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Echo

"I'm not sorry that I'm both your umbrella and the rain."

0 · 2,326 views · located in London, England

a character in “The Tower Society || Familiar”, as played by The_Queen

Description

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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞
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【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


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{☛ ⒻⓊⓁⓁ ⓃⒶⓂⒺ ☚}
Echo || A lingering trace or effect.

King || Chess. the chief piece of each color, whose checkmating is the object of the game; moved one square at a time in any direction.

{☛ ⓃⒾⒸⓀⓃⒶⓂⒺⓈ ☚}
None

{☛ ⒶⒼⒺ ☚}
She lost count a very long time ago, her physical appearance seems to take on that of a 10 year old due to the fact that no one ever puts any suspicion in children.

{☛ ⓈⒺⓍⓊⒶⓁⒾⓉⓎ ☚}
Undetermined, things like gender don't seem to sway her.

{☛ ⒻⒶⒸⒺ ⒸⓁⒶⒾⓂ ☚}
Felt/ Scarlet Flandre || Touhou/Re:Zero

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❝Never regret anything, because at one time it was exactly what you wanted.❞
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{☛ ⒽⒺⒾⒼⒽⓉ ☚}
Short, she'll never be tall like her sister.

{☛ ⓌⒺⒾⒼⒽⓉ ☚}
Isn't it rude to ask a lady her weight?

{☛ ⒽⒶⒾⓇ ⒸⓄⓁⓄⓇ ☚}
Her hair is the same color as spun gold, or perhaps maybe the soft pastel shade of tulips. In length it merely goes down to her shoulders as she has less than no time to worry about things like grooming.

{☛ ⒺⓎⒺ ⒸⓄⓁⓄⓇ ☚}
Her eyes are as red as the blood of her victims. Like little rubies that sit in her skull, greedily soaking up the details of the world around her.

{☛ ⒷⓄⒹⓎ ⓂⒶⓇⓀⒾⓃⒼⓈ ☚}
Echo has no piercings, however she does have the mark of the contract right smack in the middle of her chest.

{☛ ⒼⒺⓃⒺⓇⒶⓁ ⒶⓅⓅⒺⒶⓇⒶⓃⒸⒺ☚ }
Echo is a mighty little package made up of many things. We'll begin with the skin, soft and porcelain like, it appears unblemished, giving her an almost doll-like complexion. Her face is perfectly ovular with two red eyes set like gems inside of the skull. She has a button nose and thin lips which hide a mouthful of pearly white teeth and a set of canines that give her a most toothy grin. Echo's hair is a buttery blonde, shiny and soft, the kind you want to run your fingers through and weave in your hands. She does have one peculiarly long strand, although the rest of her locks fall to about shoulder length. Moving on from there, her figure is slender and small, perfect for agility and speed rather than brute strength. Her fingers are elegant and long and she has toes that her great for gripping things she has dropped on the floor.

Now, let's move on to Echo's, erm, peculiarity. Protruding from her back are what almost appears to be two black figures made up of bones. Hanging from these are a multitude of gems, each one representing a different element. Each time one is used, a gem is broken and it can take up to one full week for a gem to regenerate. Hidden underneath her clothing is not one, but two features. One being her tail, which ends in a spade-like shape, the other being two slightly pointed ears that at a first glance, are easy to miss.

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♙I've always loved the idea of of not being what people expect me to be.♙
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❥ Destruction || Who doesn't? The sound of screams are music to Echo's ears. She has a peculiar taste in sounds.
❥ Coloring || It would be accurate to make the observation that Echo is, er, rather childish.
❥ Breaking glass || Another sound she enjoys it the shattering of bones.
❥ Stories || It is very easy to get Echo to go to sleep should you tell her a story, especially if it's a long boring one.

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❝I am mine before I am ever anyone else's. ❞
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☛ ⒹⒾⓈⓁⒾⓀⒺⓈ☚
⌦ Baths || Bathing is for peasants, water is the enemy of man!
⌦ Being told what to do || It is common knowledge that her kind are head strong, getting Echo to do anything she doesn't want to is quite a feat to behold.
⌦ Humans || A greedy lot that take and take and take without ever giving. Echo is sick of humanity, she can't wait to see them all die.


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Tail || Her tail is very sensitive and should you touch it she might just bite your hand.
Look up || It is very easy to tell when Echo is lying because she'll look up as though the answer is written on the ceiling.
Attention || Echo is very much an attention hog, like an overeager pet she aims for your complete and utter affection.

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☛ ⓌⒺⒶⓀⓃⒺⓈⓈⒺⓈ ☚
⌦ Lying || Funny how one of her worst skills could be lying, Echo is an absolute horrid liar.
⌦ Protectiveness || She's very possessive of what belongs to her, as most of her kind are.
⌦ Staying Put || Echo is not great at basic commands like sit or stay, she likes to do what she wants when she pleases.
⌦ Chocolate || While most of her kind are not overly fond of sweets, Echo is absolutely batty for them.

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☛ [color=#Color]ⓈⓉⓇⒺⓃⒼⓉⒽⓈ[/color]☚
❥ [color=#Color]Memory || She has a mind like a steel trap. Don't remember that thing you promised her if she did something? Echo certainly will.[/color]
❥ [color=#Color]Anger || While some would think that this is a weakness, Echo's anger pushes her to make change.[/color]
❥ [color=#Color]Childishness || This is definitely one of her strength's, putting on the appearance of a child has kept her alive this long.[/color]
❥ [color=#Color]Will || Echo is as stubborn as a mule with an unbending will, unless of course, you offer her something worth bending for.[/color]

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☛ ⒻⒺⒶⓇⓈ☚
Drowning || There is a very specific reason for why Echo doesn't like water and this is it, she's deathly afraid of drowning. Echo has a crushing fear of the ocean, so much so that forcing her to take a bath is an entire ordeal on its own.
The Dark || Funny isn't it? One of her kind fearing the dark. It isn't the darkness so much as what's lurking in it.
Let Down || She's afraid of being a let down, the shameful one in the family that failed to rise to greatness.
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♙I tried to be "normal" once. Everyone thought it was too weird. ♙
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{☛ ⓅⒺⓇⓈⓄⓃⒶⓁⒾⓉⓎ☚}
I don't know my name
I don't play by the rules of the game
So you say I'm just trying
Just trying.

So I heard you are my sister's friend
You get along quite nicely
You ask me why I cut my hair
And changed myself completely

I don't know my name
I don't play by the rules of the game
So you say I'm just trying
Just trying

I am lost trying to get found
In an ocean of people
Please don't ask me any questions
There'll be a valid answer
I'll just say,

That I don't know my name
I don't play by the rules of the game
So you say I'm just trying
Just trying

I now know my name!
I don't play by the rules of the game
So you say, I'm not trying
But I'm trying
To find my way


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❝It's not about brand, it's about style. ❞
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{☛ ⒻⒶⓂⒾⓁⓎ ☚}
Lumos King || Unknown || Father || Alive
Kuro King || Unknown || Mother || Alive
Doll King || Unknown || Older Sister || Alive
Melody King || Unknown || Older Sister || Alive

{☛ ⒽⒾⓈⓉⓄⓇⓎ ☚}
The history of demons has always been one of complexity. Where did they come from? How did they come about? Why did they invade earth? These are valid questions that perhaps will never have answers. It just simply came to be and it was just like this that the Kings came about. No, not monarchs, but the King demons. Manifestations of all that is bad, they are the embodiment of the violence and darkness that gathered in thick piles and turned into wishes. That's what demons are really, wishes. A desire to kill, a wish to take revenge or complex greed rooted to the core of humanity. It was from these things that Kuro and Lumos were born. Two mighty demons that wrecked havoc upon the earth, it was love at first sight. Hand in hand they wrought chaos and bloodshed wherever they dare go, making humanity quaver beneath their mighty power. It was around this time that the Tower Society had been formed and the two demons were offered a deal. Cease their relentless tyranny on humanity, or risk being captured and jailed for their crimes. The demons laughed at the thought of being taken by humans, of being brought down by the very people that quaked in fear at the mere mention of their name.

As you can imagine, their activities continued and eventually, as promised, they were caught. The two lovers were cruelly ripped apart and forced to live in separate cells within the Tower Society. Kuro was pregnant when she was taken in and laid an egg that was cruelly ripped away and taken to an incubator. Doll, the eldest, was the most successful in pairing with a human. She imprinted on him from an early age and since she had never known her parents and heritage, was able to be trained as an elite soldier and paired with one of the bigger names in the Tower Society. Using her as an example, they forced Kuro and Lumos to breed a second child, this time bearing Melody. This egg too, would never know her parents. She was powerful like her Mother, although a bit more reckless than her big sister.

And then there was Echo.

The Tower Society wanted another child and once again forced the two demons to breed. This time, however, they were unsuccessful in their attempts at forcing the two to mate. On terms of good behavior, Kuro was moved into Lumos's cell and the two bred in secret, keeping Kuro's egg out of sight of the Society. They knew they couldn't hide a baby, but they could sure as hell try. When Echo was born, she clung to her Mother and Father, the two parents successful in hiding her for nearly a month before the Society caught on. They forcefully took their child away and made her live in a lab. Echo wasn't raised in the same manner her sister's were. She wasn't supposed to be paired up with anyone, she had been born for mere experimental purposes. It was because of her odd ability that they decided she was too useful to waste.

Her first few partners ended up dead, killed by Echo herself. You see, the demon didn't seem to have the slightest inkling that killing humans wasn't what she was supposed to do. She was far too much like her parents, wanting nothing more than to cause trouble by playing cruel jokes and leading her partners to their doom. Echo was put on retirement, deemed a failure and ultimately forgotten about. For years she had been locked in a cell underground, her sisters visiting her every once in a while. Sometimes, if she behaved, they would let her go around the gym on a leash. With the recent shift in the Head of the Tower Society, her paperwork was jumbled and Echo was given a second chance. She was taken out of retirement, the seals on her cage released, her two sisters hired to train her.

Should she prove to fail, Echo will be caged once more and used for breeding purposes, as after who knows how long, she is finally at her prime.
{☛ ⓄⓉⒽⒺⓇ ☚}




ⒸⓄⓅⓎⓇⒾⒼⒽⓉ: ⓉⒽⒺ_ⓆⓊⒺⒺⓃ

So begins...

Echo's Story

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


"That can't be."

"It's this one isn't it?"

"She shouldn't be a match, she's been out of the system for years."

"Their compatibility rate is the highest I've ever seen."

