Reunions (E 2.1, H 2.1, L 2.1)

Location: The Roost
Time: afternoon

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Edmund / Syd,

The Talons left you alone at The Roost over an hour ago. How did you pass the time? Did you clean up the living areas or the room you share with Jackdaw? Did you take stock of the cooking supplies and the larder? Did you look for a weapon you could carry? Did you snoop around?

It's nearly noon when the Talons return to The Roost - you hear their jet skis from blocks away. You also hear the low stuttering sound of an outboard motor. When you come to a window or the door outside, you see them arriving - all of them. Cuts and bruises, some soot-stained faces, but they all come home to Roost. Plover is piloting a boat you don't recognize - ugly and covered with rude bumper stickers from the world before. Standing on the boat, you do recognize the passengers.

Janelle is bloody and weary, but she still looks smart and professional in her suit. A beaten-down Parker looks miserable and she holds her daughter Paisley in her arms. Are they prisoners? They've been through hell. Were they on the plane you hear overhead, the one that pulled the Talons away?

What do you do?

---

Litch,

After the big fight at The Ren and defeating the Reavers, your Talons return to eat and rest. Plover is piloting the Reaver boat and you're sure there are some weapons aboard that can get you a jingle or two. But the real prizes are the three ladies you saved from a terrible fate. You know Syd will recognize them, of course. He served their household.

The rest of the Talons bring their jet skis to the dock and tie them off, they're in good moods overall after a hard fight. You catch Jackdaw waiting on Plover, checking in to make sure she's alright. Mynah orders Javan to bring his ski over to her workshop because she heard something amiss. Shrike heads inside to check on Aloe, while Kestrel collect weapons to take them to the armory and clean them.

What do you do?

Morale is high. The adrenaline is still pumping vigorously through our bloodstreams. Everyone is laughing and bantering as we pull in and automatically go about our end-of-job tasks. I try to observe Jack and Plover impassively out of my peripheral view. I can feel emotion start to send bubble to the surface of my awareness, but I push it back down. I rarely see Jackdaw show that level of consideration for another without horsing around loudly. It seems sincere. I resolve to give him a fair shake.

I look away from the pair over to the three prizes. I'm not certain if Edmund - or Syd, as he is going by now - will want his identity revealed yet, if at all. Perhaps they won't even recognize him with his makeover. I've spread word amongst the Talons of the butler's new name, but I'm not sure if it's stuck yet. I gesture for Zephyr to come over. "Good job lass. Not too hurt are you?" I cup a hand around the back of her neck and look her over, a mild, fatherly concern making me squint as I hunt for any battle blemishes. In a lower tone, murmur to her. "I'm going to leave the girl and the two women in your care, luv. You're in charge of helping them rest and get cleaned up. I'm going to talk to Syd" I put extra emphasis on the name. "About their presence and what he can offer them medically."

It has been a quiet day at the Roost. The ever-present sound of the water lapping against the stone outside provides a pleasant backdrop as I pick up around the living quarters. A distant hum begins to crescendo letting me know that the flock must be returning. I make my way over to the window and peer out.

My breath arrests in my lungs. My hands begin to shake.

Parker, Paisley, and Janelle are there - and between the injuries I can see and the emotions I'm seeing - something hasn't gone well. My eyes dart between the Talons and three people I've always considered to be family. They don't appear to be captives. Perhaps whoever recently owned the boat Plover is driving is to blame for the wounds.

I rush through the hallways headed for the docks. Though I pause as I near the final door. What do they know of the past couple days? Are they back at the request of Princy? The twins? Someone else? Would they be relieved to see me or will they hate me for ending up outside of the Tower - away from Princy? A tear runs down my cheek - still hard to tell what emotion is at the root of it. Dare I attempt to hide my identity from them?

That thought startles me. All reason and understanding tell me to rush out there and tend to their wounds while discussing the events of late to see if I can get a clearer picture of what happened. The only benefit to remaining Syd is that they may hate Edmund, and this would let me avoid that potential truth for a minute longer.

