J
Jack Pine
<188604-:-Skyguard HQ-:-(23:35)hours>
Jack was submerged in what felt like water, with only a sparse light breaking through the water's surface above him. It was incredibly dark, he felt a hand on his should followed by a whisper. "You left us.", Jack turned to face the depths below and was greeted with a site that had plaqued him before. below him were the shadowy apparitions of his parents, hands reaching to drag him further into the dark below while all the while chanting in a whisper as before. "You left us to die." the shadows recited as they dragged him down.
theme music: https://youtu.be/U_tY21x7I3M
Jack was ripped from his sleep in a cold sweat, and after a moment of sitting up on the edge of the bed with his bare feet on the cool floor, got up and changed into a pair of grey cargo pants and boots. He also grabbed his pistol off his desk and stuck in the back of his waist band, and left without bothering to put on a shirt. He left the room at a brisk pace until he found an exit and walked into the night outside chorused by a light rain. Jack welcomed it, as he did with anything to keep him awake. after a few moments of letting the rain remove the last of his grogginess. With hesitating, Jack pulled the pistol out and checked the chamber and found a round in the barrel, and then the magazine and found it empty.
He put the pistol to his head and pulled the trigger, but was only met with a "click". Jack racked the slide and cought the dud round pocketing it afterwards, "Well I guess Karma's not done with my ass yet." he said before walking back inside and to the rec room. He had just begun practicing his punches on a punching bag in the corner when Izzy quietly entered the room.
Izzy had been following Jack and it saddened her to see what he had been trying to do. She was frowning as she entered the room, her usual happy demeanor was replaced by a worried one. She was going to talk to him till he pulled out the gun. She watched him untill he got to the rec room, keeping a close eye on him.
"You okay?" She asked softly, trying not to scare him or anything since she could guess he didn't know she was there.
Jack was not expecting anybody else to be up at the current hour, so the sudeen sound of someone's voice caught him off guard. He turned around to find Izzy standing in the door way to the room watching, it instantly made him worry at how long had she been standing there.
"I'm fine, just trying to clear my head." he said with a slight chuckle that held no humor.
"You sure about that?" She asked, woundering if he got the hint that she'd been following him.
She walked into the room, her wings twitching slightly. She felt like she needed to chear him up, like he needed to have some reason to laugh or at least someone he could talk to. She kept her eyes on him, almost afraid he would try to run.
Jack walked towards a nearby table, and sat down figure it he would need it more than by the end of this. He had the sinking feeling that she knew, but still hoped she hadn't noticed the pistol sticking out of his waist band, or the quiet thunk of it hitting the chairs plastic when he sat down.
"Why would you ask a question like that, a punching bag always helps me relieve stress and get in some practice too." he said trying hard to fake a grin.
Izzy winced, she didn't want to outright tell him. "I have been following you for a while, I was going to talk to you when you were outside but I backed off a little when I saw you pull out the gun," She explained, looking away from him.
She walked over to the table, sitting in another chair nearby as she waited to see what he would say. She didn't want to press him like this but she felt it needed to be done, he needed to talk about whatever was bothering him.
Jack immediatly dropped the act as he realized she knew the whole time. He pulled the dud round out of his pocket and placed it on the table. "Do you know why I joined the military, and the Skyguard?" he asked as he began to hang his head low.
"No, I never knew why. I never thought to ask I guess," Izzy said, looking at the round that was on the table. She looked between the round and Jack, hoping he'd explain now.
"In the hope that I would know something that I had never known,.....Family." he said thinking back to his nightmare.
"I never knew, have you ever found that?" Izzy asked, her caring side starting to show. "I kinda hope you have in some respect, you deserve it."
"I thought I had when I joined the military, brothers in arms and all that, but things went wrong when I was made an officer for the last two years of service." Jack said before continuing, "The last two years were hell, having to order friends and comrades to their deaths, eventually Zeke was the only one left."
"I left so I wouldn't have to lead anymore, and why I had Zeke stay behind," he paused for a moment as if in a flashback, "I hoped I could find it again here, but it just doesn't seem like anyone here even cares to get close, only allies on the job."
