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IRON MAN; TONY STARK. โ
"Yes, and I understand that," Tony muttered into his ear piece, actually not understanding a word of what Pepper had said to him through it. "But if you're on personal leave, who's going to feed the cat?" Of course, Pepper's only response to him was, 'Tony, you don't have a cat.' As Tony finished pulling his blazer on, he pulled a face in his full-length mirror. "See, exactly. If you're gone, who's going to remind me that I don't have little vermin running around, screwing everything up?" Naturally, he wasn't able to stop the soft chuckle from slipping from the back of his throat, but it was quickly put on pause at Pepper's response. With a sigh of his own, he nodded his head on his way out of his bedroom, despite the fact that she couldn't see him whatsoever. Letting her speak more about the reasons why she was going on personal leave, Tony's lips pursed, tempted to interrupt her, but he quickly decided against it. "Alright, Pepper. Yes, I- No. Of course I'm going to have wild parties; no parents in the house, remember? Not for another two months," this time he grinned through his response, and he heard a bit of a smile through Pepper's voice- as much as she was trying to contain it.
Exiting into the garage of his penthouse, Tony stopped in front of his Audi, checking his pants pocket to make sure the keys were still in there. "Uh huh. Yeah. Yes, I'm going to make whats-her-face feel at home," he started, opening the driver side of his car before getting in. "You know, I'm actually offended that you'd think that I'd put my sexual desire over my company, Miss Potts. And if you're not careful, I might just hire, uh... whatever her name is, and leave you back home with family." The tone he used was obviously a joking one, as if the large grin that he wore while he said it wasn't enough to tip her off on that. She gave a soft joking response, and then started to close up the call, saying she had to get ready for dinner soon. Stark wasn't too happy about that, considering this was literally his first time without Pepper being at arms length, and he had to bite the inside of his cheek for a moment to prevent himself from saying so. "You worry too much, Pepper. I'll be fine. Really, as fine as I've always been," he assured her, surprised at his own tone of voice. He sounded extremely confident that he'd be alright without her, even though on the inside, he was about ready to start begging for her to come back. After he hung up, Tony pushed the key into the ignition of his sports car and pulled out of its space. Exiting the garage altogether, he sped down the bend of his street and headed towards Stark Industries. Naturally, he leaned forward and pressed the CD button on his dashboard's console, and instantly AC DC came over the speakers, blaring the sound into the mountain side, the wind in his hair.
It wouldn't have taken him so long to get there if he hadn't stopped to grab a bite to eat along the way. To be honest, he was purposely wasting time, sitting through McDonald's drive-thru. It wasn't his nerves, per say, but Tony couldn't really say he was too excited to meet this Elizabeth character. Pepper had hired her completely alone, so Tony couldn't get a chance to get his word in before the final say was done. Meeting new people, new people that were working strictly as his assistant, always made Tony a little flustered. No one, in his entire life experience of running Stark Enterprises, he had never met someone who worked as well, and efficiently as Pepper. Not only that, but there was a very soft spot for the redhead in his heart, and that feeling was extremely irreplaceable. Trying to replace that image with some stranger that he literally knew nothing about - barely even her name - wasn't something Tony was in a rush to do. Unfortunately for Elizabeth, that meant she'd be dealing with a much more stressful issue than she thought she would be. Which, for Tony Stark, was perfectly alright. His schedule always worked around him, after all, and nothing else.
When he finally arrived, carrying his McDonald's take out bag in tote, he entered the building after parking and made his way up to his office. Once he stepped out of the elevator, he pushed his red sunglasses into his hairline, counting the doors until he reached his office. Once he was outside, he raised his hand slowly, taking a small sip from the beverage in his hand, counting down the seconds it was taking him just to open the door and walk through the entrance. Finally, when he was done swallowing, he grabbed the handle of the door with his free hand, pushing it open. Letting it close behind him, he walked straight over to his desk, his eyes catching Elizabeth's figure, though he made no attempt to look her over, or even made it seem like he was interested at all in talking to her just yet. Once he was at his desk, he flopped into his chair, rolling a bit closer to the desk. Leaning back, he lifted his legs, propping both his feet up, his sneakers holding his interest for a moment as he leaned forward a bit to set his drink down.
