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Author Topic: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]  (Read 4834 times)

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Stardancer

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Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« on: August 31, 2015, 05:29:26 am »
Tags to @Daglobster !

The small space shuttle touched the ground then on Edanith soil. Soon it landed fully, a platform being slowly lowered to the ground before the black metallic door slid open. A humanoid figure, albeit a very tall one with light bluish skin made her way out, walking down the smooth platform before stepping foot on the ground outside. Her long wavy purple hair accentuated her thin and narrow features, as all three eyes looked around, surveying what she could. Plerona had come to Edanith once again for no reason other than to see the sights again and be of aid where needed.

“You certain you'll be alright for a few days, Miss Plerona?” the pilot asked her then in their language of Rastiika, a fellow Trenopian who possessed psionic powers of energy blasts and pyrokinesis.

“Yes, of course Lemuel. I thank you for your concern, but I will be fine while here. You may take your leave at any time.” Plerona answered him.

Lemuel seemed hesitant, but obliged nonetheless. “Alright then, I will be back to pick you up in a few days time then.” And with that, he went back inside, platform folding up and door closing once more, before he activated the controls to take off for space again.

Lemuel had long since had a thing for Plerona and had helped her out many times by taking her to many places around the universe, whether they be planet or space station. Plerona was unaware of this, and did not seem to hold the same interest in him, but they were good friends regardless. The male Trenopian also seemed reluctant to make any moves toward her, to let her know in fact that he was interested in having a relationship with her. Children too, possibly. The thought of having to care for little Trenopian children with Plerona as his wife had long been a dream for him, but it seemed it may remain such for quite awhile to come. If the circumstances ever changed that was.

Soon, the female alien was on her own again, and began to head towards the town gates out on the edges of the frontier here. The town was called 'Red Bridge' as it did in fact bridge the megacities from the frontier where the latter only started to really begin. The soil around these parts was more reddish-brown, but with some grasses and plants poking up here and there in order to provide certain conditions for farming crops and harvesting plant roots as a source of food for the people who lived here.

Entering the town, Plerona looked around and made to head to the local general goods store. On her way there, she heard the sound of an anguished curse muttered by someone not too far from where she was at. Both golden eyes as well as her third eye of vibrant yellow looked around for the cause of it. A man in tattered brown clothing standing on the edge of the streets then met her sight. He was gazing around haphazardly, with a definite look of sorrow on his face, as well as one of outright fear. The man, whoever he was, didn't seem to notice Plerona yet. The words he shouted out into the evening air were filled with despair and sadness as he called out in a loud voice to no one in particular.

“I will avenge your death, Maria!” he called out, looking ever forlorn and lost in that moment. “I will, I promise you...I will...avenge...” The man slumped down at the side of the road then, seeming to have lost the fight in him for the time being. The few people that passed him by spared not a look his way, and those that did openly scoffed at him, believing him to be nothing more than a common street bum.

Plerona took pity on the poor man and headed his way to try to talk to him and see what was wrong. As she approached, the man turned his head before his eyes widened, looking like he was pondering whether to dash off or stay where he was. He seemed to decide on the former, and was just about to do so when Plerona called out to him in the common tongue. “Stay young man, I mean you no harm. I just want to talk.”

The man hesitated, but did as he was told. Eying her warily as she sat down beside him on the side of the dirt road. “My name is Plerona and I would like to know what ails you.” She gazed at him kindly. “What is your name, sir?”

The man who looked like he hadn't had a proper bath in days, answered but still wary. “Peter. My name is Peter.” he replied. But said nothing else.

“Well, Peter it is nice to meet you.” Plerona lifted a hand facing him in way of greeting. After some silence, she asked, “May I ask what is wrong?”

Peter didn't respond for a good minute or so, but finally he said something. “Maria...my sister...” he sputtered out, not able to fully explain just yet.

“What about your sister?” Plerona continued to ask her questions, patiently and kindly.

Peter looked at her then, a grave expression on his face. “Maria is dead. Brain sucked out by a foul being. I...do not know much more, I'm afraid.” He was holding something back though, but the female alien chose not to press any further for now. It would come up later, if he chose to reveal it.

But what he said was disturbing though, as it meant a murderer was on the loose around these parts. Still Plerona would not let hopelessness or uncertainty overtake her, she would remain positive and try to help this man find his way again. And possibly bring his sister's killer to justice. It was fundamental to stay positive if not for herself, but for the lost human male before her. He needed counseling and Plerona would do just that.
« Last Edit: August 31, 2015, 05:38:38 am by Stardancer »

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #1 on: August 31, 2015, 06:55:51 am »
Redundant.

