alderwitch

"I never cry." Taylor informed him as she mopped her face with the edge of one grimy sleeve. She cried very quietly, eventually only taking in the occasional shuddering breath. Around the second swipe, she noticed the state of the remains of her costume, "I need a shower. And clothes." She remembered the state of her bedroom - or what was left of it and winced slightly, mind shying away from that one. Carefully, she requested, "I'd rather not face my apartment just yet. I guess the Lair's fine." Emotionally exposed and physically drained, she was honestly reluctant to go to the Lair. Elena was a friend but even at her most composed, she felt raw under the telepath's eyes. Tonight, she'd felt raw under anyone's eyes. She didn't, however, have any other options. She'd have to move, of course, even with Jack's threat, she'd never feel safe sleeping in that bedroom again. Phantom shuddered once, an involuntary gesture.

"Sure!" Alex agreed with probably not nearly enough fear. After politely thanking the person who had been answering her questions, she headed over to the truck that Erin had picked. She crawled into the passenger's seat and buckled herself in. She glanced over at Erin and with a cheeky wink, activated her forcefield and grabbed onto the handlebar playfully. Once braced, she announced, "Okay, I'm ready!"

Her mask was torn under one eye where the whip had lacerated the skin below but it was otherwise intact. Dark hair streamed down her shoulders and she was, of course, soaked from head to foot. Realizing she was staring at him utterly blankly, she gave him a quick jerky nod and twisted to allow him to snap the bonds on her wrists first. As feeling returned to her fingers, she choked down a quiet groan. The leather gloves had protected her wrists from the worst of the abrasions but she was sure when she peeled them off, the skin would be red and tender. She flexed her fingertips, hissing softly as she worked feeling back into her hands while Jack dealt with the rest of the pully apparatus that had held her suspended. By the time he'd dealt with it, Taylor had peeled off one ruined glove and reached for him with the bare hand. Her fingertips were ice cold from the repeated dunking and her hand trembled as she reached out to press it against his chest, her head turned slightly to the side. She knew - she'd seen with her own eyes - but Taylor couldn't restrain the impulse as she flattened her palm against his leather jacket and listened for a heart beat that was never going to be there. Her eyes closed under the mask and when she looked up at him, the white glow had vanished to be replaced with Taylor's warm, brown eyes. "You should have told me," It was low, angry, and her voice was raspy from the ordeal but it was Taylor's softer tones. Not Phantom. She frowned up at him and then, after pausing to struggle with her other leather glove - which took some doing as leather wasn't easy to get off the best of times and her fingers were still clumsy - reached up to pull his mask off with shaky hands. It was the first time she'd done so, actually. She'd seen the transition from Jack to Avenger and back again, but she'd never reached up to remove the mask with her own hands. Still scowling, she smoothed a cold hand over one cheek. "I am so unbelievably pissed at you, right now, I could cheerfully strangle you. I'm pretty sure that if I try hard enough, I could manage it, too. Feeling will come back to my hands eventually. I'm very sturdy, you know. Tough, even." Still muttering, she dropped her hands from his face and reached up to shove off the heavy weight of the cloak and let it fall to the ground with a wet thump. Once freed from all of that, she scooted forward and slipped her arms around him and tucked her head under his chin, cheek pressed to that too silent chest. Holding onto Jack tightly, she twisted her face into the leather of his jacket and, after the wost day possible, finally indulged in one thing that Taylor never, ever did. Taylor wept.

The wall she'd thumped against gave way with a shriek of metal audible even though the water. With her hand bound behind her back and her ankles still chained, there was little Phantom could do but be carried with the current and try and roll with it. She smacked into something large and heavy that finally stopped her uncontrolled skid accross the floor and muffled a groan. Coughing the water out of her lungs, Phantom twisted around in time to see Jack's face. If she'd had any color in her face it would have bleached white as her world condensed down to an image she didn't think she'd ever forget in her entire eternal life. Her thoughts were a chaotic tangle. An embarrassed 'How could I miss that?' mixed with a horrified 'Oh, sweet God...' with a dash of furious 'He should have told me!'. Finally, soundlessly, her lips shaped the words, "Oh, Jack."

"Avenger," Phantom closed her eyes and let out a shuddering breath at that gravelly voice. She flattened her mouth in a determined line and narrowed her eyes on the two men. Phantom twisted her bound wrists, trying to yank on the bonds that held tight.

Sure, why not !Init: 19 Heh, for my round, Phantom's gonna cling to conciousness. At my count, her bruises have all faded but she's staggered x2 at least still.

She did her best to twist her face from the exposed wires. He brought it close enough that she didn't dare move or even breathe before he drew it back. Once the stars cleared from her vision, she realized his intent. Making one last ditch effort for rage to chase away fear and the awful knowledge of his plans, Phantom yanked her gaze away from the light and let her cheeks dimple with a grin that bared even white at him. "I'd hate to bore you. Let me see if I can find something less pedantic to say. How does, 'Call me kitten again, and I'll break your jaw in three places' move you?" She met his gaze with all the defiance she could muster. Damned if she'd beg. "Let me out and I promise I'll make the evening a lot more entertaining." That last was sheer bravado, they both knew it would be a wonder if she could stand, let alone fight. Her lips were almost blue and her skin under the costume had the pallor of blood loss. Not to mention the whip marks criss crossing her body.