"So." he started abruptly, shoving his hand into his McDonald's bag, only now raising his eyes to hold her own. "What's your name again?" he asked, eyes narrowing to show that he was genuinely serious in not remembering it. While waiting for an answer, he pulled his hand out, a few fries gripped between them. Biting the ends off, he chewed, eyes still on her.
DRAGON AGE INQUISITION; CASSANDRA PENTAGHAST. โ
Formalities, as much as Cassandra wasn't a fan of them, tended to drive hard in her mannerisms. Such is why it was hard for the dark haired woman to remind herself of their Inquisitor's preferred title; her nickname, rather than something as formal as 'Inquisitor'. It more than likely came from the fact that she'd been called so many high things in her lifetime, Seeker and the Divine's Right Hand being the highest among them. The 'order' that the rogue gave them only clarified the difference between their way of addressing things, Cassandra knowing she'd use something along her lines to tell her group of companions to charge in, but that was the way of things. Their leader had a sense of humor that was, even though she didn't admit it, refreshing to be around. Much better than Varric's, that was certain.
All she had to do was hear the words 'last one' and Cassandra was charging down the hill towards the heat of the battle, her sword and shield at the ready. As soon as she was in earshot of the fighting bodies, she let out a loud roar, gaining the attention of two Venatori that'd started to close in on a dalish member of the Chargers. With their attention now honing in on her, she grinned, her blood flaring within her veins as the heat of the battle started to pump within her. The first closed in, leaving the second to remain behind, throwing a barrier up around the two of them. Cassandra paid no heed, lunging forward with her sword, lashing at the first member of the Venatori. Her blade connected with the man's torso, and with her momentum, she swiveled her foot, carrying the blade out into a spin as he gasped. Leaving him in his attempt to recompose himself, the warrior swiftly continued in her strike, lifting her shield to block an oncoming electric ball that the spellcaster released from his staff. He'd clearly assumed that she wasn't going to block his attack, and when she bashed her shield into his body, sending him off his feet, she couldn't help but feel a bit of a smug smirk ghost at the corner of her lips.
Plunging her sword into the man's vital organs, giving him a swift death, she pivoted in order to face the remaining Venatori, only to see Solas had quickly dispatched of him. After giving a soft nod of approval in the apostate's direction, she charged towards the remaining of the Venatori to help dwindle them down, whose numbers had fallen little in the small amount of time the Inquisition group had waded in.
As the last man was taken care of, Cassandra heaved her shield back into its rightful place, more concerned with cleaning her blade of its filth before she settled it at her waist. Even so, as she cleaned her weapon, her eyes never left the two leaders as Leila made her way towards the Chargers' enforcer. It'd been some time since she'd been involved with the Qun, indirectly or otherwise, but she couldn't tell what to make from the company she saw before them. At first glance, they looked like a group of savages, but she knew that wasn't an appropriate judgment. After all, the Inquisition wasn't seen as anything but a group of heretics in the Chantry's eyes. It still didn't make her feel better about the situation, though; these mercenaries already seemed to come with enemies. She wasn't sure if the Inquisition could afford anymore than the ones they already had to face.
Varric and Solas came to rest at her sides as she observed the encounter between their Inquisitor and Iron Bull, slowly bringing her blade up to slide it back into its sheath. "We should intervene, before we lose her to his company," she mused, not entirely joking about the idea. She could easily see Leila signing on to slaughter things for a hefty price. It seemed to suit her better than Herald of Andraste status, at least. The dwarf chuckled, seeing the same perspective about their dual-bladed rogue, while Solas simply remained silent, the pinched look on his face making it clear he was more uncomfortable about being in their current location than she was. Although, upon approaching the two, and hearing their leader's rather 'impressive' start at their introductions, Cassandra's face was almost mimicking their elven apostate's. The clench of her fists clearly demonstrated that Leila's thought to dance out of her reach was a smart one, leaving her to huff at the over-shared information. It was bad enough she couldn't go much of anywhere without someone asking her about a dragon, or her impressive abilities as a Seeker. Not to mention, it nearly felt like she was related to almost everyone she swept across because of her heritage.