"The numbers don't lie, these tests are foolproof." Something was happening, there was a disturbance in the air, a murmur of excitement that passed through the Tower Society. Outside the rain was pounding hard against the windows as though it wanted to be let inside, the heavy hands of thunder booming across the courtyard as lightning could be seen every so often. The winds howled with the ferocity of a lion, pushing over anyone who dare take out an umbrella, making them battle fruitlessly against the ever changing gusts. In England this was just another Tuesday, wet, rainy, miserable. The streets were overflowing with liquid droplets, a warning having been delivered for anyone who could stay inside to stay inside. There were many, however, who wouldn't notice the change in weather or drop in temperature. There were some who were so far beneath the ground that they hadn't seen the light of day in years. One of these people, I supposed you could call them, would be Echo.

"Good morning Little Sister," the sound was a grating in her ears. The lights flickered on as someone opened up the slot to unceremoniously deposit the tray containing breakfast on the ground. Echo turned over in bed, the white sheets crinkling as red eyes glared at the person who dare disturb her slumber. It was a rare treat to see her siblings, but Doll's presence was not particularly welcoming this morning. Standing beside her was her Master, the human whose every whim she carried out with a sickly sweet smile. "This is the one?" Christopher asked, prodding a thumb in Echo's direction. Doll gave a curt nod, "this is her." Echo looked down at the tray of food, scrambled eggs, baked beans, and sausage. It was more extravagant than what she was used to, which was normally grits or some sort of hot porridge. Echo's eyebrows raised, the smell enough to make her mouth drool. "What's this about?" She asked, as it was not often that Doll came to visit.

The demon was eager to tear into her food, knowing that it was likely drugged seemed to have no substance in the decision. "There was erm-" Doll began but Christopher cut her off by holding up his hand. "You've been summoned," Echo looked up with a mouthful of sausage, swallowing hard. "Summoned? I don't get summoned," there was some sort of mistake, Echo was on retirement, forced to live out the rest of her days in these four tiny walls, just like her parents. Summons were things reserved for useful demons, ones that didn't kill every Master they had thus far been paired with. "The tests don't lie," Echo was acutely aware of the fact that they were watching her every move. She wolfed down the rest of her breakfast, the dizzying feeling overcoming her mind. Yup, it was definitely drugs.

Echo next awoke in a familiar room, one she had seen the last time she had been allowed on the surface level of the Tower Society. The court room was large and grand, carved of oak and cedar and smelling of tension and something else, fear. Not Echo's fear of course, she didn't fear anything (or at least that was what she liked to think). "We are here today on the fact that Subject 295 has been Summoned." There was a murmur and rustle as papers settled and the faces of the jury appeared. On the other side in the stands were several familiar figures. Two were her siblings, Melody and Echo, the other two being their Masters. "I object!" Came a cry as Echo looked through the bars of the cage containing her, seals laminated all across the top on little strips of paper in red ink. "Subject 295 was retired on the basis of being an unsuccessful candidate for matching. I heartily believe that she should not be put back in the line of duty!"

Echo yawned, picking at something in her teeth with the nail of her pinkie finger. "This child is a failure, she will amount to nothing more than a tool for good breeding, just like her parents." She lashed out at the bars of the cage, making them jump back. "You take that back!" She hissed, her eyes glowing a vivid red. The bars hummed, stinging her hands, but Echo didn't move. "My parents were the most fearsome monsters you blokes ever took on!" There was a murmur of disapproval. In the stands, Doll was shaking her head. The trial proceeded, going back and forth between whether or not Echo should continue her sentence in waiting for her to be prime for breeding, or if she should receive one more chance.

"If I may," the court room turned, watching as Doll's Master stood. Doll herself seemed to be quite flustered by this sudden turn of events. "The Tower Society has always been about giving demons a second chance," Christopher Delanore said, the medals on his uniform glinting in the light coming from the fluorescent bulbs of the ceiling. "I think with the right discipline and contract, Subject 259 could be fit to return to the line of duty." She sat back in her cage, watching him between the bars. Echo's expression was just as shocked as the other's. "The jury will now present their decision," they had turned to huddle and whisper before appointing someone to go up to the Judge's stand. The judge stood, opening up the scroll of parchment and clearing her throat. "Echo King, AKA Subject 259, your sentence is hereby changed. As of tomorrow you will be expected to report to training and as of next week will be paired. Should you prove to fail, your previous sentence will be doubled. If there are any further objections, please speak now or forever hold your peace." Not a sound came from the stands nor the jury. With the slam of a tiny wooden hammer, Echo's fate had been sealed.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


"I don't really feel comfortable with this, you know."

For a future agent of the Tower Society - she already did the basic pairing test, and a list of candidates would be given to her later - Mara LaFleur, or perhaps her code name as a future agent - Fluorspar - Flo for short - it was probably a little strange to be in this situation with her boyfriend. But here they were, and for the first time, they were going to do something beyond kissing. Harris Standstead, average height, dark hair, somewhat lean, he wasn't a bad pick by any means if you judged by physical appearance. His face was handsome and deep, perhaps a bit rugged as well. And, well, Maya knew she was cute, she was very small for her age after all. In terms of personality, Harris had lots in want, he was demanding, he didn't like taking no for an answer - but Mara didn't really judge him. No, they had a symbiotic sense of need, since they were both each other's only real friend in this whole world.

And here they were, it was time for some under the shirt action. Not that Mara really had much under the shirt, in all honesty. She really was flat but Harris didn't really seem to mind at all. "I didn't feel comfortable with losing my family to a demon attack." Harris grumbled in return and, well, that was a fair point. "F-fine, but make it quick, okay? Don't do anything weird to them, they're sensitive." Harris had the name of the demon culprit etched in his soul, and as a result, Mara too, knew the name by heart. Cormag Gunnar was the name, he had gone missing after going on a rampage. Worst part was, he was a classmate, killing off Harris's entire family after Harris invited him over to work on a school project together.

Right before Harris managed to get the bravery to stick his hand under the shirt from the bottom, Mara pushed away in order to violently and painfully cough, the shakes rocking her entire body. "Whoa, you okay? How bad is it?" And Harris suddenly shifted from the manipulative poisonous boyfriend to the childhood caring friend that Mara cherished too much to break up with "If you aren't feeling well, let's save it for a better day, alright?" But the amethyst eyed girl could sense the faint disappointment in her boyfriend's gaze, he wanted it. "I-I'm fine, just get it over with so you can brag to your school friends." Mara had quit school not too long ago because she kept missing classes too much, being in the hospital and all.

The pressure felt weird and her breasts really were just as sensitive as expected. And right when Harris touched that sensitive skin, Mara let a sneaky grin rise on her face. "And now you owe me, so remember that, got it? This doesn't come for free!" Still, she wanted to save her purity for someone she loved romantically... but it wasn't as if Mara would ever get in a relationship with anyone. She was responsible for Harris, and while he wasn't demanding and angsty at the moment, he had his bad days too. "Give me a new deck of cards, another of the sick kids vomited all over my last deck." Harris gave her an indreculous look but nodded. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say. Hey, you should massage more, make'em grow bigger. Or drink milk, I heard that helps too."

Well that was crossing the line a bit, wasn't it? "They're mine, not yours." Mara muttered under her breath and Harris just seemed to find that amusing. Here it was, his domineering side, and Mara knew she just had to enable him because if she wasn't careful he'd go off and start threatening suicide over every little thing again. "Sure, but I'm your boyfriend." He grinned salaciously. "It's me who benefits from their size, isn't it? As your boyfriend, you should drink more milk!" But then things were cut short when Mara's phone suddenly went off. "Ah, it's them, the transplant organization." Mara lied. It was from the Tower Society, her contact was an older boy who called himself Codename Flame. Harris quickly up and left, wishing her luck and Mara finally had her privacy.

"Yes, Fluorspar here." Her voice went back to normal, she wrung her tail slightly nervously in her hands. "Are the results ready?" Flame's voice was deep, yet somehow comforting at the same time, he sounded like a nice person that knew people. "Yes. You should come here today if possible, to get to see your candidates for the second phase of testing." Mara nodded, but then realized he couldn't see her nodding over a phone. "I'll be right there." Another coughing fit then and Flames politely didn't mention it. "Thanks for the call." Well, time to call up her doctor and get him to pull some strings to let her out for the day.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

0.00 INK

#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


"You're going to fail," a little voice called Doll hissed in her ear. "Get up and go around again," Echo was drenched in sweat, it had been a long time since she last went to the gym. "I hate this," she grumbled, shoving her sister away from her as she rose to her feet. "Would you rather be forced to get pregnant and have kids?" Doll did have a point there. "And ruin this figure? No way in Hell!" Christopher smirked; the two of them had been tasked to bring Echo up to shape so that she at least stood in the running for summons. "Again," Echo went to the beginning of the obstacle course, two strange looking wings protruding from her back. The diamonds glistened in the low light, her tail swishing fervently as she waited for the signal. "Go!" With that Echo was off, her legs pushing as hard as they could towards the first challenge. The yellow diamond broke, lightning striking the post that was supposed to be an opposing demon.

With the ding of the green light she continued, going over and underneath pole, vaulting herself onto a platform and landing on top. The red diamond broke next, flames consuming the three models that were put out when the green light gave her the signal. The next obstacle was a row of tires she had to continuously jump through like hoops. Echo felt like a show dog, prancing around the show floor for others to judge. Some demons had stopped to watch as she took out the next obstacle with a blue diamond, a rush of water emitting from her palms to sweep away the fake enemies. The finish line was guarded by a three headed dog, one that towered over her. This is where Echo always failed to pass. The dog normally took her out with one sweep of his tail. Now, however, she read his movements. She jumped over the tail, swept underneath his paw, and crossed the red ribbon in record time.

There was a trickle of applause before other demon and master pairs turned away to return to their own work. Echo knelt forward, coughing and gasping. "Good job," Christopher condoned. "Not good enough," Doll replied. "There were several instances where you could have easily gone through and took the harder route instead." Echo glared as she looked up. "Well not everyone can be Ms. Perfect!"

"Why you-"

"Enough!" Doll shut up instantly, Echo smirking as she remembered the one advantage of having Christopher, he was the only one that could control her overly egotistical sister. "Get your boobs out of my face!" Echo pushed Doll away from her again. A voice in the sky crackled above them, "Subject 259, please report to room 102 for testing." With a grin Echo turned away from them, finally, a break from those two. "Don't embarrass us," Doll hissed as Echo strode away, a little swagger to her step. "No promises!" Echo shot back, disappearing behind the double doors as she headed to room 103. Inside was a single table and chair, a thick stack of papers and two freshly sharpened pencils waiting for her. "I hate tests," Echo groaned, taking a seat. "Please begin," she picked up the pencil, drumming it against the desk as she read the first question. "What do you do if... blah, blah, blah. You kill it of course!" She was about to write down the answer when the image of her sister's disapproving face flashed through her mind. "Pfft, I'm not an embarrassment..." she trailed off, a slight uncertainty to her words.

