Ruby was definately the cheery one when normally Nika was the one trying to stay cheerful. She was hugged tightly a couple times by Iris. All three of them were trying to reassure Nika as weel as Iris that the two girls should stay at the mansion. The statement Ruby had made regarding people caring was very true. Nika had never seen so many people care for others even when they barely knew them. So many people tried to help Iris in her time of need.

The cat girl leaned over and nuzzled the side of her head to Ruby's head and purred softly. The girl was very sweet and caring. "Thank you Ruby and thank you also Iris. I do want to stay here, but I want for you to stay also Iris. I'll make sure you're safe here." Nika flared up her chest in a cheezy yet tough sort of pose. Her tail flicked about in a more cheerful manner and her eyes also regained their happy sparkle.

The tiny fox yipped happily as she was given attention, glad that she could cheer up her new friends. She curled her tail around her tiny body timidly as her rather large ears perked up slightly.

"You guys are nice, I hope we can become good friends. I also hope Emmy gets better soon with that jerkface trying to get to her." Ruby's ears drooped a bit. "I am not gonna be useless if nesary Im gonna protect my big sister! "

Ruby puffed out her small chest, trying to fluff herself up to look bigger. "Besides I have new toys that will help, not only can I cheer my friends up but I can kick tail when needed!"

A slight giggle came from Nika as she watched Ruby's little performance. "I like you too and I would like to be good friends as well. I would also like to get to know your sister more too." Nika flexed her muscles a bit. "I'm pretty good at kicking some tail myself. Just ask Iris."

A genuine chuckle escaped Iris’s throat. Nika was right; Iris had been on both sides of her 'tail-kicking', and could appreciate her statement. And she didn't doubt Ruby could as well, especially after hearing what her sister was capable of. Emerald was lucky to have a little sister like her. Again Iris’s smile waver just a bit, as another wave of sorrow washed over her. But she took a deep breath to surpress it. Ruby and Nika were trying so hard to comfort her; she didn’t want them to think their efforts were wasted.

A rather loud knock on the door nearly startled Iris out of her seat. She was obviously still jumpy. She stood and went to open it, but there was no one in the hallway, at least, not that she could see. On the ground was a little envelope, with her name on it. Curious, and suspicious, she picked it up and closed the door. The envelope looked like a normal greeting card envelope, though a bit bulky. She shook it, but nothing rattled or moved inside. She moved to the desk and pulled out a small letter opener keychain. Gingerly, she slit open the top, holding the edges. Unconsciously, she also held her breath. Paranoia was going to be a constant companion for a long time to come.

Inside was a simple greeting card, the kind that plays a song when you open it. She gave Nika and Ruby a confused look, and red the note aloud.

”And the number one way to clean the cat’s litterbox is....”

Inside, the card read, ‘Get rid of the cat!’ But Iris didn’t read it. All she saw was the sudden appearance of a furry mouth full of razor sharp, dripping fangs, a pair of blazing red eyes, and a set of gigantic claws aimed at her throat. Her shriek drowned out the monster’s roar, as she fell backwards, nearly landing on Ruby, dropping the card. Suddenly the door burst open, and the room was, for about five seconds, bathed in a blinding white light.

It took more than a few moments for Iris to register that the monster wasn’t attacking. It was laughing. No... scratch that. Someone behind the monster was laughing hysterically. And the laughter was being accompanied by a short version of ‘Who Let the Dogs Out’ in the background.

”You should’ve seen your face! I’m SOO going to post this my fansite! This is priceless!”

”CHIP!! I’m giong to KILL you!!” Iris shot to her feet, but the thirteen year old was out the door and down the hall before Iris could get to the doorway. Iris made a frustrated half-growl, half-shriek and slammed the door, her heart still pounding furiously.

She didn’t notice the tiny, fast-fading sparks in the corners of her ceiling, nor the one under the bed. Also, she didn't see at first the letter opener sticking out of the wall besides door, right where the beast's heart would have been.

Hunter frowned in annoyance as the cameras all went offline. He guessed the hologram was involved, as only something with a photographic memory would notice the tiny cameras. Fortunately he had gained enough data, so it was only a minor setback.

He began thinking of ways to deal with the hologram, as it could prove to be a serious problem. Pressing the intercom button he got hold of Chris and explained the situation. Chris immediately got to work on preparing a trap should the hologram come snooping about the lab mainframe again.

