Septic Ego Rping SFW/NSFW

Search #muse list and #character info for my muses and info/pictures about them. No ocs please I have a hard time having muse for them. Main blog is @narutofoxlover

[blood-reborn-simon]

Advice for the new Tumblr roleplayer

Since a lot of folks here are new to the Tumblr RP community i figured I'd put some of my 15+ years of forum and Tumblr roleplay experience to use. Here's a brief post about etiquette, customs, and general advice.

Don't maintag every post. It's not polite to other fans, clutters up the tag, and ends up making it harder to find partners bc people will tend to just block you. Maintagging should be reserved for promo/pinned posts, art, and meta/theories that can apply outside your RP setting. Basically, if it's stuff about the source material not exclusively applicable to your character/blog.

Have a pinned post or about page! A brief intro to your character, some quick rules, and maybe a bit of information about you as the mod. Doesn't need to be a whole biography, but giving folks a general idea of what to expect is a good idea. Doubly so for OCs—if there's no information about your character, folks might be a bit more hesitant to write with you.

Don't reblog threads that you're not part of. It clutters up people's notifications and can cause people to miss replies. If you're enjoying reading a thread, sending an ask about it is usually greatly appreciated! In my experience most folks love to have reactions to what they're doing!

Understand that muse =/= mod. It's all playing pretend, just because someone is playing a character who's rude or doesn't get along with yours doesn't mean they don't like you.

More just a fun thing, but experiment with custom themes! It's fun to make your blog look interesting and can help you stand out! There's all kinds that you can find online, and if you know CSS you can even write your own!

In a similar vein, come up with a tag structure. It'll help you find your own posts easier later on, and anyone browsing will also thank you. Bare minimum would be tags for OOC posts, asks, art, and threads. Having a tag for each of your partners is also recommended so you can reminisce :) I usually just tag it with their URL to make it easy.

If your thread gets long, trim it! Deleting previous reblogs will make it a much easier scroll for you, your partner, and your followers. I know I'm bad at remembering to do it but it's a good habit to get into.

If you want an example of some of what I mentioned, you can check out my (currently inactive but might be resurrected bc God I think putting her in iron lung would be funny) old RP blog @heiliger-jager

That's all the major things I can think of, but if anyone has any questions feel free to ask! I've been around the block several times and am always willing to share some advice with the younger generation.

And from the bottom of my heart—welcome. It's good to see you here. We've been struggling for a long time, but I'm glad we've gotten a bit of kick back.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon waited until the other had fully transformed, knowing it would be a bit easier in the blood ocean compared to up in the air. He waited for a moment more before gently and carefully rising, bringing Jack up to the boat he had arrived in.

With a great effort, Simon put the other back onto the boat. With Jack now turned, the branch in the boat stretched towards him. It had started growing roots, if that much time had passed or if it was simply growing quickly, who could tell.

Simon stayed under the blood, his horns just peaking out while he had yet another mental breakdown. Had he really just done that? Did he really curse this poor man to yet another death sentence? Would this be any better than being irradiated?

"I-I'm sorry, I hurt someone again," he whimpered, his one good hand over his nose and mouth in shock and disbelief. "I'm a monster. Always have been, always will."

[septic-dreams]

When he was put back in the boat Jack was quick to back away as far as he could, curled up against the side of it and trembling as he recovered from the transformation. Harsh breaths gradually evened out and eventually he stopped shaking. The former human was left feeling exhausted and angry, unable to fully comprehend what had just happened.

With the shock finally gone an animalistic growl escaped him, his shark-like teeth bared. He moved back over to side Simon was and grabbed one of the horns that were peaking above the blood, pulling Simon up to snarl in his face. “What the fuck did you do to me?!” Angry red sparks flashed in his eyes, matching the lightning that danced in the clouds above them.

He couldn’t believe he’d been so stupid, he’d let his guard down and look what happened. Hypnotized and fed blood that turned him into a freak. Was that what his goal had been? Lure him into a false sense of security so that he could make him like him? Was he gonna try and infect the others too?

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon roared in pain, his hand reaching up to claw at the others hand. The horns were warm to the touch, warmer than the blood around them but just cool enough to touch and hold onto. They seemed to vibrate with unexplainable energy, a small tone resonating from them, though if either men heard who knows.

The Half God glared at the man above him, both eyes a deep blood red. Then his face twisted in pain, his right eye changing back to brown and both eyes softening. Just as the light was starting to creep out, Simon closed both eyes and pulled his hand down to cover them properly.

"I don't know," he shouted, fear and anger mixing in his voice, his fins rising and falling due to his internal struggle. "It lied to me. It said that doing that would stop your pain, that you wouldn't die if I did it. It didnt say you'd be in pain!"

Simon growled to himself before whimpering, then roaring. His behavior changed each time, tense and ready to pounce, to shaken and fearful, then stiff as his hand clawed at his face.

"Ungrateful humans," he growled, black ichor rolling down his face before he panted and thrashed in the others hand. "Lost to the blood, corrupt by Her hunger. Half Gods cursed to revive a dead world."

[septic-dreams]

Jack’s grip tightened for a moment before letting go, shaking his head to try and stop the ringing in his ears that the vibrations of the horn had caused. His senses and emotions all felt so much stronger than they used to, it was overwhelming. The new instincts weren’t helping either. He wanted to lash out, to bite and claw at the thing that had hurt him. The more rational side of him took note that the other seemed just as confused and upset as he was.

Some of the rage deflated when Simon said doing what he’d done was supposed to keep him from dying. Was he really just trying to save him then? But who was the it he kept talking about? There was no one else around to be talking to him.

While the other seemed to be fighting with himself Jack started feeling strange again. It didn’t hurt this time per se but it wasn’t entirely comfortable either, groaning under his breath as his body tensed up. The fishy features he’d gained were retreating, scales fading away, claws and fangs going dull. His ears looked mostly human again, just slightly pointier than they used to be. The fins on his arm and back sunk back into his skin. His tail shrank, not going away entirely but small enough that he could hide it under his clothes. His legs and feet went mostly back to normal though the toes were still somewhat webbed. The gills on his sides and his third eye remained where they were, not changing at all. All in all he could pass for human again if he just covered up a little.

His focus snapped back to Simon when the other started speaking again, his eyes going wide and his body backing away a little. That wasn’t Simon talking, was it? There was a power to his voice that wasn’t there before, the feel of something ancient and otherworldly. It made him feel like a mouse standing before a lion, small and insignificant. His instincts clashed, one part of him wanting to submit and beg for forgiveness while the other part was angry again.

