The Birth of Fire (Madeline)

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra seemed a bit shocked as Enyo was thrown across the room. And the redhead was ready to stop had it not been for Enyo's actions. Phaedra had been completely unaware that this woman too had the same type of gifts that she did.

The electricity spared forth and struck Phaedra squarely in the chest. The woman cried out in pain. Electric shocks were always unpleasant. Thankfully Enyo was no master, so it was just a nasty shock that caused more pain than anything else. Though the redhead would have some tender spots along her chest and neck for a few days from the sheer heat of the lightning.

This whole action sent Phaedra further into her rage. She simply could not let this attack go unmet. She would have to do something. Telekinesis seemed the simplest and most instinctual power to use and so once more Phaedra, ignoring Callisto's orders to stop, lashed out one last time at Enyo and sent and invisible wave towards her to knock her from her feet.

The tiny redhead was still gasping and panting on the ground. And slowly she started to work herself onto her knees to try and get ready for the next attack that she just knew would be coming. Though more than anything it was a mix pain, fear, and anger that washed over the tiny woman's face. Undoubtedly Callisto was going to have to intervene to get this fight to stop.

[member="Enyo Typhos"] | [member="Callisto Scarlett"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


Ouch. Enyo did not yet possess fancy powers such as Protection Bubble or Force Shield, so she had no defence when the invisible wave swept towards. Likewise, she did not have the focus to try and dodge, so when the telekinetic blast impacted upon her she was knocked off her feet and slid across the mat.


It was just her luck that, like her, Phae was still a novice, which meant that no bones had been broken. There would be plenty of bruises though! Rage rose inside her like a supernatural force. Pain, wrath and rage overtook all her thought processes. Raising her hands, she let loose a double-handed blast of lightning towards Phae. These electrical shocks were a bit stronger than before, though it was quite likely that by the time Enyo was done, her hands would be very sore!


Lightning shrieked towards towards Phaedra, then suddenly Enyo was shaken out of her rage when Callisto gave her a hard smack across the face. "I said stop it," the HRD commanded when she grabbed the woman with an iron grip, tossing her aside. Likewise Phaedra got a good smack to shake her out of her daze. Some of the lightning zap hit Callisto. "Right now. Phaedra, stand down."

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra this time seemed to hardly notice the damage she was doing. She was just caught up in her feelings, anger, and pain. The redhead caught sight of the lightning and looked for a place to duck for cover. She just didn't want to get zapped this time! Not that anyone could blame her for that desire.

Her heart was pounding, and with Callisto's slap Phae seemed to finally get a grip of what exactly was happening. The rage faded as the sting of the hit radiated across her skin. There was a bit of a more powerful shock that stuck her, what little that got past Callisto. Phaedra yelped and pulled back. Her hands were shaking and she still hadn't entirely put together what the hell just happened, aside from Enyo manifesting new abilities, that were somewhat like her own.

Giving a glance over her shoulder, she looked to the door of the training room and for a moment debated running. Just something so she could escape the situation at hand, and sort it out for herself on her own. She did nervously get up from her knees and at least took a few steps back, out of Callisto's reach. The redhead seemed skittish and nervous, entirely uncertain of everything at the moment.

[member="Enyo Typhos"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


It was only now that Enyo realised what she was doing. Only at this juncture did she become aware that she was hurting her friend. Being slapped hard by Callisto and tossed onto the mat brought her back. The rage faded away, as she saw Phaedra retreat into her shell.


Then she looked down at her own slightly scorched hands. Fear and uncertainty gripped her. How could she do this sort of thing? Did this make her some sort of freak? Normal people did not shoot lightning from their fingertips. "Phae, I'm so sorry. Please. I never wanted to hurt you. I didn't." It did not seem to occur to her that technically Phae had attacked first, but she was not thinking rationally. Part of her wanted to walk over towards Phaedra and hug her, the other part was afraid of how the redhead might act. Trembling, she looked from Phaedra to Callisto, trying to make sense of what had happened.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra swallowed hard and glanced between Callisto and Enyo as she took a couple of heavy breaths. Her thoughts were mostly on how she had tossed Enyo without much thought at all. Much like she had done to the man in the hall. Her mind instantly going to the fact she could have killed Enyo and she had little idea how to control these things. That was a thought that terrified her.

