There is a Problem [Fin]

[carcinoGeneticist]

The words were lost on Apocalypse. All he knew - all he could concentrate on - was the bottled up rage over his adopted daughter's death. Sa and Kieran. They had been the only ones he'd cared about, and Jak had taken them both from him. There was no sign of the boy anywhere, but that didn't mean that his pelt wasn't draped over a sofa somewhere in the house. After all, they'd killed Sa. Sweet, innocent Sa.

And Apocalypse had killed two people over it. Two people who, as it turned out, hadn't even been involved.

The door slammed and Jak came whirling closer. The King reached out towards Rhiannon and gave her a shove, pushing her fully out of the way. He didn't need her help. She wasn't going to be any use at all in this fight, he could tell already. He didn't make any effort to get out of the way of Jak's paw. After all, at first glance, it didn't seem like a terribly effective attack. It hit his shoulder lightly, giving him an opportunity to close on hand around the mix's forearm. His other arm rose, claws splayed widely, ready to come down --

Then the full impact of the attack hit him.

Concern. Worry. "Oh fuck," he gasped, the world crashing down around him. No, no, no! This was all wrong. So wrong. Someone was going to find out he was here. Someone was going to be mad at him - maybe Xiven, maybe Rhiannon. It didn't matter, his own well-being was at stake here. He was fighting a Joker. How was this a good idea? Worry. Was he going to make it home? He had to make it home, he needed to be home, he couldn't...! With a strangled cry, eyes wide with the uncontrollable feelings coursing through him, he tried to jerk away from the Joker.

Tired. Mili had been tired. Her employer had noticed it, with no small amount of concern. Granted, the swelling of her belly was painfully obvious, at this point, so it was no wonder she was more easily worn-out than usual. Getting to leave home early was a nice thing.

What she saw when she got home was not. The door was broken in. There were terrible sounds coming from inside.

Slowly, carefully, the hound crept forward, ears pinned flat against her head. Was Amhal home? Had he been drinking again? No... This didn't sound like him, not at all.

[The Jenn]

Well, at least the ability still worked. That was... something, right? Jak tried to convince himself, but his worry over the entire situation still coarsed through him. Why was Pale so upset? Why had he jumped to attack? It just wasn't clicking! And now his arm had been squeezed and bruised and scraped by a massive claw, and he wasn't sure what he could possibly do to help a man who was - in effect - his uncle.

He shivered, unsure what he should do. He could take other forms, but would that help? Would it hurt? And Mom, she looked so upset, he just wanted to hug her and it didn't seem like that would help her. Why did the things he really wanted to do often not make other people happy? That was the hard thing about being such a good person. He let out a tiny trickle of a whimper.

And then he saw a flash of color from the doorway. Wha...?

[carcinoGeneticist]

The gasp that escaped the canine when her eyes fell upon the scene unfolding in the living room of her new home was quiet, but still clearly audible in the sudden silence that had descended for a moment. The cloak - Jak was wearing the cloak - and for the love of the White Rabbit, Mili could not move. The sight of the monstrous human barely even registered, her gaze was locked on the skinned Bat that lay over the Joker's shoulders.

The gasp was more than loud enough to catch Apocalypse's attention and he staggered back, turning to focus his attention on the newcomer. She barely registered, lost in the haze of concern that was filling him. She was a witness. She would know, Suits, she would know! There was only one thing the King could think to do in his temporary insanity, and that was to lash out. She wouldn't be hurt by the assault, not really - at least, not permanently, and maybe the shock would make her forget! If nothing else, it would provide a perfect distraction. He summoned up his pain ability.

Aimili's throat exploded in a spray of crimson and a gurgle, and she fell over where she stood, blood still pumping from what appeared to be an open wound in her throat.

