Catalysts: IC 2.0 Announcement in OP!

Ragnarok stood, still in angered mystification at the destruction of the hotel. The plants would root and rip apart the concrete, probably causing a collapse. Stupid idea to have occured. He breathed out and wrote Nox's name back on the ledger. "Get rid of the plants.. Immediately. I don't care if I have to do it just say so. This place looks horrible and you've probably made it structurally unsound. On top of that, my brother has now decided we're horrible roommates. Ever since I got here he's been my first friend. It's like he's dead again."

She rolled her eyes again. "I assure you that they haven't damaged the integrity of the building. If you can find a suitable building to house the snakes which will be coming quite soon then that's fine." She got up once more and wandered to the doorway. "I would help reverse the process, but that could bring the snakes out, so you see my dilemma. I only acted because Nox just left me here alone in the dark you see."

Sliding out onto the street, she flicked her gaze around at the other empty buildings. "The snakes live off the mist. They can leave by day, in a small group to remove a leader, or in a large party to ambush an army. It's really quite clever, they're tied into my mind just as the ones in my head are." She returned her attention to Ragnarok.

"If you're really upset about this, then I'll help out, but chances are I'll end up releasing them in the process, and it'll make a rather nasty mess." She rested her hands on her waist, caressing the stretching scales softly. Of course, if you wish to continue with your ill-fated plan of taking over the world then you can do so without my help. I'm only interested in the island, getting rid of the stinking humans, then moving on to bigger fish... "I'm afraid that the soft hearted, carefree girl you left here is gone. Hope you don't mind one who's less eager to be led around on a leash, who actually has realistic plans that aren't far fetched, that in fact may very well work..."

"Just plain drawing fire? Haven't had the occasion, really. I've got a drawn-up lighter on hand for myself, and they're pretty easy to make."

He set the cans down, then turned around, sketched a lighter on the wall, and then summoned it. It lit up readily at first try; not the hottest fire in town, but it would be good enough. He handed it to Bloom, then picked up the can of air freshener for himself.

"After you."

"Thanks."

Winter replaced her blackjack on her belt and, retrieving the can of Raid, attached it in a similar spot. She proceeded forward down the corridor with the can of disinfectant in one hand and the lighter in the other. "Keep an eye out for a map or, at the very least, some signs on the wall. I think there are only a few studios the bee-man could have broadcasted from." At the very least, we know what floor he's on, Winter observed silently, having recalled the position from which the bee-man had attacked the police helicopter.

Nox, or rather, David, went into his old room and set the cot and sheets back up. He layer back on the bed, and listened to a playlist of mostly sad music. He began to think. Why do I have to fuck everything up? I got good men killed, left my only friend, and the only person I have eyes for is gone. Dammit.

She gritted her teeth ever so slowly. If he wanted her gone after all, she could just go down to the station, trade places with Nox, and be removed from his problems within a day. He could have the kids too, the eggs were still in steady condition. It was completely her choice to just go be what Medusa was, a heartbroken gorgon living alone in the middle of constant warring.

He turned and slapped her. Holy fuck he slapped her. This was uncharacteristic to say the least but he hated the thought of someone questioning his plans. HE was right; he didn't need her affirmation on the issue at all. But still, why the slap?!

"You listen and you listen motherfucking good, I don't care what you think, I happen to knkow that I saved you. You think you're big, and bad, and tough, but I could end you with nary a problem so you will, and I cannot stress that word enough, you WILL shut up, take this all with a grain of salt, and continue with the plan. Otherwise you can get the fuck out of my life, or die, for all I care. WE will replace humans, and that is all there is to it. Massproduction of this serum in some airborne fumes will provide the means; and then we'll spread. People will come to want to be us. And then, we will assimilate."

He turned sharply and left for the Haunt. Thats it. He was done fucking playing. The pawns lost their place; HE was the king, HE was the one in control. His Queen had betrayed him, his rook ran off. Damn if he wasn't losing, but he would NOT give in. He would fight to his dying breath to achieve this goal; whether or not he had support.