“If you wanted gratitude then you should have explained shit. But no, you messed with my head to make me say yes to something I didn’t understand, that I still don’t understand. Stop being so cryptic! Corrupted by who? What gods? What does any of that mean?” None of this made any sense.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon waited until the other had fully transformed, knowing it would be a bit easier in the blood ocean compared to up in the air. He waited for a moment more before gently and carefully rising, bringing Jack up to the boat he had arrived in.

With a great effort, Simon put the other back onto the boat. With Jack now turned, the branch in the boat stretched towards him. It had started growing roots, if that much time had passed or if it was simply growing quickly, who could tell.

Simon stayed under the blood, his horns just peaking out while he had yet another mental breakdown. Had he really just done that? Did he really curse this poor man to yet another death sentence? Would this be any better than being irradiated?

"I-I'm sorry, I hurt someone again," he whimpered, his one good hand over his nose and mouth in shock and disbelief. "I'm a monster. Always have been, always will."

[septic-dreams]

When he was put back in the boat Jack was quick to back away as far as he could, curled up against the side of it and trembling as he recovered from the transformation. Harsh breaths gradually evened out and eventually he stopped shaking. The former human was left feeling exhausted and angry, unable to fully comprehend what had just happened.

With the shock finally gone an animalistic growl escaped him, his shark-like teeth bared. He moved back over to side Simon was and grabbed one of the horns that were peaking above the blood, pulling Simon up to snarl in his face. “What the fuck did you do to me?!” Angry red sparks flashed in his eyes, matching the lightning that danced in the clouds above them.

He couldn’t believe he’d been so stupid, he’d let his guard down and look what happened. Hypnotized and fed blood that turned him into a freak. Was that what his goal had been? Lure him into a false sense of security so that he could make him like him? Was he gonna try and infect the others too?

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon smiled as he fed the other, eventually removing his hand and grabbed the boats edge. He pulled himself up onto the boat then wrapped his arm around the other, then pulled him under.

In just a second, the other was in the blood ocean and The Lights connection was gone. Though the sounds of birds and cool feeling remain. To normal humans the blood would have felt near boiling, now it would feel more like a warm bath. The once thick liquid felt more like neutral air, not hot like above the ocean or in the COI equipment, and not like fresh air. It was simply air.

It should have been impossible to see anything besides thick red blood, now it was more like an mildly translucent syrup. A dark liquid where you could just make out the shapes of things but no color, besides red.

[septic-dreams]

The fog over his mind vanished in almost an instant as he was dragged down into the ocean of blood. Without the Light influencing him he fell into a panic, struggling against Simon’s grip to try and get away, to surface before he drowned. He didn’t register that the blood didn’t feel how it should, or that he could somehow see through it. He’d been tricked, he was gonna die!

Jack’s mouth opened in a soundless cry as the burning sensation he’d noticed from drinking Simon’s blood flooded into his whole body. It was like his insides were on fire! His back arched, fingers clawing frantically at anything they could get ahold of. His nails grew into sharp talons while vicious fangs tore through his gums.

The man’s skull felt like it was being split open as a seam formed on his forehead, slowly peeling open to reveal a third eye had formed. Unlike his others this one was a practically bio-luminescent green with bright red leaching from the slitted pupil. It was like it was designed specifically for being able to see in this new environment. The new eye looked around frantically, Jack’s brain trying to make sense of the surge of information that came with having a new means of seeing.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon reached a hand up to gently close the others new eye, knowing it would be too much for him right now. He didnt care about his skin being torn and clawed at by the now turning man. He had to stay with him to ground him, to realize it would be ok.

"I'm here," he repeated, over and over again. His fins by his elbows moved up and down, somehow creating a pocket of air. The fins moved the air towards the others head, giving him air while the rest of him stayed in the blood ocean.

"Rest," he commanded, hoping it would work but knowing it wouldn't. "Breathe slow, it'll be over in a moment."

[septic-dreams]

Jack sucked in a sharp breath when the air bubble formed around his head, fighting the urge to hyperventilate. What was happening to him? He’d never been in so much pain before. It was like his body was made of molten glass, unbearably hot and being stretched into an unfamiliar shape.

Simon’s words brought little comfort, drowned out by his agony. His skin itched as scales grew over the various sores and burns that had been caused by his radiation exposure, forming an intricate patchwork of green and red patterns separated by unmarred flesh. The patterns resembled eyes, a biomimicry to scare off larger predators.

Spiny fins formed on his forearms, followed by a loud tearing sound as a larger one that matched them grew from his back and ripped through his clothes. While the ones on his arms were rigid the one on his back wasn’t, the large sail-like appendage was able to fold and unfold like a paper fan, the trembling of the spines creating a rippling motion. His ears stretched out to form fins as well, twitching in response to all the little sounds they picked up.

His boots were kicked off in response to a growing discomfort in his feet, revealing that they were growing larger. The heel was lengthening to a digitigrade position while the toes fanned out to form webbed flippers almost like those a diver would wear.

There was a searing sensation along his ribs as the skin split open to create gills, decorated by a red membrane that grew out from them. They fluttered in time with his quick breaths, bubbles flowing into the blood with each exhale as streaks of green wove their way through his hair.

One final change drew an inhuman screech from his lips, feeling like something had grabbed onto his spine and was trying to yank it out of him. A large tail that resembled a cross between a fish and a reptile tail sprouted from his tailbone. It swished in agitation like an angry feline’s tail would, kicking up a small current in the blood surrounding them.

He wasn’t a merman like Simon. Rather the form he took resembled a merrow, the fish folk from Irish folklore. Perhaps the Light had a sense of humor and thought it would be fitting for him to look like something his ancestors used to tell stories about.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon smiled as he fed the other, eventually removing his hand and grabbed the boats edge. He pulled himself up onto the boat then wrapped his arm around the other, then pulled him under.

In just a second, the other was in the blood ocean and The Lights connection was gone. Though the sounds of birds and cool feeling remain. To normal humans the blood would have felt near boiling, now it would feel more like a warm bath. The once thick liquid felt more like neutral air, not hot like above the ocean or in the COI equipment, and not like fresh air. It was simply air.

It should have been impossible to see anything besides thick red blood, now it was more like an mildly translucent syrup. A dark liquid where you could just make out the shapes of things but no color, besides red.

[septic-dreams]

The fog over his mind vanished in almost an instant as he was dragged down into the ocean of blood. Without the Light influencing him he fell into a panic, struggling against Simon’s grip to try and get away, to surface before he drowned. He didn’t register that the blood didn’t feel how it should, or that he could somehow see through it. He’d been tricked, he was gonna die!

