InsaneJournal

 VI - Scattered - VI

VI - S - VI

After another meeting in the Condor, the second test finally commenced. Stork flew the Condor to the Colonel’s Compound and as usual, stayed behind in the ship with Radarr and Piper. The rest of the Storm Hawks split into two groups: the first had Finn, Junko and Starling and the second had Aerrow and Dark Ace.

Piper’s plan didn’t seem complicated; their objective was to take over the bridge and capture the captain. However, as they slipped into the gauntly ship, disguised as new members of the Murk Raiders like in their past adventures, many of them remembered how difficult it was to truly blend in, especially for some people like Finn.

And soon enough, the Murk Raiders, despite the Storm Hawks’ raggedy clothes, already recognized the fierce red eyes of Dark Ace, the clumsiness of Finn and the presence of a female (apparently, they didn’t have female members, even with Starling‘s caliber) and all assumed that they were being ambushed once again.

In the ghastly corridors of the ship, Aerrow and Dark Ace found themselves outnumbered and surrounded. Aerrow brought out his energy blades and charged into the Murk Raiders, the energy blades clashing against the energy cutlasses.

Once Aerrow made it to the other side, he glanced at Dark Ace and realized that something was a bit off about him. Time seemed to slow down, his movements sluggish, heavy and maybe even reckless, as though he wasn’t really there and that his mind was somewhere else.

Aerrow rushed back and slammed some of the Murk Raiders against the wall. Now he and Dark Ace were standing back-to-back, facing another throng of ugly, unhygienic Murk Raiders by themselves.

Aerrow gritted his teeth and for their sake, made a scathing remark: “Looks like we’re not the only ones losing our touch. You were lazing around the Condor too much. I wouldn’t be surprised if your so-called reputation no longer precedes you.”

Dark Ace twisted around and in one moment, pinned Aerrow’s hands on his back, his energy blades falling to the floor. The tip of a dagger was pressed tightly against his throat, hard enough to draw out blood. “What was that, Sky Knight?”

“I meant what I said,” Aerrow said with a strained laugh. The Murk Raiders had stopped fighting, looking at them and at each other in confusion. That was actually a good thing. If they took advantage of this conflict, they would probably capture Aerrow and Dark Ace and hold them up for ransom.

“Get ready to be proven wrong,” Dark Ace declared, loosening his grip on his rival. Aerrow picked up his energy blades and watched as Dark Ace grabbed the nearest cutlass and dashed after their enemies. He threw the dagger towards one of the Murk Raiders, piercing his neck, and impaled many others with the cutlass.

Blood splattered all over the place, some landing on Aerrow’s cheek. A long time ago, he would have been disturbed, if not traumatized by the effects of war, but many years of fighting had toughened him up and desensitized him.

“Let’s go,” Aerrow said with a small, satisfied smile. “These guys are just going to keep on coming until we bring down their leader.”

For once, Dark Ace held himself back and cooperated with Aerrow as they struggled and fought their way over to the bridge. They slipped inside and froze at the sound of three, slow claps.

The chair before them swiveled, revealing a blond adorned in a blue suit. His calm, predatory demeanor reminded Aerrow of the Colonel. They were probably related. That explained why he was one of the captains of the Murk Raiders. Why couldn’t it be one of those other grotesque sky-pirates?

“The ship’s sonic device has already detected the Condor coming in,” the captain said with a smirk, his green eyes gleaming. “And I suppose that you’re going to try to arrest me and present me to the Sky Council, am I right?”

“It seems that way,” Aerrow answered, taking a step closer to their opponent. The blond merely held up his hands, a mock-surrender. There was another glint in those eyes and then he pulled out two cutlasses and lashed out at Dark Ace.

Once again, Aerrow was in the sidelines, watching in admiration as his rival engaged in another feisty bout. What was so fascinating about this bloodstained man? Was it the way he struggled on? Was it the way he dove into danger so recklessly? And what had distracted him earlier?

Aerrow wanted to know and one of these days, he would.

The blond proved to be a worthy fighter as he parried many of Dark Ace’s powerful attacks. However, the battle didn’t last long as Dark Ace eventually disarmed the captain and forced him on his knees. It was rather cruel of him, but it was to be expected, though unexcused.

