Zero stood in his private quarters, his blue eyes looking over and over the familiarity that is his study, solitude and bedroom. The scarlet swordsman was in, rather, casual clothes instead of his usual armor - it was stowed behind the see-through glass of a metal capsule within the room, ready to be donned again should the need arise. But for such necessity to arise now seemed unlikely.
Done was spring cleaning, but perhaps it was a little too late - Lunar New Year had long come and passed. For the likes of him off days were a rarity, and more often than not they rarely ever spend those days well. For Zero it was just warm drinks in the harsh climate of New Alaska, and little more.
Due to the fact that New Alaska seemed to need him more than Abel City did, it meant that Zero had to spend a great majority of his days far away from home. And because of that there was little that needed to be done for spring cleaning, aside from a few cobwebs here and there in a corner or two, and the dust which had gathered up in some spots. Still, being a soldier means keeping your quarters, your arms, your everything organized, and Zero made sure of that.
The fact that most of his time was never at home had put a damp on his memory somewhat - his private quarters were also where he kept his gifts and belongings, and he couldn’t help the feeling that something was amiss, that something was deliberately misplaced, moved from their original positions, and this was evident in the way he kept darting his eyes around, looking at everything with an unfounded suspicion.
His paranoia came to an abrupt stop as his eyes fell on the Dreadnought-shaped guitar leaning against the bed. It was a gift from a seven-foot tall alternate of him, on what occasion he could not remember. Zeon had set it aside to properly clean the room but not before meticulously dusting the instrument off, and now that he was done cleaning his eyes suddenly lit up.
“Nope,” he rummaged through the top drawer of his desk, apparently not finding what he was looking for. “Not this one,” he tried the middle drawer. “Not this one either,” he searched the bottom one to no avail.
“Where the hell did I keep it then...?”
Then it clicked and Zeon pounced for his wardrobe. He didn’t wear much except a red Hunter jacket, a white T-shirt and some pair of jeans, all of which seemed universal for all kinds of settings, and a waistcoat for formal occasions. This still left a lot of space, so he figured he could throw the guitar bag in there.
And there he found it, a wide grin appearing on his face as if he was a kid who found his favorite toy beneath a pile of other toys. Out of the bag he fished a handful of fingerpicks. Before long Zeon was sitting on the floor, his back leaning against the wardrobe and the guitar in his lap, one hand moving up and down the fretboard and the other picking the strings in patterns he had learned.
C chord - first the bass string, then the third string, second, first, second, third. Then A minor - bass, third, second, first, second, third. Then a barre F chord, picked in the same pattern at a slightly faster pace.
The smile on Zero’s face grew wider. He loved to play guitar but unfortunately didn’t have much time to practice while away, and now that he was back and playing it in the comforts of home Zeon was happy he didn’t forget much despite lacking practice.
Next he tried a strumming pattern. Starting with the C chord - a down strum, then another, followed with an upward strum, a down, then up, then down. He repeated the C chord with that pattern - now the whole room was filled with the sounds of guitar strings played with a degree of excitement. Then the swordsman progressed from C to A minor, then to G major, D minor, then a number of different chords, before he placed his palm over the strings, stopping all vibrations and ceasing all sounds from his guitar.
Satisfied, he moved onto the next thing. With his fingers still fretting the C chord he played the fifth, third, second and first strings simultaneously, then a pluck on the first just as his index finger moved to the second fret of the first string, his ring finger hammering onto the fourth fret as the string was still vibrating, followed by a quick pull-off, and the index finger followed suit.
Zero’s attention to the instrument was briefly interrupted by a ray of sunlight which had streamed into his room through the windows, shining at his eyes. He brought a hand up to cover his face, glancing sideways at the digital clock on the wall.
The walls of her vessel groaned under the artificial gravity of the Black Comet. Drones appeared from all sides of the landing bay. Hands and soldiers, all silently set upon unspoken tasks. Cleaning. Stocking. Transporting specimens. She knew not to bother them as they worked. They would not hear her, deaf in their thoughtlessness.
Black Light disembarked alone - none traveled with her as she explored the expanses of space. Her companions, the small living flora and fauna she had collected during her trip, were being carried away. It was inevitable. It was her purpose. Deliver observations, experiments, specimens. Expand the knowledge of the hive.