The muddling of her senses while in the tank was the worst part of the dunking for Phantom. Dnagling upside down, the murky water reduced her world to dim light and shadows and muffled any sound. Instead of thrashing, she went still in the water, straining to percieve what he was up to and when he'd be back. Despite her best efforts, the sudden presure that hauled her up and out of the water startled her and she hissed in pain as she dangled once more before him. Phantom braced herself for a blow that never came. When he stroked her face, she twisted away with a repulsed flinch. Her gaze slid to the hooks and chains and then back to his face. Moistening her lips, it took her a moment to speak, her voice echoing harshly in the chamber. "No. Her voice came out steady, a fact that she was proud of. She couldn't control the involuntary tremble from a body that was hitting its limits, but she still had her voice under control. "I have nothing to say to you. I won't give you anyone else to go after."

A muscle flexed in her jaw, but she refused to look away. "I don't believe you," Phantom rasped after a long moment of locked gazes. She finally closed her eyes behind her mask, gathering the tattered remains of her strength and forced back the desire to scream. He'd doubtless manage to wring them from her anyways but she intended to fight him every inch of the way. Her glowing eyes opened once more and she fixed her gaze at some point behind him, her mouth compressed in a flat line as she announced tonelessly, "I have nothing to tell you."

Alex slipped into the room as JJ sat down. She'd walked the bulk of the way with Mike but she'd been unable to keep fro hurrying the rest of the way to what looked to be a really new subject matter for Young Freedom's resident brain. She hurried into the room, a riot of color in her skirts and tights and gave the teacher a cheery smile, "Hello, Mr. Dark Star!" She gave JJ a little wave as well and scooted in to one of the front row seats to pull out a slim notebook.

"Ha!" Taylor crowed as she pushed buttons on the phone to set the picture as its background. That would make her smile everytime she saw it for a good month. For once her mood matched her outward appearance, as she wasn't focused on this or that crisis. Instead she looked young, with a happy flush on her face as she leaned against the brick will with her eyes down on her phone. It was a bit of a window into what Taylor must have been like before the cloak and cowl. Her smile dimpled her cheeks and she looked up announcing, "Got it. So, where would you like to go to, to celebrate our triumph. My treat!" A rare treat indeed. Usually she avoided any sort of dining engagement but she didn't feel awkward around Stesh. She knew the other woman wouldn't care about whether or not she picked at the food or avoided it altogether.

Alex bounced out of the car and into the lot, her eyes rounding at all the different options. She hung back for a moment, letting Erin beeline to her choice first before she began examining the possibilities. She peppered the various people with rapid fire questions and sat in a few different models, all with good sight lines and a decent number of seats before she finally trailed over to the mini she'd been eyeing since they first reached the lot. Oh, it was never one she'd pick herself as Mike would end up all squooshed if he had to get into it but it might be fun to drive. "You go ahead first with the driving part," She called cheerily to Erin, "I wanna ask a few more questions.'

"I'm not sure what it was. It's just something I picked up from one of my instructors. It's just an elbow to the face. I don't actually know any martial arts, just some catch-all brawling," Taylor demured. "I'm sure you could pick it up in no time. Mostly you just find the fastest way to drove their nose into their brain pain or smack 'em once in the throat. It's all pretty basic." She leaned over the phone picture and started laughing as she pulled hers out. "You have to send that to me. I'll make it my background."

Taylor laughed until she was holding her stomach and leaning against the wall. Just when she'd start to get herself under control, Drew's shocked expression would come to mind and she'd let out another peal of laughter. "I don't need to. I'll just keep appologizing. 'I'm so sorry, Drew'. 'How's your nose, Drew?' I'm pretty sure I broke it. He'll be black and blue for days!" Finally she managed to catch her breath, "It was worth it. Even if everything else was a total wash."

I have no objections :)

Taylor gave Stesha a look of wide-eyed innocence. "Oh, some ice would probably be good. I think I bruised my elbow. Ouch!" She closed one hand around her elbow as if it really hurt and with one more abashed, "Sorry, Drew!" quickly made her way out of the crowd with Stesha before she lost in completely. It would completely ruin the scene if she burst into laughter. It might have been a little mean spirited but that memory of her sketchy supervisor sitting on the floor and clutching his bleeding nose would get her through many a long night at the library. As they made to the edge of the crowd, a few stifled chuckles started to bubble out.

For the first time since this ordeal had begun, an actual flicker of fear crossed Phantom's face. Unbidden, the litany of her friends slipped through her thoughts. Stesha, Moira, Ace... they'd all count as tainted in his eyes. She knew their names, their homes, the places they spent any real time at and she was pragmatic enough to know that given enough time and application, everyone broke. It could take hours, or days, or even years, but everyone broke in the end. The question really was, how much time would he have to break her. Looking at the more than slightly mad light in his eyes, it was a risk she couldn't take. The other option, of course, was to goad him until his temper took over and he beat her into unconciousness. In that moment, Phantom decided that she'd make certain that he killed her before he gained any knowledge. She lifted her chin and forced her mouth into a mirthless smirk. It hurt. He'd bruised one side of her face and lacerated the other with his whip. Her voice came out in a husky rasp that dripped with disdain, "My mistake. You're a small and cruel boy that hasn't ever gotten past pulling the wings off of flies to watch them hurt. I'll die before I tell you anything." It wasn't just a promise, it was a vow.