Another memory, cast off into the darkness. Kruz'Iik existed in a white void, at the moment. Trapped firmly in the folds between space. His form didn't matter, but if he chose to coalesce it, it would appear. At the moment, he was busy purveying the memories of a very certain Maria.

Redundant.

More knowledge he already had, another memory he let go. It was probably better that he got rid of all of it, purged the tattered remnants of Maria's mind from himself, but people like her often held random tidbits he never really knew.

Oh, hello...

Minutia of Edenian flora and fauna. Insignificant... but new.

He purged the rest away, and with that, he was done. He disseminated the information through himself, and felt his power grow, if only by the smallest amount possible. He felt space creeping back in, and he re-entered what was collectively known as the material world.

It was a trashed laboratory. Kruz'Iik didn't really appreciate the messy state of the place, as he liked to consider himself above base violence like this. Maria had struck a nerve, however, and as he took the place in once more, he quickly pinpointed her corpse.

A wilted husk, all personality and life drained from her gentle features.

The laboratory itself wasn't just messy, or there wasn't just signs of struggle. Acid burns, scorch marks, the concrete floor was compressed and heated into diamonds at places.

Maria had been psionic as well. Only latently, of course, but this day and age, even the latent could put up a fight.

He reached out with his mind, and started to search for her brother.

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #2 on: August 31, 2015, 09:36:42 am »
Having found out a little more about the man Peter and his sister Maria, Plerona considered all that she had been told. The sister had been psionic, just like Plerona and her brother as well as all their kind in fact, but the brother did not possess any psionic talent. He had come upon her mutilated corpse in some laboratory, drained of everything that made a person what they were, only to come face to face with a hideous being unlike anything he had ever seen before in his twenty-three years of life. Maria had been a couple years older than him at age twenty-five. The creature he saw had a black body comprised of some strange shadowy substance, complete with eyes of glowing red. It was thin and wiry and looked like some kind of wraith he had thought.

It was safe to say Peter didn't stick around after that, fleeing for his life and barely managing to do so. Perhaps the thing had decided not to pursue him then, he didn't know. What he did know is that Maria was dead and he had no other family as their parents had been killed in a space expedition seven years back. They had had little money to begin with, as they were not rich by any means. But they made do with what they had. Now Peter was at a loss of where to go from here and worried that the vile monster would also come after him.

“Can you tell me what this laboratory looked like?” Plerona questioned him, trying to find out whatever she could.

Peter waved both hands in the air wildly. “I ...don't know. Big. Laboratory-ish. Bottles and such everywhere.”

Alright, so that wasn't much to go on. For now anyway, Plerona continued to give him advice and talk to him, unaware that the murderer even now was scoping out the area from afar with its psionic powers. Plerona couldn't detect this as that was not her power. Telekinesis was the only ability she had.

The day darkened fully into night now, and most people had gone home and off the streets. Plerona suggested they too find some shelter as well. Peter led the way to a broken-down building where he and Maria had taken up residence. There were some furnishings, sparse though, and family photos decorated the wall on one end. A coffee table was placed in the center of the main room, drinks scattered around with empty cups. Peter had obviously been trying to drink away his cares, drowning them out with alcohol. Various snacks of pretzels and chips were also here and there, most of the bags empty, while some were only about half that. A rug slightly out of place on the floor, a vase lay in shattered pieces nearby.

“Sorry for the mess.” he mumbled, before heading into a back room. “Take a seat, I'll be right out.”

Plerona did as she was told and sat down, but not before looking at the photos with interest. They had seemed to be a happy family at one point, if the smiling faces and goofy bunny ears over their heads were any indication. Pretty soon the sound of retching was heard, coming from one of the back rooms as Peter emptied his tortured stomach. Plerona did not get up though, only waited for him to come back out.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #3 on: August 31, 2015, 06:49:45 pm »
The metacognitive force that was Kruz'Iik lingered in the laboratory, hanging over the place like some kind of dark, mental haze. Finding Maria's brother had proven to be quite the chore, but when Kruz'Iik finally picked him up, he chuckled, the noise reverberating throughout the laboratory.

There was another psionic presence, significantly larger than Maria's, and it was in incredibly close proximity to Peter. The feedback from that was initially what prevented Kruz'Iik from finding him, so he had to fine-tune his detection until he got past it.

And as if he'd never been in the lab, he disappeared. Shortly after his departure, the lab went up in what could only be a generator explosion, wiping whatever physical evidence Kruz'Iik couldn't purge from existence.

He was coming for them.

