Red Planet

Hey guy's and gals, Ducky here. Just a couple of things before we start. (SKIP THIS SECTION IF YOU JUST WANT TO READ) This will be a very narrative-driven story, however, I certainly do plan to have one hell of a bunch of erotica packed in so no need to worry about that, I must warn You however that the prologue contains only a little, as soon as You get to part One is when the juicy stuff will begin.

Secondly like with my Other stories I have created a discord for fans who wish to ask me questions, discuss lore and put forward suggestions for future content so if that appeals to You, the link is right here, I look forward to hearing from You guys!

Finally, I'd like to shout out Marcus Dark, who assisted in and proofread a lot of my early chapters for this story, He is a very talented writer on CHYOA himself, so do Yourself a favour and check out his work which I will link below:

The Apex of Control

Rungec-Anazazi Emissary of The Blooded Horde

Anton Sever

Alexander Corvus

I hope You all enjoy, I'm always happy to see Your comments and criticism so feel free to leave them in the section, Happy reading and Welcome all to the Scarlet-Empire!

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Prologue: Blue Planet, Dull Streets

Eye-candy, that was the name of the book shop that Nero Belonna visited every day, in South-London's noise, Eye-candy was a getaway, just a small dusty old fashioned book shop, where He could look for tomes to bury his brown button nose in.

Not too big, not too complicated, sure the store itself didn't have the same effect that his running did, but the Store and it's books; restocked every Tuesday, was a treasured part of the 20-year-old's life. Nero browsed one of the shelves, quietly considering an old book covered in a healthy helping of dust "Greek Demigods..." The dark-skinned Young-man whispered to himself, carefully pulling the book from its place and dusting it off with a light smile "There's that smile again?" Nero jolted at the sudden disturbance, raising an eyebrow as Kira, the girl who worked behind the counter, appeared just beside him, a curious look on her face "Well?" the pretty blonde girl asked, Her emerald eyes staring up at Nero with fascination "You always have that smile on Your face when You find a new book?" He wanted to say something witty, funny, something to surprise her, "Something to really get her attention!" He thought, though, in the end, Nero shrugged his broad but lanky shoulders and spoke in his deep, soft tone"I just really like them, I guess?"

Nero had known this girl for a while now, for the past three years He had come to the Book shop every evening, She liked him He knew that, but Nero had trouble enough with Becky, let alone Kira also.

Nero wasn't exactly shy, He just didn't feel the need to be talkative, but talking to people had never been an issue, However, when Kira came up to him, Her long soft-looking strawberry blonde hair lazily sat down on her shoulders, cute button nose bellow puffy red cheeks and pink lips arcing into a gentle smile as Her Emerald green eyes looked up at him with fascination, "She's really cute..." it made him a little nervous and agitated his Instincts.

Kira chuckled at the answer, beckoning him over to the till so that she could get him paid up, "She's wearing those tight jeans again today..." Nero thought, staring at her shapely ass as she turned away from him. Kira without a shadow of a doubt was probably the Hottest Bookstore employee in the known universe, Nero had seen plenty of cringe-inducing porno's about sexy librarian girls and yet, here was Kira, Her round glasses on her face, Her Breasts standing out in defiance of her loose cardigan

"Hello?" Nero refocused, being pulled out his daydreaming by a snap of Kira's fingers,

"H-Hey, sorry, what were You saying?" Nero asked absently, Kira smiled shaking her head at him "£11.45?" Wow, He hadn't been that distracted in a long time, not even with Becky "Right, sorry."