Jack’s mouth opened in a soundless cry as the burning sensation he’d noticed from drinking Simon’s blood flooded into his whole body. It was like his insides were on fire! His back arched, fingers clawing frantically at anything they could get ahold of. His nails grew into sharp talons while vicious fangs tore through his gums.

The man’s skull felt like it was being split open as a seam formed on his forehead, slowly peeling open to reveal a third eye had formed. Unlike his others this one was a practically bio-luminescent green with bright red leaching from the slitted pupil. It was like it was designed specifically for being able to see in this new environment. The new eye looked around frantically, Jack’s brain trying to make sense of the surge of information that came with having a new means of seeing.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

For just a moment, there was the sound of birds chirping. The warm air around them turned calm and cool. Then it was gone.

Simon gave a small, half hearted laugh.

"Its fuzzy, it feels like so long ago," he mumbles. "Everything down there...however long I was gone...it feels like just a second ago, yet years ago."

Simon was quiet for a time, simply swimming before turning his head to the side and muttered to himself. "They need to see the light."

The creature growled as the spines on his back rose and fell in an unknown rhythm. "I think I'm going insane," he said in a normal volume but a broken voice. "Maybe its payback for Eden."

[septic-dreams]

Jack’s eyes widened, getting struck with a strong feeling of nostalgia when he heard the birdsong and felt the air change. For just a moment it was like he was home on Mars again, before his family moved and the Quiet Rapture turned everything to shit. It made his chest ache with longing. Fuck, what wrong with him? Where had that come from all of a sudden?

“Trauma does that, makes your perception of the past all wonky.” Though maybe being down there had affected the passage of time for him somehow. He recalled Ava saying that the convict had been surprised when he’d been told how long he’d been missing. They’d lost contact with the sub for days but he’d acted like he’d only been gone for hours.

He’d started to doze off when Simon started mumbling. “The light?” He sat up so that he could look at him better, feeling unnerved by the strange way the merman was acting. “What makes you say that? What happened on Eden?” Did he mean what happened when Eden attacked Filament Station or did something happen at Eden itself?

[the-convict-of-blood]

"Filament Station," his voice echos, somehow layering over itself as his eyes flashed between his normal eyes and the white.

Soldiers standing still in the reactor with a smile. One man running to stop them. An explosion.

Then they were back to the blood ocean, the damned souls left behind.

"I tried to stop them," he said in a small, broken voice. "I was the only one who survived...I wish I hadn't. The COI doesn't care who's innocent or not. They just want blood."

The creature was quiet before looking at the other's chest and what little of his legs he could see.

'You could save him. Make him more than what he was, give him freedom.'

[septic-dreams]

That lightheaded feeling from before came back stronger when Simon’s eyes started flashing. There was this… pull to get closer and Jack subconsciously leaned towards him, his gaze locked with Simon’s.

Each flash brought with it an image that consumed his vision, glimpses of Filament Station and what happened there, what Simon had seen. He was left reeling from it when it stopped, clutching at his head and blinking rapidly as he tried to make sense of things. How… what?

“You were a scapegoat…” he whispered, horrified by revelation. The COI had imprisoned an innocent man, and he’d helped them nearly kill him for a crime he hadn’t committed. He felt like he was gonna be sick.

Scratch that, he was definitely gonna puke. With his body weakened by the radiation he didn’t have the constitution to fight off the wave of nausea he felt, turning to lean over the other side of the boat so that at least the creature wouldn’t have to see as he gagged up a mix of bile and blood. The force of it left him trembling.

Compared to when Simon saw him last Jack was significantly thinner. He was wasting away in more ways than one, a combination of the radiation eating away at his body and him not being able to keep his food down anymore. In another day or two he’d be completely bedridden. It was a wonder that he’d managed this trip at all.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon moved to try to help the other man, unintentionally rocking the boat as he moved. He took the others weakened form in, spotting more and more sores and burns from the radiation.

'We can save him,' the voice whispered. It would be easy. Just a single sip, just a drop of black ichor and he would be saved.

"I want to help you Jack," he says in a gentle, concerned voice. "Will you let me? Can I save you?"

His eyes were mostly white now, the only color being his pupil which had taken a dull red color. He was no longer Simon, and what ever he was now, wanted to live and let others live.

[septic-dreams]

Jack panted as he tried to pull himself together. He was so tired, he didn’t want to be in pain anymore. He missed home, his real home, not the hopeless void he and the rest of humanity had been forced to live in since the Quiet Rapture.

The question of how he knew his name died on Jack’s tongue when his eyes met with the creature’s, once again feeling drawn in by that white gaze. The intensity of those eyes drowned out all thoughts but one. I don’t want to die.

As though in a trance all he could do to answer was nod, his brain feeling too foggy for him to be able to articulate any words. How Simon planned on saving him was another question. A cure for the amount of radiation poisoning he was suffering from didn’t exist. It wasn’t something humans were capable of surviving.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon stared at the other, his eyes changing one last time, one eye his normal human eye and the other pure white.

The sounds of birds was back, and the scenery had changed. Instead of the blood moon there was a lone tree. A weeping willow one second, an oak another, then a mangrove, then changing again. There was grass everywhere and a large blue night sky with thousands of stars. There was no darkness consumimg the world. Just peace.

Simon lifted his hand to his many jagged teeth. He bit down and dragged his hand up, tearing his flesh and drawing more black ichor. He held it up to the other, still staring into his eyes, both offering and commanding he drank it.

"Let me save you."

[septic-dreams]

The tremors running through him stopped as the world around them shifted. For a moment his pain was gone, replaced by a sense of tranquility that wrapped him in a gentle embrace. Was he already dead? Was this heaven? It felt like it ought to be.

Seeing Simon injure himself should have triggered a reaction but all Jack could do was stare as the dark liquid bubbled and flowed over the creature’s skin. It was pretty in a macabre sort of way. He was completely hypnotized, ready to do whatever was wanted off him.

It was like a switch was flipped when the other spoke and Jack felt compelled to follow the silent order. Cracked lips parted to latch on to the offered hand, otherworldly blood flowing into his mouth as he drank it like a man dying of thirst. The ichor burned everywhere it touched but he couldn’t get himself to pull away.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

For just a moment, there was the sound of birds chirping. The warm air around them turned calm and cool. Then it was gone.

Simon gave a small, half hearted laugh.

"Its fuzzy, it feels like so long ago," he mumbles. "Everything down there...however long I was gone...it feels like just a second ago, yet years ago."

Simon was quiet for a time, simply swimming before turning his head to the side and muttered to himself. "They need to see the light."

The creature growled as the spines on his back rose and fell in an unknown rhythm. "I think I'm going insane," he said in a normal volume but a broken voice. "Maybe its payback for Eden."

