Corrupture: Redestruction [IC]

[S121]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

Seeing that Nitro was upset, Ethan thought that it would be best to try and lighten things up. He wasn't the most optimistic person, but He used to be, so tapping into his older mindset, Ethan gave Nitro one piece of advice, one that he hoped she would either find useful, or at least humorous.

"It's only work if you believe it to be. Think of it as more of a hobby you get paid for.", Ethan said to Nitro with a very small smile.

[WriggleRid3r]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

---

"Oh she's popular around everywhere now." Alex said. Her claim was credible enough, as she actually worked in a career line that coincided with the artist the most. "Bless her, genius is what she is. She debuted 2 years ago and she already has 6 albums, all of which sold millions internationally."

---

The bouncer was getting cold. He wanted a drink, and warmness, and hot babes... all of which could be offered just a door away.

"10 more minutes until your shift ends, Marcel. Hold tight." The bouncer said to himself as he noticed two odd, hooded figures approaching from the distance. This ain't Halloween, fools, Marcel wanted to shout, but he didn't. He was at work right now, and it was not nice to tease the 'cosplayers' when you're in a job.

The hooded figures approached Marcel until they were right in front of him. Marcel was huge: 6 foot 4, with all the muscular glory needed to throw unwelcome party guests away. He wasn't scared of no glorified version of the Reaper knocking on his door. "I'm sorry, but the club is closed." Marcel announced, his voice booming.

The figures whispered to each other, and drew closer. Marcel was starting to get irritated, as he leaned forward to intimidate the two pranksters away.

Sadly, the figures had tasers on their hands.

"Oh shit-" Marcel said as he was about to ring the alarm, but was unsuccessful as he was paralyzed by the hooded figures and fell on the ground cold.

"This is Viper, the big man is down." One of the hooded figure spoke through an earpiece, while the other one used a strange-looking device to lock the door from the outside, preventing whoever was inside from leaving the club. "Hyena, prepare to initiate."

---

A man wearing a very gothic, punk outfit nodded as he listened into his earpiece, his lips curling into a smile. All these times he has been neglected by society as an outcast... it's time to take revenge against the world... starting with these people inside.

He drew a pistol, pointed it at the ceiling, and fired.

---

"Isn't it pretty to think so?" Nitro giggled as she stared into Ethan. Unlike Alex's provocative, sexy gaze, Nitro's eyes were more... for the lack of a better word, cutesy. They were wide and seemingly innocent, like a child's, although her body said the contrary. She constantly fidgeted and looked around, as if energy inside her was trying to escape and be free, to be expressed in ways Nitro could. Her statement about hating work was just for show. It was clear through her constant fidgeting that she took her work very seriously and she did it because she enjoyed it. "So, how do we-"

As Nitro said that, a gunfire drowned out her voice. The screams of panicking guests did not help either, as some of them ran for the exit... but couldn't, because of the locked gate. They called out to the bouncer outside, but it was no use as he was knocked out cold.

[SUSTIC]

((Just going to post since my post won't really conflict with anyone else's really.))

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

"That is pretty impressive actually. I'm still surprised that someone can become such a huge success in such a short amount of time." Drake spoke with a slight smile as he watched the crowd. That's when it happened. Just before he turned to get a drink he heard a loud gunshot that was fired at the ceiling. The moment the gunshot was heard, Drake's instincts immediately took over. Within the matter of a couple of minutes he grabbed Alex and quickly jumped over the bar to get behind the counter. Ignoring any broken cups or glasses he might have broken, of which one of the cups that broke had implanted a decently sized shard of glass into his left forearm.

"Crap! Wasn't expecting any action tonight!" He spoke quietly in a whisper, obviously surprised at an attack on this club on such a dull night. One of the first things he had done after getting Alex and himself behind cover was to check for his handgun... of which he did not bring with him due to the simple fact that he was not expecting shit to go down on this very night. "Dammit I must have left my gun at home... Dammit... Hey lady you alright...?" Drake spoke to Alex in a quiet tone, all the while also pulling out the 2 inch glass shard in his arm with obvious signs of pain.

[Koishi]

Nexxus

---

Soane glanced up from the table at the sound of gunfire. She grit her teeth a little.