"So..." Kira started, resting her elbows on the countertop "How did asking out Becky go?" Nero looked away, frowning at being reminded of the subject "That bad huh?" Nero nodded

"Catastrophically bad." He noted, slipping the book into his rucksack "I'd rather not talk about it if that's okay?" Kira smiled warmly

"O-Of course. umm... Up to anything interesting tonight?" He shrugged, pondering on how bored she must get in a store with only 3 or four patrons,

"Gonna meet some mates at the pub, I'm hoping that a couple of Pints might help get... her, off of my mind, after that, if I'm not too pissed, I'll read some of this book" The blonde girl stared at him with dreamy eyes, screwing up her nose and pouting

"Too bad I'm closing, I'd go with You." That was a first, "She's always been flirtatious, but she's never wanted to meet outside of the store before?" Nero thought, smiling weakly "In all honesty, I don't think that You'd like my friends that much." Kira shrugged

"Well, as long as it's with You it doesn't matter who else is..." Kira paused as she heard herself, flushing furiously "Oh um, I mean, not that I just want to spend time with You alone, though I wouldn't say no to that, of course, we see each other all the time so I don't know why I am making such a big deal out of this..." Nero smiled at Her rambling, "I should ask her." Nero thought to himself, Kira was a beautiful girl just like Becky, she was banging hot, super kind, a book worm just like He was, plus just the thought of getting under those clothes, pushing her into a bed and using her like a little blonde fuck-toy "-No, stop." He thought, halting the growing instinct, He had to focus, this was a bad time, it was too early for this, plus what if she said no? Nero didn't think that He could take another Rejection.

Maybe waiting a while is a good call, it's not like there's any rush. "I ur..." Nero said, interrupting Kira's nervous mumblings "Need to meet my friends so, see You tomorrow?" Kira smiled, chuckling nervously

"Yeah... I'll see You tomorrow, Nero," she said, rubbing her elbows nervously, He nodded, gripping his bag tightly before walking to the exit. Nero heard a furtive whisper from behind him as He left "Stupid, stupid, idiot, just confess your undying affection why don't You, why am I such an idiot!" Nero paused, his hand touching the handle of the door as He turned

"Kira?" She jolted, Her emerald eyes looking through her circular glasses "Y-Yeah?" He gave Her a reassuring smile "You're not stupid." She went a deeper shade of red than He thought possible "Thanks, Nero." He found himself happier after that, it was nice to have a break from being sad about Becky, still, meeting with his friends would change that very quickly.

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Nero sipped his Pale Ale in the Chestnut Pub, "You know what? fuck that bitch!" Aaron cried, his seat nearly flying away behind him "Oh Christ, here we go." Nero thought, taking another sip of the earthy elixir, Maxwell an Irishman born and bred, piped up next

"Yeah mate, always thought she was a slag anyway!" Max spoke with nearly as much , so much in fact that He nearly knocked over his Carlsberg. Barry rolled his eyes at the other two's drunken attempts at encouragement, the only person in their group of misfits to notice that Nero was not quite drunk enough to talk about... that, "You know what, Nezza?" Max sat back down, only just managing to not miss his Bar-stool

"I do not know what, enlighten Me?" Nero replied,

"B-Becky doesn't deserve You man, She hasn't earned the right, to go out with My Best friend!" Aaron gasped in agreement "Our best friend you mean, Because we all love You man, Fuck bitchy-Becky, fuck her!"

"Yeah, my Nigga!" Barry frowned at The Pale freckled teen's use of That Word, but kept it to himself, for now at least. "These two might as well be a pair of Roadman parrots the way this was going," Nero thought, quietly sipping his IPA and trying to smile, Barry, however, had clearly already had enough, clutching his double vodka and coke as He fixed Aaron and Max with a cold stare,

"Will You two shut up, You've had like two drinks and already You've forgotten what I told you about talking about Becky..." Barry's tone was icy, even with the natural warmth of his Jamaican accent, Max threw up his hood, bolstered by liquid courage, his bright blue eyes lazily staring in defiance at Barry's tall stocky form

"Mate don't be telling me what to say, man, Swear down Nigga man's will-" Barry swiftly reached over, flicking Max hard, right in his eye, He recoiled clutching the socket while wincing with the full-blown joy of melodrama that too many beers on a quiet Tuesday night mustered "First things first, You're about two bars of white chocolate too pale of complexion to be calling anybody a Nigga, Second, Mention Becky again and I'll pick you up by your skin and bone, and put You in the Bin, Get me?"

