Saint Joseph School

(This story was adapted from in-game RP, at the request of both Harebell and Asrai Rose.)

It was just an ordinary birthday party. Isaac could still feel the parasite eating away at him, yes, but it wasn't out of control. Everything was normal... until Harebell and Asrai appeared. Something in their nature... the combination of warshade and peacebringer, perhaps their symbiosis with one another, or maybe it was Asrai's labeling of Isaac as a nictus that caused the thing to stir. Whatever it was, he felt it moments after they got there, and he had to abandon the party before he lost it.

High atop one of the taller buildings of Kings Row, Isaac staggered across the gravel of the rooftop, stripping off his armor piece by piece. It was moving inside him, he could feel it. He could hear it screaming to attack, attack, attack! Never had he heard it beckoning with such intensity. It had to be those twins, he thought. Something about them just set it off, and there was nothing he could do to control it. Falling down to one knee, he felt it writhing, piercing his lungs, his heart, his soul with its foul tendrils, wracking his body with pain. In moments he vomitted up a stomachful of the odorless, tasteless black ichor that had been leaking from his nose and mouth on occasion for the past few weeks. Seconds after splattering on the gravel, it sizzled and evaporated, leaving no trace. But even in the midst of his agony, Isaac could feel the twins approaching, and of course, it got worse.

Sensing a damaged essence nearby, Harebell floated dreamily into Isaac's proximity, asking, "Someone needs me?" In her partial trance she failed to realize that the essence was Isaac, the man who caused her similar discomfort with his mere presence. Asrai grabbed her by the arm, shaking her, alerting Harebell to the trouble ahead. As they stared down at the broken form of Hell Hawk, he continued to cough and sputter, trying to regain control over himself, but instead collapsing face-down as he succumbed to the pain.

"Help... me..." he pleaded, as the twins landed next to him, looking at each other and wondering what to do. "We can help, yes?" inquired Harebell, as she looked over him worriedly. Asrai, assessing the situation, commented, "He may be too far gone." As her sister took her arm, Harebell shuddered and replied, "...I feel... that we can! Look how it's destroying him!" Sighing and collecting himself, Isaac finally stood up at this point. He had thought about this for years. He had put it off, pushed it to the back of his mind... This parasite hadn't been such a problem... until now. Now, he feared, it would finally push him too far again. Despite all the precautions, his specially-designed suit, his training, it was getting too strong for him, and it was time for this to end before anyone else got hurt.

"You have to... You've gotta kill me. Now."

"... Kill?" Harebell was shocked at this statement, as was her sister. Before it could sink in, Isaac unclipped the medical transponder from his belt, as well as his comm device, tossing it off the side of the building. The twins looked down in shock as they shattered on the pavement far below. "I don't... unngh. I don't have any other options... You've gotta do it... just kill this thing... if it kills me too... don't matter... just do it. Quick." He fell to his knees again, clutching his chest. "Is there no other way? What if we just extract it quickly and kill it?" asked Harebell, as she began to fill with dread. "No... it has to be this way... I'll just heal... and it'll heal with me... won't do jack..." "But... but..." stammered the twins. "It won't get any better... and if it does get worse, I'm afraid of what might happen to my friends at the school," sighed Isaac. "I don't know what it is... nnngh... something about you two..."

Harebell, finally realizing what was going on, ran up to Isaac and explained, "I'm a Kheldian... A nictus' enemy... and if that thing inside you is giving you so much pain around me... then maybe it really is a nictus..." In spite of this new understanding of the parasite that had been tormenting him for so many years, Isaac wasn't exactly beside himself. In fact, Harebell's proximity seemed to be making matters worse. Dropping to one knee, Isaac groaned, "Nnngh... god damn it... getting worse..." As Harebell began to back off, along with her sister, he cried, "It's screaming. It's screaming... won't stop SCREAMING." Clutching his head in agony, he shouted in desperation, "You've got to... rip it out... do something... RIP IT OUT!" Asrai, looking out for her twin, grabbed Harebell by the hand and pulled her back. However, Harebell wasn't one to be restrained at the moment, and began to hover, preparing to flee if need be. "I... I... should... go..." stuttered the young woman. "I'm making it worse..."