So long as there is not immediate harm I will bide my time and see if one of the Talons approaches me first. Maybe it will give me a clue as to what Litch or Princy's family is thinking.

I wait inside the door and watch, through tear-blurred eyes to see how they behave.

Syd,
You watch as Zephyr and Litch talk, then she heads onto the boat to talk to Parker and Janelle. Parker hands Paisley to Zephyr, which seems odd. That's when you see Parker's legs crumple under her. She falls into Janelle, who barely manages to hold her up.

What do you do?

Litch,

As you watch Jackdaw and Plover for a moment, your eyes scan the horizon. You hear an outboard motor and quickly pick up the sight of a low-profile "bass boat". Amazon is sitting behind the wheel with her machine gun over her lap as she pilots the boat toward the Roost. You spot someone in the passenger seat, but they're slumped over. They have long black hair flying in the wind - is it Helix?

As I watch Parker fall into Janelle's arms I spring into motion. I can't tell if her collapse is from fatigue, wounds, or something else. "Madam, what is the matter?!"

I begin looking her over, searching for any sign of a wound while Janelle braces her. "Let us move her inside, quickly."

Over my shoulder I quickly inquire with the nearby Talon, "How did you come across them Miss Zephyr? Did you go back to the Tower?"

When Parker's legs fold beneath her and she drops into Janelle's arms, I make a start toward them. At the same moment, I see Syd running out of the front doors and hear the motor of Amazon's boat and I come to a halt. I am concerned for Parker's wellbeing, but syd seems to have it well in hand. I'm more concerned with keeping our guests out of Amazon's view - I don't want rumors to fly about who I'm keeping hidden away here.

I place my thumb and forefinger in my mouth and whistle to the gang members still present. "Get everyone inside. Now! Merlin," I beckon my trusted lieutenant to my side. "Fetch that boat we commandeered from the Rafters. The one with the green lock box. We're going to make a trade."

Helix,

You start awake with Whispers accusing you of being too slow, too dumb, and too too trusting of Lucky. You deserve this, they berate you as you hear the sound of an outboard motor and feel the wind on your face. You're moving. On a small boat. When you chance it and open your eyes to slits, you see the Rafter called Amazon driving the boat. She's right beside you, in fact, you could reach out and touch her muscular shoulder.

Amazon has been to the Belly with the Rafter a number of times. She never drinks, never cuts up with the others, never sings their dumb shanties. She's always watching. Always prepared for trouble. What did you do to help her out of a sticky situation a few weeks back?

You see that she's taking you to some odd-looking building and there are a bunch of Talons scrambling at the dock to this building.

What do you do?

The ringing in my ears fades into the sound of a whining engine overlayed with the Whispers' taunts, which must mean I'm not dead yet. My head pounds, lips numb and tongue heavy. Everything aches.

When I see Amazon there beside me through my lashes, my mind muddles through questions sluggishly. Why am I...here? Where...are we going? ...what is happening?

It was only a few weeks ago that I ran across Amazon at the market. She and one of the vendors were arguing about something - I didn't catch what - but it was escalating, and the vendors tend to gang up on customers when things go south. It's better for them to stick together to prevent theft and threats than it would be for them to fend for themselves. I know she may have lasted the fight alone, but I stepped in to ask about another item which gave her enough room to walk away. Or maybe she's mad at me for interrupting. I stupidly wonder if that's why she came after me now, but no one would attack the Vault for petty revenge, especially not against me. I'm not important enough for that. Of course, maybe whatever deal I disrupted that day was.

I risk opening my eyes a little wider, wincing at the light cutting deep into my skull, and spot the busy ants scurrying along the docks ahead, Talons I realize as they come into slow focus. I try to swallow to wet my parched throat, but there's nothing there. In the hazy panic of the world turning sideways around me so many times in the last hour that I'm dizzy with the jumbled mix of decadence and dancing around my own demise, my instincts only want one thing: get away.

Without my permission, my body acts on that impulse and I try to make my quaking legs move to pitch myself off this boat to get away. Get away. Get away.

Litch and Syd,

Merlin barks at everyone to get the frell inside and shoves Jackdaw and Plover ahead of him. He's headed in to grab the lock box.