Aerrow was glad that Dark Ace was on their side, if only for a little while.

VI - S - VI

It was time.

He slipped off the bed, went out of his bedroom and stood in the hallway, looking around to see if there were other people awake. He could imagine Dark Ace doing the same, sneaking out of bed to visit him. Now it was his turn and it didn’t take him long to find his rival’s bedroom in the darkness. He knew this ship well, though Stork could probably beat him in that area.

He didn’t bother trying to knock because he knew that the door was unlocked. For the safety of the squadron, Dark Ace wasn’t allowed to lock his door. It creaked as it slid open and Aerrow came inside. He slowly closed the door, careful not to make that creaky sound again and was about to turn around when he was suddenly slammed against that same door, drawing out a gasp from him.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Dark Ace whispered to his ear, sending a pleasant shiver down Aerrow’s spine. What was wrong with him? Why was he attracted to this man? And why did he even care? Why the hell was he really even here? He took a deep breath, closing his eyes, trying to calm himself.

“You weren’t yourself until you started stabbing all of those sky-pirates,” Aerrow whispered back. His heartbeat quickened at the feel of the man’s body behind him. “And yeah, your sulking was really annoying so I came here to figure out why…”

“I was not sulking,” Dark Ace muttered, pulling away from him. Aerrow turned around and watched as Dark Ace headed back to his bed. The window was open, the winds breezing into the bedroom. The moonlight filtered in through the window and spilled across the sheets like ink on a wrinkly scroll. “I was…”

“Cut the crap,” Aerrow interrupted, narrowing his eyes. He wasn’t afraid of this man, even as Dark Ace glowered at him. He was actually glad that Dark Ace was like this than being that bland, disinterested, shadow of a man that he was many days ago. “Something’s up and I want you to tell me.”

Dark Ace gave him a defiant look and muttered, “No.”

“Okay,” Aerrow said with an impish smile. “Then I’ll wring it out of you.” His body tensed and in that moment, he suddenly pounced on Dark Ace. They rolled around the bed, struggling and grunting, trying to gain dominance over the other. There was a loud thump as they hit the floor and Aerrow hoped that nobody had heard of that. He didn’t want his teammates finding him in Dark Ace’s room.

“What’s the matter?” Dark Ace inquired mockingly, straddling him like all their previous encounters. “Afraid that others might find out about us?” His red eyes were unnaturally bright like freshly spilled blood. Aerrow slipped out of his grasp and sat on his lap, wrapping his arms around the man’s waist.

“I should be asking you that question,” Aerrow murmured and this time, he made the first move. He pressed his lips against his rival’s, ignoring his conscience and all of his doubts and letting his carnal desires take over. He wanted him and he knew the feeling was mutual as Dark Ace kissed him back.

Dark Ace began to tug at his shirt, the buttons popping out as he practically tore it off his rival. Aerrow twisted his hips and they gasped at the friction and pleasure it created. He evened things out as he slid off Dark Ace’s top, his hands tracing the contours of his rival’s toned stomach and chest, eliciting a slight shudder from Dark Ace.

“Eager, are you?” Dark Ace inquired huskily. They kissed fiercely, teeth clashing and drawing blood. Dark Ace licked it greedily, his mouth trailing down the column of Aerrow’s neck, biting and sucking. Aerrow gasped both in pain and pleasure, feeling those sharp teeth digging deep into his skin.

“Look who’s talking,” Aerrow said breathlessly, running his fingers through that messy black hair. He moved his other hand, stroking the man’s back gently. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to figure out just what was wrong with Dark Ace, but after this he might. He wasn’t the only one exposing himself like this. Dark Ace was doing the same.

VI - S - VI

It was getting difficult to think.

All of his little plots and his sorrow had vanished from his mind because of Aerrow’s gentle ministrations.

Dark Ace could only feel and react as they shifted over to the bed. He tried to lay Aerrow on the sheets, but his rival only squirmed and struggled, creating all of this wonderful friction and arousing him even more. He slipped one hand under Aerrow’s pants and briefs, wrapping his fingers around his hard length.

