This was just... terrible. Awful. Utterly soul crushing. Lawrence stood in an apartment of the once lavish Olympus Heights, his left hand clutching a glass container of glowing, light blue liquid. A gene tonic he'd recently found. The television was left on and it cast an eerie white glow from its "no signal" screen to the rest of the room. There were two couches, one on each side of a long coffee table, and on them...? Five dead people; two adults on the left and three children on the right. It looked like a mother, father, and their daughters had taken their own lives by the look of those cups. Lawrence picked one up to peer inside, and found that it contained a strange, powdery residue, left behind after the remaining drops of liquid evaporated. Poison.
Sad blue eyes lifted to look at those little girls again, all slumped over, side by side. It was spine chilling that they looked more serene and beautiful than any of the living girls he saw around town. Was suicide the best choice for all the condemned in Rapture? He felt heart sick at the idea of everyone he knew taking their lives. And what about his cats...? Would he have to fool them? The man then wondered... had these girls been fooled, or did their parents tell them what was going to happen after they took their medicine?
Crippling sadness overtook Lawrence and he crumpled to the floor. He remained there, half sitting, staring into the TV screen across the way. The cup clanked to the ground and rolled away, while the tonic dropped and rested beside his knee. The light hurt his eyes, but the tears they produced were not because of that. He was hurting inside. Salt and Pepper, his two well trained warning cats, were near but unable to bring him solace. Cats were wonderful creatures, but the man was so lonely- he needed to have a human being near him from time to time. The gentle breeder cried and let his sorrow echo around the halls of Olympus Heights, despite his usual caution.
(( Trigger Warnings: Violence, Murder, Blood, Gore, Strangulation, Pleading, Let me know if I missed anything ))
'Lawrence? Lawrence, you ready to go?' (Alt: *knocks on your door* Lawrence? Are you in? It's Dee, Dee Estepp. )
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"Just a moment!" Behind his door the sounds of things being knocked over and crashing to the floor could be heard, mixed in with a man's muffled and distressed cries. It was anybody's guess what sort of chaos he had going on inside of there, but it sounded dangerous! "I- I'm coming!" The door violently flew open, and there stood Lawrence, in all his... not-glory, breathing heavily and adjusting his jacket. His apartment, then partially revealed, was lavish and brightly furnished with cushy chairs and intricately carved wooden tables. The windows were grand and clean, and there were multiples of everything he owned; it should have quickly been obvious that the apartment had originally housed an entire family. In contrast, there was Lawrence in front of it all, decked out in a brown suit that was a little too big for him, a top hat with a bright red flower and golden band, and a matching red tie.
He reached out his right hand to shake the musician's, his left swiftly pulling back the right's sleeve to expose more of his palm for the taking. "Hello there, Mr. Estepp, sorry for the wait! I must say, it is truly an honor to meet you!" A huge grin plastered itself across his face and his bright eyes sparkled because wow this guy wrote I Spent The Night and this was way better than sitting by the radio! "You have no idea how happy I am to see a friendly human being! Icouldhugyou."
A cat, gray and white and fluffy at the chest, slipped outside the door and behind Dee, so as to investigate him at a distance. A second cat, black with white paws and nose, rubbed against Lawrence's leg, and then moved into the hall to do the same to the stranger's- she seemed to think he was safe enough to greet.
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“Oh, please,” Dee replied with a smile, “You flatter me far too much. And if you /could/ just hug me, you really should,” he said, hugging Lawrence like an old friend. “It’s so nice to see a friendly face in such dark times. And to meet such a fan.” He stooped over to pet the kitty. “And who might this be?”
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The man was more than happy to wrap his arms around the other human being, because /a person was there to see him!/ And it wasn't even awkward, it was actually really nice! After their little squeeze he was grinning, and ecstatic to meet /the/ Two-Tone, alive! What were the chances? "She's Pepper." He introduced the girl cat happily, and then he pointed to the standoffish one, "And he's Salt. Don't mind him, he's a grump." Lawrence actually thought that he might explode, he swung his arms back and forth, unable to keep still. "Would you like to come inside before we go? I think I have some tea left. If you'd rather not then I'll just grab my bag and we can be off!"
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Dee, too, had forgotten what other people felt like… It felt like aeons of loneliness. The bees were decent company, but it wasn’t the same. Dee smiled broadly and declared, “Tea sounds quite lovely. Nice to meet you, Pepper,” he added, stooping over. He shot a brief glare at Salt, then grinned at Lawrence.