Two hours later she emerged, her eyes spinning at the bright lights. "They're waiting for you, get changed." Doll shoved something into Echo's hands. Echo grinned toothily, her tail flickering in excitement. How long had it been since she had gotten to wear something that wasn't the dreaded uniform? Echo would have gotten undressed right there in the hallway, but the thought of her sister seeing her naked was uncomfortable. "Where's Melody?" Echo asked as she disappeared behind a curtain, "Busy," Doll replied. Echo emerged, dressed for success. "Let's go, apparently she's here already."

"Already? Boy, is this what it feels like to be paired? It's been a long time," Echo squinted as the elevator doors opened to reveal a long hallway. There was only one door at the end of it, she had a feeling they designed this for the intimidation factor. "Where are the others?" Echo asked as she opened up the door. "You're the only one," a woman stood there, her arms crossed, her glasses giving her the brisk appearance of a business woman. "Your compatibility rate was over 100%." Echo turned towards the other door, the one that would be opening any second for her to meet her match.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

0.00 INK

#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


Aidan was her dutiful big brother, and he always did like to dote on her and protect her. So even if he had work at the police academy, he made sure to go straight to the hospital to pick her up. "Pottery class, huh?" He asked a bit dubiously. "When have you ever been into the arts, sis?" Mara felt a little stab of pain but she quickly rationalized it away as being a necessary white lie that wouldn't hurt him. After all, if he knew what she signed up for, at a mysterious special invitation, there's no way big protective Aidan would let her go into the line of fire like that. "Well, yeah. It's been boring since I quit school, gotta occupy myself somehow." Aidan sighed and then ruffled her hair. "You should just relax in the hospital and let them work on you, you know?"

Mara scowled a little. No, the idea of just being a doll sitting in a hospital bed day in and out, making nothing of herself, that was terrible. Yes, she was sick, yes she was dying, but if Mara let that fact hold her back, if she let it stop her from doing the things she wanted to do, then that was just a waste of a life. Mara was determined not to use her illness as an excuse to stop trying. If that meant pushing herself, if that meant hurting herself a little bit, it was worth it. "I just get stir crazy shut up with all the same walls all the time." Mara said, and that wasn't a lie, idly watching the London scenery whiz by the car window. "There's only so much entertainment you can get from watching people from out the window." But Aidan probably didn't understand what it was like, he wasn't the sick one of the family.

"Well, at least, you're too young for a boyfriend." Aidan was still trying to push, still trying to just trap her in a protective bubble and block herself out from the rest of the world. That would be a fate worse than death. Sickness was one thing, suffocating protection was even worse. "I know you'e known Harris for a long time, but still, Mar, isn't it too hasty? He comes over almost all the time!" Mara rolled her eyes. "I love him." She said and that one was a lie if you used the romantic definition of love. "You had a girlfriend when you were my age too, dummy." And so they made it to the pottery shop which was very close to the Tower Society base. "Well, just call me once you're done and I'll be right over. Here, your puffer, in case you have an attack-" And so he did all sorts of fussy things until finally Aidan buzzed off, allowing Mara to completely ignore the pottery class and go right into the Tower Society, a somewhat scary looking place that nevertheless made the girl excited.

After she signed in using her codename and a retina scan, they told her to report to the testing room. There was a questionnaire right there, and a pen, blue ink. It took about an hour to fill out the questions and at this point Mara was just anxious to finally see what demons she had available to her. "You have a series of candidates, this test will help narrow it down to one." The officiator said with a sort of smile. "You're a girl." He said, as if noticing it for once. "Oh, I am? I thought I just forgot my penis at home." Flo cracked a sarcastic smile. "What about it?" The officiator did a little uncomfortable squirm. "Nothing really. We have other girls too, maybe you could make friends with Stallion. She's new to Team Conan but rumor has it she just picks fights with everyone."

"Oh."

That was a surprise. Then again, with a prideful name like Stallion, perhaps it should have been expected. "It'd certainly be interesting." So she handed him the sheet and he went to process the scores. It didn't take long for someone to come and retrieve her, this time it was a different boy, with red hair to match his name and his voice. It was Flame. "Fluorspar, right?" He said with a grin. "Come here, it's time to meet your demon. Of course, it won't be official yet, you two will have to undergo training and we'll have to see your Synchro Rates to really be sure... but you should be fine. We haven't had anything over 100% for initial compatibility tests ever since Doll and her human." Two more names that meant relatively nothing to the girl. "Ah, I see." She said, a neutral answer.

And so it was time. Flames opened the door to the room where human and demon would meet and be paired up. The fateful meeting of Fluorspar and Echo. To be honest, Flo had been expecting a larger, stronger sort of demon to mix well with her brains since obviously Flo'se usefulness didn't rely in physical ability. What she got instead was a demon that was a tiny bit shorter than her, and possibly even flatter if you considered that Flo was wearing stuffing in her bra at the moment. And yet Flo knew better than to judge by someone's size. "Hello." She said and then had the worst timing ever for a coughing fit, having to puff in the puffer. "I'm Fluorspar. It looks like we're partners, doesn't it?" Flame then handed over two things. "These are called TB's. Both of you, wear them wherever you like, and we can begin the Soul Syncing." Another female demon appeared, apparently the partner of Flame. "Wow, Echo, you got a weak one." She said in a teasing sing song voice which Flo decided to tactfully ignore.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


Echo waited, somewhat nervously, to see what would come through the door. Girl or boy? Short or tall? This was her last chance to redeem herself, if she failed, if she snapped and killed this human too, Echo would never get to see the light of day again. Not that she was seeing much now seeing as how she was in a windowless room, waiting to be paired up with her human. "What do they look like?" Echo prodded the figure in the corner, who looked down at her with distinct disapproval. She was always getting that look, the one that spoke of being more trouble than she was worth. Echo didn't care, she knew her value better than any of these guys did. Sure they all saw her as a failure and a waste of time, but Echo knew that now that she had one last chance to prove she was worth something, well, she was going to try her hardest to prove everyone wrong.

Maybe it was the the birthing room spot with her name on it that made her suddenly have a change of heart, but Echo didn't want kids. She wouldn't mention this fact to her human, she would conveniently leave it out. "Are they coming soon?" Her question was answered when the door opened and Echo eagerly watched as Flame came into view. At first she was confused, then she realized that there was someone behind him. The fiery haired man was stepped to the side to reveal... a girl. Echo's tail flicked lazily through the air as the two took each other in. Short, boobless, pink hair, and a tail of her own. Wait, what? Echo did a double take, there was something unsettling about seeing a human with a tail. Her human gave her the same, unimpressed stare. Okay, well, she might seem small, but good things came in small packages sometimes, right? Perhaps Echo was just trying to reason with herself.

With one spoken word her new human bent over double in what Echo first thought was laughter. Her cheeks heated up, she opened her mouth to say something when she realized that it wasn't strange giggles, but a coughing fit. Great, she had gotten a weak one. Echo could sense it in the girl, a lingering sickness. She wreaked of it really, but Echo tried to refrain from wrinkling her nose. "Echo," the demon replied. Flourspor, what kind of name was that? Or was that her code name? What kind of code name was that? At least Flame's made sense, but Flourspor? It sounded like a plant. Echo turned to Flame as he handed her, her TB. "I hate these things," she mumbled, putting it on as it was required. She would ditch it as soon as she could, no way did Echo want this thing greedily reading her stats while she fought.

Melody entered the room in search of Flame and snickered, already dubbing Echo's human to be worthless. "Shut it!" Echo snapped, "Just cause she's scrawny doesn't mean she's worthless!" She threw a glance at Flowerspore, or whatever the hell her name was. "Come on, let's just get this over with." She fiddled with the Tower band, once again debating whether it was worth the trouble. Having a new human was one thing, having a defective new human was another. How was it that Echo had paired perfectly with her? How had one of the spawn of the two strongest demons out there ended up with a weak lunged, tail wearing, weirdo?

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


Fluorspar and Echo. They were going to be partners then, and Flo really did hope that everything would go well. This was her opportunity to show that she just wasn't a sick girl, to show that she could still do things, that she wasn't going to let herself be held back. Her father was a brave policeman who died in service to the demons, and this was - no, it was best not to go down the revenge route, that would just mess up her mind. Fluorspar took a deep breath - or, well, as deep as one could really manage with Emphysema - and smiled pleasantly at Echo, who didn't really say much. Another girl who looked like a bigger version of Echo - sisters, maybe - popped in. "Hey, Melody, I guess there's no harm in yo watching, the Elders didn't say anything against it." Flame said, and Flo silently stored another name an face combination into her head for memory.

"So you hated these things?" Flo asked apprehensively, her pink hair almost bobbing as she spoke, putting it gently around her left wrist, feeling a brief tingle shoot down her arm, down her spine. "Does that mean you had a human before?" Tower Braces, or a TB for short - not for Tuberculosis, obviously, just Tower Brace - were pretty much designated for each pair. So then - "Ah, I'll let you tell me more when you want to. We only just met, after all." Melody than said that rude thing with a snickering laugh and Flame just groaned to himself. "Don't count them out yet, this compatibility rate, have you seen it, Mel?" Over one hundred percent, so that had to bode well.

At being called scrawney Flo couldn't help but grin and roll her eyes. "You're smaller than I am, you know." She said, not really snappishly but not the most politely either. "But you're a demon, so you have power to back it up." There was more to fighting than physical strength though, and Flo was here to show that she wasn't just a coughing girl! "It's a weird sensation, but you'll get used to it." Flame said as he pressed a button on both TB's, making them emit an inaudible signal that made her augmented tail curl as they connected. And almost instantly Fluorspar felt a strange - a mix of anger and anxiety all at once, and she knew instinctively that it came from Echo. So this was what it meant to be connected?

A door opened in the wall then, revealing a larger room, this one looking almost like a testing arena. Flame was reading their vitals or whatnot on his pad and Melody was curiously looking over his shoulder. "Syncrho Rates at 60%, not bad for a first time. Now, let's see what you can do. The first enemy will descend now." It was just a dummy demon, but it still had powers and would move around to fight. It fell from the ceiling, looking a bit like a human with raptor-like features. "He looks fast." Flo said almost instantly. She was quick, within seconds she was already analyzing her enemy. "Decent offensive skill, but weak defensively. If you can get close and bait him to attack and then hit him right after dodging, he should go down in one hit." She never had a a TB before, obviously, but the sooner she learned, the better. "I don't know how this works, but I'll try to send you a signal through this to let you know when to strike." And the raptor demon let out a snarl and lunged and that was when Flo imagined a green light in her head, trying to shoot the image at Echo. Assuming the TB even worked that way.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


Echo looked up as Flo addressed her, "You'll find out why," she mumbled, shaking her wrist. She didn't like the extra weight, even if the band was only a half an inch wide with a tiny screen to tell the time. It was supposed to look inconspicuous, like a watch, but a bit fancier. The previous model Echo had was a necklace and she had hated that one just as much as this. They were a pain to wear and it always made her head feel slightly fuzzy because she was hearing more than just her own thoughts. She glanced up as Flowerspot spoke to her once more, wanting to be know about her previous human, then correcting herself and saying she could save the story for another time. Echo wasn't particularly chatty today, normally she ran her mouth like a conveyor belt on full steam. Melody seemed to notice as well, "She's just being shy," she said, swirling her finger around in the air. "Normally you can't get Echo to shut up."