"That........I can't believe that your so seemingly alone. You always seemed like the one to be there and be a friend to anyone and everyone," Izzy said, trying to keep tears back as she looked at him. She hated the fact that he seemed so sad, almost depressed.
"I get live on, a man with no past, no future, no purpose, while those who had each died in my stead. Look at my first mission, I made a tactical decision and someone almost died saving my ass for my mistake." Jack's head now rested on the table. "I'm just the shell of someones future cut short by just being born. If I hadn't have been born, my parents would have had to worry about a baby over saving the other." He his eyes welled with tears as he replayed what the workers had told him about his parents death. How they died when the core of the ship they worked on overloaded taking their lives and leaving a reminder in his white hair, and red eyes from the radiation every time he looked in the mirror.
"Your not though, you care about people, you help all you can. If one of your decisions nearly got someone killed then I'm sure that wasn't the intent and you were originally trying to help whatever situation you were in at the time. Whatever happened to your original family couldn't have been your fault, you were too young for it to have been. From what I remember your an amazing fighter and you have so much to live for," She said, eyes shining with both hope that she was making a difference and fear that it wouldn't matter. "I.......I really like you Jack, I always have," She said softly, using every ounce of courage that she could possibly have to say the one simple sentence.
Jack raised his head to look at Isabelle trying to figure out the extent of her words. "Isabelle are you trying to say what......I think your saying?" he said as his head to began to rush with this possibly ment and that is when his eyes fell upon the dogtag he had notice the first day she arrived and why it looked so familiar.
Izzy looked at him before looking down, it made her nervous that her full name was used, "I think so Jack. I.......I think I love you." She swollowed her nerves as her hands went to the dogtag she ended up always wearing once he left, she fiddled with it as she refused to look at him.
Jack's eyes began to well with fresh tears, but these were not of sadness as before but of the pure joy of relief at her words, she had just given him a reason to live. He began to lay his head on her shoulder happy to know that someone cared, that he had a place to call home, and with her a future. "I...love you Izzy." Jack said as sleep finally won out, and he enjoyed the warmth of her body as he closed eyes and slept.
Jack was submerged in what felt like water, with only a sparse light breaking through the water's surface above him. It was incredibly dark, he felt a hand on his should followed by a whisper. "You left us.", Jack turned to face the depths below and was greeted with a site that had plaqued him before. below him were the shadowy apparitions of his parents, hands reaching to drag him further into the dark below while all the while chanting in a whisper as before. "You left us to die." the shadows recited as they dragged him down.
theme music: https://youtu.be/U_tY21x7I3M
Jack was ripped from his sleep in a cold sweat, and after a moment of sitting up on the edge of the bed with his bare feet on the cool floor, got up and changed into a pair of grey cargo pants and boots. He also grabbed his pistol off his desk and stuck in the back of his waist band, and left without bothering to put on a shirt. He left the room at a brisk pace until he found an exit and walked into the night outside chorused by a light rain. Jack welcomed it, as he did with anything to keep him awake. after a few moments of letting the rain remove the last of his grogginess. With hesitating, Jack pulled the pistol out and checked the chamber and found a round in the barrel, and then the magazine and found it empty.
He put the pistol to his head and pulled the trigger, but was only met with a "click". Jack racked the slide and cought the dud round pocketing it afterwards, "Well I guess Karma's not done with my ass yet." he said before walking back inside and to the rec room. He had just begun practicing his punches on a punching bag in the corner when Izzy quietly entered the room.
Izzy had been following Jack and it saddened her to see what he had been trying to do. She was frowning as she entered the room, her usual happy demeanor was replaced by a worried one. She was going to talk to him till he pulled out the gun. She watched him untill he got to the rec room, keeping a close eye on him.
"You okay?" She asked softly, trying not to scare him or anything since she could guess he didn't know she was there.
Jack was not expecting anybody else to be up at the current hour, so the sudeen sound of someone's voice caught him off guard. He turned around to find Izzy standing in the door way to the room watching, it instantly made him worry at how long had she been standing there.
"I'm fine, just trying to clear my head." he said with a slight chuckle that held no humor.
