Smoke & Mirrors: Aaron Dreams Again

5/12/2006

04:12 PM
Logfile from GarouMUSH.

Currently the moon is in the waxing Full Moon phase (99% full).
It is currently 16:01 Pacific Time on Fri May 12 2006.
Currently in Saint Claire, it is a cloudy day. The temperature is 58 degrees Fahrenheit (14 degrees Celsius). The wind is currently coming in from the south at 7 mph, with gusts up to 18 mph. The barometric pressure reading is 30.21 and steady, and the relative humidity is 33 percent. The dewpoint is 29 degrees Fahrenheit (-1 degrees Celsius.)

Washington Warehousing(#2695RJ)
A two-story, wide open warehouse. Windows facing the waterfront let in some light, although the place is well-lit by the overhead lights. Currently the warehouse is empty but for some resident rats, moths, and a lone, rusted yellow forklift.
There's a loading dock door, which is closed, a closed person-sized-door, and a glass-walled office to one side of the floor, next to which a ladder heads up into the steel rafters of the building.
Contents:
Savages-Enemy
Obvious exits:
Ladder  Office  Door  

Savages-Enemy has found himself by the wharf at this time of the night and is in no shape to return to the Odeon on a full-moon. After several hours of sniffing out every corner of the abandoned warehouse, the lupus does a few turns and curls himself up in a dark corner.

The full moon is barely shining through the window panes of the warehouse, creating but a sliver of light. As the ahroun drifts off into sleep, his dreams are varied, yet forgettable. Of days gone by, when his voice was still there, and of days perhaps to come, where the world passes by and things happen in quiet, forgettable silence. Then as the dreaming world fades back off into black, a voice whispers in his mind's ears. "Why do you have to be such a loser."

Savages-Enemy gives a flicker of his ear in his sleep, or perhaps he might even be dreaming it. He curls up his lip and silently snarls into the darkness that surrounds him.

Laughter. Sneering, derisive laughter chuckles from the darkness. Roger. Damn him. Damn him and his friends. The thoughts pass in the mind, ratcheting up the unpleasant feeling to the whole atmosphere. Still the mind is dark and devoid of light.

Savages-Enemy snaps at the air in front of his muzzle, continuing to snarl. The guardhairs at his neck begining to stand. He attempts to find his footing to stand in the void of darkness that surrounds him. Get out of my mind, damnit.

Can it? The feeling of being watched is everywhere, soaking into the mind, boring into every mental hole. "You suck." "Blow me, dipwad." "Haha, what a loser." "You useless piece of shit." Everywhere. The phrases come back in slow fades, in and out of the subconscious, like someone digging through a chest of past insults and tossing them out onto the floor, exposing them for all to hear and see.

Shut the fuck up! The Bone Gnawer's ears flatten against his head. Leave me alone! He huffs from his nostrils as they flare wide in anger and outrage.

"You're always angry all the time." "What's your problem?" "Go away!" The sounds persist, until finally there is something in the distant plane of the dream. A figure. Someone. Something just screams that it must be the source of the insults, only the coward is too scared to really show himself.

Savages-Enemy snarls and saliva drips from the corner his lips as he bulks up and makes several silent vicious barks towards the figure as it comes within view. He does not answer the question. Instead he leaps into action and begins to run down the figure now in the distant plane.

The figure gets closer and closer, like it has a spotlight on him. Definitely a him. Call it instinct, that this is the one who is the source of all his troubles. But, the ahroun can only see him from behind. Go figure that only a coward would hurl insults without even looking at the one he insults! How angering! "Your tribemate's a charach! I bet you're just as bad!" yells the voice, unidentifiable but male. "Is that all you can do, you stinkin', dirty, mangy DOG?"

His limbs carry him closer, ignoring all of the insults. Suddenly the Ahroun leaps towards the blinding light. His fangs are bared in attack-mode.

Thud! The ahroun pounces upon the guy whose back is turned. The young man turns around with a look of horror on his face just before the two collide, where just as the fullmoon's fangs snap towards his throat, he can see whose face that is. It is, actually, his own. Before he can stop himself, the Gnawer has torn out the throat of the man. Or, it would be himself. Had he ever seen himself in the mirror... that would be him. Red, red blood pools on the ground, gleaming thickly in the light.

Dripping blood from his muzzle, he stares wide-eyed at the figure and backs up with his tail between his legs. His ears flatten quickly with a shutter of his form. Why? He whines softly in his throat. Why?