"Of course." Soane mumbled quietly, otherwise not moving much. She adjusted her kukri in it's sheath, readying for the inevitable, if they bothered her. Otherwise, she was in no hurry.

[wonderweiss]

DCERT Base of Operations

---

Johnathan Woods: revered Corruption apprehensionist and eliminator of the corrupt. He was working on another case.

As of late, many, many DCERT officers have been disappearing in major broadway theaters (plz tell me what they are actually called, I know Broadway is its own theater, but I don't wanna say theater because it sounds like MOVIE theater). He already pieced together that there is a corrupt performer on the stage, but that's just it: how on earth is the corrupt doing it? It has been narrowed down to one performer: Marisa Monet, a widely praised actress. Her corruption levels show that she is a corrupt without a doubt, but... it's nearly impossible to pull off so many kills on stage, so how is she doing it? He decided it was time to delve into this himself.

He called up the San Francisco Base commander.

[Kristia]

San Francisco`s DCERT Base

Finally reaching the base where she worked for the moment, Sara took her equipment as she headed to the armory, she just nodded at whoever acknowledged her since it was a matter of human respect, but she didnt salute whoever would be a high rank officer, the blonde already had enough with those who only had those places by name and not by experience.

[S121]

(Eh, so much for "post reserved". I kinda did it because I knew someone was going to jump over a table and take cover, and I didn't want to look like I was ripping someone's post off. I just didn't know it would be almost exactly like what I had in mind. This is just a message to say that I am not ripping off anyone's post. 0-0)
Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

Ethan took notice at how Nitro fidgeted and looked around the room instead of him while talking, how her body language betrayed her words. It was clear to Ethan that she wasn't serious about what she said. In fact, if Ethan didn't know any better, she was teasing him about what he said. Ethan took no offense. If anything, he found it somewhat amusing, causing him to smile while Nitro went back to business.

Unfortunately, Ethan's high came crashing down when all of a sudden, Nitro's words were drowned out by the sound of gunfire and screams. In that single moment, if Nitro paid attention to Ethan's face, she could see it contort into a fearful trance, but just for a split second before he suddenly shot out from his seat, causing the seat to tumble backward. He then suddenly scooped Nitro up in one of his arms, and simply on instinct, dove right underneath the table, hiding the two of them from view. Ethan landed on his back while the weight of Nitro compressed his torso, eliciting a grunt of slight pain before they came to a stop underneath the table. Thanks to the long tablecloth, it was virtually impossible for them to be seen.

[WriggleRid3r]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

---

More gunshots were fired, but mostly to the ceiling. Panicking civilians all packed around the exit, but finding nowhere to hide, they wailed, screamed for their friends and family's names, or were paralyzed in fear. On the second balcony, a man that can only be described as the most generic thug, was standing over the chaos with a sly grin. He had golden braces and gold chains around his neck as if he was a pawn shop owner, while his clothes reminded of the 90s with the baggy pants and the oversized black shirt with an elaborate symbol of two guns with their barrel protruding from the eye sockets of a skull.

"Tell them to shut the fuck up." The thug ordered to a man standing on the balcony railing like a hawk would. The man held a sniper rifle that looked custom-made, and wore a large leather jacket that concealed his regular-sized black shirt with the same logo and a non-baggy jeans.

"ALRIGHT LISTEN UP!" The sniper shouted with a rather gravelly but all the more intimidating voice, and all the screaming and crying stopped. All eyes were on the sniper as the Corrupt agents drew their guns to monitor the club-goers. "I want every single one of you to stand at the center of the club in 5 seconds. Whoever that does not comply will be shot in the head. FIVE!"

The party-goers scrambled to the center of the club at the countdown.

"Good job, piggies." The sniper chuckled. "Alright, here's the deal."

The sniper pulled some sort of a remote controller with a timer that read 20:00.

"We planted a bomb in the club that will detonate in 20 minutes. Say your prayers, see your friends' faces for the last time, take the last drink of your life, whatever. All of you fuckers are going to die right here, RIGHT NOW."

"Wh- why are you doing this?" A random partygoer asked. Without question, the sniper shot the questioner's leg holding the sniper rifle as if it was a pistol.

"Any more squeal from you and the next bullet will go to your head." The sniper snarled as the partygoer who asked the question fell on his back, clutching his right leg that was spilling blood. The people next to him were terrified, but did not do anything to help the poor guy.

