NT Runner 16 - Sebek - Character Select (Patreon)

Yeong reflected on What Sebek said after. He was right, but he had reached a point of no return. That being said, he slowly considered that the path he took now was still somewhat flexible, whether it be with the man he truly felt happy with, or Sebek, who he never really gave a chance. The only thing that Yeong was certain of was Malik's intent in sending him down a destructive path.
“This isn't right.” He finally admitted to himself. With that simple realization came a new advancement of the timeline from the point at which the video was taken.

Yeong opened his eyes to a new version of himself. His dark hair was smoother, more taken care of. It had grown to shoulder length. His brows were preened and lashes extended. His face had already been somewhat androgynous but was glowed up significantly by the skillful addition of foundation, concealer and highlight around his eyes and in his cheeks. His lips were just a bit plumper and were shaded, a rebellious shade or red, was his first thought.
“Uhm...” He blushed naturally as he stared into his hand mirror. On the slender hand holding them, long painted nails.

He shifted uncomfortably where he sat and felt a slight breeze. Smooth legs were on display beneath a cute black skirt and fishnet stockings. He was barefoot with painted toes. His slender torso was covered by a tight women's band tube top and over that his same black puffer. Around his neck he wore a tight choker that did not seem to have many implications beyond fashion. Below that, fitting surprisingly well with everything he wore no matter what he tended to wear, the red scarf that Kara had given him.
“This is...” Yeong but his plush lip.
“Cute.” He admitted, flushing. When he searched his mind he remembered how he reached this point as though he had lived it.

-

“I pick-pocketed your phone.” Yeong fessed up to Sebek once he was able to get the Orc alone. He looked offended, but not too upset. He was more just confused and reached into his back pocket to make sure he still had it. Though many different months passed for Yeong, it had only been a few minutes for Sebek and the others.

“Why?”

“I just wanted something of yours after you took something of mine. It's petty.” He looked down shamefully.
“I spoke to that mentor. Malik.” Before Sebek could say anything, and Yeong could tell very easily that Sebek wanted to say a lot of things, he continued.
“I spent a lot of time using my powers. Listening to him. It was all... Well, not all of it was bad but I dunno if the end point was good.”

Sebek planted his face in his palm. “God no... Of course not! He's a bad guy, you idiot! You don't trust Orcs like me? Why were you stupid enough to trust him!?” He cried out.
“Damn! The hell is wrong with you?”

Yeong shrunk when faced with the significant dressing down he was receiving over his actions. He knew he was wrong. Sebek did not have to say it, but when he did say it it began to sink in just how silly he had been and how right the young Orc was.
“I'm sorry.” Sebek's expression shifted. He softened in response to the meek apology.

“Don't apologize to me. It's them.” He pointed back to the warehouse.
“They're important. Kai's important. You're putting them in danger, man.”

Yeong bit his lip. “I was frustrated. I-It's not an excuse I know, but-” Yeong, the powerful martial artist he was, still jumped when Sebek slammed his large hand against the metal wall beside his head. He looked up at Sebek. For all the misgivings he had about the Orc, with the time Yeong spent with others, Sebek was giving off very, very strong daddy vibes and they were not lost or wasted on the Aoian.

Sebek's tone softened to match his expression. “You wanna know what Kara talked to me about?” Yeong nodded.
“She wanted me to look out for you, but be subtle about it. She thought that if you know, you'd be too stubborn to accept help from someone like me.” He pushed off from the wall and began pacing while Yeong stood back, a far smaller figure in both size and personality.
“You were already self conscious... I was never going to-” He exhaled through his nose.
“There was a last resort.” Sebek rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
“She seemed to think I was a good enough guy, and... Well...”

Yeong's eyes widened. “Well?”

“I'm not into all this stuff. I don't actually wanna pull you in any particular direction. Truth is... I do like Kai. I was being a bit of a priss by not just telling you. That? That's on me. But you. What do you really want, man? You are all over the place. None of us know. Are you into the girls? You haven't chased much beyond a few instances. Her mom?”

“I thought I was but you're right... Haven't done a good job of making it known.”

“You said you 'thought.'” Sebek honed in on that verbiage.
“What are you sure on?”

Yeong gave Sebek a long, uncomfortable, wide-eyed stare. “You said there was a last resort?”

Sebek blushed. “She was wrong about one thing. I'm not really into guys. Some stuff has to change for it to work, so-”

Yeong leaned forward, hands close to his chest. To Sebek, the Aoian Martial Artist seemed very dainty and vulnerable in that moment.
“What stuff?”

“Attitude... Looks... Dress... Superficial stuff I know, but-” Sebek blinked. Yeong's eyes moved rapidly as though he was taking mental notes before they returned to lock on the Orc's once again in a way that felt more determinate than Sebek had seen him in the past week. It was like he had finally found something when before all that was visible was loss.
“L-listen. Don't fucken base all your shit on what someone else wants. Who're you, Yeong?”