[septic-dreams]

Jack’s eyes widened, getting struck with a strong feeling of nostalgia when he heard the birdsong and felt the air change. For just a moment it was like he was home on Mars again, before his family moved and the Quiet Rapture turned everything to shit. It made his chest ache with longing. Fuck, what wrong with him? Where had that come from all of a sudden?

“Trauma does that, makes your perception of the past all wonky.” Though maybe being down there had affected the passage of time for him somehow. He recalled Ava saying that the convict had been surprised when he’d been told how long he’d been missing. They’d lost contact with the sub for days but he’d acted like he’d only been gone for hours.

He’d started to doze off when Simon started mumbling. “The light?” He sat up so that he could look at him better, feeling unnerved by the strange way the merman was acting. “What makes you say that? What happened on Eden?” Did he mean what happened when Eden attacked Filament Station or did something happen at Eden itself?

[the-convict-of-blood]

"Filament Station," his voice echos, somehow layering over itself as his eyes flashed between his normal eyes and the white.

Soldiers standing still in the reactor with a smile. One man running to stop them. An explosion.

Then they were back to the blood ocean, the damned souls left behind.

"I tried to stop them," he said in a small, broken voice. "I was the only one who survived...I wish I hadn't. The COI doesn't care who's innocent or not. They just want blood."

The creature was quiet before looking at the other's chest and what little of his legs he could see.

'You could save him. Make him more than what he was, give him freedom.'

[septic-dreams]

That lightheaded feeling from before came back stronger when Simon’s eyes started flashing. There was this… pull to get closer and Jack subconsciously leaned towards him, his gaze locked with Simon’s.

Each flash brought with it an image that consumed his vision, glimpses of Filament Station and what happened there, what Simon had seen. He was left reeling from it when it stopped, clutching at his head and blinking rapidly as he tried to make sense of things. How… what?

“You were a scapegoat…” he whispered, horrified by revelation. The COI had imprisoned an innocent man, and he’d helped them nearly kill him for a crime he hadn’t committed. He felt like he was gonna be sick.

Scratch that, he was definitely gonna puke. With his body weakened by the radiation he didn’t have the constitution to fight off the wave of nausea he felt, turning to lean over the other side of the boat so that at least the creature wouldn’t have to see as he gagged up a mix of bile and blood. The force of it left him trembling.

Compared to when Simon saw him last Jack was significantly thinner. He was wasting away in more ways than one, a combination of the radiation eating away at his body and him not being able to keep his food down anymore. In another day or two he’d be completely bedridden. It was a wonder that he’d managed this trip at all.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon moved to try to help the other man, unintentionally rocking the boat as he moved. He took the others weakened form in, spotting more and more sores and burns from the radiation.

'We can save him,' the voice whispered. It would be easy. Just a single sip, just a drop of black ichor and he would be saved.

"I want to help you Jack," he says in a gentle, concerned voice. "Will you let me? Can I save you?"

His eyes were mostly white now, the only color being his pupil which had taken a dull red color. He was no longer Simon, and what ever he was now, wanted to live and let others live.

[septic-dreams]

Jack panted as he tried to pull himself together. He was so tired, he didn’t want to be in pain anymore. He missed home, his real home, not the hopeless void he and the rest of humanity had been forced to live in since the Quiet Rapture.

The question of how he knew his name died on Jack’s tongue when his eyes met with the creature’s, once again feeling drawn in by that white gaze. The intensity of those eyes drowned out all thoughts but one. I don’t want to die.

As though in a trance all he could do to answer was nod, his brain feeling too foggy for him to be able to articulate any words. How Simon planned on saving him was another question. A cure for the amount of radiation poisoning he was suffering from didn’t exist. It wasn’t something humans were capable of surviving.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

For just a moment, there was the sound of birds chirping. The warm air around them turned calm and cool. Then it was gone.

Simon gave a small, half hearted laugh.

"Its fuzzy, it feels like so long ago," he mumbles. "Everything down there...however long I was gone...it feels like just a second ago, yet years ago."

Simon was quiet for a time, simply swimming before turning his head to the side and muttered to himself. "They need to see the light."

The creature growled as the spines on his back rose and fell in an unknown rhythm. "I think I'm going insane," he said in a normal volume but a broken voice. "Maybe its payback for Eden."

[septic-dreams]

Jack’s eyes widened, getting struck with a strong feeling of nostalgia when he heard the birdsong and felt the air change. For just a moment it was like he was home on Mars again, before his family moved and the Quiet Rapture turned everything to shit. It made his chest ache with longing. Fuck, what wrong with him? Where had that come from all of a sudden?

“Trauma does that, makes your perception of the past all wonky.” Though maybe being down there had affected the passage of time for him somehow. He recalled Ava saying that the convict had been surprised when he’d been told how long he’d been missing. They’d lost contact with the sub for days but he’d acted like he’d only been gone for hours.

He’d started to doze off when Simon started mumbling. “The light?” He sat up so that he could look at him better, feeling unnerved by the strange way the merman was acting. “What makes you say that? What happened on Eden?” Did he mean what happened when Eden attacked Filament Station or did something happen at Eden itself?

[the-convict-of-blood]

"Filament Station," his voice echos, somehow layering over itself as his eyes flashed between his normal eyes and the white.

Soldiers standing still in the reactor with a smile. One man running to stop them. An explosion.

Then they were back to the blood ocean, the damned souls left behind.

"I tried to stop them," he said in a small, broken voice. "I was the only one who survived...I wish I hadn't. The COI doesn't care who's innocent or not. They just want blood."

The creature was quiet before looking at the other's chest and what little of his legs he could see.

'You could save him. Make him more than what he was, give him freedom.'

[septic-dreams]

That lightheaded feeling from before came back stronger when Simon’s eyes started flashing. There was this… pull to get closer and Jack subconsciously leaned towards him, his gaze locked with Simon’s.

Each flash brought with it an image that consumed his vision, glimpses of Filament Station and what happened there, what Simon had seen. He was left reeling from it when it stopped, clutching at his head and blinking rapidly as he tried to make sense of things. How… what?

“You were a scapegoat…” he whispered, horrified by revelation. The COI had imprisoned an innocent man, and he’d helped them nearly kill him for a crime he hadn’t committed. He felt like he was gonna be sick.

Scratch that, he was definitely gonna puke. With his body weakened by the radiation he didn’t have the constitution to fight off the wave of nausea he felt, turning to lean over the other side of the boat so that at least the creature wouldn’t have to see as he gagged up a mix of bile and blood. The force of it left him trembling.