Max frowned suddenly, His eyes falling in defeat, Nero was pretty sure that a feather could kick his ass, if Barry wanted too, then his Irish friend would end up as the world's greatest shit-talking bin bag, Max lowered his hood to expose his messy Ginger hair, shooting Nero an apologetic look as Barry continued "Now, apologize to Nezza and go home, You're getting on my nerves." Aaron and Max looked at Nero, then to Barry's heavy form, then to each other before the ironically drunken Irishmen finally spoke in a hushed tone "S-Sorry, Nero." Max said with quiet guilt "See You in a bit, Max." Nero said, watching as Max wobbled to his feet and waddled out into the sanctuary of the pub garden.

Barry stared intently at Aaron, The geeky dark-skinned teen grimacing under Barry's stare "Yo, sorry for bringing it up man." Nero smiled weakly in return, watching as Aaron walked out a little more gracefully, his unkempt Afro swaying as He vanished into the crowd.

Barry pushed one of his long brown dreadlocks away from his strong face, downing the rest of his drink in a single gulp, the glass tapping lightly on the liquor stained table as He set his eyes on Nero, "I have no idea why I bother to invite those two..."

Nero rubbed his eyes, trying to create a witty response, though there wasn't exactly any coal to throw in his furnace right now, He simply sipped his beer and tried his best not to look crestfallen

"We can go if ya want?" Nero shook his head,

"And waste the Beer?" He reached over to the drinks that Max and Aaron left behind, placing the practically full glasses in front of him before downing his Punk IPA,

"So My brudda is still in there then!" Barry said with a smile, happily clinking glasses with Nero as He started on Aaron's tall glass of Lager, "So now that we're alone, we can talk about Becky." Barry said with an evil grin "Always the master schemer, He just wanted us to talk alone." Nero thought, shrugging as He took a deep gulp of Aaron's beverage "I guess if You want too."

"Oh, I want to." Barry clarified, flicking his long dreadlocks back dramatically "I know that expression has never been Your strong suit, but recently it's like the Ghost of Nero has been hanging out with us, Get me?" Nero stared, the dull red of his eyes failing to focus in the chaotic noise of the pub, Barry fixed Nero with a worried expression.

Nero Bellona had never been normal, not even nearly, most people liked him enough, for reasons that evaded him, though the strange abnormality in his actions and reactions seemed to throw people off a lot, even Barry. Bertrand Campbell was an eccentric by nature, a 5 foot 8 man of Twenty, that Nero had met during his first year in Uni, Barry was a little wide, but the burliness of his build offered him more fear and respect than You're an average Comic-book reading nerd.

Nero sighed, running his fingertip around the edge of the pint glass' rim as He spoke in his south-London tone "How much do You know, already?" Barry shrugged "Just that Becky rejected You, embarrassed You in front of everyone, I'm sure all the other rumours are just bull." Nero lay his head on the table "Rumours... oh god, how am I ever gonna get through University now, it's only been a week, imagine what things will be like when summer is over!?" Nero thought, shifting uncomfortably, unsure of how to explain the situation without making himself feel even worse "I took Adele's advice, I sucked it up, met with her in the mess hall..." Barry raised an eyebrow

"But she agreed to meet You there right?"

"Yeah, She was just as friendly and flirty as always but..." Barry's eyes fell

"But She said no?" Instinct began to fill Nero, the cold electricity that zapped at his insides, agitated by the memory of Becky's pompous outburst

"She didn't just say no," Nero said, his grip on the Glass of beer tightening "She completely embarrassed me in front of everyone, yelled at me, calling me a freak and a weirdo so that everyone could hear, She... completely switched on me" Nero had the common tone of Brixton, the kind that the Old Fashioned didn't like to hear, although the clarity and tact in his voice was unlike any of his 'Peers' those who heard him knew that He boasted a fierce intelligence, Barry grinned sadly, taking a sip of Max's drink with a cringe on his face, true Barry had greater size and intelligence on his size, but just like Nero He was an outcast at in the eyes of the faculty, He knew their place and it was not up there with Vicky

"I'm sorry to say that I did warn You, guys like us, people don't get us, man. It was bound for failure, it's important to know what league You're in, no matter what Adele says... by the way, has she mentioned me at all, like the texts I sent her or anything?"

