An Uncertain Future (Tag Veron)

[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Kathryn sat down on the edge of the 3rd pier at the Old City docks having just endured what she considered the worst 2 weeks of her life. Having fled Praxis with barely anything she owned Kathryn knew that her world had been turned upside down. She sat quietly for a moment running though all the images of the residents screaming and running for their lives in her head, that worthless excuse of a human Adam Worth had ruined EVERYTHING! ...She stopped herself from punching the ground in anger realising that it was pointless, she needed to put her energy to good use.

She got up and starting walking, it was pointless to hang around here she needed to find a place to stay for at least one night. Just the thought of having to sleep in a small dark corner again made her sick, she could still smell the stench of rotting fish on her clothes from hiding in a shipping container for nearly a week. She shook the thought from her mind; she had one goal, to find the Old City Sanctuary and hope that Helen Magnus would still remember her.

The thought of Helen made Kathryn smile, there had been few people that Kathryn had ever considered her friend but Helen was one. Kathryn trusted Helen, she had always been one of the few that understood her & convinced her there was more substance in her theories then she believed. But they did not part on the best of terms; Kathryn had put her career before her friendship and in her mind lost it forever. It had been her biggest regret and now it was something she was hoping to change.

Kathryn looked up and saw night was beginning to fall. The cool evening air was something she had missed; the feeling on her skin was something that no technology could ever replicate. And although her re-entry to the surface had been rough the past few weeks, she was glad to return but she wished it had been under better circumstances.

Her happy thoughts were short lived as a sharp pain suddenly blasted through her head again.
Not again, dammit she thought. The pain seemed to increase whenever she was getting close to abnormals, which in this case meant it was time for her to run. Kathryn took off down a side alley trying to avoid whoever it was that was nearby, she zigzagged one way & then another until she thought she was clear, only to find instead a dead end. Kathryn turned around to see who had been following her.

When she saw who it was her heart skipped a beat & her blood ran cold.

“Veron?”

[VERON]

His new life began with a whimper.

Veron didn’t know where he was going, nor what he felt at the time. Those passing moments were a blur, oblivious to the concrete jungle that surrounded him. The day was cool, and enlighting, and….bright. He had never seen a beauty as such, like the giant ball of fire floating in the sky. It was almost like a dream world. Never in his entire life, did he expect to land on the Earth’s surface. It was unheard of for anyone to do as such from his world. But now things have changed, and the tables have turned. Praxis was destroyed, and he had no-where else to go.

Only moments before had he slipped out from one the Abnormal camps, as it was first run by the human Earth dwellers. But now Thelo took hold, and now the humans were prisoners. Prisoners. He didn’t want to believe that. In fact, he honestly knew that they were being protected. Honestly, who knew? Thelo believed that were taken as prisoners, so many more took his lead, and together, they took control of the situation. Veron was almost ashamed. His species were meant to be peaceful and wise. Not manipulative and vengeful.

So he slipped out unnoticed.

He pelted the concrete ground below, desperate to find answers. His parents were missing, most likely dead. Since he had been in the camps several days ago, he saw no sign of them, yet he did not keep his hopes up.

He seemed to have wandered around for a few minutes of time, until he realised he was getting some odd stares from human passer-by’s. He forgot. Now he seemed like the Abnormal one. Slipping out to a side street as he edged closer to the city, he stripped off the top layer of his foul, blue jumpsuit the humans gave him back at the camp. Besides the red firestone that was attached to a pendant around his neck, he owned nothing more. After he had literally no chance of gathering any of his belongings, he was left homeless. Using his small claws on the tips of his fingers, he shredded off the top half of the jumpsuit, revealing a dirtied, and blood-spotted white, short-sleeved shirt. He needed to try and take away to focus of his predicament at some point, so it was the best he could do.

Gritting his teeth, his Herusan eyes flashed and his nostrils flared up. He could smell something….familiar. He moved slowly at first, trying to use his feline senses to track the new scent down. It was difficult in a new environment such as this. There were simply so many factors to keep in mind, since the environment here was far different than the one he left behind.

But then a figure whizzed by him, and spun around on his heel. The scent increased tenfold. He let out a low growl, only loud enough so that he could only hear, and he pelted on after her. It didn’t seem like hardly any kind of chase, because soon enough the female figure had fled into an alleyway. Yet, she was cornered.

