abyssianmelody | [Chapter 01 - SCENE] Between Good and Evil

Current Mood: apathetic
Current Location: home
Current Music: Gary - Superman

Entry tags:

[Chapter 01 - SCENE] Between Good and Evil

Who: Luke, Mieu, Tear, Jade
Where: Tartarus holding cell.
When: After Arietta incarcerates them.
Warnings: None.

"Augh!" Luke jolted out of his uneasy slumber, sitting up. What had happened...

"You're finally awake." Tear silently spoke, putting her hand over his hands as if to comfort him. "You've been out of it for a few hours."

However, her attempt to cover up the bloodstains on his gloves was in vain. Luke noticed, his eyes widened with disgust, and he quickly clawed off his gloves while screaming bloody murder and cradling his face into his knees, sobbing.

"..." Tear didn't know how to deal with civilians. "I'm sorry this had to happen, Luke. I... promise to get you to your home as quickly as possible."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Once Jade heard Tear's voice he looked back and saw that Luke was awake. Good, now they could make plans to escape. There really was no other option, with his fon slots sealed, and their small numbers, there was little hope of taking back the ship.

But there was hope in finding Anise and Ion and still completing their mission. As long as Anise still had the letter and Ion was with them, it didn't matter how many soldiers were with them. It only meant things would be slightly more tricky.

"Ah good, you're awake Luke. We will need to escape from here and get Ion back. Are both of you up to that?"

Tear nodded. "Affirmative, Colonel." She stood up. She took one more look at Luke, regreting that she was unable to rid him of all of the blood that was spilt on him. She managed to clean Luke up, but the stains on his gloves were especially difficult to get out.

"Does that mean... we'll have to kill people again?" Luke asked, his voice shaky. He finally stopped sobbing, but he was still trembling at the thought that somebody died by his sword. "Will more people have to die?"

"We're in the middle of a battlefield." Tear responded in a cold tone. "Good and evil do not exist there; it's kill or be killed. None of us enjoy spilling needless blood, Luke, but that doesn't mean we'll hesitate to defend ourselves should we be put at risk."

[[ooc: sorry it took so long to respond, I forgot to track this one!]]

"Tear is correct. I did have the impression you wanted to return to Baticul alive, and to do so we will have to deal with any who attack us. Our enemies at this time are people."

He tried to think of the best way to handle this. Luke's hesitation was definitely going to hinder their ability to escape if they were spotted and they were sorely outnumbered as it was.

The mission was the most important thing now. He hoped that when Anise fell out that she was alive and had made it to St. Binah safely. Their best option was to escape and meet up with her and Ion. The main thing he needed to know now was if Luke would be able to help, or if he needed to be protected. He considered ways to gauge the boy's willingness and decided to go with the assumption that he would need protection and let him say otherwise.

"Our only choice now is to escape and head to the next location and meet with Anise there. Since Luke is unwilling to kill people, he will have to be under our protection. I'll take the lead, Luke you remain between Tear and I. We will be heading to the rear hatch."

((OoC: it's all good; I know you were finishing up NaNo, too.))

Luke nodded, trying to rationalize the situation in his head. He looked at both Tear and Jade, and while his face shown a hint of determination, his shaking hands were telling of his true emotion. "All right." He had no reason to argue with Jade at this time. He was lucky that nobody present got seriously injured or wounded, and now was no time to argue. "I'll stay between you and Tear."

If he put up a fake front now, someone would end up being hurt. Because of him.

"You have a plan, Colonel?" Tear inquired, facing Jade. He had far more military training and years of experience that Tear did not, so she submitted herself to his authority. She also gathered that Jade was the type of person to always hold an ace up his sleeve.

"Well, our esteemed hosts really should know better than to hold someone prisoner on their own vessel," Jade said with a shrug.

Without waiting on an answer from the pair he tossed something into the hallway and the bars immediately disappeared. He went to the nearest communications unit. "By my name as Necromancer, heed my command. Initiate emergency plan, 'Corpse Hunt.'"