"Because violence is the only way," answers the supposed-to-be-dead clone. Its voice gurgles, spitting up blood, leaking the vitae all down the front of his shirt. Slowly, the human-Aaron sits up and shakes his head at the cringing, confused lupus. "You really are an idiot. What kind of dishonorable coward kills someone from behind? And then regrets it after? What's wrong with you?" It might be Aaron's face, but it's Roger's voice, mixing with a strange sound, probably made that way because of damaged vocal chords.

Stop trying to confuse me, the lupus growls. He looks at his human face, his muzzle cringing as he sees the reflection of himself. You are not me, your someone else.

"Oh, oh that's rich. Yeah tell yourself off." Calmly, the clone continues to sit there, smirking at the lupus. "What the hell do you think you're trying to do to yourself?"

Savages-Enemy begins pacing, although his hairs at the back of his neck remain bristled. He looks confused as he looks at the reflecting image of himself. Why are you here?

The clone eventually stands up, brushing himself off. "When you figure that one out, tell me." The jerk! A flash of Rage sparks in the back of the real ahroun's mind. Kill him. He's just a fake after all.

That seems promising, he is an Ahroun afterall, it would be simple to just kill him. How does he make these nightmares end, he wonders. He snarls at the clone, savagely barking. You don't belong here, get out!

Aaron's Clone turns around, a savage grin appearing on his features. "What, what are you going to do about it? You know you can't escape from me. I am a /part of you/. Get out? I don't belong here? I AM YOU."

Savages-Enemy growls and snaps at the air. He rises into crinos and strides towards the clone of himself. ~Then I will remove whatever vile taint of me you are.~ he snarls as he wants to finish this. The Ahroun is tired and only wants rest.

"Wait, wait, hang on." Suddenly, the clone is all about survival. "You're really going to kill me? You can't be serious?" The teen is backing away now. "You already did once! How many more times are you going to do that?" Sniveling little whiner. Isn't it better to kill him? He was such a cocky bastard towards you. Just like Roger was. This was the Aaron of the past, no doubt. That little voice inside who was self-serving, narcissistic. Weak little coward. Bastard child.

Whatever that was his past, it needs to be settled, it needs to die and never return. He foams at the mouth as his rage comes to boil, ears flattening against his skull. He does not care what anyone thinks of him anymore. All he wants is peace.

Peace. Of course. And the only way to achieve that peace is to shut this babbling, bumbling idiot up. "Ok, ok, I'll cut you a deal. You leave me alone, and I'll leave you alone. How's that?" And after all that he just said? Bloodied hands come up in a shrug of supplication. "Deal?"

No! He growls, his body tensing with agression. He bares his teeth in a vicious snarl as be begins advancing. The Ahroun's heart races and his nerves are twitching as his eyes become wild. You need to go.

"Well you're the one who came to me," the clone pouts. "Attacked me. Throated me. You're the one that needs to go back where you came from." A blood covered hand reaches up and renews its reddish stains from the gaping, gorey wound on his neck. "Shit, that's going to stain."

Savages-Enemy tears at the seams. ~I CANNOT GO BACK!~ he roars before he launches at the clone in his rage.

A pitiful wailing cry goes up, just as the ahroun falls upon his double once again. Unreasoning rage just seems to pour out, as finally, Finally, he gives in to the urge to kill that which infuriates him. Soon the face is mauled. The head is torn off, spine snapped with a sickening, yet satisfying crunch of bone and snap of tendons in the fullmoon's jaws. Yes, yes, this is what is right. Instead of black, the world goes a bright, saturated blood red, and the heat of frenzy is perfectly fitting. In moments, the scenery around the Gnawer plunges into the heat of a battle, where Garou fight against other Garou. Shadowy forms rush past him, blurry, panting with eagerness to kill. Though everything maintains a reddish tinge, the surrounds look like the caern woods, and here and there, the dead bodies of the fallen and the maimed are strewn. ~The Hidden Walk has fallen!~ cries out a howl, desperate and pleading. ~We have been betrayed!~ It rings out, but is quickly cut off. Beneath the ahroun now, lies the twisted, mangled form of some unrecognizeable former Garou. Dead.

Savages-Enemy is horrorstricken as he finds the mangled form of a Garou under him. He hears the screams around him that makes him press his ears against his head. Oh Gaia! He cries out in desperation. I am not a litany breaker! He looks around him in fear. How can this happen? He is not a traitor.