Compared to when Simon saw him last Jack was significantly thinner. He was wasting away in more ways than one, a combination of the radiation eating away at his body and him not being able to keep his food down anymore. In another day or two he’d be completely bedridden. It was a wonder that he’d managed this trip at all.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

For just a moment, there was the sound of birds chirping. The warm air around them turned calm and cool. Then it was gone.

Simon gave a small, half hearted laugh.

"Its fuzzy, it feels like so long ago," he mumbles. "Everything down there...however long I was gone...it feels like just a second ago, yet years ago."

Simon was quiet for a time, simply swimming before turning his head to the side and muttered to himself. "They need to see the light."

The creature growled as the spines on his back rose and fell in an unknown rhythm. "I think I'm going insane," he said in a normal volume but a broken voice. "Maybe its payback for Eden."

[septic-dreams]

Jack’s eyes widened, getting struck with a strong feeling of nostalgia when he heard the birdsong and felt the air change. For just a moment it was like he was home on Mars again, before his family moved and the Quiet Rapture turned everything to shit. It made his chest ache with longing. Fuck, what wrong with him? Where had that come from all of a sudden?

“Trauma does that, makes your perception of the past all wonky.” Though maybe being down there had affected the passage of time for him somehow. He recalled Ava saying that the convict had been surprised when he’d been told how long he’d been missing. They’d lost contact with the sub for days but he’d acted like he’d only been gone for hours.

He’d started to doze off when Simon started mumbling. “The light?” He sat up so that he could look at him better, feeling unnerved by the strange way the merman was acting. “What makes you say that? What happened on Eden?” Did he mean what happened when Eden attacked Filament Station or did something happen at Eden itself?

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon grumbled to himself as he looked around. He had no idea where he was or where this man had come from.

"Ok," he said softly to himself before moving to the back of the boat...dingy...thing. He braced his good arm against it then started swimming. "I assume just straight for a while?"

As the mer-man swam the tip of his tail rose above the 'water' line. It was like a sharks, pointed tips and dark, bones seemed to cover the entirety of it while the ends were torn and showed the tendons that kept it together.

His horns rose just above his head and the edge of the dingy. One branch seemed broken, the center a black weeping wound that seemed fresh. Though, it didnt seem to bother the mer-man, his main focus was getting this boat back to where it came from; at a slightly faster pace than the little engine that had gotten this far.

[septic-dreams]

Jack nodded, “Yeah, pretty much. Good thing about being on the surface, you can pretty much bypass all the weird tunnels that are down there.” At this point it wouldn’t surprise him if the tunnels were actually some sort of cardiovascular network. With the way everything would shift around it was like the ocean was alive somehow. Hell, maybe it was. Would certainly explain some things.

The man got himself settled in more comfortably, might as well enjoy the break and try to rest a little. With their destination a ways away he took the time to get a better look at the merman, deep blue eyes carefully scanning over every detail. “Doesn’t any of that hurt? You’re all torn up.” Though he imagined that he wasn’t really one to talk since half his face was red and blistered from burns. At least his goggles had protected his eyes.

[the-convict-of-blood]

"Yeah, it's not fun down there," Simon says with a low growl, though in his new voice it was much more animal-like. He winced and put his webbed hand to his injured eye, a burning sensation deep in his skin and skull.

"The blood down there," he started, pausing for a moment before lowering his hand to keep the boat steady. "If it was just the blood or...the other things, who knows. But it fucked up my eye. Somehow cut into my forehead. Maybe the black box will keep the others from going back."

Simon looked up at the other, a flash of pure white crossed over his scarred eye before disappearing. "I...I'm sorry, by the way. I-I didn't know. They never told me what that camera was. To be fair though, I'm pretty sure it irradiated me too."

[septic-dreams]

Yeesh, that sounded unpleasant. He wasn’t sure if that information would stop all research into the blood ocean but he imagined it would at least make the people in charge think twice before sending anyone down there again. It would be safer and less resource exhaustive to run experiments with samples of blood taken from the surface.

Jack blinked when the flash of white went through Simon’s eye, feeling strangely lightheaded for a moment. He gave a sad smile when he registered what the other was saying. “So you remember me huh? I don’t blame you for that, if anything I’m pissed at David. He was the one in charge of making sure that thing was wired correctly so nothing like that would happen.”

In a way it felt like karmic justice, he’d contributed to the deaths of so many people by welding them into those subs. Seemed only fitting that he’d die because of the actions of one of those people. Knowing this guy survived at least meant there was one less death on his conscience.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon grumbled to himself as he looked around. He had no idea where he was or where this man had come from.

"Ok," he said softly to himself before moving to the back of the boat...dingy...thing. He braced his good arm against it then started swimming. "I assume just straight for a while?"

As the mer-man swam the tip of his tail rose above the 'water' line. It was like a sharks, pointed tips and dark, bones seemed to cover the entirety of it while the ends were torn and showed the tendons that kept it together.

His horns rose just above his head and the edge of the dingy. One branch seemed broken, the center a black weeping wound that seemed fresh. Though, it didnt seem to bother the mer-man, his main focus was getting this boat back to where it came from; at a slightly faster pace than the little engine that had gotten this far.

[septic-dreams]

Jack nodded, “Yeah, pretty much. Good thing about being on the surface, you can pretty much bypass all the weird tunnels that are down there.” At this point it wouldn’t surprise him if the tunnels were actually some sort of cardiovascular network. With the way everything would shift around it was like the ocean was alive somehow. Hell, maybe it was. Would certainly explain some things.

The man got himself settled in more comfortably, might as well enjoy the break and try to rest a little. With their destination a ways away he took the time to get a better look at the merman, deep blue eyes carefully scanning over every detail. “Doesn’t any of that hurt? You’re all torn up.” Though he imagined that he wasn’t really one to talk since half his face was red and blistered from burns. At least his goggles had protected his eyes.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

It was quiet where he was. He wasnt sure where exactly he was, or what he found himself nestled against. It felt different than blood, bone, or flesh, it felt like an old dream or memory. Just on the tip of his tongue yet miles away.

Everything felt that way.

The Convict curled in tighter around the bubble of air that protected the now popped life preserve and the delicate box of hope. He had to wait, Ava was coming for him, she told him she gave him her word. So he had to wait.

There was movement above.

A movement far too fast yet far too slow.

The Convict made a noise, how exactly he had no time to think about, before darting up to the sky, his horns breaking the surface first then his hair, then eyes.

One half of his vision was blurred and different shades of red, while the other was fuzzy and dark. He could just make out the storm above and the small raft like object making its way towards him.

"Ava," he whispered. At first afraid to hope that she really had come for him. But the closer the raft got the more excited he got. "Ava! I kept it safe Ava! The black box! Its safe below!"