Slowing to a sudden halt several meters away from her, a tight smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. Flexing his neck muscles, he slowly advanced on her.

”Well, Kathryn. I’m surprised to see you here. Alive, “ His eyes narrowed, and his gaunt face showed no signs of sympathy, ”Where is she? My mother! You were with her last, were you not?”

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[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Kathryn watched as Veron came closer, his eyes fixed on her as if she was the prize of some mighty victory. She looked him up & down examining each and every detail, the ripped and torn jumpsuit could only mean one thing a camp was nearby and obviously in the chaos Veron had managed to slip out without being noticed.
“Veron I see you can still slip out of any situation, shame others can’t do the same”
He was asking about his mother, that didn’t surprise her in the least but these stand over tactics were not going to help him find her. Herusan’s were peaceful & wise but they could also strike fear into whoever they wanted but that wasn’t going to work, Kathryn had lived long enough to see straight through most people human or abnormal she was not afraid of him. She lifted her eyes to meet his locking onto them and not waving, if he was expecting her to cave in just like that he had another thing coming.
“You have no idea do you?”
Kathryn could see the confusion on Veron’s face. He had barely seen his mother in the time leading up to the destruction and yet it was if that time had not mattered. Kathryn remembered back to many a time when she was called upon to console over matters which had involved Veron. His mother had been a brave & courageous woman saving the lives of others in Hollow Earth with little thought to her own well being and yet her only thought had ever been her son. Kathryn rubbed her forehead; the pains was becoming increasingly worse, if she didn’t move soon or try to control it she wouldn’t make it out of that alley alive. But then again Veron may settle that matter for her.

She let out a deep sigh realising she had no choice in the matter if she didn’t tell Veron something he wouldn’t let her pass. He had a right to know what had happened, she just hoped that his aggressive tendencies wouldn’t be used against her.
“Yes Veron I was the last person to see your mother, she came to me after she learned that Adam Worth had returned to Praxis. She was worried about your safety; she thought Adam may try to recruit you to help build weapons to help destroy the government”
She stopped for a moment and looked at him; the confusion that had been there a moment ago was slowly being replaced by anger. His fists were clenched, his nostrils flared he looked as if he were ready for a fight.

A small shiver ran down Kathryn’s spine but she continued.

“I assured her that Adam if he was back would only be after something to help himself and that you would not be recruited but that didn’t stop her, you know your mother her determination to help others was always the thing that drove her. A few hours later the government had word that explosions were happening in the lower end of the city, so your mother and I went to help”
Kathryn could see that the anger was slowly turning into fury.
“The scene was chaos, people everywhere bleeding & screaming for help, we tried to help as many as we could but the number was too great for just your mother & myself to deal with. But that’s when your mother saw the building she could hear screams from inside & did what she always did and just ran in...I couldn’t stop her!”
Tears slowly ran down Kathryn’s face, recalling that day was one of the most traumatic of her life. She continued but her pitch was lower almost whispering hoping that Veron would look past what had happened as if it were just a dream. But this was just a recurring nightmare for anyone.

“A few moments after she ran in ......I watched the building blow I...I...I was horrified. As soon as the smoke cleared I ran in trying to find her, she was under some rubble crouched over two small boys. I tried to revive her Veron I really did...but there was nothing I could do....”
Her words trailed off as she looked down to wipe her eyes for only a split second. But as she looked up Veron charged at her with a murderous look in his eyes. He wanted revenge & with no Adam she was the perfect target. Kathryn now had to fight to survive.

[VERON]

Veron was clearly not impressed with this woman.

To see a mere human, a colleague of his mother, alive and well before his cat-like, bright orbs. Though he wanted nothing more than to find the cowardly imbecile who destroyed his home city, he was also curious as to how this woman was still alive. Sure, no one deserved to suffer a fate like that. To run, scared and confused as the walls around the city began to crumble, as you remain there, trapped. Unable to move. Unable to breath. Unable to think.

He stopped in his tracks, his breath shallow, and he clenched his jaw for a brief moment, ”Adam Worth? That cowardly pig has returned? Blasphemy!” He began to grind his teeth together, merely out of habit. Adam Worth wanted to recruit him? He wouldn’t even want to be standing in the same vicinity as him, let alone getting recruited! ”I would never allow that puny imbecile to use me like a puppet! I take orders from no-one. “

His mother….She tried to help them. And she perished. Tears fell from Kathryn’s eyes. Maybe she was telling the truth…Maybe not. He stood there, listening to the words that hit his heart like a Praxian sledgehammer. And he was furious. Furious with everything that had happened, and he was powerless to do anything. Furious with every one.

