on...me and you know that!"
"My dear, manipulation? Please, you hurt my feelings!"
She stood up fully, turning away from him, "I thought we were friends! All I asked was for my own notes, after all! I did not ask you to betray your military buddies!"
"By g-giving you *huff*, you freak, your 'notes' I would be doing exactly that!" he yelled, spitting the blood from his lip.
Void Caster paused, glaring back at him, "So, you admit to having copied my work..."
Necromancer pushed himself back against the chair, pulling at his bounds as his captor came closer and closer. He felt panic creep its way into his heart, as it beat faster. His eyes only widdened ever so slightly, to whoever didn't know him they would have thought he was fearless, but Accel knew better. He could tell a horrified man when he saw one and this time rightfully so.. His lady was a fighting machine just like himself.
Perhaps even more cruel...
She locked eyes with him for a moment, smiling gingerly. Followed by a slash across the face. Leaving Necromancer with a deep laceration across his cheek all the way up to his eyebrow. His eyes snapped shut with a whimper, succumbing to his exhaustion and unrelenting pain.
"Idiot." she mumbled, "I was getting bored of watching him tremble."
The lady looked back at her spy with mischievous eyes, "Change of plans, my dear, if we can't find his replica of my work for the spell than I will ask you to retrieve the original one first with or without the boy.. We can get the little brat later."
Accel nodded, "Of course my lady, consider it done."
"Wonderful as always aren't you, Accel?" she giggled, "Now, if you will excuse me there is something else I need to do."
"W-Wait, my lady! I did not get to report how the ritual went-!"
"Oh no need to report anything, my dear!" she booped the top of his nose, "I told you...I have eyes everywhere. I saw you do it, graceful as ever, not to mention how quickly you subdued little Fallen! You are a master of your craft for a reason, Accel! And that reason..." she leaned closer to his ear as she whispered, "...Was why I kept you alive."
With a small laugh she disappeared into thin air, leaving a frozen Accelerator alone in the old cabin.
"You a-are a moron for helping her!"
The Tower glanced back at their prisoner, Necromancer keeping his head up with great effort as the bleeding continued.
"I am not the one tied to a chair, beaten to a pulp."
"But y-you will be the first one she throws away when s-something goes wrong!"
Accel rolled his eyes, dropping his backpack on the ground. He unzipped the main compartment, pulling out a bottle of water. He paced to the back of the room, kneeling down in front of his fellow Tower as he undid the cap.
"Drink."
"..What?"
"You need water. Drink"
"Why would I-?"
"You are paler than a snowman. Do you want to survive or not?"
Necromancer sighed, allowing the man to gently press the bottle to his lips, helping him get a healthy swig of water out of it. Accel placed the half empty bottle down, searching through his backpack for some spare bandages.
With a cloth he found and poured water on, he wiped away the blood from the man's face.
"Why are you doing this?"
Accel stopped, "I have my reasons"
The Tower's voice was strained as he pressed further, "What did she promise you that was enough to betray your own kin?"
"...Power to avenge those who fell at the hands of a monster."
Necro blinked, "Power?...You broke your oath...for power?!"
"You are not one to judge me, Necro. You practiced the forbidden arts of magic despite it being against the treaty, hiding yourself in this shack for decades. And look where that got you." he spit back.
The older Tower remained quiet, narrowly eyeing the younger, "I hope you know what you are getting yourself into, Accelerator."
"Too late for warnings. I am well aware of it all" he answered. Closing his eyes with a soft sigh, he added quietly,
"...If you comply she would spare you."
"Comply? To a monster? Never. I will never be a part of this, this plan of hers."
"Do you really want to die, you-?!"
"I would rather perish Accelerator, than live to know I aided in the demise of our world-!"
Necromancer began coughing violently, as Accel steadied him with a firm hand on the chest. Encouraging him to lie back into the chair.
The younger Tower continued well into the night to mend the wounds of the older one. It was not the first time he had seen his lady's work, her interrogations were renown to be brutal. But it tug at his heart to see a man he had admired in the past be at the receving end of one. Perhaps that was why he was being so gentle, if it had been someone else he wouldn't have bothered helping. But Necromancer had always been kind to him, they were both outsiders, outcasts in the past...Yet, now only one of them will be known as a...traitor.