skin of the night

Nikolai Maslak. 25. Mutant. I am not who I am.

[lovedrunks-deactivated20190320]

Blair straightened, the corners of her lips pull down into a slight frown. His query indicated that perhaps she hadn’t projected enough feelings onto him. Or perhaps she just hadn’t been subtle enough. Erik would have told her to try again, use more, practice. That wasn’t something she was entirely comfortable with yet. ”Empathy,” she said neutrally, running her teeth along her bottom lip. She held out a hand for him to shake, painting on a friendly smile. “I’m Blair, by the way.” Hopefully, she hadn’t ruined a potential friendship already.

[nikolaimaslak]

Empathy. Empathy. Nikolai's lip twitched, but his expression gave away none of the disgust roiling through him. Not that it would matter, if she could feel his emotional state. Nikolai hated mind readers in every shape and form. Anyone who could access his thoughts without his permission, change his perception of the world, was an enemy. It was violation on the basest level, the lack of certainty that anything he thought or felt was his own that put a knot in Nikolai's gut and made him want to react with violence. 

Carefully crushing down his dislike and desire to leave, Nikolai took her hand, returning her smile with a false one of his own. "Nikolai."

[drakexxthorne]

There had only been three people Drake had seen naked; his husband, his ex partner and himself, and that was the way that he wanted to keep it, at least for the moment. Many months had passed since the death of his husband, and still, Drake wasn’t comfortable around people, around anyone. His face still flinched around his close circle of friends whenever one of them touched him, his heartbeat still raced when a stranger brushed up against him, and now, standing just a few feet away from him, was a fellow mutant, removing their items of clothing.

[nikolaimaslak]

To call Nikolai's body his own would be a fallacy of the highest degree. If someone he wasn't comfortable touching him put their hands on him, there would be an issue, unless of course he was expected to stand still and take it. But time after time, he'd been required to break down his barriers until they were little more than dust. Aside from the smattering of questionable scars that he concentrated enough to remove from the surface of his skin while someone else was looking at him naked, Nikolai had nothing to be ashamed of. As Americans liked to say, when in Rome (which they were not), do as the Romans do. Similarly, when in a changing room, take your clothes off. 

Even Nikolai wasn't immune to the exertions of training. He went out of his way to push himself, to actually get some benefit out of the work they did every other day. As such, sweat slicked his skin, dampening his shirt and making it cling as Nikolai drew it off over his head, letting it fall to the ground to pick up once he'd showered and changed.

[ozwilliamsreplicator]

"H-hey. Watch out." Oscar almost touches crashes into someone but does a small jump back, "Sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going. I should be more careful."

[nikolaimaslak]

It was a very rare event indeed when someone managed to startle Nikolai. He went about the world in a state of alertness, constantly aware of who and what surrounded him. And really, it wasn't so much that he hadn't known Oscar was coming - he just hadn't expected him to walk into him. "Идиот!" Nikolai snapped, defaulting to Russian in irritation. "Посмотрите, где вы собираетесь!"

[lovedrunks-deactivated20190320]

There was something about his reply that both intrigued her and scared her, but she couldn’t pinpoint why. Perhaps she really had made the wrong decision volunteering. She had never been one for violence, but what else had she expected from this project, really? “I…” she cut herself off and shrugged. “I was sick of being locked up at camp. I know it’s not bad there, but…I don’t know. I wanted to do something with my life.” That was the partial truth, at least, and before she could feel guilty about it, she purposely projected some feelings of trust onto the other mutant; barely any —  just enough to keep him from asking more questions about her answer.

[nikolaimaslak]

A thread of relaxation trickled down Nikolai's spine, something in him telling him that he liked this girl. As far as threats went, she didn't register. He frowned. Nikolai couldn't have said what was wrong, but something was wrong, pushing around the edges of the little peace he'd gathered and niggling at the edges of his mind. He didn't feel peace. Comfort wasn't a sensation familiar to Nikolai, not even when he slept. "What was your mutation again?" he asked the girl. Maybe she could be an ally.

[iris-sees]

"Are you deaf!? I will be fine. I do not want you here.” Iris started. She briefly wondered if he was even worth the argument. She could, after all, just ignore him. No. She decided. That would give him too much satisfaction. “You are such an ass and I don’t even know who you are!” She exclaimed as she felt the pressure of a headache return behind eyes. It was nowhere near as bad as it had been earlier, but she knew it wasn’t healthy. 

[nikolaimaslak]

In response, Nikolai shrugged, the universal gesture for words are coming out of your mouth but I don't care. "Nikolai Maslak." He didn't bother to ask her name in response. There were infinite upshots to listening rather than speaking. Included in that list was knowing things without people having to tell them to you.

