[IC] - All the World's a Game

[S121]

Medical Ward - Prometheus Labs

Lily quickly caught Chung before he fell over. She simply gave a small smile and lightly shook her head.

She then gently picked him up and laid him down in the cot. Once that was done, she decided to check up on Raven.

(He did seem depressed. It would probably be best to leave him alone, but I should make sure that he's fine.), Lily thought as she walked out of the medical ward and down the hall.

[SUSTIC]

Medical Ward
_____________

As Lily laid Chung down on the cot he quickly curled up. Oddly enough he quickly got comfortable on the cot as he curled up in a ball, much like a cat or dog would if they were going to sleep.

As Lily was leaving Chung began to mutter something quietly in his sleep. "Fa...ther...." He muttered as Lily left. However due to the noise of the other Spartan's and doctor's talking in the room it would be quite hard to hear him.



Prometheus Labs-Locker Room-Sector 4
___________________________________


Raven was at his Locker. He had gotten a small duffle bag out, and he started packing it with some of his belongings. It was obvious what Raven was doing. He was getting prepared to leave, but for where?

[S121]

Locker Room - Sector 4 - Prometheus Labs

Lily walked into the locker rooms, only to see Raven with a bag and many of his belongings.

"What's going on?", Lily asked Raven, despite her lingering suspicion that he was leaving.

[SUSTIC]

Locker Room
______________

Raven was still packing his belongings as he turned to Lily as she came in. "I'm planning on taking temporary leave. I want to go train out in the wilderness, a place where I'm more familiar with. I want to push my body to it's limits, along with my mind. It's the only way I can overcome my Nasod Arm." He said as he finally finished packing. "I know I really shouldn't leave especially since Chung is hear, but I feel like I must do this..." He said as he closed his locker.

"I already asked for permission to take temporary leave. I don't know when I'll be back though..."

[S121]

Locker Room - Sector 4 - Prometheus Labs

Lily looked slightly concerned by Raven saying that he didn't know when he would come back from the wilderness.

"If you need physical and mental training, you know you could always use our facility. We have arguably the most intense training with the best results in the world. Why do you need to be in the wilderness?", Lily ashed Raven.

[SUSTIC]

Locker Room
____________

"No... I need to be out somewhere more peaceful. I've relied too much on modern means to make myself stronger. I need to go out in the wilderness where it's quiet, where it's more peaceful than here..." He said as he walked by Lily, stopping right beside her.

"Don't even think about trying to stop me... this is something I must do on my own... it's my burden to carry..." He said in a somewhat saddened tone as he began walking again. A few tears were streaming down his face as he made his way out of the Locker Room.

[S121]

Locker Room - Sector 4 - Prometheus Labs

"No. That's not true and you know it.", Lily flatly said to Raven.

It was in a tone vastly different than how she usually talked.

[SUSTIC]

Locker Room
_____________

Raven stopped in his tracks. "You don't know what I've f***ing been through Lily, because of me I lost those I held most dear! I should have died along with my comrades! In fact I should have just ended my life a long time ago!" Yelled Raven as he turned to Lily, his voice was filled with anger, and sadness. Tears were now filling up his eyes. It was making it hard for him to see through all these tears. "I even lost my fiancee Seris. The only reminder I have left of them is this damn arm! I tried to honor them by continuing the name of the Crow Mercenaries, but at what cost!?"

[S121]

Locker Room - Sector 4 - Prometheus Labs

"And yet you have Chung, and me. I know perfectly well what happened to you, but you are beating yourself up over things that you were not directly responsible for. Were you responsible for the Nobles' rash decisions? No. They were corrupt and killed innocents, not you. You were not the one that killed them, they corrupt nobles were. Did you know that the Nasods were evil? No. You simply wanted to avenge your family and your friends. Hanging onto the last moments of your life, you took any solution available. The fact of the matter is, you keep blaming yourself for things that were beyond your control. You're beating yourself up over things that you had absolutely no say in. Instead of focusing on anything positive, you focus on all the bad. Isolating yourself is not going to stop that pain. If anything, you'll only create a stalemate with that arm. How I see it, you losing your will to live is what's making it so easy for that arm to take control. You lashing out at your friends and punishing yourself is only playing into that thing's hands. Not letting go is only strenghtening that arm's resolve to control you. What you need to realize is that you are not alone. You have people here that are willing to listen and help you in this rough time. I'm sure that if you told Chung, he would help as well. He would stick by your side and help you. Sometimes you can't do things alone. Sometimes you need support, people that pick you up when you fall."

"The truth is, you are so used to being alone that you don't know how to accept help from others, even whenever you need it. You have to understand that we are here for you.", Lily said in a slightly saddened tone.

[SUSTIC]

Locker Rooms
_______________

Raven was taken back by what she was saying, however she had a point.