"You sure about that?" She asked, woundering if he got the hint that she'd been following him.
She walked into the room, her wings twitching slightly. She felt like she needed to chear him up, like he needed to have some reason to laugh or at least someone he could talk to. She kept her eyes on him, almost afraid he would try to run.
Jack walked towards a nearby table, and sat down figure it he would need it more than by the end of this. He had the sinking feeling that she knew, but still hoped she hadn't noticed the pistol sticking out of his waist band, or the quiet thunk of it hitting the chairs plastic when he sat down.
"Why would you ask a question like that, a punching bag always helps me relieve stress and get in some practice too." he said trying hard to fake a grin.
Izzy winced, she didn't want to outright tell him. "I have been following you for a while, I was going to talk to you when you were outside but I backed off a little when I saw you pull out the gun," She explained, looking away from him.
She walked over to the table, sitting in another chair nearby as she waited to see what he would say. She didn't want to press him like this but she felt it needed to be done, he needed to talk about whatever was bothering him.
Jack immediatly dropped the act as he realized she knew the whole time. He pulled the dud round out of his pocket and placed it on the table. "Do you know why I joined the military, and the Skyguard?" he asked as he began to hang his head low.
"No, I never knew why. I never thought to ask I guess," Izzy said, looking at the round that was on the table. She looked between the round and Jack, hoping he'd explain now.
"In the hope that I would know something that I had never known,.....Family." he said thinking back to his nightmare.
"I never knew, have you ever found that?" Izzy asked, her caring side starting to show. "I kinda hope you have in some respect, you deserve it."
"I thought I had when I joined the military, brothers in arms and all that, but things went wrong when I was made an officer for the last two years of service." Jack said before continuing, "The last two years were hell, having to order friends and comrades to their deaths, eventually Zeke was the only one left."
"I left so I wouldn't have to lead anymore, and why I had Zeke stay behind," he paused for a moment as if in a flashback, "I hoped I could find it again here, but it just doesn't seem like anyone here even cares to get close, only allies on the job."
"That........I can't believe that your so seemingly alone. You always seemed like the one to be there and be a friend to anyone and everyone," Izzy said, trying to keep tears back as she looked at him. She hated the fact that he seemed so sad, almost depressed.
"I get live on, a man with no past, no future, no purpose, while those who had each died in my stead. Look at my first mission, I made a tactical decision and someone almost died saving my ass for my mistake." Jack's head now rested on the table. "I'm just the shell of someones future cut short by just being born. If I hadn't have been born, my parents would have had to worry about a baby over saving the other." He his eyes welled with tears as he replayed what the workers had told him about his parents death. How they died when the core of the ship they worked on overloaded taking their lives and leaving a reminder in his white hair, and red eyes from the radiation every time he looked in the mirror.
"Your not though, you care about people, you help all you can. If one of your decisions nearly got someone killed then I'm sure that wasn't the intent and you were originally trying to help whatever situation you were in at the time. Whatever happened to your original family couldn't have been your fault, you were too young for it to have been. From what I remember your an amazing fighter and you have so much to live for," She said, eyes shining with both hope that she was making a difference and fear that it wouldn't matter. "I.......I really like you Jack, I always have," She said softly, using every ounce of courage that she could possibly have to say the one simple sentence.
Jack raised his head to look at Isabelle trying to figure out the extent of her words. "Isabelle are you trying to say what......I think your saying?" he said as his head to began to rush with this possibly ment and that is when his eyes fell upon the dogtag he had notice the first day she arrived and why it looked so familiar.
Izzy looked at him before looking down, it made her nervous that her full name was used, "I think so Jack. I.......I think I love you." She swollowed her nerves as her hands went to the dogtag she ended up always wearing once he left, she fiddled with it as she refused to look at him.
Jack's eyes began to well with fresh tears, but these were not of sadness as before but of the pure joy of relief at her words, she had just given him a reason to live. He began to lay his head on her shoulder happy to know that someone cared, that he had a place to call home, and with her a future. "I...love you Izzy." Jack said as sleep finally won out, and he enjoyed the warmth of her body as he closed eyes and slept.