in our talons — returning moth

The whisper in his punctured mind crescendoed from a quiet scratching to a roar of rage and panic, an ear-splitting shriek echoing in his skull. Принесіть жінку додому. Woman? What woman? Confusion quickly drowned in the surge of another's thoughts and commands. The horseman writhed, thrashing against the bridle looped over his snout years ago, now finally pulled tautly. He clawed at the suffocating mask, desperate for a breath of fresh air to steady his pulse, to clear his mind. Scrabbling uselessly at the gas mask's muzzle, his control faltered and his muscles tensed. The wretched Judge needed him. He would serve. As though he even could choose.

The wolverine pushed himself to locked limbs, gagging at the fresh blood lingering in his throat. A grimace twisted marred features. This would be over soon enough. Even if he lacked any idea what woman he searched for or where he might find one. And so he scoured the barren desert, heavy paws slipping in the sand like a calf on a frozen lake. Identifying an unfamiliar scent trail through the musk of former slaves and holders was simple enough, nose flaring. A cattle prod against his mind ushered him to follow; Nikolai suppressed a shudder at the cavern cells, visions of chains and guards briefly shaking the usurper from the vice grip on his will.

He panted, blinking his single eye in bewilderment as a wet bitterness dripped from a nostril and streaked down his lip. Before a rough tongue could lick the blood away, hooks sunk into his mind once more, his form going rigid like a marionette. Dragging his feet, he pressed onward down the labyrinthine stone hall, only freezing in his tracks when two young foxes turned a corner, chattering -- no, shouting nonsense to each other. Nikolai waited for them to pass, only casting glares at his gaunt form before realizing he was likely too stupid to understand them. He gritted his teeth. The hooks yanked him forward, bringing him to a stop before bars. Behind lay the woman, who apparently was a tabby cat as well. And a rather... plump one at that. He stared, paw rising to press at the metal holding her before he turned his attention to a flimsy lock. The wolverine reared, promptly bashing the front of his mask against it. The lock snapped; he fell heavily back on front paws. A small noise sprung from his jaws, an unknown word that she seemed to comprehend. "Follow."

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The hooks tugged him along, the woman trailing shyly behind across the dunes. Dunes turned to soil, soil turned to mud -- he scarcely noticed the change until his foot plummeted into a shallow puddle. Recoiling, Nikolai glanced to his follower, a wheeze escaping him. This must have been her додому, her home; the hooks relented their reeling and the horsemen's body slackened, the puppet discarded once he crossed the southern swamp's border.

Confused legs wobbled, tangling with each other as he sought footing in the unfamiliar earth. Nikolai cast a panicked look at the stranger, the hooks now torn from his mind and stranding him in the middle of nowhere. He swayed. And slumped. And collapsed. His chin hit the dirt with a thud, a groan escaping from the gas mask as black blood seeped through the filtered muzzle. A pale eye flitted to the rotund figure above him, concealed by a glinting lens before he lost himself in the throes of a weak and spasmatic fit, sprawled pitifully in the mud. The Judge no longer needed him. He had served well. He never had a choice.

[member=8845]moth[/member]
[size=8pt][i]note: nikolai is currently having a seizure due to the excessive mental manipulation

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AURUM

DO NO HARM BUT TAKE NO SHIT !

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Moth hadn't been gone that long. A few days, at most. However, this did not stop Aurum from going into an utter state of panic over where his sister could possibly be. Technically the only evidence that they had that she had been taken were the shallow signs of a scuffle and her bag, and that was hardly enough to fucking go on. The Pitt was the go to assumption, but they couldn't just go charging in there when she could've just as easily been taken by a rogue looking for someone vulnerable to eat or indoctrinate. It would've just led to chaos, with them already causing possibly unneeded trouble with a still reforming Pitt, and possibly wasting valuable time they could've been using to actually save her. So, he knew it was logical that they weren't just randomly charging off to get her. However, did that put him at ease? Not in the slightest. Because his pregnant sister was still out there somewhere, possibly cold and alone, as well as possibly hurt, and couldn't even think of how he could fucking help. It had led to hours upon hours of frantic pacing through the territory, searching the last place she'd been seen and meeting with Leroy to figure out what the fuck they were going to do. He couldn't even imagine the state that Selby must've been in, considering he was missing his beloved and their unborn future children. The medic already had so much on his plate to begin with, and Aurum wouldn't have been surprised if this made him snap.