"You forgot to mention she belongs to the family that nearly wiped out dragons-" A brash cuff upside the back of the dwarf's head cut off Varric's teasing tone, causing him to yelp and take a few steady paces away in retreat to rub the area affected. "You can call me Cassandra, or Lady Seeker if that is what you prefer." She begrudgingly announced afterwards, crossing her arms in defeat over her chest plate as her caramel eyes came to rest on the Qunari sitting before them.
"Varric Tethras," the dwarf eventually managed to conclude to the introductions, still rubbing the slightly sore spot on his head. "And before you ask, the crossbow's Bianca. No, I'm not explaining it, so don't ask." He clarified, figuring since Leila had informed Bull of his 'obsession', he might need one. Telling him she had a name probably didn't make Leila's words seem any less true.. Upon Solas' silence, Cassandra glanced towards the elf, who eventually spoke his name through tightly pressed lips, his distrust clearly visible. Pushing past the small moment of silence after everyone was on a first name basis, Cassandra's eyes address the Qunari before her once more, arms remaining in their crossed position. "I'm assuming you've already spoken to Leliana and made arrangements for payment?" Where Josephine was going to get the funds for their services, she honestly had no idea, but she knew better than to question a Montilyet - now, at least.
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OC PANDORA ; APOCALYPTIC SETTING โ
even at a young age, thunderstorms had always brought a sense of uneasiness to pandora. the loud cracking of the electricity occasionally hitting down was the least of her worries, however. what terrified scar's second in command the most was the booming thunder that felt as though it'd rattle through the facility, and dive into her heartbeat. it's always been one of her greatest fears, and because of her rank within the facility, it wasn't like she could casually bring it up to anyone now. not without getting some sort of slack, or an eyeful of judgement. a thirty-four year old who was capable of decapitating several infected targets within thirty seconds shouldn't be remotely scared of a little thunder.
nonetheless, it only took one small faint sound for pandora's mood to instantly switch from determined in her training session, to making up an excuse to dip out early. considering it was rare that pandora ever left a training session early, or missed out on one, she wasn't given another thought and was allowed to slip rather easily towards the one and only place she really felt.. okay. not safe, but not like she'd be ridiculed for such a silly fear if it happened to come out. and as she made her way to ethan's quarters, she thought back on every other time she'd hidden in his bathtub when the skies had taken a turn for the worse after she'd grown her attachment to the explosives enthusiast. by now, she'd be a little surprised if he hadn't already pieced her fear together. maybe he was just trying to be polite, for her sake.
when she heard him come in, and start to get comfortable, pandora's eyes opened, and she squinted at the faint light that was seeping into the bathroom. after rubbing a bit of sleep from the corner of her eye, a bit of a relieved smile tugged at the corner of her lip, even for a moment, at the sight of ethan. she didn't understand why she felt so comfortable with him, but out of almost everyone in scar's facility, ethan was the only one she could really sit and have a true conversation with. and she knew that when he realized she was there, she'd be able to talk to him about anything that came to mind to get her thoughts off the thunder. in essence, he was her number one distraction.
at his curse, her eyes widened a bit, her heart fluttering from the sudden break in silence. "i'm sorry," she quickly stammered under her breath, gripping the side of the tub to pull herself more so forward to make sure the mess he'd sprayed wasn't too large. if it was, she'd feel responsible to clean it up for scaring him so bad. wetting her throat, she slowly settled back against the back of the tub again, pulling her legs up from their stretched out position, intertwining her arms around them to hold them still. she watched him silently as he finished up his hands, and then made his way over to the tub. at first, she just let a ghost of a smile pull at her lips at his words, him easily admitting to being scared seeming so easy for him to do. a small stab of jealousy riddled through her mind, but she shoved it away.