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It was a very similar case for Lawrence, his cats were some company, but sometimes he wished they could just talk back. He was ridiculously pleased to see the man interact with his feline friends, positively or negatively (harmlessly so), and that insured his wide smile simply would not fade! Upon having his invite accepted he stepped out from the doorway and stood beside it, so as to remove his top hat, place it against his chest, and make a dramatic bow. His left arm extended fully, and with it he gestured for Dee to step inside. "Come into my domain. I still have electricity!" Salt decided to be rude and trot inside ahead of Dee.
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Dee’s face lit up. “It’s good to know there’s a few gentlemen left out there, even in such a place as this.” Dee strolled past, following Salt. He clicked his tongue at Pepper, beckoning the cat behind him. He looked around the apartment. “This place is absolutely stunning!” he cried. “Do you live here all by yourself, aside from the cats?”
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A gentleman? What a wonderful compliment! Normally people found his intensity to be "quite unnecessary." Pepper bounded after her brand new comrade, and Lawrence straightened himself out to follow up the rear. Inside he was careful to shut the door and lock it up tight, they didn't need any loud, unwanted guests strolling in when they weren't looking, now did they? He made a cheery response while testing the heavy bolts, "Yes, I do live here alone!" He didn't originally, of course, but he wasn't about to bring Mr. Two-Tone down into a depression with a sob story! "The cats like it, lots of places to hide." The feline fanatic lead his visitor to a sitting area, where clean, cozy chairs had been situated around a polished table. Being holed up in his home there wasn't much else to do but clean. "Make yourself comfortable while I boil the kettle."
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“Thank you, very much,” Dee said, sitting bolt upright on the edge of the chair. His pianist posture remained from days long gone. “Pepper!” he called. “Come here, Pepper. Come here.” The cat drew near, and he scratched by Pepper’s ears. “Might I ask, what flavor is the tea? And do you have sugar?”
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"You are very welcome!" He wanted to make sure Dee understood that he was a-ok with him in his home, at any time. He noted the posture to himself as he turned to move to the other room, and how it gave an impression of discipline, and that sort of reminded him of his family. It was safe to say that Lawrence was in a good mood, since he quite literally pulled off a silly dance on the way to the kitchen, which involved arm and leg twists and some kind of strange shuffle. Adulthood? What was that again? Humiliation? Psshh! He called from the kitchen area, "I do have a little bit of sugar, but I'm afraid we don't have cream if you like sweet-creamy-goodness-flavor." With Dee seated it seemed as if cats began to come out of the woodwork itself- Pepper was still enjoying the attention, and Salt was still observing from afar, but then a tiny kitten, completely white and fluffy as hell, popped out from under Dee's chair- his name was Snow, or Snowball if one preferred! Along with him came a large, perhaps intimidating tortoiseshell cat, black and orange, from the depths of Lawrence's bedroom. He was called Bear for the noticeable reason of looking a little more beastly than a cat should- he was even missing an eye. His movements were slow, lumbering, and relaxed, so at least he didn't seem aggressive. The strange man left the kettle to heat up and peeked out to Dee because /it was Dee./ "Were you much of a tea-consumer before all the crazy?"
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Dee was startled upon seeing the cats, but he quickly went back to normal. “I was more of a coffee and whiskey guy before all of this. But I’m fine with tea, as dark as you can make it,” he said. He looked nervously at all the cats, then looked over to the kitchen. “How do you feed all these guys? Did you always have so many?” Lawrence was a bit strange, but his warmth and hospitality proved him quite harmless. It felt so good to have reason to talk again.
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As dark as he could make it, he could do that, and he could do it pretty dark too! He was happy to be asked about his cats because, after all, they were his entire world at that time. "It's not always easy, but they're good at scavenging too. I take Salt and Pepper out with me and they have very good noses. Sometimes I'll let the faster cats go out on their own, but that's what caused Marshmallow to come back sick..." He wandered a little closer and paused, noticing that kind of more nervous look on Dee's face in the presence of his friends. He tried to reassure him with a smile, "Most of them are very friendly, and the ones that aren't will leave you be." Though some of his cats had been known to become quite upset when Lawrence was attacked, but he left that part out. "I've always had quite a few cats for breeding, though I guess- thanks to there being a certain lack of homes for them now- there has been a 'backup' of kitties. Some of these guys were in homes and then rescued too- I couldn't let them go poof." And by that he meant he couldn't let them starve or get eaten.