[iris-sees]

Iris practically hissed at the man. “Aren’t you just the cream of the crop? The sweetest chocolate at the candy factory?” She was so angry at his callousness that she wanted to snap. “Be on your way. Get out. I’m sure someone will come along shortly. I’m fine.”

[nikolaimaslak]

"No." Pulling his legs up onto her bed, Nikolai crossed them, settling himself comfortably in place. "I prefer no one suspecting me of murdering you if you die."

[iris-sees]

"Well, thank you for dealing with me. I’m sorry to have been such an inconvenience to you. With that being said, you can gladly excuse yourself. I wouldn’t want to continue being a bother.” Iris wouldn’t dare admit it, but on top of the inevitable embarrassment that clouded her mind, this stranger sitting on the edge of her bed had hurt her feelings. “You could have just dropped me off and left, you know? Saved a little bit of your precious time.” 

[nikolaimaslak]

Unbothered by her irritation, Nikolai gestured behind himself to indicate the emptiness of the rest of the room without looking over his shoulder. "It would look bad if I left you and then you had a seizure and died."

[iris-sees]

Iris resisted the urge to let out another groan. “So, how did you end up here? On my bed?” She asked the guy. She wasn’t completely sure, but she didn’t think they had met. 

[nikolaimaslak]

"Someone had to deal with you after you passed out. I drew the short straw."

[katherinebeauchamp]

( off to the races ) katherine & nikolai

Physical training is not Katherine’s forte. If being bluntly honest, she acknowledges that she’s out of shape — not overweight, no, but definitely not as fit as someone her age is suppose to be. She’s short and small with very little muscle mass, and not much endurance. Before, she never really had a reason to be in shape. She lived a comfortable, lavish life in Chicago, where everything was taken care of for her, and her biggest worry was what shoes would go with her skirt. She didn’t have much activity while under the government’s watch, either, usually confined to her room for most of her time. Even at Camp C, she managed to avoid most of the physical activity, being that her mutation has nothing to do with it. But there’s no avoiding this, it seems.

Right now her legs are killing her, and every step is a struggle. How long have they been out here, now? Running round and round the track over and over, while the humans just watch them go with stoic expressions. She wonders how many of them are laughing at her internally, because surely she is a pathetic sight. Huffing and puffing, Katherine can’t bear it anymore, coming to a halt in her strides. She bends down and grips her knees with her hands hard, trying to keep from tumbling over onto the dirt and making an even more embarrassing scene for herself, or worse, pass out entirely.

"I’m gonna die," she mutters under her breath, in between deep intakes. If she stops for too long, she knows the human guards or trainers or whatever they consider themselves to be will yell at her to keep moving, but right now she needs a moment of a break. Feeling the gaze of another on her, Katherine turns her head, and can’t help the scowl that takes over her face. "Can I help you?" she snaps, certain they’re only around to make fun of her. Because that’s exactly what she needs right now.

[nikolaimaslak]

This whole thing was a farce. By the second run of the day - after lunch, of all times, as though whoever had planned out this inane schedule wanted them all to throw up all over the place - most of the other mutants were stumbling through their strides, barely picking their feet up from the ground. For the first time, Nikolai considered that this training might have nothing to do with physical fitness. Certainly, none of them were getting any benefit from it. If this was a form of endurance training, the structure could be better, but at least it gave him some hope for the intelligence of the mutant program directors. If they threw up, they'd have to keep running, learn to ignore the screaming of their body. Harsh, but effective. Nikolai was sure most of them would break under the strain.

Just ahead of him, the prime example of a wipeout risk slowed to a stop, hands braced on her knees and head hanging down, breathing so hard he thought she might be in danger of passing out. Nikolai had never actually spoken to her, but her bright red hair, even soaked with sweat, was hard to miss. By now, he'd learned the names of all the other mutants, paying careful attention to their conversations even when he had no desire to participate in them. He'd already lapped her at least once, but Nikolai slowed, halting just behind her, his own breath significantly less labored. As long as he knew only her name, but not her mutation, she still had the potential to be useful to him.

"You're not going to die," Nikolai informed her, in response to her furious demand. The exercise, though he was well used to running, found his Russian accent stronger than normal. "You might cause yourself to vomit if you keep whipping your head around like that, though." With a few more steps, he'd drawn up alongside her, setting his hand at the small of her back and nudging her forward slightly. "Come on, straighten up. You're not doing yourself any good right now."

[iris-sees]

Iris groaned. She couldn’t help to think that this would ultimately maker her look weak in the eyes of her fellow mutants. After all, clairvoyance wasn’t the most impressive ability and Iris often questioned just how much of use she could be to the program. “How bad was it? Don’t lie.” She told him looking him directly in the eyes. 