She froze, staring own at the ground where the angle of the slap left her. This was far worse than she expected. No way was she trusting him with custody now. She turned her head to look back once more as he was walking away. "Not so fast."

Rearing up, she slithered over to him, gaze focused directly on the hand that struck. Her mouth opened to two long fangs. Her snakes hissed in glee as she lunged forward, burying them into the flesh below his elbow. Injecting the venom, she leaned back and put some distance in between them.

"Next time you think of slapping me, try waiting a week for the petrification to wear off." She returned to the hotel, smashing one of the glass doors with a flick of her tail. Obviously she had to be the practical warlord in this matter. Gather some couples, initiate contact with the world governments, release the hostages and stop Ragnarok in return for the island. Then he could go wild as he pleased. Only then...

Making her way up the stairs, she headed straight for the spa. Screw it, he had left too, she could have what she wanted now. He'd gone and done all the heroic stuff oh yes, but she had to sit there alone, hunt for what she wanted. He wanted to take over the world, well that was his problem to solve. She deserved this place much more than anyone else did.

Her mood toned down as the spa began to fill with warm water. She could breathe beneath the surface easily enough, it stood to reason her snakes that would be born in just minutes could too. The spa finished filling at last. For this occasion it would just be a pool of water, clean of harmful chemicals. Tearing her shirt off with ease, she slid down into the pool, curling her body around so that the underside of her tail was facing the centre. Her head rested back on a mossy rock placed there for decoration. It was up to nature now.

She jolted as the first emerged, swimming up to look at her face. She smiled and leaned her head back once more. As the rate of emergence steadily climbed, she imagined that day when she would finally get what she wanted. Flanked by her chosen catalysts, positioned at the head of the island as the males in the military were shipped off. It was a power play, those who could were grabbing for control. However, she knew what she was doing unlike others. She could create her forces in such a way that they were fiercely loyal, yet retained their human instincts...

"Sure thing. Map..." Rodney followed Bloom down the hall. The most likely place to find a map would have been near the entrance, but after that, hard to say. Not long after the janitorial closet, the hall turned off for the elevators. Rodney stopped and peered down the hall. The elevator doors were nothing but a solid wall of bees, but in between them was the mother lode.

"Here you go!" he called, waving Bloom back.

Just about all of the snakes were now swimming around the spa in a mass of scaled bodies. A few were still inside her, some re-entering by themselves. It was no bother to her anyway. Lifting herself out, she reached for a towel and began drying herself, removing her body from the water slowly to encourage the rest to leave. Those that had died or never hatched were already re-absorbed. Minimal losses in any case.

"Now, how to get you downstairs..." Wrapping the towel around her she began looking around the room. The air vents contained too many dangerous drops, the halls seemed like the best option given no-one else was around. Leaning down to sit on the side of her waist, she ran her hand through the water, moving the water towards the edge closest to the door. Following her signal, the snakes swam towards the indicated edge, slithering out along the polished boards to the doorway and into the mist.

Standing up again, she went down to the 'human' floor and counted the rooms. Sixteen. Perfect. She knew enough kids from her school who would probably be alive to form the remaining fifteen couples. Melanie had been through enough, there was no reason to include her in the plan developing.

A smile crept across Steph's face as the snakes continued to slither around her to the doorway. The hostages could be spared their inevitable fate in the meantime, she needed guards. Who would miss six women from the military, given all the fighting. Probably no-one. Making her way down to the lower floor, she took the time to glance around in case Ragnarok was still watching, and made her way towards the military base once more.

"Whatcha got? Whatcha got?" Winter turned and jogged back to Dali.

Upon catching up with him, she followed his gaze down the hall. "Ooh, good work. Now let's see where our friend is at..." Winter approached the map, keeping a cautious eye on the bees.

It was easy enough to locate. Sneaking in under the cover of bushes, she began searching for the quarters. Time to get some revenge on the harsh treatment Melanie had been given. Flicking her slitted eyes around the place, cold scaly skin disguising her from any infra-red cameras, she continued her silent hunt towards the showers.

Pressing up against the wall outside, she listened for a few moments to gauge the amount of women. Seven, one too many, perhaps snack then. She closed her eyes as they rolled back, in order to do this, she needed to adopt her full snake form, one she had never thought to use until now. As her head deformed down into a large snake's head, she returned her attention to those in the showers.

