Colin's posts

".............." Max was silent as he found himself with Claire's life in his hands.

"....if I kill you... I would be considered a monster. Perhaps even by my own daughter." he said.

"However... if I let you live, knowing that you will just continue to make Desiree's life a living hell... then I truly AM a monster." he then reasoned.

"As a parent, this decision hurts me. But it must be done." he then finished, before slamming his fist right down on Claire's throat, collapsing it and cementing her death.

He then stepped away from her, made his way to Desiree's headphones, picked them up, and then made his way back to where his daughter was.

"....forgive your father his sins..." he whispered as he got close, and knelt down to check on her

Claire felt herself lifted off the floor... effortlessly.

"This ends tonight." Max told her.

"You have been terrorizing Desiree for far too long." he said.

"And now... it's time you finally get the consequences that are coming towards you." he then finished, before his grip around her neck tightened.

With that, he whirled her around, and slammed her face against the wall.

Hard.

And then he did it again. And again. He did it about 2 more times, before he threw her into a pile of boxes that had been filled with heavy dense objects.

"I am." Max replied.

"But not the hunter you WANT me to be." he told her.

"What I had been doing for so long was wrong." he said. "And the Lord punished me by giving me a child that was a mage." he went on.

"Not that a mage child is a punishment." he quickly clarified. "However, it forced me to see that what I had been doing all this time was killing those that, often, didn't deserve it. And I broke up families." he growled.

"So, I decided that the best thing to do would be to run away, and try and make it so that I was no longer a part of Desiree's life. I didn't deserve such a wonderful daughter, and she deserved better than me." he went on, before some faint streams of light illuminated his golden eyes.

"That thinking was wrong. I was being a coward. And I was further punished for it." he then told his ex-wife. "But now it's time I finally start to make things right, and show you what a coward can become." he finished.

With that, he seemed to concentrate a little, and his muscles bulged out noticeably. His hair grew longer, into fur, and his teeth sharpened up considerably. It wasn't a full transformation, but it was one that heightened his senses and strength.

"It's time I stopped running away from the past, and BURY it."

"That won't work THIS time." the woman hissed.

"You can't save yourself. And THAT MAN isn't here to help you." she then said, anger in her tone... moments before a larger hand grasped her wrist... and squeezed it so hard that she was forced to let go of Desiree.

"You mean ME?" Max asked darkly, before throwing Claire to the side, almost effortlessly.

"I daresay I AM here to help her." he commented.

"And I'm going to make sure that I finally do something RIGHT in my life."

She continued to run, winding this way and that, but she was lost.

And she knew she was lost when she kept seeing the same 'landmarks' again and again. Which didn't help her calm down. At all. To say the least.

Her being lost ended up costing her, too. For when she turned another corner, she literally ran right into her mother, who grabbed her by her neck.

"...miserable little whelp." she hissed.

"How dare you continue to exist?" she asked, slamming Desiree up against a nearby wall.

As she finished her thought, there was silence.

Sheer silence. She could hear nothing around her, the darkness seeming to combine with the lack of sound, and swallow her into a vast sea of oblivion...

...until the door to the closet was forced open, and her mother stood before her.

"Heh. Heh." she chuckled.

"You always DID like to hide in closets. Even as a little girl." she commented darkly.

As she sank into the shadows of the closet she was hiding in, she heard her mothers footsteps.

They were getting closer. And closer.

To the point where she could FEEL her mothers presence just outside the door. Her mother had stopped there, but why? Did she know where she was hiding?

"Come out, come out wherever you arrrrre..." she said in a sing-song tone.

"Momma's got a little something foooooor yooooou..." she added, as Desiree heard the footsteps start to walk again, seeming to fade away.

Max just nodded.

"Right." he said.

With that, he jumped through the portal, ready to help his daughter.

Meanwhile, inside, Desiree heard her mother's voice echoing around her.

"Nowhere to run NOW, you little error!" she screamed.

Desiree had known that Deryck was here, but she hadn't heard him ever since she went into the basement. Instead, her mother was after her as well now.

"Here's where it all ends!"

After about 30 seconds, the door was opened, revealing the one she was seeking.

"Oh!" Max exclaimed.

"Sydney, I didn't expect to see you he-" he started to say, before he noticed her expression.

"Right." he then said, his expression serious.

"Where and when?" he asked her.

Max looked around as well, and nodded.

"Yes." he said.

"I suppose we should." he agreed.

"Do you need a ride home?" he asked her.

"I brought my car with me, so it'd be nothing to give you a life." he told her further.

"Unless you're getting back by, ah, other means." he then added with a small smile.

Max looked at her address, and sighed.

"Well, could be worse." he said.

"There's SOME shady business that goes on in this area, but... could be a lot worse." he muttered.

"From what I recall, this IS one of the better places in the area, at least." he went on, before pocketing the napkin.

"And you remember where I live." he said.

"....WE live." he went on.

"Cheryl and Leon are YOUR family, too."

"Well... where are you living right now?" Max asked.

"It'll be easier for me to protect you if I know where you live." he reasoned.

"Plus, it will let me drop by every so often to say hello, if that's all right." he then went on.

"As for anything else beyond that... no, I think we covered most of it in this little meeting." he realized.

"You've been through so much, and have grown into a fine young woman." he complimented her, pride in his tone.

"Of course." Max replied, his tone growing softer.

"Of course you can." he told her.

"Leon absolutely loves you. And I'm sure Cheryl wouldn't mind." he reasoned.

"I'll talk to her tonight." he then said.

"Make SURE it's all right." he went on.

"Desiree, I'll protect you. I swear." he then vowed, sincerity in his tone.

Max just lowered his head.

"....of course you would get the hunter gene." he said.

"Goes with the eye." he mumbled.

"Damnit, why did it have to be like this?" he then growled.

"The whole point of my leaving was so that you WOULDN'T get hurt." he said.

"I thought Claire and Deryck would be able to look past your mana and not judge you on it, but it seems I was sorely naive and mistaken." he went on.

"This is all my fault." he lamented.

"And I will do whatever it takes to make things right again."