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Brandon Russell

The most important thing to remember about fighting in the dark, or at least low light caused by emergency signs and sparks, was who you were fighting. And 'Brandon' who was alone against several engineers found a few unwitting companions who started attacking their own people in an effort to get at him, riled up by their allies and understandably confused by the colossal mess that was unraveling before them. Sadly though, few noticed as the real Brandon excused himself from the fighting. Slipping out of the fray was considerably easier than most would have thought, he had shanked someone pretty early and pushed them down, rolled over and then back out of the crowd as if he were actually apart of it. Nobody would notice he wasn't where he was supposed to be, few ever did, they were fighting the intruder, all was as it was supposed to be. Brandon was not a center of attention kind of guy, he wasn't really a fighter, it was just important that people thought he was. He slipped into the shadows and made his way across the room, a shot from across the room told him to move faster and indeed not even a minute later the fighting had ceased and the engineers started running about again. He could just about make out a body laying face down where the fighting had just taken place, probably his decoy since he received mostly stomps after his fall. He slipped into the stairwell and took a breath to steady his nerves. He didn't have a way back up to reach the others now, he poked his head around the corner to see if he could see them, before starting the ascent, hopefully they paths would interweave again shortly. Or he really was screwed.

Splitting up seemed like a bad idea. All of the action and horror movies she had seen told her that things typically went badly when people split up. All five of them had a much better chance of taking out those in the engine room than Olivia and Brandon on their own. Blue eyes slid over to the fray of bodies, Brandon hidden somewhere within. Was she really willing to abandon a total stranger to save her own skin? Before witnessing the guards brain all over the wall she wouldn't have given it a second thought, but the incident made death a little more real. She looked back to Marcus who was already walking away, Malik on his heels and took a deep breath before following him. He was the guy with the gun after all. How could she help Brandon with a steak knife and no powers?

The hall outside was abandoned....for now. How long would it remain so? Would the guards decked out in tactical gear and the guy who controlled their collars come running or were they too busy on the main deck? "Now what?" She asked Marcus in a hushed tone while he peeked back into the engine room.

Brandon Russell

Brandon was prepared to trudge on alone if needed, it wouldn't make him happy but moving on seemed better than sitting around waiting to be found. He ascended the first flight of stairs, something that would probably been a lot easier if he had shoes and adequate lighting but beggars can't be choosers and he had to make do. He turned to climb the next set of stairs when he heard a familiar voice behind him, he turned to see Liv approaching in the dim light. "Somewhere." He didn't mean to sound aloof. "Ahead probably." He started to climb again, one more flight and he'd be back on their original level where presumably they'd be waiting or not depending on how things had gone. A thought popped into his head, one that he had put off earlier because it hadn't been the right time, but now since they were alone he decided that it couldn't hurt to voice his thoughts. He slowed slightly to match her pace before speaking. "Liv, I know that guy stopped you before, but these collars..." He paused, unsure how to phase it. "Well, it's a way out." He shrugged. "If... No. When, we get out I'm going back to civilisation, start collecting masks or something. No more running from ghosts." He wasn't turning his back on her but he didn't think she'd be interested in collecting masks. They reached the top of the stairs and he stepped out into the hall where the others were standing. "Thanks for waiting, have you found a way out?" He hoped they had done some sort of scouting ahead.

Olivia quickly started up the stairs after Brandon, who apparently didn't have an idea where the other three had gone to either. 'Ahead probably' wasn't exactly comforting. In her mind five had a lot better chance of escaping off of the ship than two did. Besides, the pirates were Marcus's friends, and without him, there was no guarantee they wouldn't kill them, attempt to ransom them, or worse. Given all of the effort, 'the scientists' as Liv had dubbed them, had gone to in order to kidnap them out of Nova she could imagine they'd be willing to pay the pirates a decent amount for the pair of them. "Civilization?" Nova Demi was civilization, but somehow she knew that wasn't what Brandon was referring too. "It sounds nice, but do you really think the ghosts will leave us alone?" Liv would love nothing more than a mundane life, a normal life, but if they came for them in Nova, why wouldn't they come for them in small-town central USA? Olivia followed Brandon out the door at the top of the hall. He'd been a little too casual about it in her opinion, but luckily it was the other three waiting for them and not a*****e with the bracelet. "How many stairwells do ships normally have?" She asked when Marcus announced he had found another one. "Before we go....." She took advantage of their momentary break to kneel down and pull the second handgun out of her boot. While having a hidden gun could come in handy, they currently had more bodies than weapons. She did replace it with the steak knife though. There wasn't much of a question of who it should go to, given the choice between Malik, Alison and Brandon, so when Liv stood up she held the weapon out to Brandon.