Yes, that was enough. Rhiannon darted forward, throwing herself at her Summoner and wrapping her arms tight around him, trying her damnedest to cling tight even as he struggled against her. "Pale! PALE! STOP!"

~~~
Strong Magical Ability
When activated, he can inflict mental pain on another card of any suit, once per day. The degree of pain is equivalent to that of a thin blade being pressed more and more closely to their throat until they can actually feel their jugulars being sliced into. This usually causes them to pause and cough horribly while they regain their breath. Once they cough, it stops his spell, but he can start it up again ten minutes later as many times as he would like. This ability only affects Cards ranked 10 and lower fully, it can be used on Jacks once a day, and doesn't affect Kings and Queens.

Pain Ability Boost
His pain ability now affects all Cards except for Queens and Jokers.
His pain ability now leaves a vivid, real scar on the recipients throat if the spell is not thrown in under ten seconds.

Pain Ability Boost 2
This Card is now able to cause an opponent, ranked jack or less, to have their throats, quite literally, explode outward with this spell. They will feel their flesh blow outward, along with a good amount of blood, and many will go into shock. After five seconds, the flesh will begin to knit itself back up, though his normal pain ability will continue until he drops it.

[The Jenn]

With the confused wailing of children behind the door at the loud noises, the insane jerking of the man in front of him, and his mother's waffling distress, Jak felt himself to be in a haze of unhappiness. It filled his mind and his senses and made him feel slightly ill.

And then Pale attacked Mili. His Mili.

Pale was killing his Mili!

No.

Uh uh.

NOT. OKAY.

With a terrified, warbling shriek, Jak lunged at Pale, transforming as he went. He landed on the man as a giant bull-dog made half of water on his lower half. He'd seen the man in the Outer Bazaar before, and he'd seen him flop an opponent like this. And Jak's best inspiration came from observation. People were the best source of weird, of transformation, of physical shape that could be doubled as a mimicry of abilities that he didn't have. Spikes! Horns! Wings! Gelatinous cubes!

He encased Pale in his wet hindquarters and screamed at him to stop!

[carcinoGeneticist]

It was amazing how easy it was to slip from concern right into blind panic. Especially when so many things were going on around him. Was the girl dead? No, it was just a trick of the eye, her low rank just made it look worse, but the police were almost certainly already looking for any reason to take him down, and this was the last thing he needed...

He had to get out. But what would happen if he did that? If the girl did die, and he didn't even check to be sure she would be okay, it really would be his fault. A soft noise escaped the man's mouth and, for a second, his body went limp in Rhiannon's mind. Worry. Concern. Concern -- WET!

The moment's pause was all that it took for the Joker to crash into him, surrounding him in a watery lower body. It took all of Apocalypse's efforts to keep from actually gasping and inhaling the water, but somehow, he managed. Then he was struck with another thought. What the hell did he do now? He couldn't breathe, and he knew better than anyone that it was damned difficult to shake a target that could keep switching their body's shape.

Magic. Magic! He needed magic! But he couldn't focus, couldn't... The spell came to him almost through instinct, and for a moment, his mind was a blank slate. Yes. Now all he needed to do was free his head from its liquidy prison. Without warning, the King dropped to the ground like a sack of wet potatoes, hoping to startle his opponent and maybe get a lungful of air.

~~~

Small Ability
Once a week, he is now able to cause a small vibration, very low and grounding, to run through his own head. This vibration can be felt heavily by anyone touching him at the time and is oddly calming. The vibration itself will give him three minutes of complete and total clarity with all outstanding issues washing away, though not pain or discomfort. He will be able to focus very completely on one thought at a time.

[The Jenn]

Jak's liquid lower body trembled like a bowl full of jello as the sudden vibration shook through him. He felt it distantly, more as a strangeness than anything. His mind was far too panicked and horrified to register the sensation beyond subconsciously.

His Mili! He would have to get a doctor! He hated getting doctors... he could never remember what form they saw last, and the usual problem of remembering what name he gave them for what form was always a problem. There had been so much blood. Could he do anything to help? Would he be able to do it soon enough? What would happen to his Mili?! He needed to get to her now!

Pale's limp diversion worked like a charm, gaining him a few precious gasps of air before Jak tried his best to cover the man again. If he could just get him to pass out... he needed him unconscious, right away...!

[carcinoGeneticist]

The air rushed into his lungs, enough to ease the panic of being submerged by another man's ass for just a little longer before he was shoved down again. Claws lashed out, in the general direction of where he knew (or at least guessed) the more solid and fleshy bits of the Joker would be. He had to fight just a little bit longer - enough to get free completely - and then he could figure out what to do next. It was so damn hard to think though, especially as his lungs burned with the need for oxygen and his concern wedged itself quite firmly into the category of concern for my life.

