7th Mantra | Action; + Video;

[stagnantair]

Who: Gavin and You
What: Blood Key hunting, Echoes.
When: Early January, around 11PM
Warnings: Guns, Blood Key murdering, possible injuries, possible demonic transformations + attempted cannibalism.

[For once, Gavin isn't posting from his webcam while he plays video games or rambling on about Echoes and science like a big nerd. He's in a corner store near his house, eating what looks like cheap gas station rotisserie pizza and talking to the cashier. He's been out of the house a lot more lately, Octavia and Alan may have noticed. He's been busy scouting the area and keeping a sociable public image like he used to have, walking to work and talking to people and acting normal. He's also been paying close attention to the news, surveillance by his apartment, and going to a shady firing range that won't ask about illegal weapons. He may or may not have taken Alan and Octavia along to learn as well. By now he knows how the Blood Keys move around his neighborhood, and knows where a small gang of them will be tonight. Finishing his pizza and saying goodbye to his friend, he packs the water he's bought in his duffle bag and heads out. When he's on a lone street corner, he takes out his phone, punches in his Network code, and holds it up selfie style to take a video.]

Hey, everyone. I have an AR-15, rounds, and nest of Blood Keys. I'll be on 5th for the next twenty minutes before moving on. Message me if you're coming.

[He looks a little different than before. His skin is paler, his hair is the same neon green as his eyes when they flash and his eyes themselves look a little... orange? No, they had to be a little blood shot, that was all.]

Comments

Handwritten --> Action

[songoftimeandtimeagain]

[Luke's still pretty pissed he didn't get to get back at the blood keys who shot Phillip. Sure, he hadn't actually been hurt thanks to echo things, but that's not the point. The point is that they tried to kill Phillip and Luke is angry. He jots down a reply, but doesn't wait for an answer.]

on my way

[Immediately after replying he wipes the chalkboard and hops onto his bike. If Gavin is going to tell him not to come, he's going to have to do it to his face.]

[stagnantair]

[Gavin had figured Luke would try and come and honestly... doesn't mind if he does or not. The kid's fought the Blood Keys before, he has more experience with this than Gavin does after all. Sure, he shouldn't want to put a ten year old in danger, but he also knows that Luke can shoot off fire balls or something and has a sword and also killed a man.]

[He's not that worried. He hikes his bag over his shoulder when he sees Luke coming and gives him a nod. He's not as cheerful as he usually is, which Luke probably notices. Gavin's usually all about talking and laughing and making light about situations but this time he's serious.]

Ready to go?

[ text ]

[seabeast]

[ oh boy. ]

happy huntin lad

video;

[stagnantair]

Thanks. I'll let you know what happened later.

text;

[honestopinion]

So you are going without me...

[He's hurt, Gavin... Jamie assumed that's why they never ended up going on their planned adventure. It's been hard for him coping with being so helpless during these rough times.]

video;

[stagnantair]

Jamie, I don't want you getting hurt. Once you Echo back knowing your way around a weapon or something we can do it again.

[Network; Audio]

[pianistofraielin]

[oh. oh no. Russel knows what that sounds like and he does not like it.]

[he sounds distraught, outraged; this is just unthinkable to him]

Hey! What are you doing? Those are still people you're talking about! This isn't a video game where you kill enemies for EXP, you can't just go around murdering people because they're inconvenient!

text;

[envisaging]

Are you crazy? It's one thing to fight in self-defense; it's another entirely to attack actual people with the intent to harm them outside of that.

I'm beginning to think not all the "bad guys" are on "their" side.

text;

[drama8om8]

8h my g8d is this a 8ad time to admit that this time l8st month I kind of may8e got a little 8it killed fighting those guys 8ecause that's an actual th8ng that h8ppened just fyi

text if you don't mind threadjacking

[twelfthspark]

Wait what

You can't get only a "little bit" killed, wtf?

[text]

[swissarmyjesus]

[First he looks up what an AR-15 is.

And THEN he freaks out.]

WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING

[Thank God 11pm is past his curfew and he's already been home for a few hours. No Key duty for him tonight. But those are his friends out there and he can't just let them get picked off by some maniac with a gun.

He frantically sends a text to every Key he's got added on his phone and tells them to spread the message, hoping that the warning will give them time to get out of there alive. It probably won't, though, because that would defeat the purpose of this log.]

text;

[stagnantair]

[If anything, it'll just let them know he and Luke are coming, and give them a chance to attack or run. Gavin doesn't give much of a reply, everyone is asking the same thing. So he just sends him a text in response;]

I've done my research on the BKs in this area. They've hurt innocent people. Protecting them now isn't advisable.

audio;

[sucrosity]

[There's a crashing noise, because she fell off the bed, and then she starts to talk--]

Are you insane? They're people, not ducks! It's not hunting season!

[Text]

[shiromadoushi]

You do realize we have both cops and keys on this thing, right?

voice;

[stagnantair]

I'm well aware of the possible consequences.

[Video]

[destinedforrock]

Why. [Not a filler-why but the question "why", here as in why-is-this-especially-bad. Alas she doesn't doubt it is.]

...If I want to know - what exactly is an. AR-15?

voice;

[stagnantair]

My friends have been hurt by these guys too many times, and I finally have the ability to stop some of them. I'm not going to sit and wait patiently for other people to do it anymore. It's out of my comfort zone, but change is in order.