In case it didn’t he would make a device to deactivate it. Just attach the device to the phone and the hologram would be unable to activate. With plans now in motion to deal with the electronic pest Hunter finalised his plans for Paragon, and sent the last images of her room to the builders. Everything needed to be just right.

Ruby yelped and scurried underneatht the bed when she saw the dog. Her big fluffy tail stuck out for a moment before she realized that the dog had no scent. The kit slowly stalked out and poked the thing rather irritably, she growled at it before snapping it closed.

The kit grumbled a bit before her ears twitched a bit. She sniffed the air and smelt another scent, it was faint but it was still there.

Emmy is everything okay?[i/] Ruby thought to her older sister

Ruby I think a dog followed you back to the insititute.

WHAT?! Emmy stay right where you are dont make any sudden movements!

Ruby turned into her human form rather quickly shaking herself off. She cursed herself with a growl. "Bloodfang followed me! Dang it! I cant let him hurt Emmy!" Ruby darted down the hallway, skidding around the corner.

A knock on the door almost sent Iris through the ceiling but Nika watched her friend go retrieve an envelope and read it. The card played some music but in what seemed like milliseconds a giant werewolf looking creature appeared and looked as if it was attacking Iris. At the same time the instant the beastly image registered in Nika's head her adrenaline kicked in. As Iris fell backwards Nika growled and attacked the monster which resulted in her crashing through the wall and leaving a gaping hole.

Nika had ended up squating on her hands and feet and looked back into Iris' room. She felt really confused as well as a bit embarrassed. "Umm...I'm sorry Iris. I thougth it was real and I was trying to protect you."

Then Ruby mentioned something about someone or something named Bloodfang and she raced off to find Emmy. Nika turned to Iris once again with a confused look.

Iris gulped in several breaths to calm herself. She only vaugely registered Ruby's exclamation and departure. Her heart was pounding so loud between her ears, she could really focus.

"Umm...I'm sorry Iris. I thought it was real and I was trying to protect you."

Iris blinked several times, then looked down. She saw the hole, and Nika looked through it at her. She closed her eyes and slumped against the door.

"It's okay Nika. Don't worry about it." After all, what was one more hole a this point? Tricity was already going to kill her as it was. Eyes still closed, she reached up and pulled the letter opener out of the wall, setting it on the desk. She took several more breaths, then sat on the bed. She looked at Nika and tried to smile. "I think I just need some rest. I haven't slept well in days." Obviously. "I think I'm going to go ahead and turn in. Thank you... for try... for cheering me up."

Her eyes were still red, and she did look as if she needed rest more than anything.

"I'll let you get some rest and I'll go see what's going on with Ruby then. I hope tomorrow is a better day for you Iris and if you need anything just holler ok?" Nika stepped back into Iris' room and hugged the poor girl before heading back tot he infirmary.

Iris watched Nika go, but she really wasn't seeing anything. Despite Ruby's and Nika's efforts, guilt still consumed her.

With a sigh, she stood up and began shifting things in the room. It took some effort, but eventually the hole in the wall was covered by the nightstand and a couple of boxes, enough so Ebony wouldn't bolt out.

Then she slid into her desk chair. For a while she simply sat there, arms crossed on the desktop, head down. She resembled a rag doll, the way her body was slumped forward. Thoughts and images replayed over and over in her head, and emotions. She felt like an amnesia patient, frustrated by the blank spots where memories should have been. Some part of her felt that, if she could only remember what she'd done, she could avoid doing it again in the future. Then another part would come back and argue that even if she knew, why would she think she could control it the second time around?

Hardly changing her position, she reached over and pulled a notepad and pen to her.

you should stay with people you care about! She wrote down what Ruby had said, then paused. Below it she wrote,

But what happens if you put the people you care about in danger? How can you say you care about them?

Standing up, she left the pad on the desk, then turned to collapse on the bed. Eventually she turned over, and cried herself to sleep.

(OOC: Continued in Mondragon Labs

(OOC: Continued from Retrieving Paragon)

IC: The van pulled up at the edge of the mansion. Hunter stepped out and cast about with all his senses. It was the dead of night and no one was about. His enhanced senses meant that he had not bothered with night vision goggles, as he could see as clear as day in the dim light.

Turning to Jazz he said, “Time to do your stuff.” Opening the rear of the van he revealed the empty battery that could hold all the block’s power. “Time to take out the power.”