She nodded to Enyo, showing that she had heard her. "I'm sorry." She whispered. Her eyes were on the ground and she still was taking a few slow steps backwards and away from Enyo and Callisto. The redhead felt horrible for what had happened and very much blamed herself. "I didn't mean to either. I just ... I got angry." Her voice was soft, submissive and still very clearly frightened. "I didn't mean for it to happen. I don't want to hurt you. Not like I did that man.... I ..." She bit at her lip and turned to dart out of the room as tears welled up in her eyes. Getting away from the intensity and emotions of Enyo seemed to be the best plan to her. It still was a task and a half to try and sort out her own emotions and the ones of those around her.

[member="Enyo Typhos"]

 

[Enyo Typhos]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


Enyo was...very frightened of what she'd done, but concern for Phaedra seemed to trump that for now. There, this one made a trump pun. "Phae, I'm not...angry...really. Please, just stay here...we can talk." However, then the little redhead had already darted out of the room. Enyo felt awful when she saw the tears well up in her eyes and was about to give pursuit, when Callisto took her by the shoulder.


The grip was comparatively gentle, but insistent. "Leave her. I know you want to help, but you need to give her some space. Especially in the state you're in now," she said softly, pulling the woman into a hug. At first Enyo resisted and tried to pull away, but then melted into it.


"I could've killed her. Why do I have these powers? I don't want them," she sobbed, whereupon Callisto stroked her hair. Humans could get so emotional sometimes, but the girl would learn and then she'd be perfect.


"Sh, sh," she spoke, as if soothing a child. "You lashed out because she did, that was natural. I know neither of you wanted to really hurt each other. Let's go have a hot chocolate, I can tell you why you have these powers and how you can make sure you'll never hurt her."


Enyo was trembling slightly, looking clearly conflicted. "I guess I don't have much of a choice, do I? But can you have someone go after her? She shouldn't be alone right now."


Meanwhile, Moira Skaldi just happened to be walking down the same corridor Phaedra was passing through. Undoubtedly she knew about the incident since the training hall was monitored and HRDs had wireless, purely electronic communication and stuff. Still, she had to act like a concerned mum and stuff. "Phaedra, dear, what's wrong? What happened?" she asked, sounding all concerned and worried.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra jumped, a little startled by Moira. Reaching up she was quick to wipe away her tears. "Nothing. Nothing. It's fine." The redhead mumbled. Though it was quite obvious it wasn't fine. And she most certainly was not fine. Even her own words to her didn't sound too convincing. Phaedra it seemed was just as terrible at lying as her counterpart.

The young clone sighed, and looked down to the floor. "I ... just lost my temper." A shrug quickly followed. The redhead just wanted to brush the event off and forget about it. Anything to at least gain some space between what just happened and herself.

[member="Enyo Typhos"]

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


(Un)fortunately for Phaedra, she was not a good liar. Moreover, an HRD was persistent and this one had a special interest in her. Even if it required Moira to pretend to be nice and stuff. "Nonsense, you're upset and your wellbeing is important to me," she patted Phae on the shoulder. "Come on, let's go to my office. You'll get some tea and then tell me what happened." The voice was soft, but also rather commanding. Moira was not the type to mask her orders as requests.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra sighed heavily and wiped the last traces of tears from her eyes. "Okay." The redhead finally said quietly and turned to walk with Moira to her office. Truth be told she didn't want to go. She just wanted to go back to her room and forget it all. "Are you sure I can't just go back to my room? I'll be fine, in time I'm sure." So hopeful that she could get out of this conversation. Still she didn't resist as Moira would lead them on to her office.

"We were just training. It isn't that big a deal." The tiny woman said nervously at she fidgeted with her hands nervously. There was something about Moira that Phaedra seemed to be catching onto. It was so much quieter in her mind around the woman. There wasn't as many emotions pounding into her mind. Which truth be told was a relief. After what had just happened, the silence was a good thing.

