Kai Westlock

this was all kinds of fucked up and now kai was there? it took toby a few moments to really process that it was him, like, really him. however, once he did, he snapped out of the memory and backed away from him. " what? what the fuck? " he muttered to himself and tapped the side of his head a few times, then hurried over to one of the windows to peak at the idle vehicle untouched from destructive hands. " h-how do you know? is that how you're here? what do you know? " toby rambled on, his tone dripping with trepidation — confusion. the worry clouding his judgement and not quite able to connect it to what led up to this moment, how he got there. instead, toby turned back to the other and threw his hand up in frustration, " i never agreed to share this shit, 'specially with you ... no offense. "

Kai sighed as Toby backed away, his head shaking a little. "I don't know. I mean... no one's told me anything, at least." His stance relaxed as it became obvious that Toby had broken from the stupor of the memory, but he didn't move from the door. He didn't have any desire to see what was nestled in the darkest moments of the other's mind–that's what he assumed was happening anyway. "I was trapped in my worst memory–I don't know how many times I looped before I broke out–and I think the same is happening here. To you." Vanguardia would probably brush this off as an accident, and try to cover it up, but Kai was starting to wonder if they hadn't done this to get a glimpse into what made them all tick; since they were presumably still in their servers, he didn't date voice the thought out loud. "None taken. Listen, I've not seen anything and I don't want to, but we need to figure out how to get the hell out of here."

Everything about the aptitude test set Verity on edge, her cuticles were almost ruined in the days leading up to it; having anxious bouts and it felt like her nerves were on fire. She wanted to do well at Vanguardia, but doing so meant using her power more – a power that set most people on edge and made them steer clear of her. Verity had always been good at making friends during childhood; she was a girl with a welcoming smile and a kind soul, but perhaps it was due to her mother using her power on her all along. Verity was still picking those memories apart to figure out who she was, but either way the drop from constant friends to having barely any was jarring. 

Hearing another voice in the room beside him was jarring, but still Kai was locked in the memory, clutching his mother's hand as he tried to stop the looping trauma. He had long forgotten why he was here–how he was here–and he could barely even hear the words coming from the girl. "Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it." The demand repeated between sobs, his eyes closed firmly in an attempt to stop reliving this, when a hand clasped his shoulder.

Why was she smiling? What was wrong with her? Kai's eyes narrowed at her response to him rotting the table, and just like that, the decay retreated, leaving the table in the condition it had been in before she had vandalised it with the sharpie. Her name was probably still there, but his power had broken down the dye in the ink, leaving it clear and illegible. "Most people don't get a glint in their eye when they see something literally turn to mulch." He commented, still internally questioning her reaction. When she placed the pin in front of him, Kai's furrowed brow and glaring eyes relaxed just a fraction. "You got me a pin?" The words 'BORN TO DECAY' looked back up at him and he suddenly felt uncomfortable. Why was she giving him this? He picked it up, keeping his face neutral as he tried not to focus on the fact that the last person to buy him a gift had probably been his mother. Damn it, it was just a stupid pin. "God, you're so lame."

The sight of the guy’s shoes stops Julian cold. The leather’s peeling, seams splitting, laces rotting right before his eyes. He stares, unblinking, his pulse hammering in his ears. What the fuck? He blinks once. Twice. It’s still happening. He’s finally losing it.

Kai watched him carefully for any signs that he was about to blow, but it seemed like his words were slowly breaking through to him. The offending assholes were long gone–one minus a pair of shoes–and it was just the two of them left in the courtyard as Julian started taking deep breaths. It would be fine–he would be fine. There was a small part of Kai that considered the benefit of letting the other explode, casualties be damned; people would soon learn not to mess with him if they knew how lethal his power could be, but he could tell just by looking at him, that hurting that many people–again–would do more damage to him than anyone else.

"King Lear, Julius Cesar, Romeo and Juliet... Your resistance to ever return to the stage will be added alongside them as a great tragedy. You will let me know if you have a change of heart, hm? Such things do have a way of playing on your mind," she grinned, as if she knew some great secret he hadn't quite figured out yet. "Pah!" Phoebe scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. "Like what? Fisticuffs?"

God, she was so dramatic; he hardly thought that him not performing in a musical was anywhere near a Shakespearian tragedy. "I wouldn't hold your breath." Kai wished she would stop smiling at him–it was unsettling, which was saying a lot coming from him. "Fisticuffs?" Was she serious? "Yeah, if the situation calls for it. I'd rather stand up and fight for something than perform like a trained monkey."

"A tragic end to your story," Ryan commented as Kai closed the book over. Although, he made no effort to move along and leave Kai to it. Maybe he wanted to catch up. A wry smile tugged at Ryan's lips at Kai's grimace, he really hated when Ryan pulled out his old books. "No, actually. I just have it memorised so well that I know just when to turn the page. Now you know my big secret, don't tell anyone," Ryan said dryly. "And how are you now we're back in full swing?"

"I imagine you have that effect on people." Maybe it was just because he had lived with him for so long, but there was just something about Ryan that irritated the hell out of him. He probably had one of the coolest powers at Vanguardia, and what was he doing with it? Absolutely nothing. He wouldn't even learn to fight and sometimes it felt like he relied too much on the school. "I'll do my best not to squeal about your reading skills to the next person I see." He wondered briefly if he could use his powers to restore Ryan's books to their original condition. "Oh, just peachy. Nothing I love more than being controlled by a higher power." He had to remind himself that he was supposed to be trying not to be so abrasive this year. After a long moment, he reluctantly added, "You?"