Aerrow froze, biting his slightly swollen lip. Dark Ace had savored that metallic taste of blood and wanted more. For a while he didn’t do anything with his hand, reveling in his rival’s struggling. Aerrow’s hips jerked up, trying to move against his hand. Dark Ace stroked him, just once and kissed Aerrow again.

Aerrow groaned in his mouth, briefly breaking the kiss, as Dark Ace pressed and moved his thumb around the head. He wanted Aerrow to come under him, to show just how much he had made Aerrow want him.

But he wanted to satisfy himself too and he pulled his hand away. He dragged those pants down and did the same with his own pants, both pairs joining the pile of clothes on the floor.

Aerrow reached out, sitting on his lap again, one arm going around Dark Ace’s neck. He wriggled a few times and Dark Ace groaned in utter desire. Aerrow needed to stop doing that or else he might have to cut this little foreplay short and fuck him raw and hard.

He wasn’t sure just how controlled he was or how wild he could be; it had been a while since he had sex with anyone.

VI - S - VI

“Lose them,” Aerrow whispered, pressing his lips against Dark Ace’s cheek, tugging at the man’s red briefs. Dark Ace rolled his eyes and grunted, but did nothing else. Aerrow laughed a little and suddenly rocked his hips again, letting Dark Ace feel just how aroused he was. The friction was both pain and pleasure for them.

“You first,” Dark Ace managed to say and Aerrow shifted, pulling away from him. He made a quick trip to his room, grabbed a tube of lube from his drawers, and returned to Dark Ace’s room. He tossed it over to Dark Ace and stripped the final piece of clothing off his body. He stood there, waiting and wondering. How would this work? Who would be the “receiver” and well, the “giver”?

With his past lover, he’d always been the “giver” because said past lover liked being the “receiver” a lot more than he had. He doubted that Dark Ace would give him any further sense of control over him. It was bad enough for Aerrow to watch over him like a mother to a child. He had a feeling that after this, things were going to be very different in more ways than one.

Dark Ace was looking at him now, with a predatory gleam in his eyes. The man licked his dry lips and finally removed his briefs. He rose to his feet and swiftly brought Aerrow back to the bed. They pulled each other close, pressing tightly against each other. Their hands began to move, touching and sliding over heated skin, exploring every part and every plane of each other’s bodies.

VI - S - VI

The heat and pleasure coursing through him, the scent of Aerrow all around him, the feel of sweat-slicked skin sliding against sweat-slicked skin and the friction was all too much, but simultaneously never enough. He couldn’t take it anymore. He needed something else, something much more fulfilling, something that would blank out his mind and make him forget everything.

He grabbed the tube of lube and unscrewed the top.

Aerrow gazed at him, his eyes unnaturally bright like hard-edged emeralds. Dark Ace poured the lubrication into his hands and glanced at his rival, some part of him wondering whether Aerrow had done this with anybody else. Aerrow didn’t act like the inexperienced one he had assumed. Aerrow knew what he was getting into.

“Do I need to tell you what I’m doing?” Dark Ace inquired, which earned him a small laugh from his rival. “I’ll take that as a ‘no’.” He smirked and let one of Aerrow’s legs dangle over his shoulder, pushing one of the slicked fingers inside him. Aerrow winced and bit his lip, but urged Dark Ace to go on.

Dark Ace wondered why he couldn’t just fuck him raw. It would be the best way to break Aerrow, but would he go that low? One of his objectives was to truly kill Aerrow, but did that matter now, after so many things had changed? For now he wanted to enjoy this to the fullest, despite the consequences and what had happened in the past.

He pushed another finger inside and watched as Aerrow winced again. Dark Ace almost wanted to laugh. “You’ve never been taken before, hmm?” he asked as he pushed the last finger in, moving all three of them at once. Aerrow gritted his teeth, gripping tightly at the sheets like a wild animal shackled down. Dark Ace chuckled softly and leaned over to kiss him again.

His fingers continued to move about, searching and stretching. When he pressed into a certain spot, Aerrow suddenly went rigid, breaking the kiss as he let out a deep, guttural moan. Dark Ace pulled his fingers out, poured more of the lubrication around his aching length and shifted again with a single thrust.