Isaac, desperate now, began to beg. "No... just... hit me with your best shot... Everything you've got... right in the chest. Do it... do it NOW!!" "But... but..." stuttered Asrai, hesitating as she watched Harebell preparing to leave and considering doing the same. "I can't..." murmured Harebell, as if finishing Asrai's sentence. "Both of you... EVERYTHING... nnngh... Please... I'm begging you..." At that moment, Harebell began to float away. As he saw this, Isaac snapped. Whether it was a result of the parasite's grip on his mind and body, or of simple disgust at their unwillingness to do what was necessary, he snarled and shouted, "STOP PISSING AROUND!! DO IT!" as he grabbed her by the ankle and yanked her down, tossing her at Asrai's feet. Shocked, Harebell stood up with the help of her sister, and retaliated with unrestrained intensity. Twins beams of pure energy, darkness and light, tore through the air and struck Isaac square in the chest.

For Isaac, things grew silent at this point. The pain stopped as if someone hit a switch. The parasite stopped screaming. He heard nothing. He felt nothing. Even as the beams pierced his ribcage, shot through his back and sent him flying backwards in a cloud of blood, feathers, and black ichor, the only thing that registered in his mind was how clear the stars looked to him at this point. Despite everything happening at that moment, the stars didn't move. And as he gazed at this endless, sparkling firmanent for what seemed like an eternity, faces began to come to him. Memories that he had forgotten, rushing in as if the floodgates of his mind were opened. His friends at the school, friends from his childhood, his mother, his father. He remembered them now. Losing all sense of time, when he was, where he was, he wondered how many of those faces were gazing up at the sky right at that moment, looking at the same stars.

This was the first time in many years that Isaac was able to think so clearly. And in the midst of this clarity, the stars stopped twinkling, and the inky darkness serving as their backdrop spread to envelop everything in sight.

The twins stared in amazement as Isaac landed on his back, sliding to the edge of the rooftop. They didn't realize that they were capable of that type of power. "Hawk!" shrieked Harebell, as she and her sister ran over to his dying form. Limply, his head and arm were dangling over the edge, blood forming a puddle around his body, and running down the side of the building. It ran from his mouth, uninhibited, as he gazed into nothingness with a lifeless eye. They both kneeled at his sides and attempted to pull his body from the ledge. However, it wasn't moments before the torrent of blood pouring out of his massive wound slowed, and was replaced by a jet black, oozing liquid.

The ooze seemed to have a mind of its own, gathering up and collecting, forming into a small, writhing, fleshy, tentacled mass. Both twins gaped as it let out a shrill, alien cry then leaped out of Isaac's wound and off the side of the building, disappearing. They were so surprised, in fact, that their grip on Isaac slipped, and gravity pulled him over the edge, still unconscious. Harebell and Asrai watched helplessly as his lifeless form plummeted from the top of the tall building, into what appeared to be a pit dug out by road workers in order to get access to the sewers. He was enveloped in the darkness of this pit, vanishing without a sound or a trace.

Isaac finally had the cure he'd wanted for so long, but at what cost?

Two figures stood on the edge of a building, frozen in time. Their facial expressions contorted in a look of sheer terror. The figure with white hair lit up and jumped over the edge and into the pit. Her white glowing eyes searching, searching but not finding what the orbs wish to observe. She let out a shirek that rang threw out the comm. system with out her knowledge. Herabell looked at her pure white outfit; it was stained with blood, Isaac’s blood. She floated up towards her sister with sad eyes; Asrai’s face became full of horror as noises over the comm. came alive.

“ .....umm, hello?”

Asrai covered her sister’s mouth, fear gripping her eyes as she layed a finger over her lips.

“SHHHHHH!”

Another voice on the comm…

“Isaac you ok?”

Her sister spoke, softly. Her eyes wide but filled with a sort of harshness.

“What will the others think?”

Her own eyes got wider. She muffled a bit as she removed her sister’s hand from her mouth.

“But we should tell someone! He attacked me! And he fell…” The pain in Herabells ankle and backside reminded her of that as she limped a bit.

“Who will believe us!? What if they think we murdered him!?!”