[septic-dreams]

As the numbers on the navigation panel ticked closer to the coordinates he was searching for Jack began to see something looming in the distance. A large, spindly shadow with a vast array of branches sticking out from the surface as the blood ocean. Was that a tree? It was huge! How did it even get out here? He couldn’t help but stare in awe, the first tree seen outside of Eden since the Quiet Rapture. Maybe this god forsaken moon could help humanity after all.

He sat up straight when a sound caught his attention. A voice? Someone else was here? It sounded vaguely familiar. What they were saying became clearer as he drew closer and he could vaguely make out what looked like a person floating in the blood and waving at him. Who the hell was this guy and how did he know the captain?

“I… I’m sorry, Ava’s gone. Something got her sub. They sent me to try and get the black box in her stead. Do you really have it? Is it really safe?” If this person was telling the truth then maybe the captain’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain.

Jack’s hand left the throttle to cover his mouth when his breathing devolved into a coughing fit, flecks of blood spattering over his glove. Fuck. With any luck they could make this quick, he wanted to get back to the med bay as soon as possible. Maybe this guy could take over navigating the boat so he could rest for a bit.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Ava was...gone? Right, that was the world they lived in now. One second fine, the next gone. Just like the Quiet Rapture.

The Convict lowered his arm, slowing his movement and making him dip into the blood a bit. He was close to giving into the sorrow when he heard Ava's screams. Her pleading to get the black box back to the crew above. To learn something from the SM-8, and this recent trip.

Simon cried out as his hand flew to his burnt left eye, trying to stop the searing headache that thundered through his mind. He whimpered as he curled into himself a bit. Right...he still had a mission.

"I-I'll be back," he shouted before diving under the blood. Just like that it was as if he was never there.

For a while the blood ocean was still besides the dinghy bobbing side to side.

Then a hand broke through the surface. Suddenly there was a mass of material and machine in the middle of the raft. Then the Convict hauled the top half of his heavy, bone-y, and bloody body onto the raft. His mouth was mostly closed, his teeth moved as he took each breathe. He had become something else.

[septic-dreams]

Jack was filled with concern when the other man cried out unexpectedly. Was he alright? It didn’t look like anything had swum up and attacked him at least. Still, they should probably get him out of the blood as soon as possible, who knew what that shit could do if you sat in it long enough.

“Wait, don’t!” Too late, the man had already sank below the surface. Shit. Why the hell would he dive under? It would be impossible to see anything down there and being fully submerged in mystery blood could not be good for him.

He drove the boat closer and stared in apprehension while he waited for any sign that the man was going to come back. He nearly fell out of his seat with a startled sound when a metal box wrapped in what looked like the remains of a life jacket got tossed onto the dinghy. Jack’s mouth fell open as he watched the… man? Thing? Climb aboard. What the fuck?! Had he seriously been talking to a monster this whole time?

Fuuuck, he was gonna die wasn’t he? Lured in like those ancient siren myths and now he was gonna be eaten at worst or drowned at best.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon panted as he struggled to pull himself up, his one functional arm trying its best to pull his weight on board. However, without his left he could only get so far. His right claw slipped and he fell back into the blood, yet his quick reaction time stopped the boat from tossing or sinking.

The Convict panted as his head came back over the blood, exhausted still from his fight, and transformation.

"A little help here man," he asked, still believing himself to be human and just too tired.

"Don't you have a flair? Don't they give that to rescue missions, so they can be found with what they got? Fire it," he shouted, his mind jumping from topic to topic, trying to protect him yet still get the mission done.

[septic-dreams]

The man’s expression twisted in confusion. Why would a monster ask him for help? Surely he realized that he could see what he was now. Either he was being serious or he was a damn good actor, though Jack couldn’t think of a reason for what it would have to gain by continuing to play innocent.

His gaze hardened when the creature yelled at him, practically bristling at the tone. “I don’t have shit, they basically sent me on my own. This was just supposed to be a retrieval mission, we didn’t think anyone was alive out here. Get the box, get back, hopefully don’t get eaten in the process, that was my job for this. No one said anything about a fish-man that somehow knows our captain’s name.”

If it wanted him to lure in the others that wasn’t going to happen. There was no rescue protocol for if anything happened to him out here, he had to either get back on his own or they’d assume he died. The C.O.I wasn’t risking anyone else for this, they’d already gone against orders from the higher ups when Ava went out to try and get the convict and the black box herself. He was doing this as a courtesy to her, one last attempt to maybe make all the lost lives worth something.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon gave a low half-hearted chuckle as he looked at the man in front of him. Finding him familiar yet alien.

"They dont care if you die down here. I thought that was only reserved for convicts. Guess Eden and the COI are pretty similar, " he said with a broken smile. He was still for a while, shaking his head from side to side before suddenly diving down again. This time returning with a grey and brown branch, just large enough to be replanted, yet small enough to fit in the raft.

"The Last Tree Lives," Simon said, more to himself in an attempt to shut out the voices screaming in his mind. "I didn't want anyone to get hurt. Not on the station and not in a rescue. Is your motor still functional? I doubt the COI would give you perfectly working equipment."

[septic-dreams]

“Not much point in wasting resources on a man who’s already dying. If I hadn’t volunteered no one else would have tried to come out here, they didn’t think it was worth it when so much has already been lost. I was of the opinion that I’d rather go down in a blaze of glory than let Ava’s sacrifice go to waste. Might as well do something useful with the time I have left,” Jack responded with a shrug.

The comment about the COI and Eden being similar had him tilting his head. Just who in the hell was this guy? He knew an awful lot for a creature that had seemingly come from the blood ocean. There was something odd about him, Jack was once again struck by how familiar he felt.

When the other returned with a cutting from the tree it finally clicked. ‘The Last Tree Lives’ was a phrase used by people from Eden. The convict from the SM-13! That’s why he recognized his voice. What the fuck happened to him? Was this what prolonged exposure to the blood did?

“Uh, yeah, it functions. It’s a piece of crap that won’t go very fast but it works. Took me a couple hours to get out this far. It might stall if the boat gets loaded with too much weight though.” He didn’t have the energy to row himself back if that happened. He already couldn’t stand without help, his arms were liable to give out on him too if he pushed them too hard.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

It was quiet where he was. He wasnt sure where exactly he was, or what he found himself nestled against. It felt different than blood, bone, or flesh, it felt like an old dream or memory. Just on the tip of his tongue yet miles away.

Everything felt that way.

The Convict curled in tighter around the bubble of air that protected the now popped life preserve and the delicate box of hope. He had to wait, Ava was coming for him, she told him she gave him her word. So he had to wait.

There was movement above.

A movement far too fast yet far too slow.