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“That’s quite sweet of you, taking these cats in like that,” Dee praised. “It’s so rare to find somebody with a good heart, especially in a scenario like this.” He smiled, taking the tea. “Thank you.” He took a sip, and found it dark enough. He closed his eyes and sighed with delight. “Perfect. Absolutely perfect.” He petted Pepper’s head behind the ears. Within a matter of moments, his tea was done. “Well… Are you ready to leave?” he asked.
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He couldn't control the little blush that came up when he was complemented for his compassion (and the use of the word 'sweet')- he didn't get those very often and they made him feel really good! Once they both had their drinks to enjoy and were settled, he was surprised to find Dee drinking his so quickly. It wasn't a big deal, and he finished his own drink shortly after by chugging it at the end, scalding his throat and emitting a little cough. He made sure to cover his lips with a hand and stifle the sound as best as he could, and unable to speak he offered a thumbs-up and stood. He took up a backpack that had been resting near the door, and right away Salt and Pepper knew what they were doing. Pepper lightly hopped from Dee's lap and joined Salt at the door- such well trained cats, they were! Lawrence squinted out through the peep hole to check for intruders, and then he swung the door open for Dee. "Do you have a method of self defense..?" He asked him, for once his voice rather quiet.
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Dee had smiled when he noticed Lawrence blush, but the change in mood seemed to darken the mood. Business was at hand. “Yes,” Dee replied, also softly. “My bees are usually pretty useful in fending… Things off. And I have my pistol,” he added, patting his left pocket. “Let’s hope we don’t run into anything. And do you have anything besides cats to defend yourself?”
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Bees? Lawrence visibly shivered and offered a feeble smile, that bees plasmid gave him the heebie jeebies. The way that it looked and worked, it just- He shivered again and grinned wider, "Rhymes with your name," he jokingly made the juvenile remark and turned his eyes to Dee's left pocket. He was relieved that the man had a firearm, because Lawrence had yet to get one of his own (it never occurred to him to be nervous that a man he just met was more armed than he was, so trusting was Lawrence). He was pretty sure his father had a gun somewhere, but he had no idea where the man kept the thing- he had turned the house upside-down in his search for it and nothing showed up. Perhaps it had been taken when he was killed. "That makes one of us. Good!" To the question he gestured at his left forearm, an apologetic look on his face for his lack of usefulness. Though his limb made no indication of a plasmid at the time, he did have just one. "'Sanctuary,' as the bottle called it. It's meant for protection though..." He trailed off, feeling a little guilty that he didn't handle combat well. He preferred to throw up a shield and run for his sad little life.
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“Don’t worry,” Dee quickly reassured. “I don’t think we’ll run into too much trouble. Besides, one clip of ammo doesn’t really promise much for a fight.” He thought back to the last time he’d been out. “I’m more prone to fleeing myself. Besides, using my Bees gives me hives,” he added with a snicker. “If you’ll pardon the awful pun.” He stood up from the chair and set down his teacup. “Who goes first?”
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Lawrence nodded and smiled meekly- if they both were willing to run then maybe it wouldn't be so stressful (he had been worried about wanting to run, but being unable to if Dee refused). He snickered a little at the pun, actually finding it pretty funny despite the fact they were about to go out into Rapture's streets. "Who first?" He repeated, not entirely sure what he meant by that- maybe he really HAD been away from people for too long!
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“I’ll go,” Dee offered, turning for the door. He glanced back at Lawrence, and the cats, and flashed a brief smile. Then, his face grew serious. Who knows what they would face outside? He walked to the door, opened it, and stepped into the hall. There was some trash on the ground, and a dead body down the hall, but the corridor was like a tomb in its silence. “Where do you usually find food?” he asked. “I usually would go to Fort Frolic, but I think I’d die of nostalgia. Plus, I think that place is rife with splicers.”