“But we Didn’t!!”

A voice on the comm rang in her ear.

“...Harebell?”

“But they don’t know that! I mean...i i i...was acting mean to him.” Asrai was beging to shake; her usual bold self was gone. Herabell spoke up again.

“We can tell them that!”

“NO!”

The same voice rings on the comm.

“............Harebell? Isaac?”
Herabell gave her sister a cruel look as she started to speak into the comm. Asrai looked at her sister with pleading eyes. Herabell caved.

“I..i… I’m fine”

Her sister spoke to quickly into the comm. just after her sister.

“She’s fine!”

Herabell let out a sigh. The comm. stayed quite for a moment before an accusing voice spoke.

“You’re lying.”

Herbell spun towards her shouting as loud as she could. The Kheldain inside her echoed inside her voice.

“ I TOLD YOU!! I’m telling the truth!”

“NO!” Asrai covers her sister’s mouth, Herabell fought back pushing her away.

“She KNOWS!”

“She knows NOTHING!” Asrai countered. The voice rang over the comm again.

"I know that tone, I have a sister. Thats the "I'm covering for you" tone."

Herabell felt over encumbered. She didn’t know what to do. She stood still and looked at the ground. The situation felt all sorts of wrong. Knots in her stomach were making her feel sick she could feel her sisters fear inside. I have to do what’s right.. She looked up at her sister.

“Did you not hear her? Now they’ll really think we killed him!”

Asrai’s heart beat felt like it was in her throat. She was panicking and she knew it. Her sister’s stern look as she took a deep breath and moved the mouth piece of her comm. to her mouth sent chills down her spin. She had one last effort to give to stop her sister.

“But what about what’s her name she might want to hurt us!? You saw how she was!!”

Herabell’s face looked more hurt then angry. Asrai’s hands went to her head as if trying to quite the voices yelling inside playing the “what if game”. Herabell spoke sadly into the comm.

“I.. i.. don't want to talk about.. it over the comm...”

Herabell looked down and back at her sister. Now she could focus on her.

“He ATTACKED ME!”

“And I KILLED him!”

“I shot too!”

“But I shot first!”

“I still shot!”

“We are soo dead…”

Asrai buried her self under her hands. Herabell knelt down and hugged her sister. Instantly Asrai clung to her sister. Herabell shook her head as a rush of feelings over whelmed her.

“No we aren’t.” Herabell paused. “We she at least tell *someone* what happened.. Maybe a teacher about what happened?”

“No! They would suspend us! A cop would throw us in jail.. with all the bad people!”

“But we didn’t do it on purpose! He attacked me! It was defense!”

The next line Herabell was totally unprepared for as her sister shot back.

“But we killed him! LIKE THEY KILLED MOM AND DAD!!”

Asrai broke down crying pulling her sister in closer and leaning on her shoulder. The words echoed threw Herabell’s mind. The image of their mother in white covered in red blood, like she was now. Their father getting beaten up all over again, kicked, shot and murdered. Herabell froze. Unable to speak, unable to move. Asrai wept sorrowful tears into Herabell’s shoulders. They stayed there for that entire chilled night covered in blood that was not their own.

(WARNING: The following contains semi-graphic violence.)

There were only a few occasions that Isaac could remember being knocked unconscious. After all, for a person who never sleeps, gaps in memory caused by a lack of consciousness become much more pronounced. The accident where the parasite entered his body, being taken down during the aftermath and waking up in the hospital, as well as being captured by the Council, and experimented upon... Those were the only times he could remember. As he opened his eye in the fetid, dark depths of the Paragon City Municipal Sewage System, it seemed that Isaac Graves had eluded death's grasp once again.

For now.

It didn't take long for the broken man to realize that he wasn't out of the woods yet. His right arm... it was gone. It was mechanical, so it could be replaced, but how did he lose it? Groggily, Isaac turned his head to survey the damage. The artificial skin had been torn away, exposing the empty metal socket grafted to his shoulder. Something... pained him in his left arm as he leaned the other way, though. Looking up at it, he saw a steel cable threaded between the bones of his forearm, looped back up, and welded to a girder running across the dark, grimy ceiling. Dried blood caked his arm from the wound, and upon looking down, saw a similar situation with both his legs. His pants were torn away at the knee, and he was suspended a couple of feet from the floor, with no means of escape - someone really wanted him to stay put.

