Colin's posts

Jaden just looked to the side for a moment.

"Was a time when I considered that a viable solution..." he muttered.

"Regardless, I know there are a lot of good people on them." he said.

"Unfortunately, the toxic minority are very VERY loud." he growled.

"I mean, if Desiree wants to wade into that mire, then it's her business. I have no control over if she does or not." he then told Abby.

"Kalin, however, miiiiiight have a little more weight with that decision." he added.

Jaden just sighed.

"Kalin has her own reasons." he said.

"I, personally... and I admit this... worry too much about her." he told Abby.

"I've seen the cesspool that social media is." he went on.

"Desiree does NOT need to be exposed to that." he muttered.

"So many idiots have been given a voice to spew their bile into the world." he then grumbled further.

Jaden looked at the paper, and thought for a moment.

"Yeah, phone's probably best." he said.

"Desiree and I are on very little social media platforms, and even then, they're managed mostly by people we trust, and are usually just to post schedules and promotions." he went on.

"And we're not on ANY chat sites, or use any chat programs." he then added.

"That's more MY thing." Darrel commented. "I use most of the popular ones."

An unknown amount of time passed before Eke woke up.

And when he did, he saw Ryker sitting across from him.

He was leaning against the wall of the cave, appeared to be passed out, and his clothes looked quite singed, like he'd been in close proximity to a violent blast.

And he wasn't moving, either.

His chest was rising and falling slightly, but he was silent and otherwise still.

Jaden crossed his arms over his chest.

"Problems?" he asked.

"Whether or not you cause problems depends on one person." he told her.

"I will deal with this." he said.

"Darrel will deal with this." he continued.

"However, the real decision lies with the one that has the strongest connection to you."

Jaden raised an eyebrow.

"Really?" he asked.

"You just wanted to meet her?" he asked further.

"I see." Darrel said.

"I thought we had a new addition in our lives." he admitted.

Darrel just sighed.

He knew she had a point.

Jaden then cleared his throat.

"Well then." he said.

"Maybe we should go." he suggested.

"You two probably have more to talk about." he reasoned, referring to Desiree and Abby.

"Everything is FINE and DANDY!" the man's voice rang out.

The door then opened, and Ryker popped his head out.

"Listen." he said, obviously still being the 'other him'.

"Things are about to get a little more... interesting... around here." he told him.

"If I were you, I'd find somewhere to hide. You might not like what you see when things start to get... going." he warned.

"Remember that little cave we walked past? You may wanna hole up in there." he finished, before giving Eke his jacket.

"Just a heads-up." he then added, disappearing back into the shack and closing the door.

"....you say that, but you already have such impressive stories..." Darrel replied.

Jaden was silent, thinking for a moment, before something came to him.

"Wait a second..." he said.

"Are you... threatened by Abby?" he asked.

"I know she won't hurt me." Darrel responded.

"You KNOW what I meant." Jaden commented. "Are you feeling intimidated by your sudden older half-sister that seems to have an exciting life and-" he started to say further.

"N-NO!" Darrel interrupted with a stutter.

Darrel shook his head.

"It's not that." he said.

"...then what is it?" Jaden asked.

"What's got YOU seemingly all moody?" he asked further.

"......" Darrel was silent again, before sighing.

"So... you're pretty successful and a big deal, huh?" he then asked Abby.

"Indeed." Jaden agreed.

"A feather in the cap for ANY Hunter." he said.

"Whatever guild you work for is lucky to have you, even if they don't realize it." he went on.

At this point, Darrel had clammed up, and had slowly moved to one of the corners of the room.

He crossed his arms over his chest, and merely waited.

"Ok, let me reword that." Jaden said.

"Forget about points and scoring." he said further.

"What's the hunt you're most proud of?" he asked. "What's the hunt that you feel gives you any sort of bragging rights?" he inquired.

"Every Hunter has at least ONE."

"....a Hunter?" Darrel asked.

"So. A Guild Hunter." Jaden commented.

"What sort of track record do you have?" he asked her.

"Even guilds that aren't so great do have SOME impressive hunters and hunts under their belt." he reasoned.

"How successful ARE you?"

Eke soon had outside help in staying upright.

Inside the shake, an alarmingly strong darkness could be sensed, and his instincts immediately had him on high alert, adrenaline causing him to ignore how he felt.

He also heard maniacal cackling from the 'doctor' inside.

The sort of laughter that would send chills down ANYONE'S spine.