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The breeder lingered just behind Dee at the door, his fingers interlocked and his hands held to his chest nervously, worry plastered all over his face. The door opened, and he warily crept after him, peeking left and right before joining him in the hall and securing the door behind them. He averted his eyes from the corpse, he didn't like to see those... The air felt thick outside his home, he hated to leave but this was something both he and Dee (and his cats) needed. He flashed an understanding expression at Dee's mention of Fort Frolic, they could avoid that place if he liked. "So far I had been exploring the abandoned rooms here... but there might not be much left now." He answered, carefully keeping his eyes on Dee to avoid the body. "I haven't been to Farmer's Market in a while... But that seems like a place splicers might like to hang out too." He mumbled, starting to feel discouraged and more concerned. "I think we'll have to be extremely careful no matter where we go..."
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“Well, if there’s a risk of splicers wherever we go, we may as well go where we’re guaranteed food,” Dee said. “If it’s okay with you, the Farmer’s Market sounds best.” He looked at concerned Lawrence, and offered a smile. “I know it’s dangerous… But we’ll be okay. We’re going to be okay,” he repeated emphatically, as much for his own sake as for Lawrence’s. He glanced down at the cats. “They’ll probably smell a splicer before we hear or see one.”
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"I hope there's still some food left.." He mumbled his concern, but nonetheless he agreed that they would go there anyway. Inviting Dee to go on a 'food hunting adventure' sounded like a better idea in his head, but at least he didn't have to go alone this time! He nodded and smiled to the artist's kind words of comfort, and then laughed softly at the mention of his cats smelling a splicer before they heard or saw one. "Actually..." He started, sounding just mildly mischievous as he began to move down the hall with his new friend, "Pepper's been trained to fluff up when she senses a splicer... and Salt will do the same, but for other humans. It's useful to have them scope places out. Smart, right?" He was so proud of himself and of his kitties!
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“It’s a good idea,” Dee happily agreed. He started down the hallway, trying to silence his footsteps. “How often do you go out for food?” he asked. Before the war broke out, he had hoarded food for parties; this was only the third time he needed food. He stepped over the corpse, and offered his hand to hold for Lawrence to step over. “Watch your step,” he said. He readied his left hand’s plasmid; no point being unprepared. It itched as the bees crawled around the skin, and tingled as the hives opened up.
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"I was good on food forrrr... a week, I think! But since then I've had to go out at least a couple times a week just to make sure everyone is fed." There had even been times where Lawrence gave up his only scraps to make sure his cats would be okay. "Sometimes the cats can take care of themselves, but I worry they're eating people! /People!/" Speaking of which, they soon came upon the body laying across the floor, and he faltered. He watched Dee step over so easily, and kept on watching him to avoid looking at the body. He was frowning now, but happy to take a firm hold of his friend's offered hand- how positively gentlemanly of him! He actually shut his eyes as he lifted his leg over the corpse, and doing so caused him to trip on some tattered clothing and stumble a little, so good thing he had Dee to help him catch his balance again! He opened his eyes again with an enthusiastic thank you, and then pouted at the sight of the hives forming from nowhere. Euugh... But he understood why it was necessary, and who knew, maybe he would get used to all the buzzing insects and bubbling skin...! "I bet no one messes with YOU." He joked. "Did the rest of your fans appreciate the bugs?"
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“Hopefully your cats aren’t eating the dead,” Dee said, looking at the corpse below their feet. “They might get sick. As for the bees, I used to use them as a parlor trick at parties,” Dee said. “I used to be able to get them to drink from people’s drinks. But now, I can just sic them on splicers or other such villains.” He looked self-consciously at the hand with hives, and tucked it into his pocket. “Sorry if it disturbs you,” he apologized. They continued down the corridor, which led to a darker area. “I think the closest, safest elevator is this way,” Dee said.
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He was right, they COULD get sick... Maybe that was how Marshmallow had gotten ill...? The thought worried him far too much, so he had to push it aside for later. He visibly gave his head a little shake in his attempt to banish the disturbing thought. His eyes soon settled on Dee once more, the blue orbs bright with curiosity- he was so baffled and astonished that the bees could obey to the point of violence on command. But he blinked as he noticed the self consciousness he caused the man, and thus he tugged at that elbow with both hands. "No, leave it out, shh I can adjust, Friend! I should really learn to keep my mouth hole shut- I would LIKE to adjust, and maybe with the magic of exposure I can..!" He felt guilt for how he reacted to it. At the mention of an elevator he bit his lip and glanced behind nervously. He would have really rathered take the stairs, for fear of the elevator not functioning properly, but he kept his worries to himself that time. He looked ahead to his cats, checking on the animals as darkness began to wrap more tightly around them. They went around some corners and came to the metal doors of the elevator, the numbers above it still lit (at the time showing that they were on floor 19). At that point his two felines stopped, Pepper's fur stood on end, and she emitted a little sound before the two of them darted off. "Oh.." He uttered nervously. "Where is it..?" His eyes darted all around, and he unconsciously stepped closer to Dee and his pet bees.