[He pauses, then,] It's an assault rifle.

text;

[wirsinddiejager]

be careful man. dont get yourself killed.

voice;

[stagnantair]

Don't plan on it. I'll be home tomorrow, probably. There's a bunch of stuff you guys can make for dinner if you're hungry.

[... Gavin. This isn't the time.]

voice;

[ursoreckless]

You're a fucking idiot. [he doesn't care that they are keys. he doesn't care that they were out there. they were people and just hunting them for no reason was the stupidest thing ever. it wasn't like protecting yourself, or trying to get them to back off of a neutral place like the clinic.]

text;

[centurian]

[ Gerald has to re-read this about five or six times to get exactly what this guy is saying. Not because it's complicated but because.

WHAT. Just. WHAT. ]

I'd say something about the heavily regulated firearm you've got there but I'm too distracted by the "let's go out and play vigilante by committing FIRST DEGREE MURDER".

[ He's really got half a mind to go down there himself and try to stop them. But... he's pretty sure this is waaaay out of his federal jurisdiction and should be left to the police.

The... 90% corrupt police. Damn it. ]

actually let's go voice

[earnedmystripes]

Are you completely out of your fucking mind?!

[THIS. THIS IS 239482039482 SHADES OF NOT OKAY.]

You can't go on a fucking slaughtering rampage, that's much worse than anything the Keys are doing!!

[sdfkjalskdfjlaskd Skyler is a Blood Key fuck everything.]

[video]

[loveyoubaby]

Wow, announcing your location and admitting that you're planning on blowing people away? it's like you're trying to get yourself arrested.

voice;

[stagnantair]

For once in my life, I'm feeling like the irrational option is best in this situation.

[Text]

[paradiseshrinemaiden]

I'm all for hunting those Blood Keys guys down and smacking them around a bit, but I'm going to have to agree with the others that actively going out of your way to kill them is taking it a bit too far.

[She figures with how strong they are it might be a bit hard to avoid killing them if the fight gets out of hand or something like what happened with a couple of the others, but going out with the intent of killing? Yeah, that's definitely sketchy to her. They might have been modified to have robot parts by aliens, but they're still people after all.]

( voice )

[argents]

[ WHOA WHOA WHOA no this is not the way or even remotely right. Banagher tears into this message, worry and panic rising in his tone of voice. ]

Gavin! [ you idiot ] You absolutely can't do that!!

voice;

[stagnantair]

[Gavin switches to voice, holding his phone against his ear like a normal person instead of some random guy taking a selfie in the street.]

I can do it. I have the ability to. It's fair, after everything that's happened.

[He's not the protag, Banagher. He's the voice of misguided reason.]

audio;

[alilyinthemoonslight]

Even with as dangerous as they might be, they're still... people!

Not to mention, if we didn't want attention on us before, imagine what something like that would do!

voice

[ex_elude798]

...You plan on just attacking them?

Have you considered what comes after that? Collateral damage? Their damn families-

[Yeah he's wound up alright, because he's pretty damn sure he's killed a few and doesn't remember a damned thing about it]

text;

[siesinddasessen]

Some of those are still completely human, you know?

NOT ACTUALLY A REPLY

[healspec]

[Ravi is at work when he sees this, checking the network during a smoke break. He recognizes Gavin, especially the voice, and his heart sinks as the implication of the words settles in. He listens again, and then again, and then again--each time hoping there will be some indication that he's misunderstanding, that what he's hearing will somehow make more sense if he just listens more closely this time.]

[The intent does become clearer with each listen, but not in the direction he was hoping.]

[Ravi understands war and combat and justified self-defense. He understands shooting someone before they can shoot you. He understands taking out a military target in a precision strike while the enemy least expects it. But this is not a war. The Blood Keys are not al-Qaeda. This is not a combat zone, and nobody has a reasonable expectation of being shot at while they walk down the street.]

[Ravi has killed people before. He can do it without hesitation, but it's not something he likes having to do, or even something he wants to do. It's just something that seems necessary in certain situations.]

[This isn't one of those situations.]

[What Gavin is talking about isn't self-defense or a crime of passion. It's cold-blooded murder. Ravi can see the value in the argument--kill them now so they can't hurt us later--but it's viscerally wrong, and it also falls apart if you look at the long term. Logically, it's a terrible idea. It's a choice you'd only make out of callousness.]

[It doesn't gel with the image he had of Gavin. Someone calm and tactically-minded, who was willing to take the time to talk him down during a panic attack and reassure him that he'd care if Ravi disappeared. How is someone like that the same kind of person who could do something like this?]

[Us versus Them thinking is so dangerous. Ravi's seen it before, it's how the entire military operates, he doesn't want to see it again, not like this, not from Gavin.]

[The whole thing is deeply upsetting. He feels he should say something, but he knows--knows--that when the people willing to do these kinds of things have made up their minds about it, there's nothing you can say to talk them out of it. It's not a single act. It's a mindset. You can't force that to change with a few well-placed words.]

[He has to go back to work, but it stays with him for the rest of the night. He'll wait until he knows what happens, he decides, and then he'll say something to Gavin privately. Once he figures out what that is.]

[Voice]

[dododo]

Are you insane?