None of those things were in his control. Not all of them were his fault. Raven fell to his knees in tears as he was being told all this. It was heart wrenching, but it was the truth. The hard truth. Raven had not let anyone get too close to him after the incident.
"I'm sorry..." He said as he broke into tears once more. "I'm so sorry... I kept pushing people away... I kept trying to fix problems that I didn't even cause... I'm just so sorry..." Said Raven as he sat there crying. "I don't want Chung to get in this mess though. He may be a warrior, but he is still far too young to get involved with these sort of things..." He said as he slowly stood up. As he wiped the tears away from his eyes he looked back to Lily. "I once knew that fact... that it wasn't my fault... I just... with everything going on I forgot that... Lily... I... I..." He said as he slowly walked up to her. "I want to thank you for bringing me back to my senses... I shouldn't beat myself up over these things... my comrades... Seris... they died trying to protect me... even though it wasn't my fault I still have punished myself... when the Nasod's gave me my arm they controlled me... they made me do horrible things... they made me attack innocent people. However Elsword... Rena... Aisha... and Chung all helped me remember who I was, but ever since I was brought into this world I thought that I would never see them again. I guess that thought just pushed me back over the edge... but thanks to you I remember now..." He said as he wrapped his arms around Lily.

"Thank you... I know I already said this before, but I don't know how to repay you..." He said as he hugged Lily tightly.

Lily was almost reminding him of Seris, his fiancee who died trying to protect him.

"I still wish to train alone though... and I am still going to go out into the wilderness... but I promise you that when I come back I will be different. I will be stronger. Not just physically, and mentally, but emotionally. When I come back I will be a changed man." He said as he took a few steps back from Lily.

"I won't forget those who threw their own lives away trying to protect me. The Black Crow shall live on!" He said as he looked at Lily, the tears on his face have dried up. He had a serious, yet enlightened look on his face. "Lily... before I go I want you to have something..." He said as he reached into his duffle bag. As he went through it he finally found what he was looking for. As he stood up he walked back over to Lily. "Here... it is something I want you to have this. It belonged... to an old friend. I want you to protect this."



It was a simple, yet beautiful looking locket.

[S121]

Locker Room - Sector 4 - Prometheus Labs

Lily was surprised that Raven broke down and hugged her, but she simply returned the hug, understanding that Raven was finally seeing that he was not at fault, that he was forgiving himself.

Raven then gave her a locket.

"Here... it is something I want you to have this. It belonged... to an old friend. I want you to protect this.", Raven said as he handed Lily the locket.

Lily received the locket and held in her hand.

"I promise to protect it for as long as you let me have it.", Lily said to Raven in a solemn, yet friendly tone.

Lily took the locket and put it into the compartment of her still badly damaged SPI armor. She hadn't fully noticed it until now. She may have been completely healed, but the armor still had one of the shoulder plates ripped off and the undersuit underneath shredded. Not only that, but her chestplate near the other shoulder area had a hole in it, as if a large blade had been driven through. There was blood all over the damaged parts and deep, heavy scratches over most of the armor. There was also the fact that she no longer had her helmet, due to the visor being shattered and the helmet being damaged beyond repair.

Once she put the locket away, she then looked back to Raven.

"It looks like you might not be the only one that needs to train more.", Lily said to Raven in a friendly tone, referencing her trashed armor.

She then smiled, then spoke again.

"Just promise me you'll be careful in the wilderness. You may be a Character, but you're still human."

[SUSTIC]

Locker Room
_______________

Raven smiled and nodded as he picked up the duffle bag.

"Well good luck with that Lily. I hope that when I return that we'll both be stronger." He said as he waved goodbye to her. As he left the Locker Room he made his way back into the Medical Ward to see Chung one last time. However as he got there he noticed Chung was sound asleep. Raven smirked as he saw Chung sleeping peacefully. "You haven't changed the slightest..." Raven said as he walked back out into the hall. He then proceeded to make his way through each sector, he passed by Six and the others but he didn't pay any attention to them. Instead he kept walking, with a like of a newly found determination on his face.

[wonderweiss]

"Dr... Hasley..."

This... I knew it... I just knew it...

".... I'VE FINALLY FOUND IT!!! I'VE FINALLY FOUND THE PROMETHEUS LAB!!! THIS IS WONDERFUL, ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL!!!!!"

I jumped around the room in spite of the fact that I was supposed to be resting from the intense feedback. But... IT WAS JUST AMAZING!!! I rushed over to the nurse.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, I cannot thank you enough, but I must get going, I have the rest of the Prometheus labs to look at. I BID YOU FAREWELL!!!"

I took off out of the room to wander around. There was no fangirl as exited as I was.

[S121]

Medical Ward - Prometheus Labs

The doctor was shocked by Gerard's sudden outburst of energy. The doctor tried to figure out why this man was so ecstatic over being in Prometheus Labs. Was he a Halo fan?

"But...", the doctor said, but Gerard was already gone.




Sector 3 - Promethes Labs

A group of mechanics were busy fixing the damaged Warthogs, Mantises, and Scorpion tanks when all of a sudden, a strange man walked into the sector. (Gerard.)

[wonderweiss]

I randomly walked into one of the rooms, and all of a sudden, I knew exactly where I was.

"Oh, it's sector three, the heavy militia hangar! There's the scorpion tanks, and there are the warthogs, and *gasp* There's the Mantis, in the living iron, this day cannot get any better than this!!!"

I wandered around the lab taking a look at all of the tanks.