“M-me?” He motioned to himself and was too embarrassed to admit that basing it all on what he wanted was probably very close to what he was about to go with.

“What do you want?”

Yeong looked down. “I want to change.” He finally admitted, motioned towards his general 'state.'
“This? Inside and out? It's not who I want to be.”

Sebek breathed a sigh of relief and took a seat. He patted the seat next to him. “Alright. That's a start. What do you like?”

“I was so focused on my mission I didn't really-” Yeong smiled and shook his head.
“Well, uhm, I like small Aoian bands. Really underground stuff. Nothing like what Janna did, but I think she kinda acted like it for a while but I could tell she's a total poser there.” He chuckled, embarrassed to be opening up so much.  
“And I would know because I always really liked the girls in that scene back home. The way they looked. Their attitude. It was...” He trailed off, his lips parting and remaining open as he thought.

“Correct me if I'm wrong but that doesn't sound like you're speaking from attraction.”

Yeong tilted his head to one side with the realization that he was completely correct. “I'm not... I'm really not, am I?” He tapped his foot nervously.
“I couldn't really be a part of those cliques. I was-”

“You probably could've. These are better times. But I get you. You were scared and you had a lot of expectations on you. I heard it in the way your mentor talked about you.” Yeong cringed at the mention of those expectations. He considered his families eyes on him.
“But really, I wish she woulda just come out and said it instead of keeping it on the downlow and saying it to me... They don't care if you change, so long as you aren't letting yourself get fucked over.”

“Kara was so mad.”

“Because she thought you were gonna get taken advantage of. She thought you would fall for the first person that decided they were gonna treat you like shit.” Yeong wished that was not true, but he experienced it first hand. Sebek clicked his tongue.
“You know, I think we're all off base here. I don't think you actually wanna change.”

“Huh?”

“You wanna be who you are. That's what it is.”

It made so much sense when he said it like that. Yeong had to stop and bask in it. “Oh.”

“Telling you with respect, Yeong. Your skills. Your powers. Your abilities are needed to do what we need done. Kara, Kai, it's all related and I'm all in on at least one of those. Do you really think you should be in charge of making decisions? Think about them, not you.” Yeong stared down at his feet and shook his head.
“Okay. That's fine. I'm taking control, okay.” Yeong fought back a shudder and looked to Sebek like he was a holy figure.
“Don't take that to mean you don't get a say. It's just like before. We're a team and we need you. Got it?”

“Got it.” Yeong nodded.

-

“Why is it that the moment you changed you became a scene girl?” Janna questioned from behind Yeong. She bristled at that. It took a long pause but all of the progress in finding herself that she had made during the month time-lapse came back to her and she bristled at that remark.

“That's very ironic coming from you. How're your 'comrades?'” Yeong asked in a catty tone. Her relationship with Janna had taken on a form more closely related to Kai's relationship to Janna. Friends, but with quite a bit of banter in between that could at times seem a bit much. Janna lifted her brows and leaned over Yeong's shoulder.
“Whatever. It looks good and you still punch things the same as you used to.”

“Nothing about my actual Soma formation changed. The changes to my body are minimal.” She remarked. Her chest, hips and rear had gentle curves that were not completely out of place on a small girl like her, but she certainly had a ways to go.
“Yeah, and you have to go the 'natural' route, otherwise the Tek could mess with that. Always a trade off. I think about it a lot in regards to my Aura.”

“Yeah, they're pretty similar.” Yeong became absent minded to the conversation as Sebek wandered into the office.

“How's your training?” Sebek asked.

“Good! Sherry said my study of body language is now 'above average.'”

“Is that good?”

She shrugged. “Good enough, and maybe my limit? We'll have to see. I also feel like I've been able to unlock a bit of my potential as it relates to Dri.”

“Well, let's hope it's enough. We finally have an in at Chesan.”

“Seriously!?” Yeong stood up and approached Sebek. It was probably a bit too close as the moment Kai followed him into the room she stared daggers. The two had not become rivals in the common sense of the word, because Sebek was not monogamous despite most of his efforts to be respectable.

“Yeah.” Kai began.
“Someone got in contact with me finally. On the inside. They're a low-level engineer. Disgruntled and worried about where their company is up to. You know?”

“I guess.” Yeong looked to Sebek.
“What's the call?”

“Way I see it we can take this lead. Only thing is, we have to decide how we're going in.”

Janna clarified. “When we're making a plan we can't hedge. We go in hot, we better be prepared. We go in silent? Better believe we're gonna have to shed some heat.” She smirked.
“Then there's the third option.”

“Third?” Kai and Yeong said at once.

Sebak blushed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Y-yeah...”