"i.. just needed a breather. between training, and getting ready for my big upcoming mission.. it's just a lot to have on my plate on top of everything." she answered without skipping a beat, knowing the first key to telling a lie was having no hesitation. "i heard you had actually shown up for training this afternoon, so i thought you'd be out for a little while longer. sorry for intruding without permission.. again." this time, an actual smile pulled over her lips, and she tilted her chin against the top of her knee, her eyes remaining focused on him. it took her a moment, but after a few seconds of silence, it dawned on her. "that explosion was you, i'm guessing." naturally, not a question, considering she already knew the answer. her smile grew wider, but she attempted to hide it with her arm.
sometimes she didn't take her second in command duties very seriously.
OC JACKSON WOLFE; APOCALYPSE SETTING โ
the destruction at the hospital's main entrance was too hard to gain entry into the building, leaving jackson to round to the ambulance doors. normally, on another other raid, he wouldn't have cared about the extra few minutes it took him to wiggle his way silently past a few seemingly resting bodies, but today wasn't any regular day for the ex mercenary. it'd taken him a year and a half to get to this hospital, to look for his sister effi, and now he had to deal with rerouteing his path? he didn't have time for this shit. after he'd reached the doors, he found them unlocked; something that should've seemed odd to him, but he ignored it in the anxiety of the moment. his feet carried him down the unnaturally empty and perfectly hallway, as though they knew exactly where he was going. up the stairs, a right turn at the end of the hall, and then a left into room six-seven-four.
instantly, his body halted, the figure of a girl a handful of years younger than him sat before him on a hospital bed, her back facing him. her hair matched his, her skin the same shade of ivory. effi's name was on the tip of his tongue, but his mouth was so dry, that his throat swelled up when he tried to call out to her. at least, he was sure it was her.. it had to be.. he'd been searching for her for so long. managing a shuffle forward, the figure shifted suddenly, a cracking so horrible sounding that it echoed in jax's ears, causing him to flinch back with startle. it rose from it's sitting position, and slowly, it turned to face jackson, tilting its head back on it's nimble neck to sneer jagged and rotten teeth at him.
the entire reason he was still here, all the time he'd spent thinking she was being taken care of, was for nothing. everything was lost. what he saw before him was his sister, turned into monster. and it was lunging straight for him over that hospital bed. closing his left eye, he grabbing his handgun from his holster, aiming the barrel straight for her forehead. the momentum of the bullet sent her flying, what was left of her brain splattering against the hospital room's wall in clumps. it wasn't long before the sound of his gun was joined with the echoed moaning from the approaching walkers that'd heard the commotion, but he couldn't move. instead, he cupped his bloodied hands to his face, and he collapsed to his knees. whether his face was wet because of the dead blood, or because he was crying, he couldn't tell; his chest hurt too much from whatever the hell had just happened to tell if any part of that pain was from sobbing.
"effi.." he muffled into the palms of his gloves, clenching his eyes in disbelief. "why.. effi.."
"effi!" jackson bolted up from the bed he'd claimed for the night, right hand grasping his gun's handle, aiming it around the room as he panted, attempting to register had just happened. when he was satisfied that nothing was in the motel room with him, he slowly lowered the gun to rest in his lap, lifting his free hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead. by now, he'd started to collect his breath better, and the sleep had worn off enough to get a better hold of reality. "fucking nightmares. i have to stop dreaming about killing you.."
swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he stood up, flicking the safety on his gun before pushing it into the back of his jeans. flicking his lantern on, he kept it at a dimmed low, and continued on into his room's bathroom to wash himself up. carrying his towel out onto the small balcony that wasn't blockaded, he wiped his head off, ignoring his wet strands of hair as they fell where ever they pleased. he finished collecting the stray droplets from his bar chest before hanging the towel over the rail, resting his palms against the cool metal. glancing down, he observed the street below, thankful it was sill a relatively early time in the morning, no later than four, so the moon gave a better cover from any of the onlooking zombies.
it didn't, however, make for good cover against humans.
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