"Not all big demons are powerful," Echo pointed out, she seemed awfully stiff today. "Some of the big ones are about as smart as a bag of rocks," it was true enough, Echo had met plenty of demons both big and small with varying power ranges that had nothing to do with their shape. Some big ones were powerful, others were useless. The same way that sometimes good things came in small packages. "You're lucky you got stuck with me, I'm as powerful as they come!" Not to toot her own horn or anything, but Echo liked to think she was pretty good. Melody snickered at this but otherwise said nothing, her expression telling of Echo just being an arrogant little girl. The other human in the space, the one with the glasses, stepped forward. "Watch your back with this one," she said quietly, handing Flo a card. "If you come across any trouble with her, do not hesitate to call."

Echo glared, the human stepped out the door in front of them, heading off towards the other entrance so that she could go to her next appointment. Flame and Melody would take it from here, Flame glancing at his tablet to see that their synchronization levels were already at 60%. That was twenty percent more than her last one, Echo noted. They stepped into the larger room after the woman, the lights in the training area flickering slightly as the first obstacle descended. "It's a little one," Echo grinned, "I can take this easy," she nearly went ahead to attack before recalling the thing called teamwork. Gosh this was such a pain. Echo turned to Flo, listening to her assessment on their enemy. Hmm, maybe Flower hat had a brain in there after all? Echo cracked her knuckles, grinning.

A green light blared behind her eyes and she pounced, ducking underneath but it was a feign, the robot moving to throw the real hit, which Echo dodged. She didn't even need to break a diamond, with one kick punch to the jaw the enemy bowled over, the robot's eyes turning red to signal that it was defeated. "Told you, piece of cake!" She bound back over to her human where Melody was politely clapping. Melody was much easier to deal with then Doll, who probably would have criticized Echo for doing something wrong like not checking to make sure her shoes were tied or letting her tail nearly trip her. "Ready for the second one?" Melody asked, her high pitched voice as sweet as a summer's song. Echo nodded eagerly, her heart pumping at the thought of getting to fight more.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


Very true, you couldn't judge someone based on a first impression. Someone looking at Flo for the first time wouldn't notice her rapid analyzing mind, just like how someone seeing Echo wouldn't think she was a powerful demon. That was why Flo kept an open mind about Echo, waiting to make her judgment on the demon after this training session that was designed to test just how well the two could work together, to test their Synchro Rates, and a whole bunch of other variables that Fluorspar didn't know because, well, she wasn't a higher up, she was new to this sort of thing. "I hope I'm good enough for you then, oh Echo the mighty and powerful." The girl made a sassy joke as she walked her way into the arena like room that had opened up in the facility.

It was natural that the two were a little bit stiff for now, they had only just met. Once they knew each other better their teamwork and personalities would shine through. Or, at least, that was how it worked in theory. The demon that appeared was small and Echo had every confidence in her abilities to be able to defeat it with a cinch. Flo had given her assessment of the situation, but she knew it'd be better to communicate strategies via the Tower Brace rather than out loud for the enemy to hear. It'd be faster mentally, as well. So she stood back as the robot demon lunged, Echo easily followed the signal and dodged the feint in order to take it out in one blow. "Wow, you really are good!" Flo's eyes were wide with excitement. Maybe it wasn't a mistake to join the Tower Society after all!

So with Melody's urging both Echo and Flo made their ready signs. Oh, she was getting pumped, this was better than a game, this was incredibly exciting! A crafty twist of the lips came as the next opponent appeared, this one big and large, and from the first few seconds of watching it move Fluorspar could determine that it was slow but powerful. It had these big dark lines that at first looked just like a design quirk but then Flo realized. "Those lines look like weak points, but it's a red herring, that's probably where the armor is strongest." The newbie warned, processing all of the information like a human computer.

If that's how it was, what could they do? Sure, Echo could dance circles around it but that wouldn't cause damage. Maybe it would be good to see what special abilities she had? "Oh, did you explain about Artifacts yet?" Melody asked suddenly and Flo's tail twitched in surprise, suddenly thrown out of her thoughts. "Right." Flame made a bit of an awkward face as if this was his first time officiating the training of a newbie. "After a first hunt, the hunter receives a fragment of their target's core. We bind it to your soul as an Artifact, and as long as you hold it, you can control that demon's power, but each hunter can only have one, ever." Okay, that was exciting, but was this really the best time to think about that when there was a fight going on?

And then it hit her. "Go for the eyes, blind it's optical sensors first." Flo commanded, feeling her blood pumping. "A-and then attack the joints on it's legs to make it fall over, then hit the back of the neck to sever the circuitry!" Almost immediately she started coughing, sharp and painful, but she kept her eyes peeled on the fight as she inhaled the medical mist from the puffer.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


Yes, bow down, a part of Echo thought. Humans were weak, they should all bow down to the might of demons. No, it wasn't good to think like that, it was that thinking that had gotten her in trouble, that had gotten her thrown underground in the first place. Echo shook it off, trying to make herself remember why she had been given a second chance. If she blew it, they really would never let her see the light of day again and Echo hadn't been outside in who knows how long. Just getting out of that cramped space was a miracle in and of itself. Melody glanced at her, seeming to recognize the mental warfare that was going on in Echo's head. Part of her wanted to show this human who was boss, the other just wanted to get this over with so that they could make their contract already. If they passed this trial, they would move on to the next phase, which would need a prick of blood from the finger of both girls. It was a serious commitment and Echo wasn't sure this human was ready for it what with the way she continued to double over in coughing fits and all.

Melody and Flame's contract mark seemed to shine in the light, the inky black symbol a reminder of what was to come. Echo would be bound to Flo's service until one of them died. With her previous humans, Echo had gotten sick of them and had killed them herself to be free of the burdens contract mark. A demon could easily be taken advantage of with that mark, Echo had gone through a lot of pain to go against it and kill those people. Not just pain as in having to cut off her hand, but the pain of having to deal with the higher up's. The first time had been ruled an accident, the second time was suspicious, the third it was obvious what Echo was up to. Echo's only real fear was that Flo would keel over dead after a coughing fit and it would be on her shoulder's because she had been present and had a reputation.

"I don't call myself the best for nothing," Echo grinned cheekily, flashing her fangs. "The next one is coming, pay attention," their next enemy descended from the ceiling, its robotic armor clanging as it touched the ground. Echo shivered, she hated robots, she hated most technology. Phones were her worst enemy, they scared her really. It was the reason she was so adverse to TB, because their scientific whatever made her head throb. "Yeah, anyone can see that. The chinks in those are usually in the shoulders and behind the knees," Echo warned informatively. This enemy was much bigger, she might have to use a diamond for this one. She didn't want to reveal her power yet though, Echo wanted to save all of her diamonds for the biggest enemy. Perhaps she'd sit back and let Flo take the lead?

Oh right, humans were useless when it came to fighting. Echo rolled up her sleeves, then remembered she wasn't wearing any. "Righty'o boss!" Echo hollered as she went in for the kill, following Flo's instructions. The optical sensors first? Echo looked at the ground, grabbing a handful of dirt from the simulation field and chucking it at the bots eyes. The bot's head whirred to try and get rid of it, but Echo was fast and aimed for behind the knees, knocking it over. She aimed both of her hands in a straight line, the air moving around her palm as she delivered a swift flick to the circuitry. The bot short circuited, letting out an awful hiss that made her jump back. Echo retreated behind Flo, hissing at the machine as it came to rest.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


When the defensive robot with the heavy clanking armor appeared, Flo had to admit that she was a tiny bit worried. But then she felt a surge of confidence coming from the TB as her demon - was it weird to consider Echo to be hers? - went to action and followed her instructions easily. There was some statistical chattering coming from Melody and Flame that Flo didn't quite understand but it seemed like good things, especially considering that their Synchro Rate was rising to 63 now. It wasn't a drastic upswing, but it was good. And so the armored robotic demon collapsed and then Flo felt it, that nervousness, that fear. "You did great, Echo! That must have been really fun!" Echo just looked so alive fighting, it made Flo feel a little bit jealous. But it always did suit her to be the commander from the rear instead. "Um, I don't really know demon etiquette, so if this bothers you, just bite me or something." And so Flo hugged Echo, very excited to have a female friend because she only ever had Harris before and he definitely wasn't a guy.

"There's one left, so don't let your guard down." Melody warned in her voice that sounded like a gentle song that Flo could honestly fall asleep to. No, she couldn't let that happen, that'd just make her look very bad. She had to do well too, not just let Echo do all the work! "I'm ready!" She said, because obviously she was ready. "If you are too, let's finish this, Echo!" The last enemy descended from the port then, looking large and threatening and it let out a booming roar. "A weaker version of one of the Demon Barons, Baron Asmodeus, who Team Holmes managed to kill in battle two years ago." Flame explained, so this was a real enemy, not just a hypothetical thing.

It was definitely large and menacing and Flo felt a tiny bit of apprehension as she studied it. This one didn't have glaring obvious weaknesses as the others, so it'd take more time to examine for sure. "Just play safe for now, don't do anything risky. Wait for him to make a mistake." Fluorspar advised cautiously, standing as far back as possible. And so Echo and mini Asmodeus had a few rounds back and forth and right when Echo was distracted a tail struck out with blinding speed, if Flo hadn't seen it coming it definitely would have done worse than slash into her shoulder. But that wasn't the main part threat, because then Asmodeus retracted the tail, yanking Flo up off her feet and into the thick of the battle. It was scary and she was coughing and it hurt and she was bleeding.

But Flo's eyes glimmered with calm and precision as a plan came to mind. "I-in the... in the split second it lashes it's tail... it let's it's guard down, see? It stopped moving completely. Free me and wait for it to do it again, then you can do the finishing blow at it's weak point, right between the eyes." Pain was nothing new to her, so she could handle it just fine. There was no reason to panic. "I know you've been saving it, b-but you might... need to use your powers on th-this one." Melody and Flame were both eagerly watching, waiting to see what Echo would do next. This was the last trial though, and the finger pricks were already prepared, as a silent show of confidence that they would succeed.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


Echo beamed at the praise, then tried to quickly cover it with a scowl. Melody laughed, "just accept it!" She called, her and Flame still standing on the sidelines. Unlike Echo, Melody was tall and quite blessed in the chest area. The two sisters could have been twins if not for Melody's startling purple hair and bat features. She took after their Mother with those. Doll had inherited their Father's horns and Echo, well all she had gotten was a tail and her secret weapon. "It's fun," Echo mumbled, having stiffened when Flo hugged her. Echo had never been hugged before, not by her sisters, parents, or any of the previous humans. It was clear she didn't quite know how to react and so she settled for grabbing her own tail. "Whatever," she turned away, blushing. Melody and Flame were both laughing now, not at Flo but at Echo's confusion.