"Showtime." Nudging the door open, she slithered in silently. All were in separate cubicles with a simple plastic curtain for protection. Saved her the effort of regurgitating their clothing. Diving through the first, she had her mouth over the soldier's waist in an instant. Flicking her head back, she let her slide down completely. Taking the time to be sure she was doing it right, she watched as the bulge slowly moved down into the end of her tail.

Carrying six at one time would make her escape very slow, hardly helped as the one in her began to struggle. A powerful sedative filling the sac ended it quickly. Not wanting to risk discovery, she proceeded to swallow down the five others, groaning as her tail became quite large. Deciding to spare the last, she resumed her gorgon form and slithered out doggedly.

Dragging the six soldiers around was quite a challenge, but she achieved it nonetheless. Pulling herself into the lobby of the hotel, she took deep breaths of the mist to recover her strength. It was simple enough, it took a full to begin the metamorphosis process on a human, encasing them in a semi-solid egg filled with the right fluids, once she had relaid them the plants would take care of the rest. They would continue to transform until they were not unlike her, just completely open to her influence.

"A day, no big deal..." Struggling up the stairs, she finally reached her room and positioned the last three metres of her body around the back of the lounge to keep them out of the way. Lying back down along the better part of the lounge, she resumed watching the DVD's on their endless cycle. "As long as he doesn't come back in that time..."

Now Ragnarok had come to visit. Nox noticed something off, and he was mumbling about chess. Nox stopped him. "I disagree with your political plans. Wake Island should be an anarchy, and of you're an enemy to that..." Nox tripped Ragnarok suddenly, and Ragnarok passed out. Nox bound and gagged him. He took him to the street and tied him to a pole. "You will be food to the crows." he went to the hotel, calling out "Steph?".

Melanie went about her own routine, eating, watching DVD's with Steph, reading about society on the computer. Being confined to a small tank for her entire life, the only contact being through a wall of thick glass for being taught English... It wasn't the world she expected to see on the small chance her constant prayers for freedom were to be answered.

But she had an older relative who cared about her, taking her into her residence without question, giving her what she wanted. In return she had refrained from asking questions, but staring at the large bulge at the end of her tail was quickly stretching her silence. Finally, the time came that she could not keep quiet any longer. She had to ask.

"Steph, I thought you had the snakes already..." Steph flicked her eyes in Melanie's direction briefly. She was intensely watching a horror-romance, the interruption upset her for a few moments. It passed soon enough, twisting onto her back she tapped her hands while coming up with an answer. She was her only friend now, she deserved no less than the truth.

"In the coming days, I will have to do some, rather unpleasant things, which will hopefully end with the surrender of this island to the Catalysts. Before that, I need to ensure that you have protection while I carry out the plan." She closed her eyes, sliding them towards the direction of the sleeping women in her. "I took those who caused you harm, so they will become your servants. They sleep for now, when they wake they will be like us in body."

Melanie glanced at the figures beneath Steph's skin, now seeing the lumps for shoulders and other limbs. It distressed her greatly to know that such a terrible thing was occurring, all for her own sake. Slithering away, she pondered Steph's choices. Glancing out the window, she noticed soldiers cleaning up dead bodies. Suddenly, the idea of consuming the people, holding them hostage inside, rebirthing them as gorgons, and bringing them to undo the harm they caused didn't seem so bad after all.

Nox yelled again. "Steph? Is everything alright? Ragnarok seemed odd, but he'll be food for the crows by tomorrow." The strange mist permeated the lower lobby. He felt oddly uncomfortable. He strolled to the lost items box. He found a copy of Inheritance. But was now the time to read of Eragon's adventures?

She rolled her eyes as Nox called out. What did he want now? Getting up carefully, she left the room and made her way down to the lobby. The mist would easily conceal the figures in her, so her secret plan could remain that way for longer. Judging by what he was saying, he wasn't on good terms with Ragnarok anyway.