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #4 on: September 01, 2015, 04:52:00 am »
Peter soon came back out, looking a little green as a result. He grabbed a bottle of water and drunk the whole thing down in a few gulps, before wiping his chin off.

Plerona stood up then and went over to him. "Anything I can do?" she asked.

Peter shook his head no. "Unless you can bring back Maria or kill the thing that killed her, then no. There's not." He sat down and ran a hand through his brown hair. "I am scared." he began, looking at the Trenopian. "I don't even know you or heck even what you are, but for some reason I feel I can trust you."

Plerona smiled at him. "I am glad." she said. Seeing his still down-trodden demeanor, she sat down next to him but at a respectable distance. "It is important to not give up hope. Never give up hope." she told him firmly, but not unkindly either. "I can protect you from whatever it is that might be seeking you."

Peter looked up at her then, his brow furrowed. "How?" he asked, confused.

"I am also psionic, just like your sister was. In fact, my entire species is. I can protect both of us from whatever is out there."

Peter looked like he was about to say something but paused when he saw a dark shape appear in the room. The same one he had seen in the laboratory! At a loss for words, he struggled to say something but couldn't. His voice failed him then at this critical time.

Plerona also saw it and jumped up in alarm. The presence was certainly psionic and not the friendly kind either. "Who are you and what do you want?" she demanded the creature.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #5 on: September 01, 2015, 05:10:44 am »
The faint glimpse of Kruz'Iik's form that they witnessed was nothing but the shadow of his mind, leaving an impression on the world as he phased in from Maria's laboratory. It was gone before any response was given, shaking as if reality itself rejected.

The wind picked up for a moment outside, and small, loose objects like Peter's water battle clattered in place. One of the windows cracked, and the very building shuddered on its foundations.

Terrified prey made for better eating.

Then, Kruz'Iik appeared properly. A hole in space was ripped open, and the black shadow that was Kruz'Iik's unformed body poured out, quickly taking his tall, bipedal form. At first, he had no eyes, but then they suddenly appeared.

Two baleful suns, gazing malevolently at the both of them.

"You say you can protect him. False words spoken to ease a terrified mind."

Kruz'Iik's voice came from the walls, from anywhere but him. To Peter, his mind still unshielded from Kruz'Iik's influences, Kruz'Iik's voice came from within his own mind.

"Stand aside, Trenopian. His sister meddled in affairs too large for her meager mind to comprehend. She was a fool."

Kruz'Iik clenched a fist, and the cracked window shattered.

"And in her weakness, she damned him to the same fate."

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #6 on: September 01, 2015, 09:17:13 pm »
The surroundings shook as the being exerted its power upon the place, the psionic energy running rampant, bags of uneaten food shifted around, the pictures on the wall rattled, one of them falling to the tiled floor with a smash! It was a photo of the two siblings standing side by side each other, smiling brightly at the camera as the happy moment in time was captured forever. The outer glass protecting it shattered, and broken shards littered the ground near them.

Peter was definitely scared, and his eyes wildly searched around before he muttered loudly in fear, "I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die..." Repeating that same phrase over and over again as he scrabbled for purchase on the couch, grabbing the edge of it to steady himself.

Plerona meanwhile, while unnerved was not frightened. Even though the psionics she clearly felt were pretty strong, the presence rivaling even the most powerful among her own species. If not even topping that. Still she would not show fear and kept her cool. Even when the shadowy being appeared for real in the room, eyes glowing a malicious red, the Trenopian stood her ground.

"Peter, get behind me." she ordered the trembling man. Peter didn't need to be told twice and immediately cowered behind the female alien. Still muttering under his breath that he was going to die.

Plerona gazed evenly at the Mindshifter. "I know of your kind." she stated. "For I have heard of the race of Mindshifters. Your intelligence and power. Your cruelty and sadism. Why do you hunt this man? What has he ever done to deserve your wrath?"

Peter continued his mad rant. "I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die." Terror shining in his eyes, his whole posture reeked of it.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #7 on: September 01, 2015, 09:39:25 pm »
Kruz'Iik stood still, smoldering, before he chuckled, an alien sound quite unlike his appearance.

"Sadism? I'm merely crushing some bothersome ants."

The shadows peeled away, as if flushed from him, and in his place, stood Maria. Or at least, something that looked, sounded, and even smelled like her. Kruz'Iik smiled, pushed up his glasses, and made a seating motion. From the concrete beneath him, a sculpted seat formed to provide him somewhere to sit. When he spoke, it was in Maria's voice.

"My kind might be known as slumbering demons to yours, Trenopian, but to mankind, we are traceless. I'm afraid if knowledge of our species gets out, the unenlightened monkeys would tear themselves apart. It's been foreseen."