"Yeah, yeah! Let's finish this!" She turned back towards where their new enemy was lumbering, giving off an overwhelming aura. Echo didn't so much as flinch, her expression becoming eager, her eyes glinting in the light. She set off at once to start fighting it, hearing Flo's words and knowing that she'd just have to toy around with the bot until Flo was ready to make a useful suggestion. Of course Flame was ready to put it out if the demon proved to be too much for them, but Echo thought she was handling it rather well. She had defeated this same monster three other times, all with different masters, all coming up with varying degrees of the same solution. Echo was curious to see what Flo's take on it would be, so far she had proved to be more observant than the last ones.

"It's not that smart!" Echo called back, her grin remaining the same. She was small and swift, the enemy was big and jerky. Small swift rabbit, jerky dumb fox. Echo was still waiting to go for the kill when it happened, the tail hit her from behind, sending her smack into the floor. Her nose began to bleed, the taste of coppery blood dancing on her lips. "The only blood I like to taste is the blood of my enemies!" She howled, getting right back to her feet. The monster had grabbed her human, dangling her wildly in the air. "Put down my human you metal faced jerk!" That was it, Echo was going to have to use her secret weapon. Out of her back come what looked to be at a first glance, two large branches, but upon further inspection, it was clear that these branches were bone.

Diamonds glittered, one by one glinting as they readied themselves to fight. It was with the shatter of a green diamond that vines lashed out, freeing Flo from the tail so that Echo could go in and get her out. She pushed Flo out of the way, getting hit in the side. It was painful, but not anything Echo couldn't handle. A blue diamond broke next, the water rising to blind the demon. With that Echo ran and jumped up, delivering a kick between the eyes. The bot shuddered, then began to fall. Echo's nose had stopped bleeding, it had trickled down her front and wiping at it with her arm proved to have no effect. Echo gave one last kick, then swaggered back over to where Flo was. "So? How did we do?"

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


Both of them were bleeding and in pain, Asmodeus's tail was doing quite the number on them. But from Flo's calm strategy despite being suspended in the air and Echo's roar of bravado and rage, the two girls and newfound partners were very much in sync with one another, their Synchro Rate spiking to 67 at it's peak when Echo attacked with strength and skill, vines to free Flo and set her away from the fight, water to blind and then a powerful kick at the marked weak spot. With that, the mimic of Baron Asmodeus crumpled and broke, defeated at last. "We did it!" Flo said loudly, excitedl but then she felt her breathing become much more difficult so she made a weak grin. "We did it." She repeated, more quietly, breathing carefully so prevent another coughing fit. Echo had swag as she went to Flames and Melody, asking for an assessment.

"I think we can safely place the two of you in Rank 3 for now, based on your performance." Flame said with a certified nod, regarding the chart full of score marks and everything else. "That's rare for newcomers, most start at Rank 1 or 2. However, there's always room for improvement." Melody seemed definitely excited and crowed over Echo with cheer. "Don't kill this-" And then she looked up at Flame and then Flo and then shook her head. "Don't kill enemies too hard, you might have experience but she's still a newbie!" She corrected herself but Flo wasn't fooled. Based on that and what the other woman said earlier - but the pinkette wouldn't ask until they were closer. "I'm so happy, I think I'll enjoy having you as a partner." She was very careful to say partner, because Flo wasn't interested in having a servant or a slave. "I hope we can be friends."

And with that Flo was given a band with a mark on it, three stripes to signify her rank and that she was now a certified Demon Hunter of the Tower Society. Melody was already at work tending to both of their wounds, cleaning up the blood. "There's no more testing to do, just some arrangements. It's common for demons to live with their hunters, do you want that done, Fluorspar?" Flo glanced at Echo and wondered how Echo would feel about that. "I live in a hospital." She mumbled. "I'd like the company, but only if Echo wants to. If she's happier here I won't take her away from that." Okay, maybe Flo was a newbie but she knew the best way to build trust was to respect Echo as an equal, instead of as a lesser being. The Evelina London Children's Hospital, to be exact.

"Well, you should head back for now, and if Echo wants, by tomorrow she should be assigned as a roommate to you." Flame said with a smile so Flo nodded, holding a hand out for Echo to shake if she wanted to. "It was nice meeting you, Echo." The pinkette said with clear eyes that shone like amethysts. A finger twirled in her bubblegum locks, a bit nervous."I hope you're okay with me as your partner." And with that she was escorted out and Flo walked back to the pottery place where she called big brother Aidan. "I'm done with classes." She said when he picked up. "Can you drive me back to the hospital now?" Back to her prison, where she wasn't a new recruit to defend humanity, back to where she was just a sick inpatient with less than a decade left on the clock.

Was it so bad to think that maybe she cold tell mom and just maybe, mom could be proud of her for the first time ever?

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


In that moment, Flo seemed so overwhelmed by the fact that they had won that even Echo could feel it. The happy feeling washed over her, making her head spin in a not entirely unpleasant way. "I told you we'd do it!" Echo grinned, her fangs on display once more. "Hey, don't kill yourself, we only just met!" Echo didn't want to be blamed for this one too. She glanced up at Melody to make sure that they saw it too, that this human was weak and could keel over at any second. Melody gave Echo a prodding glance, the kind that said to take care of it. How could she though? They didn't form the contract yet so Echo could perform no healing on the sickly human. Maybe it was just a cold? Echo heard that humans were weak and susceptible to things like that. Demons could get colds too, they were much worse than human colds and it was a lot rarer to contract one.

Echo could feel Flo's happiness, it was coming off of her in waves. In truth Echo wasn't sure what to think, it was beginning to effect her head. "I-I hope so too," Echo was at a loss. Never before had she been paired with a human that was actually happy to see her and stand beside her, one that wanted her to be her friend rather than her servant. A warm bubbly feeling started up inside of her and Echo thought she was going to be sick. Was this supposed to be happiness? Why did people like it? The strange sensation made her feel like she wanted to scream and vomit all at once. Melody nearly gave it away, but quickly fixed her slip of the tongue. Hopefully Flo wouldn't suspect anything and know that with just one call she could make the rest of Echo's life hell. "I haven't gotten to fight like that in years!" She said instead, wanting to change the topic.

It was time to form the contract and seeing as how both girls were already bleeding, there was no need to prick their fingers. Melody used samples from both of their blood to smear over a piece of parchment, which burned up quickly. The contract mark appeared, for Echo on her chest, she wasn't sure where it was on Flo. "I am bound to your service," Echo knelt in a slight bow, as was customary. "As part of the custom, you can choose a new name for me," Echo's previous names had all been stupid, some people, like Melody, had gotten lucky and had gotten to keep their name. Since Doll had basically been partnered since she was born, Christopher had picked her name. "You don't have to," Echo added quickly, making sure to imply that she would prefer if Flourspar didn't.

Three stripes, a certificate, Echo was surprised that they had made rank 3. "I guess I'm not as rusty as I thought," she stretched her now bandaged shoulder, that was going to be sore in the morning. Her assumptions had been correct, Flo was sickly, as was evident by the fact that she was sleeping in a hospital. "That sounds aw-" Melody stomped on her foot, making Echo yelp. "Awesome-I was saying awesome," Flo could no doubt tell she was lying. "I'd rather be out there," she mumbled, wanting to leave this place already. Melody and Flame didn't seem keen to let her leave though and she could bet her hat why.

"I'll see you tomorrow, or something," Echo watched her bubblegum pink hair fade from view before laying back on the floor. "Ugh, it's such hard work having a human," Melody nudged her with her foot. "Come on, let's get you back to your room."

"You mean prison?"

"Did you forget? You're contracted now Echo," her eyes lit up at the realization. "The North Tower?" Flame dropped a key into her hand. "Room 295," before he could finish Echo was already bounding out of the training center and towards the North Tower to her new room.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


It was a good thing they had gotten hit then, didn't it? Melody used blood from Flo's shoulder, from Echo's nose for the contract, the parchment becoming ash. It was overwhelming and Fluorspar could still hardly believe she managed to become a demon hunter. Her whole life, her mother kept telling her to not bother trying to become something, Aidan was always sheltering her to protect her, not knowing he was stunting her growth as a person at the same time, and Harris was just so controlling and demanding it was hard to know which way was up around him. "I like the name Echo, and I'm used to calling you that, so let's keep it the way it is." Flo said with a friendly slightly curved smile. The pinkette made sure to ignore the subtle 'awful' that had cropped up, she didn't want to have to make these people worry about her uselessly. It was just the way it was, nothing more, nothing less.

With a promise to meet again tomorrow, Flo left the Tower Society headquarters. A car came by to pick her up at the pottery house and she climbed in with a smile. "Big brother, thank you for picking me up." He noticed the rip in her shirt and the bandage instantly. "Flo, what happened? How do you get injured at a pottery class?" As much as the pinkette liked honesty, she knew she had to lie if she wanted to keep her position. "Coughing fit, shattered my clay thing, I was making a fish and it broke and a piece of it cut into my shoulder." The girl with bubblegum hair explained, sticking out her tongue. "I know, not as exciting as being stabbed. Pretty lame, right?" Aidan just rolled his eyes then. "Stop being so clumsy, okay?" As if she could help that.

Back to the Evelina London Children's Hospital, or the ELCH for short. Or perhaps Eve for short. You know what? There's a whole lot of different ways to make certain things sound shorter and it all depended on the person speaking, really. ""Good luck on your policing, you'll definitely make dad proud." Mara said as she got out of the car, ready to check back into the hospital where she was forced to live for the time being, on a whole slurry of nightly medications. Dad was a complicated thing, though. Aidan saw him as an idol, as someone to aspire to become, but Mara couldn't help but think of him as a human regret walking around. According to the doctors, his smoking habits were what caused the bad lungs in the first place, and he blamed himself ever since. Personally, Mara thought he let himself die during the Second Impact, where thousands of families were torn apart by the Demon Barons three years ago.