"How strange." Nero thought, contemplating the man before him, "How quickly people can switch from Concerned to self-centred, no, maybe I'm just being too harsh, He has had a crush on his Foster-cousin for a while after all."

Nero shrugged "it's important to know what League you're in, Bertrand." Nero lamented, Barry frowned, clearly not appreciating having his word's thrown back at him and quickly changing the subject

"Are You going Running tonight?" He asked, grimacing as He sipped Max's Carlsberg

"Of course I am." Nero thought to himself, though he made a point to smile and gave a convincing chuckle "Of course not, Aunt Minie would kill me." Barry grunted, unsure whether to take Nero's word,

"Well, as much as Aaron and Max piss me off, I must say they had a good toast ready for us at least..." Nero smiled at Barry's words, the two of them lifting their drinks and clinking their drinks, speaking in unison as sounds of the average pub rang around them "Fuck Bitchy-Becky." Barry quickly downed his Carlsberg, but, not Nero, Nero merely sipped his drink, He didn't want to get too drunk, one had to have sure-feet for a night on the run, especially when his Instincts where involved in the matter.

"You wanna get something to eat, Brother?" Barry asked, clearly still concerned with Nero's little problem, Nero felt the pain in his stomach, it had been a while since He ate... but He shook his head "No, I'm not hungry" Nero said, Barry's heavy brow furrowed, doubt practically seething from his chocolate-brown face, but He did not press him, Nero would do what Nero does, and there was no forcing him into anything.

Nero didn't stay for Long, the Noise of everything was throwing off his focus and stirring his instincts, so Nero gave his large Jamaican friend a "See You Later." Barry shook his hand with a tipsy smile

"See You in a bit, Nezza, try not to think about Becky too much?" That very sentence was the catalyst for Nero's thought on his incident with Becky while He walked to the estate. Nero loved nothing more than the Music playing into his ears, playing Don't go by Wretch 32, his fingers tapping against his thigh to the smooth rhythm, it was in those moments of calm lamentation that He could come into complete focus, Nero considered his Error, thinking on why He failed to capture the affection of the only woman that He ever dreamed of having a real relationship with, was it his looks, girls had told him plenty how cute he was before, it was the falling for him that they had trouble with? So his personality was the Achilles heel!? "B-But... I can't change who I am can I? ugh I need to gain some altitude." He thought in quiet despair, looking above to the rooftops as He walked down the alley that led towards his Block.

The Moon stared down from the black sky, the dim shine of its fully emerged silver face casting a Pale light that washed across the high rooftops, highlighting the shadows of skyscrapers in the far distance of London's south.

Nero had enjoyed staring up at the Moon ever since He was just a kid, so much so that it distracted him from his reading, still, it carried his thoughts away, removing him from the complications of people and life, the music blasting loudly into his ears, the heavy bass of the rhythmic music filling rattling and throwing his focus off, Nero huffed, "No, that's not right..." He thought to himself, flicking through his music until the desired song came to greet his eyes, He smiled a little the slow, haunting melody of the Moonlight Sonata's first movement began to sway his focus into its gentle return, closing his eyes as he breathed in the Cool night air from the open window in front of his reading desk, the Sounds of the street bellow lost to his focus, in those moments of calm there was nothing save for the fresh air, the sombre tones of Beethoven's sonata, the soft notes allowing his mind to drift, and the Moon, of course, staring down at him from the Midnight Sky, his eyes finally returning to the Pages of his Book, the words flowing in his Moonlit mind.

"Oi Oi!" A hard but friendly slap met with Nero's broad shoulder, the jolt stripping him of his focus completely and the Shock sparking his Instinct, Nero took a deep, relaxing breath, so that his instinct would calm and turned to see just who He expected.