The corner of Kai's lips twitched at his joke, but he kept his stare blank. "Doctor, right. Incredible that they still let you keep that title when you stop doing the job." Kai didn't know anything about Søren's history, but he could still piece together that something must have occurred to shift his career from doctor to teacher. Maybe it would be worth finding out why it happened, so he didn't make the same mistakes, but that would involve trying to have an open and honest conversation with a Vanguardia faculty member; he would much rather keep them at arms length. "I live to entertain. Maybe in return, you could try to make your class just as challenging. Shockingly enough, I'd actually like to learn something useful."

location : the simulation, inside toby's memory. open to : students & professors that join the simulation. tag : @vanguardiastarters

Kai was exhausted. The concept of time was foreign to him now, having been stuck spiralling in his own memories, and he had lost count of how many times he had looked at his mother's face before everything turned to ash around him. It was crippling. He had been trying so desperately to escape his own mind, that he almost didn't realise when he was suddenly standing in a house he had never seen before. It was jarring, to say the least, and he might not have accepted that he was free if he hadn't heard the woman screaming at... Toby?

“  ... did i ask if i could sit here?  ” brunette counters, corners of her lips threatening to perk up but she does her best to hide it. jane's quick to get comfortable in the seat she's now claimed, “ all that time off and you're still this grumpy? doesn't it get exhausting? ”

Kai didn't even try to hide the sigh that escaped him, his eyes rolling into the next dimension. Clearly, a summer apart hadn't been enough to dissuade this girl from flitting around him. His book lowered to the table and leaned forward, "Doesn't this get exhausting?" He gestured in her general vicinity with one hand. Honestly, you help someone one time...

As the other student scurried off to find a more habitable table to accommodate them, Kai turned to Søren, a smirk on his lips. If he was being honest with himself, this was probably his favourite professor–if only because his class interested him the most–but how could he ever trust the motives of these people? Maybe this man was the key to Kai having some semblance of a future that he actually wanted, but he couldn't help himself. "I hope you're not trying to imply that I'm the reason you can't get anyone else to take your class. Bit harsh, professor."

At her mocking imitation of him, Kai's eyebrows raised and an almost disbelieving smile pulled at his lips. Honestly, you help a person out one time and suddenly you're getting all kinds of attitude; his reputation was taking a severe hit these days. He watched in amusement as she began writing her name on his table. "Cute." Without breaking eye contact with them, the table under the scribbled name began to rot, leaving the letters distorted as the wood shrunk and discoloured, leaving behind nothing but a singular little mushroom. "Maybe we don't resort to mindless vandalism? But by all means, if you want to swoon over me in your journal, who am I to kill your dreams?"

Brooke didn't mind the new students. They were easily avoided, even those who asked too many questions. Some seemed so eager to get going, really transform themselves into superheroes. Even Brooke got caught up in their optimism. Didn't they know there were killers among them? Power-hungry bastards trying to play by the rules until they didn't have to anymore? Oh, and people like Kai. Oh, Kai. Leaned against the table, Brooke eventually decided to sit down as he finally looked towards her. "No need for a commands, I'm well aware of how out of place I am here. I guess I'm just as miserable as you are most of the time," some powers were simply not meant to be seen, heard or used. They were macabre, deadly, uncontrollable. "You know I'm not afraid of you, right?"

An eyebrow raised at her response and he almost scoffed. "And what makes you think I'm miserable? Are you telling me I don't radiate pure joy?" He shook his head in feigned disbelief, his book slowly lowering to the table. Kai didn't miss the fact that she had just admitted to being miserable herself, but while she might not be afraid of him, he couldn't entirely say the same about her. After their little sparring session last year had ended in him being severely fried, Kai wasn't so eager to go for round two. "Do you want a gold star?"

Ryan barely fought off the smallest of smiles when Kai glared over the top of his book. New year, same old Westlock. Ryan found it quite comforting, truth be told. "Well, I thought it was explicitly implied given that we are the best of friends," Ryan said dryly, but not entirely without affection. "What are you reading?" he asked, reaching into his back pocket to set his own battered and bashed book down. Kai hated that.

Kai released an exasperated sigh as Ryan continued to joke that he was his best friend. It was a joke, right? He had only shared a room with the guy for three years–he didn't even know him. "Well, nothing now, I suppose." He closed the book, revealing the title: The Name of the Wind. It was difficult enough reading fantasy names without something chattering in your ear. As Ryan pulled out his own book, Kai visibly grimaced–he fucking loathed what this guy did to his books. "Can you even still see the words in that?"

A smile tugged at her lips at Kai Westlock's typical response, while she fought off a laugh. Instead, she canted her head and raised an inquisitive brow his way. "Continue as you may with this deadpan bravado, I know there's a star waiting to be born in there yet. You just need to focus that energy, Kai."

Kai noticed the twitch of her lips and his eyes narrowed in suspicion. He didn't like it when professors looked at him like that, but Phoebe Hughes had never let him get under her skin; frankly, that got under his. "Flatter me all you like, professor, it's not going to make me sign up for your class again." Once was enough. "No offence, but I'd rather focus on something that matters."