”On that day, my father ended his shift at the lava pits, and then I took over at the weapon-smith’s labs. The moment he left, the walls began to crumble, and I was trapped inside with a few other Herusans. Though, as the walls crumbled, it created an opening and through that, we escaped. We were powerless to do anything else. Since then, I’m been stuck in those so-called camps, unaware who was alive or dead.” He grunted, with frustration.

Then he began to edge nearer to her, slowly and slowly, until he stopped inches away from her face, as his feline eyes bore into her’s, ”Tell me what you know of Adam Worth and his whereabouts. TELL ME!”

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[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Veron’s face was now so close she could feel his breath touch her face. He was upset and angry that was understandable but did he honestly expect her to have all the answers? She had no idea where Adam was and even if she did she would make sure that a bullet from her gun was the first and last thing he ever saw from her. Adam had taken away not only from Veron but her as well....
Kathryn’s eyes narrowed as she stared straight into Veron’s eyes she took a step closer to him, catching him slightly off guard it was clear that he was not used to being stood up to like this.

Kathryn said nothing for what felt like hours she just stared at Veron expecting him to do something but he didn’t, he just stood there motionless.

“If I knew where that worthless piece of garbage was do you think we would be having this conversation right now? Honestly? If I had my way a bullet would have been put in the back of that mans skull the moment he arrived in Praxis”

It was clear to Kathryn this was not the answer Veron wanted.

“And what do you expect to do when you find him? Adam Worth is a brilliant yet psychotic man, capable of avoiding anything or anyone. Do you expect to kill him?”

Kathryn took another half step and leaned into the Herusan’s face barely whispering her words.

“He’d kill you before you had even blinked”

[VERON]

”Yes, as a matter of fact, I do plan to kill him. Slowly, and painfully. The man does not deserve to live, no matter how brilliantly psychotic he is.”

Adam Worth deserved to die. Plain and simple. He was a genius, yes. But he was also a menace. A dangerous menace, and a threat to this world. He already successfully caused Praxis to collapse and crumble, so what else did he have planned in that mind of his? Once Thelo and his band of freedom fighters woke up to the bigger problems at hand, then that is when a true war would break out.

In truth, Veron was not a fighter. He had a tough fight in him, but when it came to drawing blood, he would rather attack from the shadows. Quietly, and dangerously. Catching the enemy unawares. Though he would only attack when provoked, in defence of his own life. Because he grew up in a world where it was hard to trust anyone. Too many worthless thugs plagues the city backstreets, and he seemed to attract them like Thestra Beetles.

Suddenly, he grabbed the shoulders of Kathryn, and pressed hard, giving an iron-like grip, ”Well then, I could kill you before you could even dare to blink! I’ve killed before, and I can do it again, quite easily.” With a low growl escaping his mouth, he pushed her to one side, eager for her to show a little fight. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a 5-inch blade, hand-made by his own hands, and engraved with a Basilisk on its hilt. A unique Praxian metal, capable of slicing through bone.

”Get up, you worthless female.”

She meant nothing to him. He lived life by his own standards, and therefore had no intentions of following anyone’s orders. And to be provoked by a Earthen-born female? That was uncalled for, and his short-temper was about to explode tenfold. He had no patience for her. If she wasn’t going to escape by her own accord, then she will not be leaving this alley alive.

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[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Kathryn looked up at Veron, his face full of anger and hate. She knew she had gone too far pushing one to many of his buttons and now she had been well and truly cornered. The 5 inch blade shone in the moonlight glinting as if it were a priceless jewel; crafted with precision its beauty hid its true purpose. But no matter what Veron thought she had no intention of suffering at the end of its blade.

She rose slowly as not to draw Veron into doing anything rash...yet. She knew that he was waiting for the perfect moment to slice her in half and there was little she could do to prevent him from doing so. She took a glance to her left and noticed the garbage heap; she could see wire, bits of broken wood and bottles lying about. It wasn’t much but even the smallest distraction would be enough to get away. She quickly took a side step to grab one of the bottles only for her worst nightmare to occur the searing almost unbearable pain in her head had returned.