Before he could do anything else, another figure came crashing into the room.

The Highlander vaulted easily over Aimili's downed body into the room, landing just feet from where his brother and... uncle-thing fought. His wings flared wide in a subconscious attempt to draw both of their attention to him, all of the eyes focused on that one point. Kieran didn't use his actual voice very often, but when he did, it made a hell of an impact. "Enough!" He roared, the deep bass of his voice nearly shaking the floorboards.

Even through everything else, that was enough to make Apocalypse stop, just for a second. Kieran?!

[The Jenn]

Jak gurgled a little as Pale's awkward swipe caught at something he didn't want torn and he flopped awkwardly, trying to alleviate the sudden pain and keep the man under at the same time. His chest had begun to heave in aborted little sobs of distress every time he caught sight of the bright red splash covering the front door and the crumbled, swollen form on the floor.

When he glanced over that way again, the sudden flaring of enormous white wings caught his attention like a lighthouse beacon and he stilled just a second before the sound of his brother's voice rumbled through him and actually set his currently gelatin lower half to quivering. He felt the struggling form pause at the same time and desperately - desperately - hoped that he had fallen unconscious. With a jerking motion, he flung himself away from Apocalypse and towards his brother, transforming into his true form as he went.

"Kieran, Miliii!" he wheezed in a terrified cry, the end of the sound catching oddly in his pipes and echoing. He lurched past his brother to fall near the prone form of the woman, frantically nudging at her with his forearms and trying to see if she was still bleeding, or even still alive.

[carcinoGeneticist]

Oh, balls. While he'd been out pretending to work, things at home had gone terribly wrong. Kieran made a frustrated noise, the corner of his lip curling up to show several of his needle-like teeth.

The King of Hearts was laying on the floor in a limp pile. He seemed to be utterly unconscious, almost certainly Jak's doing. After all, he'd only been in the room for a moment before, but he could almost swear that he'd seen a weirdly liquid-y lower half. Part of him wondered where on earth his brother found some of his forms, but that would be a question for another time. He sat down atop Apocalypse, effectively pinning him to the floor. There was no reason for any more fighting to happen when the man woke up. The King let out a pained-sounding breath but did not stir, otherwise.

The eyes of one wing rolled over to keep watch on Jak and the crumpled heap that was the stray he'd brought in. "Don't let the kids see this, Jak,[/b]" he said softly, a warning. Especially not Lael and Virote. This would be the last thing they needed to see, their mother seeming dead on the floor. "Check her vitals.[/b]"

He'd lived with Apocalypse for long enough that he knew many of the man's spells. Perhaps he had obtained some new ones, but it seemed unlikely that he would have something that allowed him to kill someone instantly, as it appeared to have been done.

Though faint, Aimili's chest was still rising and falling as she took shallow breaths. Now that he was close enough to really look at her, Jak would be able to see quite clearly that, besides a thin scar beneath her fur, there was no indication of any of the trauma of before.

[The Jenn]

Jak's form changed once and then again in his upset before he finally settled on something with long, delicate, spidery bipedal hands to frantically pick through the fur at her neck.

She was breathing. He could see that she was breathing. That was a good sign, a very good one! She needed to still be breathing! His own breaths came in short, panicked gasps while he desperately searched for some sign of the injury that had felled her.

And there was... nothing. Nothing at all. The barest line beneath the fur which he had to scratch at in order to see with the blood and the mess. Nothing else.

What a wicked ability, the word meant in the most damning of ways. He slowly bared his teeth and drew her up close, hugging her to him tightly. His Mili. She was going to wake up and be so miserable.

He had to put this to rights. He had to make this better. Kieran could handle the King. They were both Kings. Jak leapt to his feet like he was on fire, turned into something strong, and hefted the small woman up effortlessly. He carried her into the bathroom and began to carefully wash the mess off of her. Once she was clean, he would leave her in the tub and go to clean the... the mess. She couldn't see it when she woke up. It would make her so unhappy. And the children would be horrified. NO.