He crossed his legs, taking a moment to admire his smooth, sexy legs and short, yet professional skirt.

"He has done nothing, but it's what he carries in his mind that's dangerous. You see, before she died, Maria told Peter her secrets. Told him about us."

Kruz'Iik shook his head.

"The fool damned him with her words."

Kruz'Iik stood up, and started to walk towards the two, nice and slowly.

"I will ask you one more time, Trenopian. I do not have time for you to waste with your pointless heroics, so step. aside."

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #8 on: September 02, 2015, 04:44:26 am »
Peter froze when Kruz'Iik transformed into his sister, Maria. Stopping his mad rants, he pointed a finger accusingly at the Mindshifter. "You're not her! Vile, monstrous creature you are. And Maria hasn't told me anything. I know nothing!" he lied, trying to save his skin. Still the visage of his dead sister standing before him talking thoroughly shook him to his core and he had to sit down on the couch, as he couldn't command his legs to carry him anymore.

Plerona did not move. "I cannot allow you to harm this man. He is innocent and I will not stand by while you attempt to extract whatever knowledge he may have." As she spoke her third eye glowed in a fierce yellow light, indicative of her sheer determination and faith that she would prevail. And so would Peter.

The Trenopian prepared herself for a fight even though she would rather not debase herself in such a way, but it couldn't be helped. Her people may not accept violence but they would do what they had to do come what may.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #9 on: September 02, 2015, 05:11:38 am »
"Selecting one life over billions?"

Kruz'Iik's eyes glowed red again, and his hair flowed on an invisible wind.

"Quite unlike you, Trenopian. Still, if I have to teach you why your kind writes about mine in fables, I will."

The truth was, she had him in a bit of a jam. Not the kind of jam where she had him dead to rights, but the only way Kruz'Iik could recover that information was by draining Peter, something he couldn't do with her in the way. He'd strongly prefer not to outright kill him, as Peter could perhaps hold knowledge of his own that only he knew.

Also, Kruz'Iik was feeling a bit peckish, and he supposed a weak-minded fool like Peter was emotional enough at the moment to provide adequate sustenance.

His form caught fire, ethereal and blue, and burned away in a flash. As if it was just a shell, Maria's form burst open, and Kruz'Iik's shadow form made itself once again. He started to probe at Plerona's mind, testing her defenses as he crossed his arms.

"Go on then, Trenopian. Protect him. Fulfill your promise."

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #10 on: September 02, 2015, 05:45:49 am »
When Plerona felt Kruz'Iik start to probe her mind, she immediately envisioned a brick wall in her mind's eye. It was not a power, merely a technique her kind utilized, one of many. She made sure to visualize the brick wall being as unbreakable as possible in order to block her thoughts from him.

Meanwhile, she focused her telekinetic power to form an actual wall between them, crafted from the tiled floor itself. It would only be a brief distraction that, but Plerona would show him she was not weak. "If you knew anything about my kind, you would know that we do not tolerate needless violence. Letting you harm this man is not something I, or any of my race would accept. I ask you to retreat now while you have the chance."

Peter was now panting heavily, his eyes unfocused as he began to have a meltdown. "Oh god, oh god, oh god..." Putting his head into his hands, he muttered to himself, his words rising in pitch with each passing second.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #11 on: September 02, 2015, 06:34:39 am »
Plerona's defenses were considerable, at least the mental ones were. Thankfully, probing her in the way that he was currently doing expended absolutely no energy, and it let him get a read for her defenses.

"I will leave you broken, so you can taste your failure as you watch the light fade from your charge's eyes."

Her wall of tiles was violently ripped in half, and then those halves broke apart. The brick wall to guard her thoughts was formidable, yes, but there was somebody else in the room.

And his mind, unlike hers, was wide open.

Kruz'Iik extended the tendrils of his will into Peter's, and temporarily overwrote the man's motor functions. He commanded Peter to strike at Plerona, to distract her long enough that Kruz'Iik could get into her perceptions and initiate his primary combat style.

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #12 on: September 02, 2015, 07:28:49 pm »
When Peter struck at Plerona from behind with the base of a potted plant, the alien was distracted from her focus and fell forward onto the ground in surprise. Looking back at Peter, she saw he had been mentally taken control of, and so with her powers, she moved the couch in between them to block any further assaults her way. Plerona knew that trying to get through to him would be useless so she turned her attention back to the Mindshifter then.