The heat and the tightness around him was incredible. He tried to pull back, to have some sense of control, but Aerrow only pulled him deeper, wrapping his legs around his waist again and locking both of his arms around his neck. They stilled, gazing at each other. Aerrow was panting, drops of sweat trailing down the side of his face; his swollen lips parted.

And then Dark Ace thrust in, a little harder this time, because he knew that he was losing it, losing himself in this heat and his sense of control as Aerrow began to move with him, creating a steady rhythm. All trace of thought completely vanished from Dark Ace’s mind; he could only feel and just be.

He was gone, his eyes seeing all white, shuddering as he finally reached his climax. He pulled himself out, collapsing next to Aerrow, trying to catch his breath. Aerrow followed soon after, letting out another deep moan as he lost himself in the throes of passion and release.

For a while they were there in his bed, trying to breathe and trying to make sense of what had really happened. Aerrow grabbed the sheets and covered themselves with it. Dark Ace stared at Aerrow for a long time, feeling rather dazed, but strangely content.

Aerrow smiled at him and asked, “Why did you let me?”

He understood why Aerrow had asked that question, but it wasn’t like he had a solid, definite answer. He settled with a shrug and merely two words:

“Why not?”

Aerrow laughed and closed his eyes. “That’s a good answer.”

For now.

VI - S - VI

Most of them were in the bridge, minding their own business. Stork was flying the ship; Piper was supposedly looking at her maps, though her eyes weren‘t really moving. Junko and Radarr were in the engine room, fixing a few things. And what of the great Finn? What was he doing? Well, he had a reason for coming up here in the early morning.

“Hey guys, you ever feel like…” he trailed off, trying to express what he thought in words. Stork was better at that than him. His teammates stared at him inquisitively. “Like, you’re in this big, complicated story, but you’re not really the main attraction? You get what I’m saying?”

Piper, being herself, was the first person to scoff at his insightful remarks. “Uh, the world doesn’t revolve around you, Finn.”

Stork was trying to muffle his laughter now. Finn pouted and glared at the Crystal Specialist. “I’m serious! It feels like there’s something huge going on and I don’t think many of us know what that is.” He frowned deeply, tapping his chin. “Like, for example, ever since Dark Ace became sort of part of our team, Radarr barely hung out with Aerrow.”

“I think you’re overreacting,” Piper said with a small, impish smile. “I don’t know if it’s really any of our business until Aerrow tells us just what is going on. We’ve had this conversation before. Why are you so worried?”

“How come you’re not worried?” Junko asked as he came into the room with Radarr. “I mean, you and Aerrow aren’t really talking, but we don’t know why.”

“Yes, that is true,” Stork muttered, gazing at Piper thoughtfully. “All of this, us being kept in the dark, us not knowing what’s going on… it’s an omen, I tell you!”

Piper sighed deeply and shook her head. “I think it’s obvious what’s been going on anyway. Aerrow’s just doing his job as a Sky Knight, fulfilling the duties that the Sky Council had given to him. It’s really that simple.”

The Storm Hawks stared at her for a long time.

“What?” she inquired sheepishly.

“And there’s somethin’ else I wanna talk about. I swear, Stork, this ship’s getting really old. I heard it squeaking and groaning and moaning like it’s just pushed beyond its limits last night,” Finn complained, though deep in his heart, he knew that something else had transpired. He just wouldn’t admit it to himself.

“Well, I checked the engine room. Everything seems to be okay,” Junko said with a big smile. “And I didn’t hear anything last night. All of that fighting with the Murk Raiders really wore me out.”

Finn laughed out loud and patted his best friend’s back. “You? Tired? No way. There weren’t a lot of those stinkin’ Murk Raiders. There were just a dozen of them… or was it triple of a dozen….”

Stork shuddered. “In any case, I heard those noises too, but I’ll never let anybody else tinker with the Condor. Last time that happened, Finn here traded the ship for another.”

Finn laughed nervously. “Uh yeah, maybe I shouldn’t complain then, huh?”

Everyone laughed at him, but instead of feeling humiliated, he laughed with them, because that was what he was supposed to do. He was the joker of this team, the comic relief and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

VI - S - VI

Cyclonis felt like a dandelion, floating away from her original home in order to settle somewhere else and start the cycle of life all over again. For a long time, she had been traveling and keeping her identity a secret from the rest of Atmos. People didn’t seem to recognize her with her face lacking the shadows under her eyes. They had described her as the ghostly Wanderer, because of her pale skin, her attire and her swift, graceful movements.