It was probably silly to still hope for her mom to call her every night, because Addison LaFleur never seemed to find the time to deem it really worth it. Hell, she hardly ever visited, let alone called. It sucked, but that was the way it was. As long as she was useless, she would never gain her mother's acknowledgment. Her augment tail wriggled unhappily and she felt sick and nauseous from all the pills and inhaled mists. "Time to sleep." She mumbled, curling up with the oxygen nubs in her nose to prevent her lungs seizing up in her sleep. "Then in the morning maybe Echo'll be here to keep me company..." Just maybe her first hunt would be tomorrow. Wouldn't that be exciting?

Setting

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


"Room 295, 2...9...5," Echo looked around, trying to find her room. It was the last door in the hall, the only unoccupied room. She eagerly jingled the keys and inserted them into the lock. The door swung open, revealing Echo's new home. "A window!" She gasped, looking at the darkening sky. The apartment was nice, one bedroom with two beds, a little living room, a kitchenette (meals were served downstairs) and her very own bathroom. Finally she wouldn't have to depend on knocking on the glass until someone could come to escort her to use the facilities, she would be allowed to take a bath more than twice a week. "Oh, this is great! I completely forgot about the perks!" The space was designed, of course, for both the human and demon to live together as many demon hunters lost all of their belongings, but Echo was alone since Flo lived at the hospital.

Echo got to keep her name too, which was an added bonus. Echo went through the books on the shelves, so many new things to read. The computer didn't interest her, neither did the phone. The fridge had food though, the cabinets supplied with snacks. She tore into a package of digestives, flopping down on the couch underneath the window with a novel. It had begun to rain, Echo noticed. She put down her book, swallowed her bite of biscuit and opened up the window to stick her head outside. Cold, fat, wet droplets danced on her skin, the demon letting out a howl of glee. She closed the window back up and headed to the bathroom to play with the sink. The bell rang, signaling that dinner downstairs would be served at any minute.

Echo stuffed her feet into shoes she found in the closet and headed downstairs. "Look at what the cat dragged in," Calciferous stood in the entryway of the dining hall, his tail swishing to and fro. "I'm surprised you're not as round as the moon," Echo glared. "They've had a change of heart," Echo said lightly, trying not to start a fight. "I've been summoned," she proudly bore the marking on her chest. "What? That tiny mosquito bite there? Or are those your boobs?" She ground her teeth together, the reminder of consequences fresh in her mind. "Is that tail compensating for something?" She shot, pushing past him to get a tray. Calciferous laughed, "You should come swing by my place, my human's staying by his parents tonight."

"Please, I can hardly stand next to you, I've got no desire to breathe, much less sleep, next to you." Calciferous laughed again, slamming his hand down on her tray. "Get off it Cal, go find another demon to bug." She tugged her tray away, going to sit alone in the corner. Echo was acutely aware of the whispers that followed her, she had a reputation after all. "Yum, meat," Echo stabbed a piece with her fork, taking a nibble. "So good," she drooled, glad to eat something that wasn't gruel.

Setting

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


When Mara opened her eyes, of course Echo wasn't there. It wasn't a surprise, the demon probably had friends and family back at the Tower Society, why leave all of that to go live with a girl you only met once, right? It made sense, there was no reason to be upset about it so Mara decided to just not let it bother her. She brushed her teeth, ate a miniscule portion of her breakfast, had a warm shower that made her lungs feel cleared up for as long as it lasted, and got herself dressed in a sweater and a skirt with long socks that went up to the knee. The sweater was too big for her and had an image of a cat face on the front in anime style. While hospital gowns were required for when she checked in at night, during the day she could wear as she pleased.

Harris came by to visit around noon. He took a subway to get to the hospital on time, but he wasn't going to be able to stay for long because he had school and Mara had made him promise to do well and get good marks so that it wouldn't cause him problems later down the road. "You're lucky, Mar." Harris said with a cocky sort of grin, handing the new pack of cards for Mara to enjoy and pass the time with. "You don't have to worry about school or homework or stupid teachers, none of that crap." But somewhere in the pinkette was a desire to experience all of those things again, to be normal. Instead of being honest, she just chuckled. "Just another perk of the hospital penthouse life, buddy." She said with a cheery grin, earning a noogie from her boyfriend. It was just a quick visit, a kiss and a hug and then he had to go back to school.

It was around then that her phone went off. It was an automated message from the Tower Society, telling her that it was time, she was due to meet with Echo for their first quest - to hunt a demon known as Annaline Stark, apparently was trying to live a life as a human, as a puppetmaker in a toyshop. The pinkette's heart thrummed in her chest, she was more than ready. It was time to make something of herself, to be able to accomplish something for herself! "Big bro, I have another class today..." She called him and of course Aidan arrived with his windswept brown hair and his car that had one belonged to their father. "I'm here. I'm happy you found something you love, sis." If only he knew what it really was.

So the girl with the bad lungs entered the Tower Society Headquarters after her brother drove off, grinning to herself with excitement. Two people she didn't recognize were there to greet her in the lobby, one tall and dark, the other looking graceful and beautiful. "My name is Christopher, and this is my demon, Doll." He said, as if he didn't really want to be here at all. "Flame is busy with Team Lupin hunting one of the Demon Barons from the Second Impact, so the elders assigned us to oversee your first mission." Doll just seemed to stare at her with a scrutinizing eye. "Well, I'm Fluorspar, and I'm glad to meet you both." The mission details were all on the attachment to the text, all they needed was to wait for Echo to arrive and they could head out.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


She was stuffed beyond capacity, having had custard for dessert. Echo was truly living it up and as she headed to her room she purposely stepped on Cal's tail, knowing he had set it out to trip her. She snickered all the way up the elevator to her room. Echo pushed the key into the lock and opened up the door, kicking off her shoes before she headed to the carpet square to roll around a bit. "Ouch, ouch, stupid tail! Getting caught in the door," she tugged it out, cradling her tail gently all the way to the bathroom where she filled up the tub and sunk into the bubbles. "Yum, warm water," it was clear that Echo was reveling in her freedom. There was plenty of space to move around here, there were books to read that hadn't been eaten or had pages torn out, there was warm water and a bed with sheets that didn't scratch your skin. Echo flopped down in the nude, figuring she could sort out the clothing situation in the morning.

The sound of the breakfast bell awoke her. Echo took a glance at the clock to see that it was still early. She sat up with a yawn and scratched her stomach, her tail flickering to and fro. "I should put some clothes on," the demon said to herself. She looked through the closet, trying to find something that would fit. Eventually she settled on a pair of black pair of pants with a shirt that didn't fall down her shoulder. It read BITE ME in a fancy font, which Echo thought was as classy as it was going to get. She ran a brush through her hair, tying a neat little black bow into her locks before she headed down to the elevator to grab a bite to eat. "Was I supposed to meet her at the hospital?" Echo wondered aloud, glancing at her reflection in the mirror. She pulled down her shirt a little bit so that her summoning mark was visible.

Breakfast was a full English, with Echo stuffing her face full of meat and pudding before she went back upstairs to wait. How would she know? Echo glanced at her TB, rocking slightly in her seat. She was bored, but she had just eaten so snacks were out of the question. Maybe some stretching? Doll had always told her it was important to stretch. Echo stood up and touched her toes, there, that was good enough wasn't it? She felt a slight vibration, her human was growing close. "Time to go!" Echo stuffed her feet into her only pair of shoes and ran outside, nearly forgetting her key. After securing it in her pocket she headed downstairs, groaning when she saw who was waiting with Flo. "Afternoon," she said.

"You're late," Doll scrutinized. "Bite me," Echo mumbled, turning to Flo. "Ready to go? Got your puffy thing in case you die?" Doll threw her a glance. "It won't be me that does her in," she said lightly, rocking back and forth on her heels. "What's our target? Who's going to be our first?" She was eagerly anticipating this battle, to show Doll that she wasn't as useless as they thought.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


Things became a tiny bit awkward when Doll almost immediately scolded Echo for being late. "It's alright, if we're fast we can make it." Flo said in a warm sort of voice and Doll just gave her a stare. "Being late means more innocent humans are killed." Doll said and Flo almost floundered under that harsh tone. "A Rank 10 like us would have been there early to save as many as possible." Rank 10, huh? So that means that these two were among the best of the best in the Tower Society, and that made the pinkette wonder if it was possible for her to one day reach Rank 10 with luck and time. "It's good to see you, Echo, I got my inhaler! Let's go!" Doll was almost definitely disapproving and Christopher was almost restless, she could see on his face he'd rather be hunting down other Demon Barons that caused the Second impact rather than help the small fry get bigger.

So the four of them piled into Chris's car, following a signal that would locate their mark. "Annalise Stark is a demon that enjoys the use of puppets." Chris briefed them on the mission. "Expect her to have abilities that can disable a part of your body if you aren't careful." Disable? That sounded frightening... to anyone that didn't know how to think of multiple ways to win a fight. "It's your first hunt, so if you lose, you're just a disgrace to this Society." Doll said with a scalding inflection as they approached a park that was on fire, children were running and screaming and parents were trying to find their little ones to escape with. A demon was there, looking like a giant marrionnette, pulling a giant needle out of her eye to stab into her leg, making one girl suddenly fall over, her leg now useless. The demon fell as well, crawling with thin spindly limbs, catching up to the child and snatching her into her mouth.

"Here we are, your first real hunt. Well, Echo's fourth first hunt." Doll added with a haughty frown. Flo was frowning - this was definitely going to be a conundrum. Annalise Stark pulled the needle out of her leg then, regaining movement, inserting it back into her eye socket. "I have an idea." Flo suddenly smiled, a plan coming into her head. Of course it would be idiotic to just say it aloud. "Look how she hunts the children one by one, using only one nail at a time." The pinkette hoped her thoughts would transfer through the TB. Chris was scanning and then he nodded. "Synchro Rate at 62, not bad at all. Do your best, and remember, we're only here to save your life. Pray it doesn't come to that."

[color=#4ba348]"Fight her as normal, aiming to break her long thin limbs, and when she pulls the nail out I'll jump in front and take it for you so you still have your whole body available." That was the plan, all she could do now was hope for the best. "Echo, let's-" Okay, first, she needed to cough, quickly inhaling the mist from the puffer with a press of a button. With that done she left the car, heading closer to the tall demon stalking through the park, looking for more victims to devour. "This is the Tower Society, stop at once!" Almost immediately Annalise aimed herself at Echo and pulled a nail out from her large red eye. Flo grinned then and hopped in front, suddenly losing control of her leg, falling down onto her front. Searing pain, as if her leg had been pierced with a nail and Flo grunted but kept her wits about her. "Go, kill her quick, as fast as you can!"