Peter stumbled against the back of the couch, the remains of the potted plant lying strewn about the ground. Shaking his head as though in a daze, he struggled to get up again.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #13 on: September 02, 2015, 07:47:47 pm »
Elaros chuckled once again. Her wall, weakened by her temporary lack of focus, was easy for him to shatter. Her thoughts, however, were of no concern for him.

Mindshifters fought through illusions and deceptions, and there was no better illusion than the one your opponent thought was real. He reached into Plerona's senses. All five came under his influence, and while they weren't under his complete control, he got a fair bit into them.

Before she could get up off the ground, everything suddenly changed. The ground fell away, and was replaced with short, reddish grass. Buildings, Peter, and the room around her all distanced themselves, until she was standing, alone, on this plain. It smelled, felt, sounded, and looked like plains. Hell, the air even tasted appropriate!

Above her, a large moon hung. The moon started to glow red, and the stars in the sky shifted about, until they outlined Kruz'Iik's shadow form, towering over her like some titanic god.

"This is my domain, Trenopian. I will grind your pathetic mind to dust, and as you slowly descend into chattering madness, you will know what it is to stand in my path."

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #14 on: September 02, 2015, 08:05:32 pm »
That was when her surroundings changed, her immediate environment replaced by rolling red plains, a large red moon hanging over head. Kruz'Iik's form stood menacingly in the sky, made up of a starry pattern against the blackness. Plerona knew this was naught but an illusion, and tried to break free of it. However her real power laid with her telekinetic ability, and so she was unable to shatter through the Mindshifter's deception. Everything looked and felt too real to be anything but.

Still she stood her ground and met the 'eyes' of the alien foe before her. "You can try." she said, still too soon to be deterred by her predicament. "But you will fail." While once again trying to break free of the control he had over her.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #15 on: September 02, 2015, 08:13:22 pm »
Kruz'Iik laughed, and his starry limbs reached down. So massive was his form, that his hands disappeared around the horizon as he cupped whatever world she was on on his hands. The ground shook, cracks appeared in the earth, and Plerona would feel like she was going up. Kruz'Iik's face got closer and closer until the red glow of his eye cast a dim shade of red onto the entire place.

"We will see."

From one of the cracks, a beast jumped up. It was shadowy, very much like Kruz'Iik's form, but it lacked the overtly humanoid shape. This beast was hunched, with short legs, arms like tree trunks, and a overall savage countenance. It roared at Plerona, and charged, slavering and ready to tear her apart.

Stardancer

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Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #16 on: September 02, 2015, 08:42:26 pm »
Grabbing onto the grasses to keep her balance and to avoid falling into the cracks in the earth, the Trenopian lost her grip as she ascended upward towards the red gleam of Kruz'Iik's eyes, blades of grass still clutched in her long, thin and bluish hands.

Then the world righted itself and Plerona was back on the ground again. A shadowy beast, no doubt some aspect of Kruz'Iik's consciousness leaped at her from one of the cracks, murder on its mind. Purely out of instinct, she raised a hand and channeled her power to fling it away from her, while at the same time mentally gathering chunks of earth to throw at it in order to deter its course.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #17 on: September 02, 2015, 09:02:48 pm »
As she commanded, the beast went sailing off and away from her, catapulted across the plains by her telekinetic prowess. Its flight was cut short, however, when a wall of stone came up to stop it. It hit the wall with a crack, and it toppled to the ground. As if pulled up by some invisible strings, the beast was right back onto its feet, undeterred by the damage it had taken.

From above, Kruz'Iik watched eagerly. Truly, Plerona had no idea what she was in for.

Stardancer

  • Guest
Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #18 on: September 02, 2015, 09:11:59 pm »
Seeing the beast come back at her again, Plerona repeated her actions, this time putting much more force into the backwards motion of it. She wasn't sure how far this would go, but the Trenopian steeled herself for whatever else was to come. She would not allow herself to cave in to his whims. Would not let her hopes be dashed that she wouldn't endure through this.

Offline Daglobster

Re: Deadly Information Has Its Costs [DaGlobster]
« Reply #19 on: September 03, 2015, 09:17:09 am »
This time, the beast held its ground, digging its clas into the earth to try and hold on. The only purpose that ended up serving was causing a few deep gashes in the earth before it went sailing away again.

Hitting the same wall, it stopped moving.

The grass wilted away, the moon cracked up. It seemed she'd won, however, Kruz'Iik started laughing.

"For all your righteousness, you really didn't hesitate, did you?" he purred, and suddenly, she was back in the building.

Kruz'Iik wasn't immediately visible, but what was visible was Peter, dashed against the wall and all sorts of messed up.

She was never protecting herself all along, she was just slamming Peter against the wall with her full power, no doubt breaking several of his ribs and other bones.

 

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