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“Go,” Dee whispered to the bees, opening his palm. “Let’s just run for it,” Dee said to Lawrence. He pressed the button to call the elevator and pulled out his pistol. “There’s nothing we can do but scat.” Suddenly, they heard one woman’s screams from down a nearby hallway, and heard them drawing closer. Dee frantically pressed the call button. “Come on, come on,” he whispered. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a needle with glowing blue liquid, and jabbed it into his forearm. In a moment, the bees were even louder, and new ones grew. New ones were ready, unless the old ones were not enough. He cocked his pistol.
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Dee immediately took up arms, ready to defend them both so that they could escape. He winced a little at the buzzing, but he would be okay- that is, unless of course, he were to be gutted by a splicer that night. "Believe me, I would love nothing more than to scat, Sir!" He replied, his voice corrupted by obvious tones of fear. Lawrence began to flex his left hand, causing tendons to protrude under skin and a soft blue glow to form. It was frustrating how harmless he felt at times, but violence was never really his forte. He jolted and yelped in terror at the sound of a woman's cries, and actually pressed his back against the metallic doors in desperation. He barely noticed the other man stabbing himself with a needle, though he did tune in to the sound of angrier bees. He began to look down each hall frantically, his heart pounding like it wanted to escape from his chest. Then, finally, there was a ding. The doors flew open and he fell backwards, flat on his back on the floor of the elevator. Never did he expect that, nor did he expect the tall, masked man to be waiting for them inside either. The disfigured creature cackled a sharp sound and, seemingly without thought, lunged over the breeder and at the more armed of the two, the butt of his gun at the ready to knock him up side the head. "Dee!" Lawrence cried, feeling weak, like in a dream, and scrambling to get up.
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Dee wheeled around upon hearing his name, and the male splicer caught him upside the head with the butt of the gun. It crashed into his cheek, and he stumbled back in shock. The splicer grinned wolfishly, and he spun the pistol, ready to shoot. Dee didn’t have time to ready his own gun once more, so he dove at the splicer’s waist, tackling him to the ground. The splicer and Dee hit the ground right by Lawrence’s legs. Dee reached for the pistol, clawing at the splicer’s hand. He grabbed his wrist, but the splicer landed a punch with the other hand. Dee grabbed the hand, and released the bees while holding the gun-wielding hand. The splicer dropped the gun, and howled. Meanwhile, the female splicer ran outside the elevator from the side, and tripped over Dee’s legs, bees still stinging her wildly. “Lawrence!” Dee cried. “The gun! Get his gun!” He pinned his forearm against the splicer’s neck; Dee’s hands gripped the splicer’s wrists.
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His friend was struck, causing Lawrence to gasp in horror. For a split second he thought Dee would get a bullet to the face, and that would be the end of him, and it would be the breeder's fault for even suggesting this adventure, and he would be wracked with guilt for the rest of his life, and and and... He blanked out in panic, his eyes wide and only vacantly staring at the ensuing struggle between the man and the man-turned-monster. His name was called and only then did the position of the fight register; Dee had managed to pin down the male splicer near his legs, the gun had slid from his reach, their was a flurry of angry bees swarming the elevator, AND a woman splicer had made her appearance. He whimpered but, somehow, threw himself at the weapon nonetheless. His hands fumbled for it, but one did manage to snatch it up, at which point he proceeded to flail his limbs all about and somehow pulled himself to his knees. He pointed the firearm at the pinned man, but at that point he froze up, the guilt was making him hesitate, and so was the fear of shooting Dee by mistake. He'd forgotten about the woman for a second, who was then screeching and snarling and climbing up Dee's back. Upon seeing the welted woman he made the split-second decision to shoot her instead, in hopes of helping the man! He wasn't a very good shot, but even with a trembling hand he managed to fire two shots, one at her shoulder and the other at her chest. The man below seemed to become quite a lot more enrgange at that point, for he knew his life was in danger, so despite the horrid stinging and pinning and choking, he started to try and claw frantically at Dee's face and eyes.