The lion had been out for a walk when he heard the sound of Moth's voice, desperately trying to expend the pent up restless energy that seemed to be running through his system nigh constantly these days. The sound of his sister's soft but panicked voice reaching his ears instantly threw his body straight into fight or flight mode, and for a second he even wondered if perhaps he was just hallucinating. Maybe he had finally jsut missed her so much that she was manifesting herself against his will, lulling him into a sense of false hope. Even if that was the case, he wasn't about to risk anything, especially since it involved his precious Moth's life. Before he had even thought of it he was rushing forward, his legs aching as his large paws pushed against wet earth, throwing him through the air and in between the trees. His breath came out in shallow gasps as his wings spread out, carrying him as quickly as his large and sturdy body could go without gravity cruelly slamming him back into the earth. When he saw Moth, even in her current slightly pained state, he wanted to sob in relief and joy. She was here. She was safe. He couldnt see any immediate, horrible gaping injuries. That was enough for him to want to cry, and just gather her up in his large arms.

In fact, that's exactly what he found himself doing. He practically skidded to a stop nearby, his wings falling back down against his back as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into his chest. He didn't squeeze her too tightly, not wanting to exacerbate any wounds that he couldnt immediately see. His voice came out in a rush, sounding both unbelievably gleeful and like he was on the literal verge of tears, "Moth... Moth, Moth, Moth, you're okay... you're here... I love you so much, I'm so glad you're here..." There was a lengthy moment where he just held her, feeling her heartbeat and the softness of her fur. However, the moment was ended when he lifted his gaze up, and saw the desperate, paralyzing flailing of Nikolai's prone body. He smelled of the Pitt, but his main concern at the moment was the seizing of his body. He just stared, stepping back from Moth and mumbling, "What... What's happening to him. Is he...? Who...?"

━ I'M GONNA WIN.┆PROUD. WARM. PROTECTIVE. ━

The sound of someone crying out for help was enough to get just about anyone up and moving, Abathur included. Perhaps they were all like moths in that way, traveling towards whatever caught their fancy, whatever elicited the most curiosity, or suspicion, or anxiety. Regardless, Abathur was on a mission, now - go to whoever was calling for help, administer first aid if necessary, and if it wasn't, then help in whatever way he could. It was the remnants of some archaic function in his being, he thought, perhaps some leftover from when his species - whatever that was - was social. It was either that or, in scientific terms, some ghost shit. In this world, it could honestly go either way.

The scene he happened upon was very strange. Moth was conscious, for one, actively moving, being the one to cry for help; her heartbeat was very high, but that could easily be attributed to anxiety of some sort. He'd have to wait for Selby to come by and examine her - he was sure the medic would relish the chance if given it. Her companion, on the other hand, was suffering from a seizure, something he could feel from where he was standing, which was... well, it wasn't ideal for the poor subject, that was certain. "Please move away from writhing subject," came his voice, cool, clear, and authoritative, slipping into paramedic mode, a slightly alternate version of himself that he hadn't used in a long time. Medicine was hard to practice when blind, after all. "Subject Itsy, please get a medic - need to give full medical examination to subject Moth. Cannot do it by self, unfortunately. Does spasming subject have anything on face, around neck?" He grimaced at having to ask that, a stinging reminder of his inability to see. He almost felt a little useless, if not for the apathetic lack of feeling towards the stranger on the ground, and the general lack of danger in the situation.

After speaking his mind, all he could really do was sit, and wait. He felt his authoritative presence slip away from him just then, lowering his body and shifting his legs to be just a bit closer to his core, making himself smaller. "Welcome back," he decided to say, tone slightly hushed, quieter than before, another symptom of giving up control of the situation.