"Did you know," Phantom rasped out in an almost conversational tone, "That the original aramaic passage refers to a poisoner, not a witch? The choice of the phrase 'witch' was politically motivated. The original portion of the text talked about the dangers of letting a known poisoner near the tribe's food supply. The more you know." If all she had to do was bandy historical factoids and Latin quotes, Phantom was feeling a little more confident. She would have been a lot more confident but she was still suspended by her ankles, still woozy and bleeding out, and poking holes in the arguements of the certifiable was dangerous at the best of times. She looked at him, at the cloak, and then dredged up a soft laugh, "Any sins on my soul are not yours to judge. You're not a Hand of God. You are nothing on the scale of gods and demons to I who has seen both. You're a just a man. A small and cruel man and I am not afraid."

Taylor forced herself to bid her time. She was pretty sure that she could toss him off the lifted stage if she positioned it just right. When the hand slipped up her thigh, however, all Taylor's good intentions flew right out the window. Instead of the proscribed hip toss, Taylor stomped on his instep and twisted as she drove an elbow back into his nose with a far too satisfying crack-pop. "Oh, no! I'm sorry, Drew. You startled me and I'm terribly ticklish" The lack of any actual remorse was covered by Drew's shrieked, "Augh!" and the response of medical personnel to the scene.

Phantom returned to conciousness in one shocking burst of agony. For the usually intangible heroine, the sensation of being bound and trussed like a turkey was a new and unpleasant one and she twisted at the end of the rope futilly. Weakened from the multitude of injuries and disoriented, Phantom couldn't seem to summon the small scrap of energy needed to slip between worlds much less slide free from her bindings. As she glared mutinously at her captor, she forced her body to relax. Phantom just had to stay alive long enough to let her body mend and thrashing would only slow down and likely give her captor immense satisfaction. It wasn't like she could drown after all. "Di immortales virtutem approbare, non adhibere debent," Phantom finally said. She was sure he'd appreciate the latin quote. We may expect the gods to approve virtue, but not to endow us with it. She closed her eyes and braced for another dunking. It appeared that this particular nut job was a student of the Malleus Maleficarum. Hopefully he'd stick with the water torture for a while. There were even less pleasant ways to drive out the devil as it were.

Taylor grinned enough to dimple both cheeks before she dutifully stood up. It was the first - and probably last - time that Stesha had ever seen Taylor try to look as harmless and young as possible. She bounced up and down on her sneakered toes, pony tail bobbing as she waved her hand for all she was worth. To both of their delight, Taylor was chosen. Less pleasing, Stesha also managed to get their attention with the 'help' and they both were invited up for demonstrations. After all, they were both fragile and harmless looking, right? With ill concealed glee that was fortunately misconstrued, she made her way up to the stage and let Drew do his usual thing of glomming onto her. It was easy for once to put up with the too friendly hand on her back as she dutifully watched the man make a fist and then did her best to produce the most limp-wristed loose fist she could come up with which she showed to Drew with a smile that had a little too much teeth. Stesha's partner, on the other hand, was a slim young man who looked like he might either throw up or pass out. He, poor lad, had been shoved forward by some 'friends' who were now laughing and jeering from their place a few rows back.

"Well, you know. I know kung fu." Taylor said dryly as they slipped in to seats in the back. Their martial arts 'guru' mixed his starting speech with a lot of buzz words. His spiel seemed to be how martial arts leveled the playing field and that you didn't have to be the biggest or strongest to be the best you could be. Taylor murmered to Stesha, "Which is why, of course, he looks like he's done a zillion 'roids." The talking part was blessedly short before he started first to demonstrate moves on some of his compaions (both Taylor and Stesha had seen better), and then began to pull up volunteers from the audience.

Phantom had a moment to watch in horror as the scourge sliced through first her shield and then the skin beneath. Still, she didn't even give him the satisfaction of a scream as the whip laid her open again. Phantom struggled for conciousness as she braced both hands on the sheets, trying to focus just one more time to raise arms that had grown too heavy to fire another blast at him. Too much bloodloss. I can't- I can't- Phantom never even had time to finish the thought as she collapsed.

19 On the Sense Motive. You're good. Nullify Power Check: 16 Toughness Save: 1d20=12 And she's out. Feel free to drag her off after I post IC

Phantom's breath hissed in sharply and she arched away from the snap of fire accross her back even as she fired off a bolt of crackling energy. The fighting conditions - kneeling in the middle of her bed while dripping blood on the sheets - were enough to through her aim off and the energy sailed over his shoulder and smashed a mirror into glittering shards. Enough was enough with the pain front. Without a word or gesture to betray her spell, a shield of dark energy encased her from cowl to boot.