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


"Don't mind Doll," Echo said as they walked to the car. "She thinks she's hot to trot because she's a Rank 10," Doll rolled her eyes and held open the car door for the two of them to crawl into the backseat. "Christopher isn't bad if you're into the silent brooding type," Echo smirked, hoping that she was getting on Doll's nerves. "Listen you runt-"

"Is that any way to address your little sister?" Echo replied, swinging her legs as they drove. "Doll," Christopher warned. She looked at him with a shocked expression, how come he was scolding her? "As a human, you're responsible for your demon," Christopher began. "That means if she gets into trouble, it's on your head to discipline her." Echo was watching out the window, it was clear that she had not been outside in a very long time and was eagerly taking in the scenery. "Having a demon is a bit like having a servant, you can give them commands and they have to carry them out, but you have to take care as some of them take these commands literally." Christopher glanced at Doll, "the first time I got upset at Doll and told her to jump off a bridge, she broke both legs." Echo couldn't help but giggle, recalling the one and only time Doll had ever complained in front of her about humans.

They arrived at the park soon enough, the smell of burning flesh in the air. Echo jumped out of the car, eager to fight, eager to prove what she was worth. Already it seemed that Flo was analyzing the situation. "We won't fail," she said, determination flaring brightly in her eyes. Flo was already running ideas into Echo's mind and the demon tensed, watching as Annalise Stark removed the needle from her eye and stabbed her own leg, no blood coming out of the wound. Echo grimaced, "stars that looks painful," she rolled up her sleeves, her tail eagerly swishing as she ran to attack. At first she tried a front angle, but Flo jumped in the way, getting herself disabled like a broken toy. "No!" Echo shouted, jumping back and moving Flo out of the line of fire. "Listen, you gotta stay back here, don't get yourself hurt or we're both in trouble!"

Of course Annalise wouldn't yield, in fact she seemed to be fighting harder with the mention of the Tower Society being there. If Flo wasn't a newbie, Echo would have said something, but she was in battle mood. Her wings stretched out, both blue diamonds shattering as water gushed into the park to put out the fire. Next a yellow diamond shattered, lightning striking the giant puppet. "Duck!" Echo screamed to Flo, a green diamond shattering, vines restraining Annalise so that she couldn't move. It was time to deliver the finishing blow, Echo fully intended to end this here and now. Annalise had another needle though, one that she stuck through her stomach. Echo doubled over, tripping on her own feet. Terrible pain filled her insides, but there was no time to think about it.

Slowly she rose, coughing up a bit of blood. She could still go, she needed to defeat the demon so that Flo could get her first soul piece.

Setting

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


Annalise was terrifying to look at, she just exhibited many of the horrible primal fears you didn't want to acknowledge as a human being. The way she just devoured that little girl - if Flo wasn't mentally prepared for these sorts of things it probably would have hit her hard. Perhaps it spoke badly of her that she wasn't mentally scarred by that child's demise but honestly, if you go into battle and expect not to see any death at all, you're just dumb and naive. Still, Flo was responsible for Echo, according to Christopher the Rank 10. While the original intent was to make her the disciplinarian, Flo rather thought of it as it was her job to protect Echo and keep her safe so that she could more easily fight without as much risk.

If protection meant being a body shield to block an attack, then Flo was happy to deliver, burning stabbing pain going through her entire leg, the limb just refusing to work and Flo fell, collapsing uselessly to the ground. It hurt too much to think, to try and transmit thoughts so she just let out a strangled cry. "It's - it's my - strategy, I can't fight b-but, you can, so, so if y-you're not disabled you can go at full strength!" But the pain was making her body act up, her lungs were heaving, breathing was becoming increasingly difficult and so she fumbled with her inhaler while Echo blasted with vines and electricity at the foe. One puff, it wasn't working, she couldn't inhale enough of it in, her head was swimming, not enough air - another puff...

And then the muscles in her neck relaxed, and then air could flow through again. Dots danced in her vision and Flo lay there, dazed and in pain, her leg still completely dysfunctional. That was when her miscalculation came into play - Annalise had another nail, and she jabbed it and Flo tried to crawl desperately to get hit by the invisible beam but she wasn't fast enough, it hit Echo instead, the girl doubling over in pain. Unintentionally though, something happened, a very important something. Through their shared pain of this very moment, the girls Synchro Rate rose to 70, a threshold that hardly ever happened unless you were Rank 5 or higher. And with this heightened link suddenly the pain faded and ebbed ever so slightly, both minds absorbing some from the other.

"Her hands." Flo moaned in a weak faint wheeze, still disoriented after her attack. "Cut off her hands, then she... she can't use her... nail... anymore." That would make Annalise unable to use her strongest ability and end the game. Flo forced all of her trust and confidence into Echo, all of it genuine and true. "I b-believe in you, partner, you can feel it, c-can't you? Finish her off... so w-we can get.. our reward... for a job well d-done!" It hurt to talk so much in such a strained state and the pinkette coughed again, writhing on the ground as parents grabbed their children, or any child, and they all ran, evacuating the area as quickly as they could and Flo could very faintly hear a certain familiar voice among the police.

Please God, don't let Aidan come, don't let him recognize her.

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


"Yeah, but if you're not at full strength, I can't fight at full strength," Echo tried to explain. She fed off of the energy of her Master after all and if Flo was in pain, Echo would feel it. Her leg throbbed, although not disabled, it was still quite painful. Echo was doing her best, but she had made a dire mistake; going into battle without a real weapon. It seemed the girl had underestimated her opponent who stabbed a needle through her stomach and made Echo momentarily double over. "I can keep going!" She stood on wobbly legs, coughing slightly due to the pain. She looked around for something she could use, an idea coming to mind. Those needles, if Echo could take one from Annalise she could use it to cut off the demon's own hands. Echo launched another vine, the second green diamond shattering.

She wrenched a needle out of Annalise's grip, taking hold of it and running, launching herself at her enemy. It took several jabs to get one hand off, the blood not doing much to bother her. It splattered her face and hair, but Echo wasn't deterred. She moved right on to the next hand, stabbing it off, disconnecting the tissue and muscle and finally, bone. "There you damn beast, try to take me on now!" Echo cackled, the remaining diamonds glowing as she launched another attack, this time jabbing the needle through Annalise's heart. She jumped back as the demon seemed to wind into lengths of what looked like rope around a shining core. Echo grabbed onto it, tossing the core to her human since it hurt her to touch it. "That's your souvenir," Echo wiped her cheek on her arm, doing nothing more than smearing the blood across her face.

"The Police have arrived," Christopher spoke, striding up behind them, Doll floating alongside him. "That took long enough, the body count rose because of your inability to kill her." Echo glared, "Yeah, well you'd struggle too if you hadn't been given a real weapon." She had tossed the needle aside, it was stupid anyhow, useless since it only had one sharp point and that was the end. "The core," Christopher explained, "put it in here and save it, you're going to need it when we return." He handed her a tiny blue bag. "The cores you collect, or soul fragments, never let your demon touch them." Christopher explained, there was still plenty of learning for all of them to do. "If they touch it for too long they can accidentally absorb it," he ran a hand through his hair. "You don't want that to happen under any circumstances. If it comes down to it, destroy the core yourself."

"We should head back to the base before the police give us trouble," Doll said lightly. "You know how they hate dealing with Tower Agents," it was true enough, the Police seemed to find them an unnecessary burden, using demons to fight demons. They thought the system to be backwards which Echo found funny considering they tried to fight fire with fire.

Setting

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


Echo was brilliant as she ended the fight. Even with Flo on the ground, incapacitated by her own body, by the nail attack Annalise Stark had used on her that left her unable to even stand or move, Echo suffered a similar hit and was still capable of these amazing acrobatic stunts that was just incredible to watch. Her wings made of bone and diamonds shone with power and light and that was when Flo knew for sure that she was happy Echo was her demon. Even if Echo was hiding a very badly hidden secret, even if she for whatever reason had three humans before, Flo knew she could make things work with her. "I'm sorry for getting in the way." She said after Annalise crumpled and disappeared, becoming nothing but a core that Fluorspar was very careful to handle gently. "I just wanted to protect you, because we're friends." There was a bit more to it than that, and Flo was going to adjust future strategies knowing what she now knew.

Christopher and Doll didn't seem all that surprised though, if anything there was disappointment emanating from the both of them to dampen whatever elation the pinkette and her demon might be feeling. And... well, they couldn't really say it wasn't true that they couldn't kill Annalise very efficiently or quickly. "Imagine being a family of a victim, and being told that your loved one died because we're training new Hunters." Christopher said with a shake of the head. "Weakness isn't an excuse, not when lives are at stake." Flo then smiled, knowing what she needed to say here to get rid of the awkward air about them. "Now that I've seen what Echo can do..." She grinned cheekily at her partner, twirling her hair in her finger with a slightly sassy stance. "We'll do even better next time." It wasn't just bravado, it was honestly what she believed.

And so they quickly went back into Christopher's car, to get away from the carnage of the scene and to let the police handle it. It was going to be a bit of a shame, the police were probably going to try to link this event with the rumored Third Impact that the Barons were attempting to trigger, an event that would only be even more catastrophic than the Second Impact had been. "I'm going to hug you now." Flo warned Echo with a smile, wrapping her arms around her smaller friend, the bubbling excitement almost overwhelming. They did it, she finished her first hunt, she was on track to becoming something memorable, to have meaning before her illness eventually stole her life away.

Back at the Tower Society, a very strange sight was there. Why, why was her mom there, why was Addison LaFleur talking another very professional looking suited person - a Chinese man who was known as Xiahou Wei, one of the best scientists of the time - about something important down the hall. And then when she spotted Christopher escorting the two newbies into the Tower Society she walked over then and Flo's eyes went wide with confusion. Why was mom here? Wasn't she just a politician? "Hello, Director." Christopher said with a polite bow. "Here's the report on Codename Fluorspar and her Daimonas - the... Greek term for demon, if Flo wasn't mistaken -

No, but wait, there was something very important here. Director? Her mother? What was even going on? "I'll read your report later, Delanore." Director LaFleur said with finality, not even bothering to give a glance to her sickly daughter. "Take your Daimonas and meet up with Team Lupin at the Big Ben, they'll need your help against Baron Wizar." Christopher nodded then and even Doll seemed respectful as the two of them went to gear up and prepare for the mission ahead. That was when Flo decided she had to, she had to figure this out. "Mom." She stepped forward, feeling a cold dread sink through her bones. "Did you not recognize me?" Addison looked at her with anything but motherly love, just a stern face with no real kindness. "Here, I am not your mother. You are a Hunter and I am the Director." She said as if it were just business, and perhaps, that's all it was to her. "As a Hunter, all you need concern yourself with is making yourself useful for the Tower Society, and making use of your Daimonas." And with that she walked away to continue talking to Scientist Wei.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


Echo blushed and looked away, "It's fine, just don't do it again." No one had ever called her a friend before, much less wanted to be her friend. The tiny terror had been treated like filth by her last Human, he went around telling everyone that Echo had begged him to take her after her previous failures, even though it had been quite the opposite since he had lost his last demon in a particularly gruesome way after the Second Impact. "Echo's just embarrassed because no one's ever been nice to her before," Doll said snidely and Echo kicked her big sister's leg. "Girls, stop it!" Christopher was clearly tired of the sibling's bickering. They piled back into the car, the police were already swarming the scene, which was bad enough. "Just don't jump in the way again, okay? Not without a proper shield or something," Echo tugged on a strand of buttery blonde hair.