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As much as Dee tried to hold the splicers hands, they neared his face, inch by inch. He strained, and his hands were shaking from exertion, but the splicer’s fury brought him strength that far outweighed Dee’s. In a fit of desperation, Dee smashed his forehead forward. Dee brought his head forward again into the splicer’s face, and as the man’s mask cracked, a loud splintering sound was heard. Dee felt it as the man’s nose broke, and blood started to leak from the man’s crumpled nose. He shrieked in horror. The headbutt had taken Dee’s strength for a moment, and the splicer brought his thumbs to Dee’s eyes, digging with the intention of gouging them out. Dee screamed frantically, and in desperation, kneed the man in the groin as best he could. It was enough to draw away and roll to the side, the woman’s corpse falling limply beside him.
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Wow so Dee could really fight with every ounce of his being when he needed to! Could any person do that? Could Lawrence...? It was all a frantic blur of limbs, aggression, and fear, but the man did make out the distinct noise of skull hitting skull, mask snapping too, and it went through him like a brick. He stared, dumbfounded, as Dee rolled and the woman's corpse flopped to the floor. Once his brain registered that she was no longer a threat his eyes shifted to the man with the broken nose. He was clearly in agony, what with his face and genitals having been smashed into. He winced regretfully at the thought and imagined sensations, but he was still in "survival mode," and he took the presented opportunity to actually lay a harsh kick to the splicer's temple. There was a sickly crack, from either head or neck or both, and the man's head dropped. Their attacker was in a swirling, broken daze, and the breeder wondered if he would die. Lawrence gasped quietly and switched his eyes to the woman... He had killed her... Oh... Oh NO, Lawrence had killed someone! With a soft yelp of panic he threw the gun across the elevator, it clinked against the opposite wall, but luckily did not go off.
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Dee’s head slightly ached from the headbutting, but he pushed past it. When Lawrence kicked the splicer, he felt like he could thank him, like they should share a brandy and a laugh. But the splicer wasn’t dead yet, and they weren’t in the clear yet. Dee slowly got to a crouch, then reached behind himself to pick up the gun. He loaded it, and put his finger firmly against the trigger, on the verge of pulling. He brought the gun to the splicer’s forehead, then paused. “Lawrence,” he said flatly, “I think you should step out of the elevator for a moment.” The breeder seemed traumatized enough; getting brains on his pant legs wouldn’t do anything for his psyche.
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He felt like crying as he stood, like a statue, looking at the life he had ended. He didn't cry, but he still felt very much like he could. She attacked them, she had wanted to kill them to feed her crazed drug addiction, but it still bothered Lawrence that he could shoot the life out of another person's body. Maybe, if he reminded himself that she was going to hurt his friend, he could lessen the feeling of being a monster. He brought his fingers together to fidget, and like a lost puppy he looked to Dee when called, whimpering. "O- Okay." He managed quietly. He could clearly understand what was about to happen, so, unfreezing himself with a weak twitch of each leg, he lowered his head and sulked out of the box. Outside of the doors he stood off to the side, unconsciously holding his breath. He didn't want to listen, anticipating the murder was much worse than being shocked by it, but there was no way for him to block out a gunshot. So he waited, hugging himself, blue orbs shut tight behind eyelids.
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“Please,” the splicer whispered. “Please… don’t…” Dee bit his lip. He glanced behind himself, praying Lawrence hadn’t heard it. He looked back down. The splicer’s face was a bloody ruin, not only from the broken nose, but from splicing up. It had been wildly altered, bulging and sinking in places. Dee looked at the face like one looks at a sleeping lover. The splicer’s eyes were wide with fear, and he shook violently. “Mister,” Dee whispered, his voice cracking, “I don’t even know you, and I think you deserve better than this. This isn’t the Rapture you were promised.” He steadied his index finger and his resolve, and the splicer started shrieking. Dee pulled the trigger, and the splicer’s brains were plastered along the back wall of the elevator. Dee drew the gun back, and put it in his pocket. “Lawrence, close your eyes,” he said. “I’m going to move the body.” And, with that, he grabbed the two bodies by a hand each, and dragged them just around the corner. He returned to the elevator. “Are you ready to descend?” he asked, his voice slightly shaking.