Smirking, Isaac began to concentrate, calling upon his more mysterious powers to become intangible... but wait! It suddenly dawned on him. He had been purged of his parasite... and with it, his powers over darkness. So now, his only advantage is the situation was an incredible ability to heal, and from the looks of the situation, he could tell that it was going to become very necessary, very soon. As Isaac looked up, his vision still blurry, he could make out the forms of several figures stepping into what he now recognized as a makeshift laboratory.

Vahzilok's crew.

Ordinarily, these thugs would have been no match for Hell Hawk, but it appeared that they took advantage of his inability to defend himself, and now he was at their mercy. Unfortunately, mercy is not something the fiends serving Dr. Vahzilok are known for. Isaac took a deep breath as the figures approached, and he was able to make out a few details. The first to step into the light was a decidely narrow, supple figure. A woman, by some standards. The bald head, black leather, and straps identified her as an Eidolon, most likely their leader. She was accompanied by a Reaper assistant, who snickered at Isaac as he drew closer, as if finding humor in his misfortune. Finally, two stinking cadavers trudged along behind them, their collective odor commendably adding to the already wretched stench of this sewer lab. Though by most standards, she would be considered a monstrosity, the Eidolon's voice was smooth as silk, with an almost flirtatious tone to it. What some might consider sexy.

"Well, well, Hell Hawk... looks like someone did a number on you."

She stepped up to him, looking him up and down, then ran a pale, bony finger over the wound in his chest. "Very nice work, Dr. Mathers." Looking down, Isaac noticed that the hole which had been bore through him by the twins' blasts had been stitched up, and was healing very nicely. Had it not been for that, he might have bled to death while he was unconscious. However, Isaac knew that in a few minutes, he may be finding that fate much more desirable. The Eidolon placed a hand under his chin, lifting it to meet her gaze. What he could see of her face was of a ghostly pallor, with a few stitches here and there. Even the irises of her eyes were pale, as if her entire body were somehow void of any type of pigmentation.

As he studied her quietly, she said, "You know, Hell Hawk, fate can be very interesting. One day you could be at the height of your career, pioneering the latest medical breakthroughs for the good of mankind, and the next day, you find yourself in an alley, confronted by a group of maniacs who want your body parts to build more monsters for them to use as pawns..." Isaac thought about this, finally opening his mouth. It was dry, so dry, and he could taste the blood on his breath as the words passed through his lips, barely a whisper. He swallowed, stopping himself, and attempted to speak again. This time, the words came more easily. "You... you were... a doctor?" he asked, trying not to cough. The black, shiny leather around her mouth contorted slightly as she smiled. "Yes... I am a doctor. Mouth a little dry, Hell Hawk? Want something to drink?"

As much as Isaac knew that it was a trick, he weighed his options, and decided to nod. The Eidolon gestured, and she was handed a glass of what appeared to be water by the Reaper. Raising it to Isaac's parched lips, she smiled, almost comfortingly as he drank his fill of the slightly dirty water. Swallowing one last time with a slight gasp, Isaac whispered, "Thanks..." The Eidolon nodded, setting the empty glass down on a table before continuing. It was then that Isaac noticed the sharp implements arranged next to the Reaper, the ends of which were a deep red color. Rust? Dried blood? He wasn't sure... but all he could do for now was listen to the Eidolon and hope for the best. "It was my medical prowess which spared my life and allowed me to rise through the ranks of Dr. Vahzilok's organization," she said. "I was so... generous before I met him. It was disgusting... Now I know that the best use for my expertise is to further the doctor's goals, and fulfill his dream of discovering a way to cure death itself. And you, my dear little bird, are going to further that end."