Sliding into the lobby, she rested her hands on her growing stomach. "He slapped me because I've been making plans of my own. For the moment I don't care what he does, but I would prefer that he is alive in future." Stroking one of the plants with her hands, she curled her body up tighter. "Is anything the matter?"

"Just stopping by to check on you." He smiled reassuringly, unsure as he was. Nothing made sense anymore. He stoppe and dog eared the page, saying, "So do I cut him down from the lamp post?"

She glanced around again. Nox was the one person she could trust at the moment. No, once she had laid the cocoons he could be filled in about her plan. In the meantime... "Yes, but I don't want him here. He's in a bad mood, I'm worried he'll do something to the kids." She made her way over to him slowly, placing her hand on his shoulder. "Thanks for coming by, I appreciate it."

He stood up and looked into steph's eyes. "Sis, if you ever need help with anything, ask." He then departed, carrying the book. He cut the ropes holding Ragnarok to the light pole, but left the restraints on his hands and ankles. He dragged him to the haunt again, and left him locked in a janitorial closet.

Watching him leave, she paused for a moment before going up and wandering down to the floor in between her room and the human suite. Sliding along it, she took the time to examine the plants growing around the doorways. Reaching for the first, she let it swing in. Creeping into the room from the door frame, a small alcove formed of plants.

"Perfect, I knew this would be so easy." Watching as the plants criss-crossed into a tight mesh across the opening, she tested it with her hand. Easily strong enough to support the cocoons. She gazed back down at the bulge in the end of the corridor. A day was rather tedious given she had nothing else to do, but better than a week. At least it would help greatly in pressuring the governments to act faster.

She looked back at the alcove. Trying to lay them before they had been incubated long enough would probably make them break out prematurely, and in-between forms, their lower body would be literally soup. Her room became inviting again as the need to rest took over. She was now accustomed to feeding nutrients off the mist, the idea of eating people in the night could be disposed of.

Lying back down on the lounge she returned to watching the DVD's. "Hey Mel, I'm really sorry if what I'm doing upsets you. I'm just worried about all the Catalysts, we need an island to become established on. Others want to take over the world, my plans aren't that big, for the moment. Point is, very soon I'll have to start forcing the powers to give us what we want, and that involves more humans."

Melanie looked up at the ceiling from her sandwich. Upset her, not really. Disturbed her, quite a lot. Still she chose to remain silent as usual. Steph was having much more success than their mythical ancestor, and she wasn't killing anyone at that. Taking her sandwich back out, she coiled up on her bed and began to eat slowly. Perhaps now was a good time to hibernate, escape from all the misery and destruction for a while.

Nox had returned to the haunt. Now was the time for waiting games. He hadn't eaten since.. Three AM? It was the afternoon now. He searched the food storage for something decent. He found a baked potato. It would be a mater of reheating. After te potato there really was nothing to do. So he decided to just do curl ups until he couldn't.

Her mind continued to wander. Nox was more understanding, his goals were more like hers, steady. Still, she couldn't leave yet. Her plan would come to play soon enough. Sixteen girls to be used as hostage, sixteen guy's to be bonded to each, to protect them from harm at any cost. It wasn't a guarantee that the governments would accept her proposal, but then the island was a mess, probably not worth it anymore.

What really concerned her was supplies. They needed them in order to build up, but there was little chance of gaining that. That facet would require more thought, or perhaps Ragnarok had a plan in mind. This was for his good just as much as everyone else's, he was aimed at the world without an island to stand on. All she was doing was providing it for him really.

Nox decided to start the show himself. For the balance of the day he worke on an improvised explosive, made from two grenades, some wore, and an alarm clock. In theory, when the clock struck five the next morning the grenades would go off. In theory.

She slept for most of the time. There wasn't really much else she could do. Perhaps if she had taken one to adjust her body to performing metamorphosis on humans it would have gone smoother. But the circumstances wouldn't allow for that. So she slept on, occasionally waking to bathe in mist until she was ready to sleep again.

It was now around the hour of nine on a cold autumn night. He pondered where to place the bomb, since it was mostly nondestructive and would work best against personnel. It then dawned on him. He could place it in a military bunker, killing many sleeping enemies.