---

"Yes I- I'm fine." Alex coughed, bringing herself to a sitting position. She noticed a sharp gash on Drake's arm caused by a glass shard. "Oh dear, that can't be good. Hold on, I think I can get some napkins to use as bandage.

---

"Are they Corrupts?" Nitro asked while she was being snuggled by Ethan under the table. Normally this would be a cute, romantic situation... but with sudden outburst of gunshots and whatnot, it was nothing of the sorts. "Oh, am I kinda crushing you? Sorry."

Nitro dropped to the floor, still under cover thanks to the tablecloth. She peeked under the tablecloth to find a lot of feet on the dance floor... except one person who was clutching his knees or something in pain. Was he shot?

"We have to call the police!" Nitro said as she looked for her phone. Unfortunately, her cell phone was still on top of the table, and reaching for it would be suicidal as there were about twenty guards watching the entire club, five of them on the second floor balcony that had almost the entire club in their sights. "Dammit. Ethan do you have a phone to call the police?"

[S121]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

Although Nitro spoke to Ethan, it seemed as If he were in a trance as the chaos happened around the table. Even after the other gunshots rang out and subsided, Ethan still heard them happening, people screaming as they fell one by one, the thuds of their bodies hitting the floor. The smell of blood and death assaulted Ethan's senses, and before he knew what was happening, Ethan could see the bodies of his family members, as if he had stepped into the memory, into a nightmare.

Although Ethan was relatively still as he blankly stared up at the table, his heart was pounding, his breathing was heavier and faster, and he began to sweat as if he were on a bed of hot coals. After a few seconds, Ethan's reactions began to elevate, this time with him rubbing at his torso with his hand as he felt the burning of the bullet and stab wounds he had acquired in his past, as it seemed that his symptoms would elevate into a panic attack.

It was clear that Ethan was not focused on the situation around them whatsoever, that something was wrong.

[SUSTIC]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

Drake turned to Alex and shook his head no. "Sorry lady, but you're staying down. Don't want to risk getting shot do ya? Also don't give me all too much crap about you crawling along the ground. This place is chock full of these guys." Drake responded quietly, having had noticed the many armed men strategically placed as to keep an eye on the entire club.

"Besides I've dealt with worse. Try having a gunshot right in your left arm, then having the ever loving tar beaten out of you since childhood. Besides I might have a plan for distraction. Though it might involve starting a fire. Heard of making a Molotov cocktail? We start a fire, then hope we don't get killed by these guys while waiting for the Fire Department and Authorities to arrive. That or I could try taking them all down... but unfortunately I don't have a gun... I could probably make due with what we have though. I already thought of a plan..." Drake said as he quickly poked his head out from behind the counter. Thankfully Alex, Drake, and the Bartender were in sort of a blind spot. After ducking back down he turned back to Alex.

"Listen just stay down, and don't do anything. Don't want to have the guilt of having such a pretty face such as yourself injured or killed on my conscience. I still need materials for a Molotov, but minus the alcohol. So I need to find an empty bottle of whiskey or something, a cloth, and a lighter..." Drake spoke in a hushed voice as he examined the area. He saw an empty bottle of booze on a shelf on the wall opposite to them, with the contents of the bottle having spilled after it was knocked over in the ensuing chaos. He even spotted a lighter in the pants pocket of the cowering Bartender sitting next to him. Quickly taking the lighter and putting it in his coat pocket, Drake now just needed a way of stealthily obtaining the bottle across from them, and a decent sized cloth. If he gets all of those ingredients he can make a fake molotov cocktail and then use it as a distraction before making a quick bee line to the second floor stairway. From their he should have a decent advantage of things at least.

[WriggleRid3r]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

---

"Ethan you got a cell phone?" Nitro asked again as she took a glance at Ethan to find something was wrong. He was sweating buckets like it was a summer day, while his hands were rubbing his torso as if he was shot somewhere. It was evident he was having a panic attack to Nitro: she's been there too.

"Ethan it's okay, calm down." Nitro drew closer to Ethan to calm him down. From her experience, whenever she had a panic attack, Alex's hug was damn effective in calming her down. She might not be Alex, but perhaps a hug from herself might help Ethan calm down, Nitro thought as she slung her arms around Ethan's neck and gave him a calming hug while whispering "It's okay, Ethan. It's okay."