~Come Brother!~ snarls a voice, unfamiliar but still somehow ringing true. ~Take your next kill! This way!~ Howls that sound more like war whoops press on. Screams of pain, roars of victory, they call to the inner beast of the ahroun. What are you doing, just standing there? Go and fight! This is what you do!

The Ahroun has no clue what is going on, but he moves away from the mangled body. His eyes still look back upon it in confusion. Was that a tainted Garou he had just killed? It had to have been. Yes, that's it. He feels pride in himself as he steps away, he must be trying to kill of some sort of enemy.

Of course the Garou was tainted. They all are. They believe wrongly, and for that they must be destroyed before they can bring further harm. ~This way!~ call the voices again, directing towards the caern's heart. Go, don't just stand there! The heart races, urging the ahroun on. ~Cleanse them from the face of this place! We will have our revenge!~

Savages-Enemy races on ahead, his warrior spirit now beating in his chest. That's the ticket, he thinks to himself as he curls out his tongue with his breath beating in his masculine chest. Kill all the tainted ones and make Gaia's land pure.

Yes, onward! The caern's heart looms just over the edge of the rim, where he reaches the edge. Beneath, the battle rages on. Garou against Garou. Which one are the tainted ones? It's hard to tell, but there are familiar faces and unfamiliar faces. The most important thing is to seek out a target and to kill it. A claw claps onto the full moon's shoulder. ~Well? What do you think? Beautiful, isn't it?~

Savages-Enemy appears cross when he turns to look at towards the figure who's claw has just clapped him on the shoulder. I don't understand, he rumbles.

That same hand quickly backhands the ahroun upside the head. ~What are you waiting for? This is your chance! Get down there and fight, fullmoon!~ The blow is harsh, demanding, pushy. ~The Beast-of-War calls you to its side!~

Savages-Enemy feels the backhand and he growls. He begins down the slope into the caern, ready for battle, and tries to find an unfamiliar Garou who must be the one who is tainted.

Do not challenge the leader in times of war. So says the Litany. Only, which Litany is it now? As he nears, the differences are even less apparent. A small form leaps on top of the ahroun, biting savagely at his spine. The lupus' form growls with a ferocity that belies its smaller form. DIE! Like it or not, he's been thrown into the battle.

Savages-Enemy shakes his fur and howls in pain when the lupus purchases his teeth on his spine. Then heavily falls on the smaller lupus to shake it off of him.

The lupus yelps as the crinos falls upon her. Yes, her. I can't believe you would do it, snarls out a familiar tone. Leaves-None crawls back up to her feet, bristling all over. Her coat is marred by claw slashes and fang bites, and all around the pair the war rages on. She bulks up to a hispo form, clearly nothing friendly coming from her posture. ~How could you do such a thing? You gave in. You gave up!~ The accusation is so clear. But so wrong. Who is the guilty? The one in front of the ahroun is, of course! Fury rises up inside him, and the logic becomes clear. Masao is the one who would not see the truth. And those who are not with you, are obviously against you. It flashes hotly in the mind, and the beast inside urges for war. He said it himself. There's no going back.

Savages-Enemy shakes himself as he sees that it is Masao but he is so very angered. The Ahroun cannot keep the tingling feeling of rage inside of him. Whatever must happen, must happen. He has no choice in how it is supposed to end.

So the pair inevitably, clash. The smaller Gnawer leaps forward, large hispo jaws aimed for the ahroun's throat. It's almost with a disconnected feeling that he strikes back, automatic, soon again losing himself to the Rage that has pent up within him. An inner voice revels in glee as he strikes her down, making almost too short a work with her. Power is what flows through him, unending power. That fuels his next strikes, batting away all attacks like they were flies. Frenzy licks at the edges of his vision, and then the dam that holds his Rage breaks and it all flows together again. Crashing bodies, crushing skulls, glorifying the acts of war by embracing the Rage.

The world drips, blood red, and then goes dark as the ahroun actually jerks himself awake again. The time sense has yet to return to him for a few moments, before he realizes he is in the warehouse. And, he is in Crinos. In the darkness, it's hard to see his claws have scratched the ground hard.

Savages-Enemy stands in the darkness, panting as he looks up at the ceiling. He drops to his knees and as he does so, his form changes back into homid. The form of the Ahroun slumps forward, placing his forehead against the ground and breathing intensive breaths.

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