The Convict made a noise, how exactly he had no time to think about, before darting up to the sky, his horns breaking the surface first then his hair, then eyes.

One half of his vision was blurred and different shades of red, while the other was fuzzy and dark. He could just make out the storm above and the small raft like object making its way towards him.

"Ava," he whispered. At first afraid to hope that she really had come for him. But the closer the raft got the more excited he got. "Ava! I kept it safe Ava! The black box! Its safe below!"

[septic-dreams]

As the numbers on the navigation panel ticked closer to the coordinates he was searching for Jack began to see something looming in the distance. A large, spindly shadow with a vast array of branches sticking out from the surface as the blood ocean. Was that a tree? It was huge! How did it even get out here? He couldn’t help but stare in awe, the first tree seen outside of Eden since the Quiet Rapture. Maybe this god forsaken moon could help humanity after all.

He sat up straight when a sound caught his attention. A voice? Someone else was here? It sounded vaguely familiar. What they were saying became clearer as he drew closer and he could vaguely make out what looked like a person floating in the blood and waving at him. Who the hell was this guy and how did he know the captain?

“I… I’m sorry, Ava’s gone. Something got her sub. They sent me to try and get the black box in her stead. Do you really have it? Is it really safe?” If this person was telling the truth then maybe the captain’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain.

Jack’s hand left the throttle to cover his mouth when his breathing devolved into a coughing fit, flecks of blood spattering over his glove. Fuck. With any luck they could make this quick, he wanted to get back to the med bay as soon as possible. Maybe this guy could take over navigating the boat so he could rest for a bit.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Ava was...gone? Right, that was the world they lived in now. One second fine, the next gone. Just like the Quiet Rapture.

The Convict lowered his arm, slowing his movement and making him dip into the blood a bit. He was close to giving into the sorrow when he heard Ava's screams. Her pleading to get the black box back to the crew above. To learn something from the SM-8, and this recent trip.

Simon cried out as his hand flew to his burnt left eye, trying to stop the searing headache that thundered through his mind. He whimpered as he curled into himself a bit. Right...he still had a mission.

"I-I'll be back," he shouted before diving under the blood. Just like that it was as if he was never there.

For a while the blood ocean was still besides the dinghy bobbing side to side.

Then a hand broke through the surface. Suddenly there was a mass of material and machine in the middle of the raft. Then the Convict hauled the top half of his heavy, bone-y, and bloody body onto the raft. His mouth was mostly closed, his teeth moved as he took each breathe. He had become something else.

[septic-dreams]

Jack was filled with concern when the other man cried out unexpectedly. Was he alright? It didn’t look like anything had swum up and attacked him at least. Still, they should probably get him out of the blood as soon as possible, who knew what that shit could do if you sat in it long enough.

“Wait, don’t!” Too late, the man had already sank below the surface. Shit. Why the hell would he dive under? It would be impossible to see anything down there and being fully submerged in mystery blood could not be good for him.

He drove the boat closer and stared in apprehension while he waited for any sign that the man was going to come back. He nearly fell out of his seat with a startled sound when a metal box wrapped in what looked like the remains of a life jacket got tossed onto the dinghy. Jack’s mouth fell open as he watched the… man? Thing? Climb aboard. What the fuck?! Had he seriously been talking to a monster this whole time?

Fuuuck, he was gonna die wasn’t he? Lured in like those ancient siren myths and now he was gonna be eaten at worst or drowned at best.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Simon panted as he struggled to pull himself up, his one functional arm trying its best to pull his weight on board. However, without his left he could only get so far. His right claw slipped and he fell back into the blood, yet his quick reaction time stopped the boat from tossing or sinking.

The Convict panted as his head came back over the blood, exhausted still from his fight, and transformation.

"A little help here man," he asked, still believing himself to be human and just too tired.

"Don't you have a flair? Don't they give that to rescue missions, so they can be found with what they got? Fire it," he shouted, his mind jumping from topic to topic, trying to protect him yet still get the mission done.

[septic-dreams]

The man’s expression twisted in confusion. Why would a monster ask him for help? Surely he realized that he could see what he was now. Either he was being serious or he was a damn good actor, though Jack couldn’t think of a reason for what it would have to gain by continuing to play innocent.

His gaze hardened when the creature yelled at him, practically bristling at the tone. “I don’t have shit, they basically sent me on my own. This was just supposed to be a retrieval mission, we didn’t think anyone was alive out here. Get the box, get back, hopefully don’t get eaten in the process, that was my job for this. No one said anything about a fish-man that somehow knows our captain’s name.”

If it wanted him to lure in the others that wasn’t going to happen. There was no rescue protocol for if anything happened to him out here, he had to either get back on his own or they’d assume he died. The C.O.I wasn’t risking anyone else for this, they’d already gone against orders from the higher ups when Ava went out to try and get the convict and the black box herself. He was doing this as a courtesy to her, one last attempt to maybe make all the lost lives worth something.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

It was quiet where he was. He wasnt sure where exactly he was, or what he found himself nestled against. It felt different than blood, bone, or flesh, it felt like an old dream or memory. Just on the tip of his tongue yet miles away.

Everything felt that way.

The Convict curled in tighter around the bubble of air that protected the now popped life preserve and the delicate box of hope. He had to wait, Ava was coming for him, she told him she gave him her word. So he had to wait.

There was movement above.

A movement far too fast yet far too slow.

The Convict made a noise, how exactly he had no time to think about, before darting up to the sky, his horns breaking the surface first then his hair, then eyes.

One half of his vision was blurred and different shades of red, while the other was fuzzy and dark. He could just make out the storm above and the small raft like object making its way towards him.

"Ava," he whispered. At first afraid to hope that she really had come for him. But the closer the raft got the more excited he got. "Ava! I kept it safe Ava! The black box! Its safe below!"

[septic-dreams]

As the numbers on the navigation panel ticked closer to the coordinates he was searching for Jack began to see something looming in the distance. A large, spindly shadow with a vast array of branches sticking out from the surface as the blood ocean. Was that a tree? It was huge! How did it even get out here? He couldn’t help but stare in awe, the first tree seen outside of Eden since the Quiet Rapture. Maybe this god forsaken moon could help humanity after all.

He sat up straight when a sound caught his attention. A voice? Someone else was here? It sounded vaguely familiar. What they were saying became clearer as he drew closer and he could vaguely make out what looked like a person floating in the blood and waving at him. Who the hell was this guy and how did he know the captain?

“I… I’m sorry, Ava’s gone. Something got her sub. They sent me to try and get the black box in her stead. Do you really have it? Is it really safe?” If this person was telling the truth then maybe the captain’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain.