"I'm a demon, I can stand the attacks, but you're a human, you're weak." There were some humans that fought alongside their demons, ones that received an offensive soul piece that could assist in battle. Other humans received great defensive pieces so that they could divvy out orders without fear of getting hurt. Doll and Christopher scolded them on their timing, they should have taken the demon down faster. "Well not everyone can be perfect," Echo said in a low growl. Just because Doll was a Rank 10 didn't mean she had to act like a Class-A butt hole. Flo was the one who was confident, her happiness coming off of her in waves, making Echo feel a strange calm through the TB. They would do better next time, "We'll bring down our next one in half the time it took us!" She decided, glancing at Flo. If her human was still alive by then, that is.

Echo didn't know what was wrong with Flo, but she wasn't going to worry about it because it wasn't any of her business, just like how her last three weren't any of Flo's business. It was better she didn't know about them, perhaps it would make the two gel better. Their synchro rates were already rocketing, Echo didn't want to be the one that made them mess up, she was going to be the good one this time, the somewhat obedient demon that her parents never wanted her to be. Echo drew herself up a little bit taller, her hands balled into fists. Flo warned Echo this time, her arms wrapping around her. Once again Echo stiffened and looked away, "No one's ever really hugged me," Echo admitted a bit sheepishly. Why was she acting so shy? Echo wasn't sure. By the time they pulled up to the Tower Society she was glad to escape from the confines of the car. Being in such close proximity to Doll always made her feel gross.

That human lover, their parents would have been greatly disappointed to see what their first daughter had become. The moment she stepped into the lobby Echo saw her, the Director and one of the Head Scientists she knew from the floors below. Flo seemed to stiffen beside her, Echo could sense her sudden anxiety. "The Head's aren't anything to fear," she informed the girl. "They just do rubbish work like filling out papers, hardly any of them practice anymore." The girl walked alongside Flo with her hands behind her head. Christopher and Doll went straight to their next assignment, a relief that her sister was no longer breathing down her neck. Flo was acting strange in the presence of the Director, whom Echo knew all too well. She looked at her feet as the Scientist Wei looked down at her. "Echo, good to see you out and about again."

"Yeah, whatever," she avoided looking at Scientist Wei's eyes, which had narrowed ever so slightly. Flo finally opened her mouth, addressing the Director, calling her Mom. Almost immediately Echo stiffened, looking between the two girls. There was a small resemblance, they had the same eyes and nose, but that's where the similarities ended. Flo had bubblegum pink hair and a fake tail, her Mother had no augments and seemed to have some slightly disapproval in her eyes. "Hey!" Echo snapped, "Is that anyway to talk to your daughter?" She growled, knowing that she could get in trouble for speaking to the Director like that. "Come on Flo, you don't need some stupid Mom to acknowledge you."

Setting

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by Ninja Bunny
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❝If it's long and hisses, it's probably poisonous so stop touching it, weirdo.❞


【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#FF7BC1 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #4ba348】

|| Event Horizon || Rockleetist ||


"I'll be more careful next time." Flo had promised in the car, glad that she wasn't being looked down upon because of her illness, it was purely because she was a fragile human and Echo was a sturdy demon that was bred for combat and strength. "I want to do more than just to make strategies... I wonder what my Artifact will be." It was going to be crafted out of this soul piece here, this core. Based on Annalise's ability though, Flo's power was going to involve the nail and limb disablement... so she wouldn't really be offensive or defensive, she'd be pure utility. They were back at Headquarters now though, and Scientist Wei made sure to take the blue bag with the soul piece in it. "Give me an hour, and we'll meet in the testing room, both of you."

Flo was busy staring hard at her mom, though, not having expected to see her here of all places. Who could have really predicted this? Mother and daughter, one the Director of the Tower Society, the other, a newbie with a demon that was apparently trouble - although honestly Echo was nothing but a thrill to have, Flo didn't see any problems with her thus far - anyways yeah. Flo snapped, she was unimpressed with this show of motherhood and Addison didn't even flinch. "I'm going to fight, m-.. Director." Flo said, hating the way the word sounded in her mouth, so clinical, so distant, nothing like a mother should be. "I'll show you what I can do." Mother looked hardly interested at all. "I have no expectations of you, so don't feel the need to do more than any other Hunter." And that was all that was said.

Once that was done Flo and Echo didn't really have much else to do. "Can I go see your room while we wait for the Artifact?" She asked, keeping an eye on the clock of course, because she had to be back in the hospital before night fell. "Wei can find us there, right?" She wasn't going to let herself be rattled by mom, it couldn't be helped. If she wanted recognition, she'd have to earn it, that's how it always was. "Do you know much of the other Hunters and Demons?" She asked curiously, it'd be good to get an idea of the others of the Tower Society, since they were all in the same organization and everything. "Are there any other female humans?" It'd be nice to meet another girl.

Eventually Scientist Wei sent them a call on the phone to meet him in the testing room, and so Flo stood herself up, feeling jittery and nervous. She took a puff of her medicine just in case, and then she walked her way over with Echo, very much excited to see what it was going to be. And so Wei handed something strange to her, it looked like a ball with two stringy nerves hanging out. "This is your Soul Piece, a fragment from Annalise Stark. You should have an idea as to how it works, right?" Flo nodded, there was a dummy enemy that had appeared, nothing special, but just right to test out what her ability might be. So she mimicked what Annalise had done, pulling a needle from the pupil of the grotesque eyeball and then with sudden inspiration she stabbed it into her leg, a low hiss of pain coming out as she fell over, burning agony where a leg once was. There was no blood, the nail seemed entirely mental rather than a physical effect. And just on cue, the dummy robot flopped over, one leg no longer working, so it couldn't claw Echo like it wanted to.

This ability was going to be hard to use, Flo decided. She wanted more practice, she wanted to get better. "Let's try another mission, I want to make use of this!" The pinkette decided suddenly while Scientist Wei wrote down notes and did the soul binding ceremony so link Flo to the eyeball thing. "If I may make a suggestion, a good way to get practice is to pair up with a pair that's stronger than you, for a tougher mission." He said almost kindly if not for his slanted narrow eyes. "There should be a mission to go after a demon, if I remember correctly you'll be paired with Stallion and Crow."

Stallion. Flo heard this name before. She turned to Echo then. "Stallion, huh? What do you think she's like, do you think we'd be able to get along?"

Setting

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Character Portrait: Echo Character Portrait: Fluorspar

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#, as written by The_Queen
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❝Forgiving someone is easy, it's trusting someone again that's hard.❞

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя:#EE3B3B ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #FFCCCC】

|| The Death of a Bachelor || Panic! At the Disco ||


Echo was glad to hear that her careless human would be more careful. The initial anxiety began to fade as she realized that they could make this work, their partnership. Flo was tolerable, she wasn't like the other arrogant humans that assumed Echo was there to fulfill their every whim. Maybe Echo wouldn't end up as a birth mother after all? The thought was nice, she didn't want to have kids, laying eggs was apparently terribly painful, as was evident by the sounds that often came from the birthing room. Not to mention the fact that she would never even get to meet the kid, as was the same for her sisters. Echo was the only King child to have met her parents, not that she could remember them since the Society had managed to pry her away at a very young age. Did humans remember their parents? If Echo could remember, most humans ended up living with them until they moved out or whatever it was humans did once they became a legal adult in London.

Face to face with Flo's Mother, Flo seemed to have had no idea that her Mother was the Director. This was a curious thing to Echo, as wouldn't something like her job ever have come up in a conversation? What did humans do, purposely avoid each other to sit in their rooms and do nothing but play their strange games? Sure, that's all Echo had been doing for the last century but that wasn't out of choice. "We'll rise to the top, just you wait!" Echo added, her tail swishing eagerly. Scientist Wei gave a chuckle, no one believed in her. Echo would show them, she'd show them all what she was capable of! The demon took in a deep breath, if she got angry, Flo would be able to feel it. "We'll show them all, won't we Flo?" Echo looked up, her eyes gleaming hungrily. Her hunger was a different kind though, not for the normal flesh and blood, but to prove that she was worth something.

"Yeah, let's go to the North Tower," Echo wouldn't mind showing Flo where she lived, that way her human would know where to find her. They crossed the yard of the Tower Society, heading towards the building labeled North Tower. "This is where all of the summoned demons live, there are humans that live here too, with their partners." She opened up the door to lead them to the elevator. "Wei can find us just about anywhere with these," Echo said, flashing her TB. "It's not just to keep track of our synchro rates, but our vitals, our locations, and for demons, distress signals." Demons gave out distress auras for different reasons, sometimes because of abuse from humans, other times because their temper flared dangerously and they were at a risk of hurting others and would need to be subdued.

"I know some of them," Echo admitted, opening up the door to her apartment. She kicked off her shoes and stepped inside, the door closing behind them. "There are plenty of girl hunters, although not as many as the boys." Many females had an aversion to violence. Not Echo, she loved carnage and destruction, the thought of bringing down a building of people was as appetizing to her as pumpkin pie. "There are others you're gonna need to watch out for, the mission thieves are the worst," Echo flopped down on the couch, her tail wagging thoughtfully from side to side. "They're the ones that get called in when they think you're overwhelmed and take the soul pieces when they're only there as an assist."

Calciferous was one of those, he liked to take credit for him and his lazy human. "There's snacks in the cabinet if you want," Echo scratched at her cheek, she had never had a guest before. When Flo's phone went off, the demon hissed and darted behind the couch, glaring at the tiny screen in Flo's hand. It was Scientist Wei, reporting that the soul piece was ready for calibration. "The training room right? I know a short cut!" Echo hopped back over the couch, for such a little thing she certainly was flexible. After nearly forgetting her shoes and key both, Echo shoved her feet into her boots and snatched the key off of the table, taking Flo to the Testing Room.

Scientist Wei was waiting for them, the soul piece glittering in the light. "It's a nice one," Echo admired, "looks nothing like mine," the color, shape, and size of a demons soul could tell you a lot about them. Flo decided that she was ready for another mission. "I'm up for it! I can always give a good pummeling," she grinned that fanged grin of her's, at least until Wei mentioned who they could be paired up with. "No, not her," Echo groaned, her excitement waning just a bit.

"She's an arrogant, no good, bossy pants!" Echo groaned on their way to their mission. "Or at least to me she is," the girl added quickly, not wanting to be overheard bad mouthing the humans.

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