[nikolaimaslak]

Nikolai shrugged. He didn't find anything about direct eye contact intimidating or compelling, as far as telling the truth went, but in this case he had no need to lie. "You collapsed. You didn't wet yourself or start speaking in tongues, though, so you don't need to worry too much about it." It can hardly make you less intimidating, he didn't add.

[iris-sees]

Black spots danced in Iris’s vision encroaching slowly.She tried to blink them away, but her world steadily grew dimmer until it threatened to cease altogether. Behind her eyelids, an explosion was taking place - an explosion she had absolutely no control over. The last thing Iris pictured before passing out was Grant’s face.

A short time later, she awoke in the infirmary, only to be greeted by another mutant. “Please tell me not everyone witnessed that.” Iris sighed.

[nikolaimaslak]

Nikolai raised his eyebrows, looking up at her from his perch at the foot of her bed. "I could. But I'd be lying."

[o-hayes-deactivated20141101]

There was a time in Oliver’s life when he wouldn’t have been caught dead in such a vulnerable position. Swimming was all fine and well, but without a knife strapped to his thigh or an assurance that no one could walk in on him, he was left as a sitting duck for anyone to attack. He could have started quacking. That would probably just lend to the idea that he was a target.

But Oliver wasn’t an ignorant target, and the day’s worth of training had taken a toll on him. He still hadn’t been sleeping as well as he was sure the others were, and he spent most of the night staring up the ceiling, rolling over onto his side to stare at the wall or with his eyes closed, stretching out his abilities and situating a part of himself on a Caribbean island, where the water was cool and there was no one after his head. Oliver had figured that for all the time he’d spent falling into line and being on his guard, he could give this moment’s peace to himself.

Breaking through the water, he grabbed the edge of the pool, keeping himself stable while he pushed back his goggles. He set them on the tiled edge and breathed in deep, slow breaths, using his free hand to slick his hair back from his face. Swimming had always been a way for him to unwind, and he needed it now more than ever. He’d slipped away as soon as dinner was over, grabbing the bag he’d left beside his bed and heading to the pool without pausing.

A sound behind him made him tense, body drawing up like the string of a bow while his fingers squeezed the lip of the pool, jaw tightening. A guard, probably, or at least one of the other mutants, he assured himself as he turned, hand on the pool’s edge and legs still kicking to keep himself afloat.

[nikolaimaslak]

Swimming had never been a particular interest of Nikolai's. Something about having his head held underwater at several points in his short but convoluted life had diminished his desire to do it to himself. Yet in some perversity of nature, Nikolai still liked water. When he could, he liked to float on his back, eyes closed and face tipped up towards the ceiling, just basking in the sensation of weightlessness. It took him out of his body and into a place where he didn't have to think so much.

The compound was hardly the securest place for that. The closest Nikolai ever got to security was breaking into pools in the middle of the night to ensure his aloneness. He wasn't allowed to drop his guard here, and didn't want to anyway. Most of the other mutants were almost laughably incompetent, just normal people with abnormal abilities, thrust into a situation they couldn't possibly comprehend. But a few of them, Nikolai had picked out as dangerous. Whether by recklessness, stupidity, or actual talent, it didn't particularly matter. He couldn't relax while he was here. Any moment of dropping his guard could be the moment he'd severely regret it.

Somehow, he'd still found himself headed towards the pool after dinner, relying on the no-swimming-within-an-hour-of-eating rule to keep him isolated. Nikolai didn't particularly care. He wasn't planning to exert himself, and even if he was, a cramp wouldn't drown him. As he approached, though, footsteps light, Nikolai was surprised to hear the splashing that signaled someone else was already swimming. 

When the other mutant turned around, Nikolai barely kept himself from frowning. Oliver. Good with a gun, though Nikolai still had no idea what his mutation was. It was enough to earn him a ranking spot in Nikolai's mental hierarchy. Of all the people in the compound he thought it might be alright to drop his guard around, Oliver was not one of them.

In spite of himself, or perhaps to spite them both, Nikolai sat down at the edge of the pool, legs crossed and hands resting in his lap, watching him with more interest than he let his face show.

[nikolaimaslak]

off the beaten path

[nana-yamada]

A detour? Coming from that direction it seemed unlikely but seeing as Leon had only run once then declared it too much effort, he wouldn’t really know where they went. He moved his hand up that contained the book by his head a shoot it lightly. “Just reading up, never can know too much after all.” Leon considered this training of his own, to see how much information he could memorize at a time. His mutation age him an unnaturally good memory and pared with his love of knowledge, Leon tended to read far more then he should. Books ranged from simple fiction book to complex scientific theories such as string theory. He sent out new requests for book from the library almost every week, he was half convinced the librarian wanted to kill him for putting so much work on her. She was obviously too nervous to ever voice her thoughts though, so he didn’t really worry.

