Duck...with Maeve

[Nyxx]

The air was thick with green, heady smoke, and Naomi was forced to inhale it with every breath. She stood on a abandoned, nearly debilitated building, mutants wandering the streets, their hunched forms and glowing red eyes creating beacons in the thick fog that covered the Earth.


It was said that there was one area where the fog was nonexistent, where the poison hadn't reached. Naomi longed for that area, as much as she longed for a piece of fresh bread, as much as she longed for her family back. She remembered the The Outbreak, when the mysterious poison, clear, tasteless, spread throughout the water supplies all over the world. At first, it was as if nothing was happening, a few fevers here and there, a few colds. Until a week later, when the entire world was hit with a slew of deaths. Millions, all around the world began to die, or so people thought. The moment their hearts stopped, and their loved ones began to weep and mourn for them, their bodies contorted and transformed, becoming half-beast half-human. But the half-human only reached as far as intelligence, they are devoid of emotion, of any heart. Their skin varied from scaled, to furry, to even dark ebony skin, that appeared leathery and smooth from a distance. Of course, Naomi had never attempted to touch one, knowing it would slaughter her the moment she was a foot away. They were all extraordinarily strong, and sometimes smarter than Naomi ever thought possible.


Naomi could be seen as one of the lucky ones. One of the few spared from The Outbreak, but that's not strictly true. Just like the mutants, she had died, and come back, but not with disgusting deformities and a lack of humanity and sanity, but strange abilities. Her mission was clear. To find others like her, and survive. Maybe even find those who caused The Outbreak, and get revenge once and for all.

 

[Maeve]

Ivy looked out over the vast piles of rubble that used to be New York City. Now just a decrepit wilderness of fog and stone. She sat on the ledge of what used to be a tall skyscraper. It now hung low to the ground and threatened to crumble under her. She embraced the danger.


As she stared, she thought of her mother, and what had become of her. She thought of the man who had killed her. A neighbor, one who always greeted her in the halls with a bright smile on his face. He had gained powers in The Outbreak, like her . But while she attained the ability to move objects with her mind, he had gained the power to redirect and focus energy. Though he was still adjusting to his new capability, Ivy's mother had just been "reborn" and was weak enough that one blast of energy killed her on the spot.


Ivy's focus was drawn to the empty hinges of the entryway by a low creak. She stood up and was slowly walking to the disfigured doorway when something equally as deformed came through it, a mutant. She let out a terrified scream as it barreled towards her.

 

[Nyxx]

Naomi's head snapped to attention when she heard an ear-splitting scream. She glanced down at the ground below her, feeling her skin become feathers, her nose become a beak, her feet becoming small and her toes dividing and vanishing until only three were left. Her arms morphed to her sides as they became wings, and she flapped them once. The only bird she'd seen so far had been a small bluejay, and she wondered how the animals had been affected. She'd been more focused on her abilities, than the world around her, which probably wasn't the smartest option, but that's these abilities are hard to ignore. Once she had completely transformed she hopped off the building spreading her wings, and flapping frantically toward the scream. She landed in front of a skyscraper and her small head looked up, twitching this way and that as she tried to pin-point the direction of the scream, hearing it echo down to her, she darted up the building to a ledge, where she saw a dark haired girl near the ledge, and the doorway ahead of her bursting open as a mutant charged towards her. Transforming as she did so, Naomi jumped to the ledge, and grabbed the long slender knife she kept in her back pocket. Luckily, transforming didn't mean her clothes were torn every time. They somehow remained intact every time. She whipped the knife in the mutant's direction, and watched a satisfied smile spreading across her face as it sunk into the mutant's neck. It fell to the ground giving a defeated howl and a few twitches before finally lying still. Naomi walked over to the corpse, and pulled the knife out of the mutant's body, blood spurting onto her already dirty and torn jeans.


She then turned to the girl and asked, "Are you okay?" Naomi wondered if the girl was like her, but forced the question down, afraid to scare the girl away.

 

[Maeve]

"Uh.... Uh..um." Ivy gaped at the tall blonde girl that had just saved her life. She cleared her throat and struggled to come up with an answer to the seemingly easy question. "Mmmhm," she nodded her head casually at the girl and toyed with a fray in her jeans.