“NOOOO!!!!!” She screamed as she collapsed to the ground.

She grabbed her head trying to make it stop but the harder she tried the worse it got. Unwittingly she spoke what she was thinking, confusing Veron for a moment.

“Damn you Rana why did force me to take those treatments....AHHHH”

In a moment of clarity she saw out of one eye Veron standing over her with a sly grin on his face. She had just played right into his hands.

[VERON]

Veron watched with curiosity, as the Earth-born woman collapsed in a heap to the ground. She was clutching her head and screaming, while Veron honestly thought she had gone completely crazy. He knew bits and pieces of the woman, mainly from snippets of what his mother had told him. Although, he knew deep down his mother knew more than what she bargained for. He overheard the woman. Something about....tests?

Sounded like a crazy experiment from Worth himself. Seemed like something he would do.

Veron grinded his teeth together, and without waiting for the woman to respond, he lunged at her with the hand-made Praxian weapon, and made a clean incision along her shoulder in one, swift motion. That was all there really was to it. However he wanted more. Anger coarsed through his veins, eager for bloodshed. Eager for a fight. Eager to feed the rebellious soul within his lean form.

"You have no fight in you....Pitiful human, " Letting out another low growl, he grabbed her by the neck, and lifted her to her feet, and let go with such force, as he dropped her to the ground. He twirled the blood encrusted blade around his fingers, trying to suppress the urge to shatter her female form.

Then he lunged at her again with the knife outstretched.

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[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

The pain that seared through Kathryn began to shift as if her body knew of the impending pain that was about to come. The slash to her shoulder was torturous but it was his hand on her neck that hurt the most, in that moment he had all the power controlling whether she lived or died. It was in that moment that Kathryn no matter what her thoughts or feelings were decided she had to fight back. Coughing and spluttering as she fell Kathryn spotted the large metal pipe out of the corner of her eye; it looked heavy enough to give her the distraction she needed.

She looked up to see Veron make another lunge for her, she darted to her left just enough to make sure her neck wasn’t slashed but she felt her side take the full force. By this stage the adrenaline was pumping and although she was now bleeding badly she just kept moving. She grabbed the pipe with her left hand and in one fluid motion swung around hitting Veron across the face. The force of the impact had taken Veron clearly by surprise knocking him to the ground, blood slowly dripping from his lip. But before he had a chance to retaliate Kathryn swung at him again, this time collecting him across the back of the head.

“How’s that for fighting back?”

Kathryn stood over Veron for a moment listening to see if he was still conscious he was growling and that made her think that this could be a ploy. In her mind she put all thoughts aside & hit Veron twice more before satisfying her worries that Veron would spring up and attack her. She dropped the pipe next to Veron’s body before taking her hand away from her side, she looked down to see the blood now covered almost every inch and that she figured she would be bleeding internally by now, she didn’t have much time.

Kathryn staggered her way out of the alley moving in a northerly direction towards the river. Kathryn knew that as soon as she hit the river all she had to do was turn left and go straight and the Sanctuary would be in site. But her injuries were severe and she knew her chances were small of making it there alive. She kept moving slowly using the mental map she had created in her mind, plotting the course to her destination. The closer she got to the Sanctuary the tougher it became for her to move, using the sides of buildings to prop herself up. Slowly metre by metre, step by step Kathryn’s energy was draining but her sheer determination meant she would not give up.

As she reached the river she turned to see the Sanctuary complex in the distance just as the first rays of sunlight hit the water, it was dawn and her time was almost up. Kathryn quickened her pace causing her to nearly fall twice but the gates were within site now. She needed them to open; she looked around.... the intercom! Perfect! ...will they listen? This was her only option and she knew if this failed that was it her time was done. She propped herself up against the stone wall and leaned down to put her face as close to the speaker as she could manage. To flick the switch though meant freeing up her hand keeping her from bleeding out, she had minutes she thought.

She had no choice, letting go she flicked the switched and screamed into the intercom hoping someone on the other end would hear.

“HELP ME!...IS ANYONE THERE? ..I NEED HELP PLEASE..I CANT HANG ON ANYMORE...PLEASE HELP ME!!!!!!!!”

Kathryn let go of the switch and collapsed by the gate, letting the blood pool by her side. After two weeks of little food, sleep & being battered & injured her body could finally take no more. She watched as the two gates slowly opened before finally letting the darkness take her.