Jack’s hand left the throttle to cover his mouth when his breathing devolved into a coughing fit, flecks of blood spattering over his glove. Fuck. With any luck they could make this quick, he wanted to get back to the med bay as soon as possible. Maybe this guy could take over navigating the boat so he could rest for a bit.

[the-convict-of-blood]

Ava was...gone? Right, that was the world they lived in now. One second fine, the next gone. Just like the Quiet Rapture.

The Convict lowered his arm, slowing his movement and making him dip into the blood a bit. He was close to giving into the sorrow when he heard Ava's screams. Her pleading to get the black box back to the crew above. To learn something from the SM-8, and this recent trip.

Simon cried out as his hand flew to his burnt left eye, trying to stop the searing headache that thundered through his mind. He whimpered as he curled into himself a bit. Right...he still had a mission.

"I-I'll be back," he shouted before diving under the blood. Just like that it was as if he was never there.

For a while the blood ocean was still besides the dinghy bobbing side to side.

Then a hand broke through the surface. Suddenly there was a mass of material and machine in the middle of the raft. Then the Convict hauled the top half of his heavy, bone-y, and bloody body onto the raft. His mouth was mostly closed, his teeth moved as he took each breathe. He had become something else.

[septic-dreams]

Jack was filled with concern when the other man cried out unexpectedly. Was he alright? It didn’t look like anything had swum up and attacked him at least. Still, they should probably get him out of the blood as soon as possible, who knew what that shit could do if you sat in it long enough.

“Wait, don’t!” Too late, the man had already sank below the surface. Shit. Why the hell would he dive under? It would be impossible to see anything down there and being fully submerged in mystery blood could not be good for him.

He drove the boat closer and stared in apprehension while he waited for any sign that the man was going to come back. He nearly fell out of his seat with a startled sound when a metal box wrapped in what looked like the remains of a life jacket got tossed onto the dinghy. Jack’s mouth fell open as he watched the… man? Thing? Climb aboard. What the fuck?! Had he seriously been talking to a monster this whole time?

Fuuuck, he was gonna die wasn’t he? Lured in like those ancient siren myths and now he was gonna be eaten at worst or drowned at best.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[the-convict-of-blood]

It was quiet where he was. He wasnt sure where exactly he was, or what he found himself nestled against. It felt different than blood, bone, or flesh, it felt like an old dream or memory. Just on the tip of his tongue yet miles away.

Everything felt that way.

The Convict curled in tighter around the bubble of air that protected the now popped life preserve and the delicate box of hope. He had to wait, Ava was coming for him, she told him she gave him her word. So he had to wait.

There was movement above.

A movement far too fast yet far too slow.

The Convict made a noise, how exactly he had no time to think about, before darting up to the sky, his horns breaking the surface first then his hair, then eyes.

One half of his vision was blurred and different shades of red, while the other was fuzzy and dark. He could just make out the storm above and the small raft like object making its way towards him.

"Ava," he whispered. At first afraid to hope that she really had come for him. But the closer the raft got the more excited he got. "Ava! I kept it safe Ava! The black box! Its safe below!"

[septic-dreams]

As the numbers on the navigation panel ticked closer to the coordinates he was searching for Jack began to see something looming in the distance. A large, spindly shadow with a vast array of branches sticking out from the surface as the blood ocean. Was that a tree? It was huge! How did it even get out here? He couldn’t help but stare in awe, the first tree seen outside of Eden since the Quiet Rapture. Maybe this god forsaken moon could help humanity after all.

He sat up straight when a sound caught his attention. A voice? Someone else was here? It sounded vaguely familiar. What they were saying became clearer as he drew closer and he could vaguely make out what looked like a person floating in the blood and waving at him. Who the hell was this guy and how did he know the captain?

“I… I’m sorry, Ava’s gone. Something got her sub. They sent me to try and get the black box in her stead. Do you really have it? Is it really safe?” If this person was telling the truth then maybe the captain’s sacrifice wasn’t in vain.

Jack’s hand left the throttle to cover his mouth when his breathing devolved into a coughing fit, flecks of blood spattering over his glove. Fuck. With any luck they could make this quick, he wanted to get back to the med bay as soon as possible. Maybe this guy could take over navigating the boat so he could rest for a bit.

[septic-dreams]

Fates Intertwined: closed rp with @the-convict-of-blood

Jack’s hands trembled as he steered the glorified dinghy. Fuck, why did he volunteer for this again? Oh yeah, cuz he was dying. With Captain Ava gone the crew monitoring AT-5 barely had any people left, they couldn’t afford to send anyone else to retrieve the black box from where surface scans had found it. Sure, so far the… things in the ocean stayed away from the surface but that wasn’t a risk anyone was keen on taking. Especially since the ocean had been acting different since what happened with the SM-13. Better to send the guy who was already fucked just in case the monsters were in a pissy mood. And hey, if he made it back alive they’d give him enough morphine to make his last days comfortable.

The man wiped the sweat from his brow as he double checked the coordinates to make sure he was going the right direction. Jeez, that last convict really hadn’t been kidding, it was hot out here. The blood ocean must produce its own heat somehow, similar to a living, breathing body. At least he was on a boat with open air instead of being stuck in a cramped tin can. Didn’t help much though, the air was humid and the perpetual electrical storm that surrounded the moon cast everything in an eerie light. He didn’t think he’d ever get the smell out of his nose. Okay, not too much farther. He should be able to see something once he was close, more recent scans had found something large forming at the surface where the black box was. It had been hard to make out in the photos but whatever it was had seemed almost organic.

[septic-dreams]

New character being added to the muse list, Welder Jack from Iron Lung the movie

Ref for how I picture him:

I love the idea this artist did of his hair being a cross between a mullet and a mohawk

Character tag: #fate welded shut

Info: The best welder in the C.O.I. or at least one of the best. Due to his expertise he was pulled from his usual work to help with making subs when the blood ocean on AT-5 was discovered. After the loss of all 8 research subs and the subsequent switch the COI made to using burner subs with prisoners of war inside he became disillusioned with the cause. It wasn’t right to use convicts as fodder, especially when they were being left in the dark about the truth. He couldn’t just quit though, the subs had a better chance of making it if they were welded by him, in the hands of a lesser craftsmen they would be more likely to succumb to the pressure. When the SM-13 was brought back up intact but with the convict inside dead from suicide his resolve broke. He couldn’t just watch people die anymore. He kept the note and bracelet that had been left behind by the convict a secret when he found them while doing maintenance, hopefully they’d be able to help the next poor soul that would be sealed inside. If he had to be the one to weld people in he could at least leave them a small mercy. Little did he know just how much the next expedition would change everything.