Syd, Zephyr explains that the girls crashed into The Ren before Litch and Merlin start yelling. She yanks Janelle away from the boat, telling you to carry the lady, meaning Parker.

What do you do?

Helix,

You move too quickly for Amazon and hear her utter an annoyed curse as you roll out of your seat and pitch overboard. The bass boat surges forward a bit before Amazon is able to start her turn. The water here is cold and deep. She's going to come back and try to fish you out if you don't dive down and try to swim away from here.

What do you do?

My flock is quickly scrambling to obey. Merlin rushes to retrieve Amazon's payment. I turn away from them to walk down the jetty where Amazon's boat is pointed. I calm my heartbeat, preparing to receive contractor and prize. Four in one day? How blessed. I walk to the mooring lines and wait with my hands clasped behind my back.

Then...I see Helix roll over the edge of the low-drafted vessel to plop into the choppy waters. "It can never be easy can it?" I say aloud to no one. With a sigh, I remove my wide-brimmed hat and gently drape it on a nearby dock piling. Same for my jacket. It might be warm and protective against the rain and elements, but it'll make it difficult to swim. Before setting it on the dock, I pull out my goggles and press them firmly against my face. With a deep breath, I dive into the depths. Between myself and the Rafter, one of us will retrieve the girl before she sinks to hell.

Syd,

With the excitement over the boat arriving, folks are screaming and moving, but you're focused on Parker, right? You see why she fell right away - blood loss. Her left hip and left leg are covered in blood and you see a piece of metal sticking in her side. She's staring up at the sky and sweating profusely. She's lost too much blood, Syd. She could die.

What do you do?

The water is a stark slap of reality against my skin. When I surface and gasp for air, legs kicking and arms keeping myself afloat, I spin in the water, hunting for a way out. Amazon is already turning her boat around and I'm not a strong swimmer. In truth, I'm already regretting jumping in. I know enough to keep my head above water, but I spent my childhood far above the surface of the water, not below it. I never developed the affinity for it that most in our world possess, not the affinity or the comfort. The depths below me are a maw waiting to open and swallow me whole. Choppy waves splash against my face and into my mouth as I fight panic. I'm too afraid to duck below, so I start making feeble progress away from the boat, a wounded mouse chased by a hungry cat.

I don't know if Lucky or Wells survived the explosion at the Vault, and if they did, they might both want my head for what happened. Blackjack will be angry at me for abandoning the Belly. Dakota is slow and useless. My options for help are dwindling faster than my strength, but there's one person, at least, who I think might want me alive, who might be strong enough to take on Amazon.

"Mm-" I start before a wave catches me in the mouth and steals the word with a gurgle. I spit water out and try again, "Mikkie. Mikkie."

Litch,

You're there first. You swim like a shark and surface close enough to stop her from doing something the Gray Wing says will be serious trouble. She looks tired, hurt, and scared.

What do you do?

Helix,

You try to tread water and call out to Mikkie. You say his name twice and feel the weird tingle of the calling, but then Litch surfaces right in front of you and the Whispers scream in terror and everything comes undone.

What do you do?

The sight of blood running down Parker's leg immediately causes flashbacks to the scene, just a day ago, when blood similarly rushed out of Princy.

Why is this happening?

I don't even know where to begin. Impaled. Shock. Blood loss. Organ damage.

I've always had a reputation for treating others, it started with just tending to them in small ways - little bedside manner tricks to help others feel better. Eventually, that put me in situations where I was actually treating wounds and caring for illnesses from time to time. Things tended to work out but I chalked that up to how gritty and resilient folks are these days. The past day has made me question whether or not there is something more mystical at work. I have been feeling increasingly convinced that whatever malevolent spirit is helping me with such impossible works is doing so by feeding off whatever good things might happen in my life.

Save Princy, lose my home.
Stabilize Kamae, cement my false reputation as a traitor.

I beg whatever is doing this to me with my jaw clenched and tears streaking all the way to the tip of my chin, "Please. One more time. Do what you want to me, just spare them."