"That’s because I haven’t. I mean could you honestly see me running with the others." He spread his arms out, gesturing to his body. It was a waste, he would loose time he could be exploring the base or reading to this repetitive drill training. "If these people have any intelligence, they will pair me with the more physically apt mutants. The boy who’s indestructible would be a good fit. He would make an excellent human shield." It would be that or espionage, his mutation had a certain affinity for that. 

Leon went to some of his classes, on occasion at least. He could already outsmart most of the teachers so it often seemed pointless to go to math. They taught at a level that was for those who did not have a good educations, Leon did. There for, he made classes like that obsolete. “I’m Leon, it’s a pleasure.” He did a quick evaluation of the man in front of him, trying to pick out what his mutation could be. 

[nikolaimaslak]

"Oh?" Interest piqued, at least for the moment, Nikolai ambled towards him, slowly enough that it could not be misconstrued as a threat. "What are you reading?" He stopped at a respectable distance from the other mutant, hand out in a request to examine his book. If it looked interesting, he might ask to borrow it. Nikolai needed something to do during the class time, given how little he cared for it, and he hadn't brought any reading material of his own.

Eyes flicking over his body, Nikolai shrugged. He'd seen weaker mutants running, though they seemed to be on the brink of collapse, so there was a point. One run a day made sense. Two was suicide. "And if it turns out that his indestructibility is limited? At the very least, you should be able to sprint." It was all moot, in then end. If they got as far as R.I.A. at all, Nikolai would have warned the organization, and they'd be long gone, nothing but an empty shell to show where they'd been. Sprinting would save none of them from a sniper rifle, so he might as well take time off from running to read. It would hardly do well to voice those thoughts, though.

"Nikolai." This time, when he stuck his hand out, it was for a handshake. Normally, Nikolai wasn't so formal, but in this situation it somehow felt right. When there was no logical reason to do something, but Nikolai felt as though he should anyway, he usually went with it. "Which camp are you from?"

[nikolaimaslak]

cut your teeth [aless & nikolai]

[lucianna-medici-blog]

"No, I got the impression that you were being a dumb ass." She replied rather bluntly. Barging in here, attempting to tackle her and then proceeding to get smart? That didn’t sit well wit Alessandra and she wasn’t in the mood for bullshit today. She stepped back as he got up, cooling down from before. A part of her was smug that she’d gotten the upper hand. The obsessive part of her. There was always a need to win. In everything. And today was just another one she’d taken as her victory.

"Not what you just did. Clearly you know your stuff, but if you’re going to attempt to hit me, be a little more subtle about it next time, sweetheart." The brunette pushed her hair back, crossing her arms in a challenging manner. 

[nikolaimaslak]

Nikolai was officially done. Done with this whole project, and especially with this encounter. Had he been here of his own volition, he would have long since walked away, in search of an activity that could actually hold his attention. He didn't even want to dump Alessandra on her ass. She'd burn him, and in her surprise when he ignored it, he'd knock her out, and the whole thing would remain entirely boring and unsatisfying. Nikolai just wanted to leave her alone, to play in her entitlement and bad attitude, probably even worse than his. That was an accomplishment.

He raised his eyebrows. "Are you telling me to hit you from behind next time?" Tempting as the thought was, Nikolai doubted it would help matters. "I can do that." As he spoke, his tone remained conversational. Not light, but matter-of-fact, without a hint of threat. Nikolai didn't threaten. He acted. Threats weakened over time, but actions kept speaking long after they'd ended. They reminded whoever he acted against that he was willing to do so again. 

[addison-f]

"Being touched by complete strangers makes haeadaches worse, too," Addison spat at him, watching him with narrow eyes move away from her. "And I’m not in a bad mood, either,"

[nikolaimaslak]

"Yes you are." Nikolai didn't even bother looking at her, sighing heavily and breathing to a count of four, trying to allow the tension to bleed out of him from the day.

[addison-f]

Crossing her arms across her chest, Addison’s glare only darkened. “I didn’t give you permission, don’t do it again.”

[nikolaimaslak]

Nikolai snorted. How predictable. He'd never been much for helping other people, and the one time he decided that his anatomical knowledge would help - if only to stop everything not nailed down from levitating - it was ill received. "As you like." He returned to his place, closing his eyes and tipping his head back. "Bad moods make headaches worse."

[addison-f]

Addison recoiled from his touch as if his fingertips had burned her. She wasn’t exactly used to skin contact, his kneading hands feeling very foreign to her. Spinning around to face him, Addison gave him the harshest glare she could muster. 

"Don’t ever touch me again," She ordered, taking a small step backwards. 

[nikolaimaslak]

Nikolai gave her a flat look, unfazed by her anger. "You said your head hurts, yes? I'm not going to snap your neck."