It did not soothe the sting of watching her home being gutted clean.
"Black Light!"
Someone called to her. The small collection of gems decorating her robes chimed as she spun to find Eclipse running towards her, sharpened yellow teeth visible in a wide grin. Her eyes squeeze with joy and welcomed the hybrid into a hug, "Hello, little Deathling. Come to peek at today's treasures?"
He shook his head, though couldn't help but steal a peek past her robes to watch some of the pods being unloaded, "Uh... no. No, I mean, have they told you yet?"
"Told me what?"
"ECLIPSE!"
The Deathling started, turning swiftly to dodge his brother Shadow's grasping hands, "We were told to wait."
Rather than articulate a meaningful retort, Eclipse shoved the Doomling away with a vulgar gesture. And thus their chaotic game of tag began. Shadow was certainly on edge - his quills splayed wide in offensive posturing that caught her attention. Not much set the older hybrid off nowadays, much less something as common as his brother ignoring orders.
Report to helm.
The thought bubbled up over her own, briefly overtaken by the mind of another. Black Doom. Her orders were clear, and without another word to the tussling underlings, Black Light floated towards the radial door leading into the Comet proper.
More soldiers were active today, she noticed. Several marched by in neat lines, hawks swooped low in the tunnels and perched above archways in evenly-spaced rows. Had the drones moved any faster, Dark Light might have worried an attack was imminent. But no. There was no urgency in their strides. Only purpose. She drifted by another small gathering of foot soldiers, each stepping perfectly synced with its neighbor, and realized it was practice.
There was no attack yet.
An aperture spun open and Black Light found the Black Arms' greatest mind waiting for her right where she knew he'd be. She waited for the door to shut behind her, sealing the two minds inside, before speaking.
"You have plans," she stated. There was no need for pleasantries. He would not tolerate them anyway. "Lofty plans."
"Always. The might of the Black Arms cannot remain idle when there is much yet to conquer."
"Of course. But conquests do not require my services. Not directly."
He chuckled, a low echoing mockery of laughter, "Need I bother explaining the mission to you? Or have you uncovered my motivations yet again?"
She considered it all: the restocking and cleaning of her vessel, the Deathling's excitement and Doomling's frustration, the practiced marches. There was a message to uncover, hidden among the seemingly disconnected events, but she knew better. She always knew better.
Callout to non starter in Oldham Diagnosed to bad battery replaced battery and winter check carried out, vehicle now back on the road!!! #battery #cold #winter #nonstarter #mobilemechanic #oldham #manchester #fixmycarmcr (at Oldham, United Kingdom) https://www.instagram.com/p/CWxq8SQtTgq/?utm_medium=tumblr
WWE TLC: Bray Wyatt and The Miz will face each other in a non-starter hand to hand during pay-per-view
WWE TLC: Bray Wyatt and The Miz will face each other in a non-starter hand to hand during pay-per-view
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By Nicolas Lafferriere – PUBLISHED ON 07/12/2019 AT 03:24
During the broadcasts of Friday Night SmackDown through FOX, it has been confirmed that WWE Universal Championship owner Bray Wyatt will face The Miz in a non-titular fight in TLC, the company's next pay-per-view.
The Miz appeared this week on SmackDown to talk about what happened with Daniel Bryan. The latter was attacked…
White House calls Democrats' plan to end shutdown 'non-starter'
White House calls Democrats’ plan to end shutdown ‘non-starter’
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Congress was set to reconvene on Wednesday with no sign of a workable plan to end a 12-day-old partial federal government shutdown and President Donald Trump not budging on his demand for $5 billion in border wall funding. FILE PHOTO: U.S. Capitol is seen on the first day of a partial federal government shutdown in Washington, U.S., December 22, 2018.…
Starter motor replacement this evening at our customers home in Wythenshawe!!!🚗🏎🚚 #vwgolf #evening #carrepairs #mobilemechanic #startermotor #nonstarter #manchester #convenience , thanks too @eurocarparts for excellent service and quality parts this morning from there #stockport branch 🚗🏎🚚 (at South Manchester, Manchester)