Brandon Russell

Brandon shrugged. "I doubt they'll chase me." He stated flatly. It wasn't a lie, the only reason they'd chased them was because of her, he was an accessory, yes he had worked out how to synthesize her blood but honestly if he could get lucky and pull it off then a shadowy organisation with almost limitless resources could probably do it in half the time and with fewer side effects. He had his doubts about their relationship, perhaps it was withdrawal or maybe it was something else niggling at him but there was just something about the way they just used each other that didn't seem right. He pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind as Marcus returned, another question he'd have to ask when they were alone. "Great, lead on." He didn't really have too much to add, when he noticed Liv holding out a gun. He took it, unloaded it to check how many shots he had, fewer than he would have liked but more than he had expected, before loading it again. "Thanks." He didn't make a fuss about trying to hide it, he wasn't in a mood for pretending. "Same as before? Marcus ahead and Liv in the middle with Alison and I'll be in the back." He was pretty sure that was the same as before.

Olivia wasn't so sure about that for a few reasons, but mostly because she was generally super pessimistic. So far her life hadn't been great and she generally expected the worst to happen. However, before she could respond they ran into Marcus and Alison again. Liv didn't think it would exactly be a wise choice to let the other two know it was them the kidnappers were really after. It sounded like a good way to convince Marcus and Alison they should try to capture and then turn in Oliva and Brandon for their own freedom, so Liv dropped the subject of who was being chased and what they would do once they were free of this ship.

It definitely wasn't the order they had walked in before, but Olivia didn't care enough to bring it up, so she took up the spot behind Marcus while the other two fell back. They didn't run into anyone, which was how Liv liked it. She only wished she wasn't getting the feeling the pirates weren't doing as well as she would have hoped. If they won, surely they would demand some kind of compensation for their losses. If they lost...well hopefully they had these cursed collars off by then. She didn't want to think about the alternative. Marcus fired a single shot before announcing the way clear and Liv came around the corner to see two more dead bodies. She grimaced slightly, not because of the dead bodies, but because of riding debt they owed the pirates. How possible would it be for her and Brandon to slip off the ship without the pirate noticing and what were the chances they'd make it to shore. The odds didn't seem great.

"Now what?" Alison asked as she looked around the deck.

Suddenly one of the guards with tactical gear came crashing through one of the doors...only he had lost much of his gear. It wasn't hard to imagine how he might have lost his shield or gun, but the real question was how he lost his helmet while still being alive to run around. Olivia narrowed her eyes and started running towards the guy. She could have shot him, but the risk of killing him was too high and for what Liv had in mind she needed him very much alive. She was halfway to him before he even noticed her, and gained a deer in the headlights look shortly before Liv took him down. There were a few seconds of scuttling before Liv had him pinned down. All that time in Nova learning out to fight was finally paying off.

"I recognize him."

"From the prison." Olivia finished for Alison. "First things first, how do we get these collars off?"

"Why would I tell you that, you'll just kill me anyway!"

"But it'll be a lot less painful death." She figured she could count on Marcus for that. He seemed like a guy who knew how and was willing. Maybe crush a hand or remove some fingers while she held the guy down. Either way, she pulled back on the guard's arm, wrenching it painfully, hoping it would be enough to get him to talk. In truth, Olivia didn't really have the stomach for true torture. Not after everything she went through. She was good at acting as she did though.

"Okay, okay, okay." The guard relented and Liv eased up her hold. "Only the Lieutenant can remove them, with that computer strapped to his wrist. We were on the way to the bridge when we were attacked and got separated. No idea where he is now."

"And what aren't you telling us?" Olivia asked, thinking he gave up all of that far too easily.

The guard grinned a bit, and it would soon become clear why. He thought they were all just as screwed as they were. "If the Lieutenant dies and you still have those collars on, they'll kill you too."

Great...this is excellent news. Just perfect. Olivia thought sarcastically to herself. So they actually had to hope one of the pirates didn't kill him and then somehow capture him alive and figure out how to get the collars off. "Do we need anything else from buddy here?"

Brandon Russell

Brandon was repeating the directions to himself so that he wouldn't forget, he wasn't certain they would be able to remember without writing it down but since Marcus knocked the guy out, this was the best he could do. Liv mentioned needing a plan and was swiftly answer by Alison, who made a sound plan suggestion. "No..." He did, but a shoe less guard might set off some alarm bells with someone. "How about you Liv? Want to play dress up?" He looked at Marcus and didn't really want to run the risk suggesting he try on the dolls shoes while he was still brandishing a gun. He would have suggested Alison do it, since it was her plan, but there was a look in her eyes that suggested to him that she wasn't coping with the whole thing. "I don't think we'll be able to just slip the controller off him." He was trying to recall the design from their encounter in the prison. "There are too many variables, like what if it needs a pulse or doesn't fit over his hand, like if it has a clasp." He made a motion with his hand on his wrist to indicate putting it on rather than sliding it over the hand. "It'd be nice if we had some leverage, like getting a picture of the guys wife and giving it to the pirates if he doesn't release us." He raised his hands to placate them. "I'm just spitballing, we'd have to go and find his cabin and it'd be a whole thing. So break his arm and take him hostage?" He was trying to recall how heavily armored the guards had been without showing it on his face.