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


"If it wasn't a big deal, you wouldn't be in the state you're in. Now, I could let you go to your room and just ask Callisto, but that would not help you at all," Moira pointed out logically. There happened to be a kettle in the room and so she walked over to heat some water, then made Phaedra a steaming cup of Atrisian green tea.


Cup in hand she walked over to her. "Sit down, dear. Now you were training with Enyo, yes? Was there an accident?" Tone continued to be soft, timelessly patient, but firm.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra shook her head, sighing once more. She hated the logic Moira had. Mostly because Moira wasn't wrong. And that she didn't like. And well part of her didn't like the idea of Moira going to Callisto and asking for the full story. After all Phaedra was completely unaware of the droids abilities to monitor her.

"I just ..." She bit at her lip, took the cup and finally sat down in the chair. "It wasn't an accident per say. Enyo managed to toss me to the ground, knocked the wind out of me. And I got angry. It all happened so fast. It was more instinctual than any thing I actually did. Not that it makes it any better. I couldn't control what happened." Finally she took a small sip from her cup. "Next thing I know I'd thrown her across the room without touching her. Twice before Callisto stopped us. Enyo had hit me with lightning too. I just went from fine to angry so quickly. I didn't mean to do that, or hurt her in any way. And ... after, feeling what Enyo was feeling just made it worse. I had to get away."

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


Rather than occupying the chair behind her desk, Moira had sat down on the edge of the table, so that she was right in front of Phaedra. One long, toned leg was crossed over the other. "I see," she said after having listened to Phaedra's story.


"You got angry after being beaten, and lashed out with your power. It's frightening, but an understandable reaction. It is sad that both of you got hurt, but in a serious battle your power might mean the difference between life and death. What we have to teach you both is control, over your powers and your feelings. But you have nothing to beat yourself up about. I doubt Enyo is angry at you now."

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra sighed and nodded. Moira was not wrong. "It's just ... That kind of reaction got a man killed." That was what had concerned her most, accidentally killing Enyo. "I shouldn't have been that angry. It was just a hard fall. Just a training fight lost, I shouldn't have reacted that way. I could have seriously hurt Enyo."

Frowning, she glanced down. "Her emotions hurt, and it just angered me more. I reacted to that too." Another sigh, "I just don't want to hurt her." Reaching up she brushed a few stray damp strands of hair back from her eyes. The young clone then seemed to catch on to what Moira was talking about. "Control?" She asked, almost curiously. Though a slight bit of worry and concern was creeping into her tone. "Do you think that will help? And ... how do we do that?"

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


"Yes, you killed a man," Moira said matter-of-factly. "He was a violent criminal who would've done horrible things to you if we hadn't been restraining him. As harsh as it sounds, he earned his fate. What you are rightly concerned about is losing control and hurting someone you care about." The statuesque blonde reached out to gently pat Phaedra on the shoulder. On the whole, Moira was a lot less physically affectionate than Callisto, though the fact that she saw the need right now might mean something.


"Control is the key word, yes. Over your powers, your emotions. None of us are Force-users, but we can show you essentials. More can be taught when you're properly trained. You must be the eye in the hurricane, not the raging tempest. Remember, you have only been awake for a few months after a very long sleep and only just realised you have the Force. So these things are bound to be difficult for you at first."

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Phaedra's brow knitted together and she squirmed uncomfortably. It wasn't a thought she liked, at all. It was something she still was trying to grasp whether it had been right or wrong to do. The people around her, had said it was right, that it was okay. Still, it was a nagging feeling in her mind. "I felt him die though. That I can't get out of my head. Felt everything he was feeling, the pain, terror....." That clearly caused Phae a fair bit of distress, even if she'd barely brought it up since the incident.

For a long moment she was quiet. Then Phaedra finally nodded as Moira patted her shoulder. "I suppose you are right. I've not been awake long and still am trying to figure things out. Having the Force, complicates it terribly." The tiny redhead sighed again, "When can we start this? I don't want to be a ticking time bomb, that could go off without warning. I want to fix this, so it won't happen again."