Isaac narrowed his eye. What does she mean, thought Isaac. Experimentation? Taking my body parts?[/i] But there was something about her voice, something familiar. He decided to stall her, buy some more time for him to think up a way out of this. "What kind of medical work did you do?" She gave him an odd look, as if surprised by the question, but decided to humor him. After all, he wasn't going anywhere. "I specialized in mutation genetics, as well as extra-terrestrial biology." No, it couldn't be, thought Isaac. How could she have fallen this far? "Dr. Julia Zuckerman?" he inquired, going out on a limb. Julia grinned, clapping sarcastically for him, and exclaimed, "Brilliant deduction, Mr. Graves! I was wondering how long it would take you to figure it out." Upon hearing that, Isaac's heart sank. Not only was he saddened to see what had become of his old friend, but he also knew that she knew more about his biology than he did... and he was certain that this knowledge would be put into practice very soon...

"Chin up, Isaac... I've run a few tests and it appears that the little parasite thing you came to me about five years ago has cleared up. I suppose this little hole in your torso had something to do with that." She smiled, almost mockingly, and said, "Such a shame that we had to meet again under such circumstances. The great Hell Hawk, finally cured of his affliction, yet instead of enjoying his newfound health, has fallen from grace and landed right in the lap of one of his most hated enemies." Isaac chuckled spitefully, "And look at you, one of the most brilliant minds in your field, now you're cutting up corpses for some crazy doctor and his mad science." He scowled at her, adding, "You disappoint me, Julia... I would've never thought you'd sink so low."

Balling her hand into a bony fist, she promptly and powerfully struck him across the face. Still seeing a smirk on his lips, she backhanded him, knocking his head the other way. "Don't act like you still know me, Isaac! You'll see the light soon enough." Looking back to her and spitting blood on the floor, Isaac growled, "And what the hell does that mean?" A smug look spreading across her countenance, she replied, "You are to join the ranks of the Eidolons, my friend... a rare honor for someone with little medical expertise, such as yourself. I believe Cortex is the only other to be "elevated" for his power alone." Smirking, Isaac responded sarcastically, "Yeah, I'm absolutely beside myself."

He didn't flinch as Julia raised her hand to strike him again. She stopped herself, instead gesturing to the cadavers standing behind her. Groaning a little, they stepped forward, moving behind Isaac. Their footsteps resounded with the wet, sticky smacking of rotten flesh against grimy concrete, and Isaac grimaced as the wave of odor assaulted his nostrils with renewed intensity. Each of them grabbed one of his wings and pulled it out to its full span. He tried to resist, but he was too weak, and they eventually managed to pull them out, painfully far.

"Now, Isaac... it's time to clip your wings." With a sadistic smile, she nodded to the Reaper, who sneered and picked a filthy scalpel off of the table. Moving behind his captive, he grabbed the base of the wing and yanked, pulling the bone from its socket. Isaac yelped, and felt the blade of the scalpel cutting through his flesh, moving around the base of the wing. He could feel the warm blood running down his back, and the snapping of each tendon as the cruel blade pushed through them with no hesitation. Isaac clenched his jaw, bearing the pain, even as the rest was torn off as his macabre surgeon grew tired of cutting and yanked the wing away, tossing it to the floor with the quiet rustling of feathers. The Reaper repeated the process with his other wing, and Isaac lowered his head, chest heaving, sweat running down his face. "Take those to the Doctor, my minions. He will be pleased to see them," ordered Julia, and the cadavers each scooped up a wing and carried it out of the chamber.

As the Reaper began stitching up the wounds, Julia stepped forward and smoothed Isaac's hair back. "I have to say, you have a remarkable capacity for pain... But I'm afraid no amount of fortitude is going to preserve your mind against our processing. You have so many wonderful nerve endings, so many sensitive tissues. And the fact that you heal almost as quickly as the injuries occur, simply allows us to go that much farther. You're a very worthy specimen, indeed." Taking another deep breath, he wordlessly looked up at her with his single eye, noticing that the Reaper had finished stitching him up and had moved back to the table. "We will break you down until you are absolutely nothing, and then you will understand Dr. Vahzilok's principles. You'll learn to love him, as I do." As she stepped aside, the red glow of a heated poker in the Reaper's hand caught Isaac's eye. "You have a strong will, Isaac. But that won't save you. Your friends can't save you. Nothing can save you."

Bloodcurdling screams echoed in the darkness of the sewers, but Isaac's cries fell on deaf ears. They would continue to do so for several days.