She had learned a lot of things from people, from the experience they had and realized that what lay beyond her empire, what her ancestors had done was something completely beyond her. She had witnessed people suffering in so many ways, from the effects of the war, from the natural causes of death and so on. She knew what that had felt like now, because death had already visited her once.

She had found one of the pieces of her past. She was glad that Dark Ace was still alive. He was better off without her because being her diabolical self, she was a bad influence. But was she really “evil” like her ancestors had been? All she had wanted from the beginning was to take back what belonged to her, which didn’t fit into the good or the bad side of things.

Well, whatever. That didn’t matter now.

One thing she had to admit was that her rebirth had changed her, pulling her into a new kind of darkness. She knew that she would be lost until she found the light that would guide her out of it. But who would be her light? What was really there besides what she used to be?

It didn’t take her long to find the other pieces of her past. She was residing in one of the hotels in this rather industrious terra and while she was exploring the terra, she found Snipe working in a construction zone. He was dressed in loose fitting clothes of orange baggy pants and a shirt with long sleeves.

He grunted as he slammed the hammer against the dusty ground and then she heard it, the jingling of chains and shackles all over his body. It was a different type of imprisonment, this being the worst. Atmosia wasn’t so different from Cyclonia in that they had no mercy with rule-breakers, disobeyers or in their case, evildoers.

She looked around and found the manager, a slim bald man dressed in light brown shorts and a jacket. To discipline the grumbling prisoners, he lashed at them with a leather whip, taking advantage of their frailty.

“I want him,” Cyclonis said as she pointed at Snipe. Drops of sweat rolled down his face. He looked dehydrated. The manager stared at her, smiled a condescending smile and shook his head. Cyclonis frowned and showed him two pouches; one was filled with money while the other was filled with crystals.

She saw the desperation in his eyes and the greed in his smile as he snatched the pouches and went over to Snipe. He unlocked the chains that bound Snipe to his working area and let him go. Cyclonis held up her hand and urged for Snipe to follow.

“Huh?” Snipe inquired, confused. “Who are you?”

She didn’t answer. He didn’t seem to recognize her.

“Hey, I’m talking to you, wench!”

Irritation clawed at her. Normally, she’d punish him, but she kept her temper in check and asked, “Where is your sister?”

“Ravess?” Snipe questioned dully. “She’s working in this terra’s symphony orchestra. Why do you need to know?”

“Never mind that, just show me where she is,” Cyclonis said sternly and this time, she followed Snipe as he led her to the auditorium. Once they arrived, they took their seats and listened to the classical music streaming into the room.

Ravess’s eyes lit up in pure pleasure as she picked up her bow, her beloved violin and began to play with the orchestra. Like her brother, she was clad in loose orange clothes and there were shackles around her feet.

It was rather pitiful. They should have been in prison, but perhaps the sly Sky Council had wanted them to suffer public humiliation. Despite the breathtaking music, people grabbed tomatoes from their bags of groceries and chucked them at the former archer. Others jeered and laughed, interrupting the flow of the music.

Ravess suddenly stopped and faced the mocking crowd, scowling at them all. Another tomato smacked into her head. Growling angrily, she took the tomato bits off her hair, packed up her violin and stormed off the stage. With her gone, the music once again continued, calming the audience.

Cyclonis rose to her feet and followed Ravess. She found her in the backstage, stomping her feet in frustration. The other players stared at her for a moment and slowly backed away. Ravess fell to her knees and took out a rag from her pocket. She began to wipe the tomato stains off her ebony violin, looking dazed and defeated.

“Broken,” Cyclonis whispered, shaking her head. The violinist turned her head and glowered, but at the sight of her brother, she gasped and pointed her bow at Cyclonis…

VI - TBC - VI

A/n: Those reading it in ffnet notice this chapter is shorter though, but that’s ‘cause I had to cut off the lemon, which was like… half of this chapter. XD 

So any questions, feedback, guesses at the other pairings? Are people still interested in reading this, etc?