---

"But what about all these people?" Alex asked Drake. Sure, the Molotov cocktail would be an effective distraction to alert the authorities, but doing so would cause a lot of collateral damage to the people at the bar. Alex looked over the bar counter in a kneeling position to find about 3 armed men near the bar. While their getup was very intimidating, one glance at one of the three's eyes told Alex that they were actually quite nervous about this.

"Sir, I might have an alternate idea." Alex addressed to Drake politely. "One that doesn't involve excessive burning."

[S121]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

As the memory persisted, Ethan could see himself lying down on the carpet in his Aunt and Uncle's house, his white long sleeved shirt stained in crimson blood. The pain from being shot was excruciating, even more so as he tried to crawl to his phone on the opposite side of the couch, the one and only thing that could save him.

*BANG*

The gunshot that struck his back so long ago burned with a dull, hollow pain, the pain of a memory. Ethan rolled over on the blood-soaked carpet and stared into the gunman's eyes, the eyes of his soon-to-be killer. Ethan knew he was going to die.

Just then, as Ethan's vivid memory was about to take a turn for the worse, he felt something warm gently wrap around his neck, the arms of a person, accompanied by a soft whisper that slowly brought Ethan back to his senses.

"It's okay, Ethan. It's okay."

As Ethan heard these words and slowly eased back into reality, his breathing began to slow down until it was a pattern of moderate deep breaths. Ethan's gaze snapped out of their trance-like appearance, and after a couple seconds of realizing where he was, Ethan looked at Nitro with a still somewhat disoriented stare, but it was clear that Ethan was going to be okay.

"W-what happened?", Ethan whispered to Nitro as he tried to regain his bearings.

[SUSTIC]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

Drake just sighed and facepalmed at Alex. "Yes. I am aware of that. That's why I said for a empty bottle. So I can make a FAKE Molotov, light it, and throw it. It won't cause a major fire. Only a minor one, but should be sufficient to distract the men. That way I can-" Drake said as he was shocked at how Alex willingly put herself in danger by spying over the counter-top. Worried about her safety Drake looked over the counter and was ready to pull her back down behind the counter, however Drake spotted the three men, and too noticed a hint of nervousness within them.


"Well I can already agree that my plan, despite NOT having excessive burning. Is now null and void. You're thinking what I'm thinking now aren't you?" Drake whispered to Alex as he knelt back down behind the counter. Grabbing a half smashed bottle as a makeshift weapon in case things go down south. "Come to think of it even an empty Molotov would only serve to piss these guys off... Should have ordered a lighter drink... Still in good condition to fight if needed though. Just my plans might be a little cloudy. Never really fought while tipsy. Thankfully I didn't drink too much..." Drake started quietly rambling to himself as he was getting ready to follow whatever plan Alex might have.

[WriggleRid3r]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

---

"You... kinda freaked out and started panicking." Nitro observed, letting go of Ethan as soon as she saw that he was starting to calm down. "You okay? You... looked like you saw a ghost."

---

"If I had the ability to read minds, then yes, I am." Alex said quite bluntly as she repositioned closer to the closest Corrupt: the one standing next to the far end of the counter, facing the crowd at the dance floor. His head was turned against her, a perfect isolated target.

Alex without warning took action. Quickly standing up, she grabbed the isolated Corrupt, one hand covering his mouth in case he screamed for help, and another hand grabbing his shoulder. Before the Corrupt could take action, she pulled the Corrupt beyond the bar counter, grabbed a small rag, and put it over the Corrupt's mouth to asphyxiate him and render him unconscious.

"Hold his arms and legs, please." Alex asked Drake as she subdued one of the Corrupt's arm: the one that could possibly flail and make a lot of noise.

[SUSTIC]

Nexxus | San Francisco, CA

As soon as Alex grabbed and pinned the Corrupt grunt behind the counter, all the Drake could do was be impressed with how she did that. "Damn well look at you Little Miss Badass." Drake joked quietly as he then proceeded to follow Alex's orders by grabbing and pinning the man's arms and legs so he wouldn't flail and alert the others. As he did so he looked at the gun in the man's hand. It was a normal handgun... but a handgun can go a long way here. Already Drake was pleased with Alex, and her current plan of action.