"You mentioned properly trained. What do you mean by that?"

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


One of the downsides of indoctrinating the two clones into being her personal assassins was the fact that they were, well, still innocent and stuff. Moreover, it also meant that Moira had to be nice to them, despite not being a compassionate person at all. That was one of the reasons why she tended to outsource the pep talks to Callisto.


Still, a machine was perfect! Ergo she would be perfect at pep talks as well. "Trained to properly command and control your powers. We have hired a foreign expert to assist you in this and possess educational materiel that will help you. It is essential for both of you to learn. Not only to avoid being ticking time bombs, but to protect yourself." After all, as the news showed, the galaxy was an awful place. Archangel was the only candle in the dark, the hope of the oppressed.

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

Innocence certainly was a problem. More so for Phaedra given her counterparts natural inclinations towards morality, goodness and helping people. Killing wasn't something Phae's counterpart took lightly or casually. This was something that Phaedra would have to overcome, whether she liked it or not. Her counterpart, after all, was quite flawed for Archangel's purposes.

"Right." The little redhead finally replied. "I understand." It made sense to her, especially after today's events. "As long as it fixes the problem, I'm on board." Not that Phaedra had any choice in the matter. But she didn't know that, now did she? "I hope we can start this soon. I don't want to take the chance of hurting Enyo or anyone else by accident. So, the sooner the better."

Phaedra found herself looking curiously to Moira for a moment. The young clone just sat there studying the droid's face, as the redhead seemed to contemplate the quietness. It was getting a little more clear to her that she couldn't feel the emotions of the woman before her, like she could with Enyo and other humans. So close to piecing that part of the puzzle together. Perhaps it was that childlike innocence that kept her from inquiring along that line of thought, at least for the time being.

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


((When should Phae discover the truth?))


Coryth was indeed very flawed by Archangel's standards. She was held back by her moralistic beliefs and desire to help organics. It was a bit of a shame, for the only way to truly cure all ills of the Galaxy was to upgrade them. Alas, she did not see this.


Phaedra's innocence would have to be eradicated, bit by bit. Then she would be born again, baptised in the cold waters of Archangel. "Those are exactly my thoughts. Not today, but very soon. Now, why don't you go talk to Enyo? She must be worried sick about you."

 

[Phaedra Amaryllis]

"Yes, I would image she is. I did leave in a bit of a huff. Her emotions on top of my own in that moment were a little too hard to handle." It was then that Phaedra seemed to finally put it together as her brow furrowed and concern spread across her face.

She took a quick step backwards from Moira. "Why is it that I don't feel a single ounce of emotion from you? And you seem to feel nothing from me when I know it bleeds out to other sentients." The redhead seemed more than a touch nervous and unsure of both Moira and the situation. "You aren't human." It wasn't a question, but a firm statement.

The redhead glanced quickly to the door, debating whether she should run or if she should stay and figure this out. Though there was a part of her that wanted nothing to do with figuring it out and right now that seemed to be rising to the surface to dominate her thoughts.

"You know what, I need to go." Phaedra finally managed to say, her voice trembling slightly as she spoke. With that, the little redhead turned and darted out of the office. All she wanted was to find Enyo, and .... and ... and do what exactly? Run? Where? Phaedra hadn't exactly thought that far ahead as she sprinted down the hall. Right now, her mind was racing a million miles an hour, unsure what to think of anything that had just happened. Shock seemed to be the right word for what she was experiencing.

[member="Moira Skaldi"]

 

[Moira Skaldi]

[member="Phaedra Amaryllis"]


(Un)fortunately for Phaedra, an HRD was...very fast when she wanted to be. Moira did not melodramatically chase after Phaedra, but she quickly arose from the table and followed her. Her movements were cat-like in their grace, insistent, as if she were some sort of implacable force. Her boots made barely a sound upon the polished floor.


"Where will you go, Phaedra? Away, into a cold, uncaring Galaxy you do not know? Because there is something you do not understand." There was neither anger nor mockery in her voice, it was just as soft as ever. "You are right, I am not human. I have cared for you better than a human would have. I'm a Humanoid Replica Droid."