As the onyx van came to a stop just outside the mansion grounds Zephyr swiftly slipped the goggles around his cranium. As he had declined to bring any sort of mask the NVG would be the only thing obscuring his features and therefore his identity, however the merc wasn’t planning on allowing anyone to sense him, let alone see him so it was unlikely to be an issue.

As the complex optic enhancer slid into place over his azure orbs the elemental raised a hand to side of his head and began to adjust the various filters that came with the expensive gear until he was rewarded with a crisp image of the half demolished structure that was the mansion. Unlike his employer the Zephyr was not gifted with any sort of night vision and so had to rely on the electrical images the high tech glasses granted his optic nerves, still the devices did their work well so he couldn’t really complain.

The mansion itself was simply a wreck, large chunks had been torn out of the expansive front lawn and sections of it had been simply burn to a crisp. As for the normally stately looking building that housed a decent number of naive mutant youths well, in truth it wasn’t that bad… if you just overlooked the east wing. The entire westward section looked as though it had been through the blitz with various craters and cracks decorating what would have been a grand exterior. Simon could only guess at the extent of the damage that the interior of the building had suffered, still it was no problem of his and so he paid this thought no further heed as he stepped out of the van gazed up silently at the mansion, waiting for Jazz to complete her segment of the mission.

Jazz smiled as she walked out of the vehicle, looking around the Mansion. This place wasn't too bad: big, lush, somewhat secluded, Jazz could see how someone might want to live here. She nodded slowly to her boss and licked her lips slightly, bracing her feet. The bracing was just a precaution: she hadn't gotten thrown after absorbtion in a long time. Jazz focused on the idea of opening herself up like a current as she inhaled, feeling the electricity start to fill her veins.

Soon the lights of the Mansion started to flicker and eventually faded away completely. She smiled to herself and continued the absorbtion, watching the entire block start to go dark. She smiled smugly to herself a little and, as the final light flickered from the house at the end of the block, Jazz walked over to the battery and started draining the power into it and quickly: the last thing she needed was to get high on this mission.

"Okay" Jazz licked her lips again and shook her hands out slightly. "Emptied."

Hunter smiled as the few lights that were on flickered and died. Now they just needed to cross the wall. He knew that he and Zephyr could cross it effortlessly, but Jazz would probably have a more difficult tome getting over the eight foot wall. Going to the back of the van Hunter pulled out a coil of thin climbing rope and looped it over one shoulder. Heading back towards the wall he went over to Jazz and said, “Allow me to give you a hand over.”

Sweeping Jazz off her feet he held her in his arms, her weight barely noticeable. Stepping up to the wall he leapt straight up and landed on the top of the wall with the grace of a cat. Quickly scanning the mansion grounds he saw that it was deserted and he leapt down off the wall, landing lightly on the grass.

Setting Jazz down he headed towards the mansion itself. Finding Paragon’s room he noted that while the window was shut, there was a hole in the wall not to far from her room. Zephyr could send the darts in through there. Puling out a small screen he handed it to Zephyr and motioned for him to proceed. “Make sure you get the cat first.”

Iris had been tossing and turning all night. Despite being home, nightmares continued to haunt her sleep. Her subconscious kept flashing images at her; Syn, taunting her with smug smile... Nail, covered in crystal and in pain... Suffocating beneath a red-eyed gaze... A look of surprise and pain on Raina's face... Being enclosed in dirt tomb... A wall of fire blocking her way... Nika, with claws extended... Being stuck in a glass cage... More fire...

In her dreams the visions were vivid and clear, though they faded from one to another. But the few times she awoke in a cold sweat, she couldn't remember what she'd seen. The only image that she could remember was a pair of silver eyes staring back at her from within a mountain lake. That nightmare had been with her ever since she was little, but it had only come to her once in a while. Yet, ever since coming to the Mansion, she'd had it every time she closed her eyes.

She would take several deep breaths to calm herself, then try to return to sleep, only to be plagued again once her subconscious took control.

On top of the stack still-unpacked boxes, Ebony watched her mom toss and turn, her blue eyes wide with curiosity in the dark. A soft purr-slash-murr, rumbled from her throat every time her human shifted. She could sense the fear and unease in the air, but she did not want to risk being hit or tossed, as had happened on occasion when her human had these 'episodes'. Instead she contented herself with standing watch for any real threat the dark night might produce.