The girl gave her a weird look and wandered over to where the mutant lay on the floor, a mass of contorted scales and blood. The girl made a face at the thing and slid her knife out of its dripping neck.

 

[Nyxx]

"Okay, good." Naomi approached her, wiping the knife off with a ratty cloth taken out of her back pocket, "So, what's your name?" Naomi put a hand on her hip, after the knife was clean, and slipped the cloth and knife in her pocket, eyeing the girl from afar to try and spot any injuries. If this girl was going to join her, she better not slow her down. She could hear the countless mutants in the distance, moaning and groaning and screeching, and it finally hit her that she couldn't do this alone. She needed someone on her side.

 

[Maeve]

"Ivy..." She contemplated telling the girl her last name but decided against it. Last names were meaningless now, especially since she had no one tying her to hers.


She shifted from foot to foot as she always had in an awkward situation. The girl was looking at her with a calculating gaze and it was beginning to make Ivy feel uncomfortable. She needed to say something to break the silence.


"So...er.... your a bird!" Was all she could think to say. She mentally slapped herself at her choice of words.

 

[Nyxx]

Naomi laughed at Ivy's statement, the utter ridiculousness of it bringing her joy she hadn't felt since before The Outbreak, "No, I'm not a bird. I'm a human...but nowhere near a normal one. The only normal ones there are the things down there," Naomi motioned to the streets crowded with mutants, her smile deepening into a frown once again. Yet again, the urge to ask her if she had powers surfaced, but just as her mouth formed the words, "Do you..." a flying mutant with scales covering its spindly body, and it's razor sharp teeth opened wide screeched, and was headed straight for Naomi. (Maeve this is your cue to use your powers)

 

[Maeve]

It took Ivy only a split second to act. She leaped into action as soon as she saw the creature flying at her new acquaintance. She struck her hands out in front of her and squinted at the airborne mutant, putting all her focus on the scene unfolding in front of her. The wall behind the mutant split apart creating a gaping hole that gave an unobstructed view of the desolate world beyond. Pieces of drywall flew at the the beast. Ivy's eyes widened as the beast turned and, with its talon clad feet reaching the ground, started charging towards her. She closed her eyes fully now and put all her energy her hands. There was a loud groan and the a loud indescribable sound, then all was quiet. Ivy opened one eye to see the mutant now lying on the ground, its body covered in large splinters of what used to make p the floor. The wood stuck out all over and blood covered the already dark, sticky ground.

 

[Nyxx]

Naomi gasped as the ground beneath them rose and kept increasing in height until it pierced the mutant's flesh. The mutant was instantly incapacitated, and went limp as the wood embedded itself into its vital organs. She looked up at Ivy, whose hands were raised, and a grim expression on her face, a stark contrast to her previous awkward smile. Naomi stuttered, "W-Well that answered my question." Naomi considered the possibilities. She could go on alone, without trusting anyone, without any companionship, or she could put her faith in Ivy, and allow her to join her ranks. Well, the ranks of two people that is. Naomi concluded that Ivy's power would be more than useful in fights, and she hated being a lone wolf. Pun intended. A smile graced Naomi's face, and she might have looked a little insane at that moment, "Would you like to join me in searching for the motherfuckers who started this mess?"

 

[Maeve]

Ivy almost smiled at that question. She pretended to think about it a moment then, "You bet your ass I do." Now she really smiled, the first genuine grin that had graced her face in a long time.


She hopped a little in place to show her excitement then, realizing how weird this probably looked, she stopped. The girl was looking at her with an amused expression, and that's when Ivy remembered that the girls name a as still a mystery to her.


"So... You know my name so its only fair that I know yours." She put on a smug face and awaited her colleagues answer.

 

[Nyxx]

Naomi laughed at Ivy's strange excited hopping, and said, "Oh you're right. My name's Naomi. Nice to officially meet you." Naomi approached her to shake her hand, holding her hand out tentatively. She wondered if Ivy was comfortable with touching strangers, but oh well. They had to bond at some point, and the sooner the better. She also wanted to get out of New York City, it seemed like a hive for mutants to roam in.