Adele stood there, Her mane of curly Black hair wild on her shoulders, She wore a black dress tonight, a silk one by the looks of it, the kind that leaves little to the imagination, it took him quite a lot of effort not to stare at her juicy C cup breasts, the beautiful shine on her copper skin, the shape of her fit body almost awakening the Instinct in him again,

"Hey," Nero said, avoiding eye contact with his cousin's large beautiful brown eyes,

"I thought I'd swing by before I went to Becky's party." Her voice was smooth, butter flowing from her thick lips that shone in the low-light, Nero was too distracted to even hear Becky's name

"Okay." He responded, standing to flick on the light and offer Her a seat beside him on his bed, Adele sat happily, her dress hugging her tightly as she plopped down

"So... I uh, wanted to apologize," Adelle said, she looked beautiful even as Her face feel

"I know." He said, still a little distracted "I don't blame You, all You did is encourage me, something that I'm thankful for." Adele shook her head with a weak smile on her face

"There You go again, reading My mind and forgiving me before I even get to apologise," Adele said with a sweet little giggle, Nero looked up to his bookshelf, filled to the brim with stories and information, all of which He had read, a few of them several times

"I can read You like a Book." He said with a smile, Adele chuckled at this, Her fingers creeping towards his

"I know that You probably don't want to be anywhere near her right now but..." Adele's soft hand touched his, it made his chest throb "...You should go come to the Party with us tonight, nothing makes Becky jealous like seeing a potential suitor with some other girl." Nero looked at Adele

"...she is so pretty, and that body... dammit Nero, fostered or no... she's Your cousin, get Yourself under control," He thought, his eyes wandering over to the window, where the moonlit night beckoned.

"I uh... I have some studying to do, maybe another day?" Adele raised an eyebrow

"Studying huh, studying the rapid traversal of the City rooftops You mean?" He did not reply, Adele wasn't a narc, He kept her secrets she kept his, that after all was the deal "try not to shit Yourself, Nero, You're secrets safe with me, however, my time at Mom's office has given me an appreciation for a little thing called compromise, so I want to make a deal!" Oh no, here we go again

"Another Deal, how long are You gonna hold this over my head for?" He asked She gripped his hand tighter

"Only for as long as it benefits me." He sighed, there was nothing He could do now, Her mind was made up "Fine, what do You want?"

Adele grinned mischievously, "I'll keep Your little activities tonight to myself If You come with Me to Ladies night at Unique tomorrow." Holding back a grimace at the prospect of going to a nightclub again, Nero huffed

"Just Me? with a bunch of girls, I don't think so." Adele quickly shot that down

"How about, You ask that Bookshop girl then, She likes You right? maybe You'll finally score some action!" He shifted uncomfortably

"Kira? I mean sure she flirts sometimes, I don't know if I can just ask Her out on such short notice though... I..." He paused, looking at the knowing grin on her face, Nero sucked in a thoughtful breath

"I should know by now, there is no changing her mind when it's made up." He considered, sighing and shaking his head, "I'll... I'll ask but-." You could practically taste the hesitation in his tone, but Adele just tapped him on the shoulder again,

"-Ah don't look so glum, Trust me it will be fun and who knows, Becky might melt when she sees You with another girl." Great Becky's gonna be there because this wasn't complicated enough, just fantastic...

"(That's if I can even be bothered with Becky at this point)" Nero mumbled to himself

"What's that?" She inquired with a victorious smile,

"Nothing. don't forget Your part of the deal, if Aunt Minie finds out I'm running again She'll-"

"Verbally batter You, make sure that Your charged and potentially kick You out of the Flat, I know. See You in a bit, Cuz!" with that gloomy sing-song claim, Adele slipped out the door, her beautiful figure slipping with Her,

"Why do I even bother resisting, she might as well be my Boss." Nero thought, clutching at the Pendant around his neck, the familiar warmth of the Ruby in its centre enflaming his already growing instinct, He didn't often think about his dad... it was bad enough thinking about his mother, yet He pondered the Pendant that His father left behind for him, the only thing that His father left behind for him... He hated the man, He hated him with all of his heart, for leaving him to grieve for his mother alone, Nero could barely even remember what his face looked like, yet, He kept the Ruby pendant hidden away under his shirt, refusing to part with it under any circumstances.

"I need to Run..." Nero thought, feeling his instincts growing, it wouldn't be long before it grew to overpower him, so he closed the book on his desk, carefully placing it back on the shelf and prepared to take to the Moonlit night.