True, he knew it may not help much since the landship had been stopped anyhow. But an emergency shutdown would stop any operations on the ship and allow for only one way out. It was his hope this would distract their "hosts" for long enough to escape.

"Let's go," he said to Tear and Luke. "We don't have much time before they figure out how to get things running again."

And then he led the way to the only exit he knew would be operational at this time, the port hatch.

[[ooc: I'm guessing this would be a good time for them to find Mieu now?]]

Mieu was huddling in a dark corner of another room, whimpering in pure terror of the liger that was growling menacingly at him as it paced the room, when he heard some noises and the lights flickered. Maybe someone was doing something?

"Mieu, Mieu!" he called out as loudly as he could "Help me, Help me! Does not want be liger-feed!!"

[ooc- sorry for the lol-speak, Mieu insisted]

"...!" As the emergency backup lighting came on, Tear noticed the cheagle in the corner of the room and immediately reacted, seeing the liger as well. "O melody beckoning toward the abyss. Tue Lei Zwe Kuloa Riou Tue Zwe..."

Luke immediately drew his sword, but little was done that after; his grip loosened as he remembered what his hands felt like the last time he gripped his sword so tightly. It cost someone their life. Shaking once again, Luke did not notice that Tear's hymn was wearing off, and the liger was making a bee-line straight toward Luke.

"Look out!" Tear got in the liger's way, just in time for the liger's fangs to penetrate her gloved forearm, blood spilling as Tear winced from the pain. "Luke, now!"

Without thinking and on instinct, Luke swung towards the liger's neck. Sheathing his sword, he realized that the shaking didn't stop; he also realized and was terrified that the slash didn't go all the way through. Taking a few last labored breaths, Tear used her other arm to finish the job Luke left unfinished with her staff.

Falling to his knees, Luke tried to breath. That girl... Arietta... she was the one commanding the monsters. And she went a little crazy when they were harmed in any way, even moreso than when the Oracle Knights... were these important to her? "Tear... I'm sorry..."

Tear shook her head, removing the liger's head from her forearm, wincing. She then proceeded to healing herself. "It was my own responsibility for not informing either of you of my actions." She stated, in a rather monotone voice. Turning to the green and white cheagle, she kneeled down. "Are you hurt, little one?"

Of all the things to find, a cheagle. But then he wasn't too surprised by Tear's reaction, they were sacred to the Order and women did tend to like cute defenseless animals, which cheagles most definitely were to a degree.

But the creature could be useful to them in the future, so he didn't see any reason to deny the two their chance to rescue it. Of course, there was no way it could tell Tear if it was hurt, monsters don't talk, at least not in ways humans can understand at this time. Of course, this didn't mean he was overly pleased about Luke and Tear risking harm to themselves for a monster.

But they had no time to waste. If they wanted to rescue the cheagle, they needed to take it with them. It didn't appear to be injured from what he could see, and if it was, she could see to that after they escaped.

"Even if it is injured, we don't have time to see to that right now. Luke, why don't you take the cheagle for now if you two insist on risking yourselves to rescue it?"

In fact, he realized just what sort of use the tiny monster could be put to. He remembered that some of the men were hoarding gunpowder to sell later and he put that aside down the hall for further investigation. It would indeed lessen the risk of meeting up with any Oracle Knights patrolling the corridors which at this point would be a good thing. He had discounted that as an option before due to his lack of ability to use any fonic artes at this time that could cause the gunpowder to explode. But this cheagle could do it, and from a safe enough distance at that. That would cause an explosion that would break down the wall and have them very close to the port hatch, greatly lessening their danger overall. It was very much worth the risk considering their lack of numbers and Luke's hesitation to fight human enemies.

"Come, follow me. There might be a way your new little friend could be of use."

Mieu looked up at the redheaded boy and the brunette girl, with big, wide ~~cute~~ eyes, and stuttered, in an annoyingly ~~cute~~ high-pitched voice. "Y-you saved me!" He ran over to the boy, and... swam through the air?... to shoulder-level, and clung to the boy's shoulder. "I owe you my life! I'll help you in any way I can, Master!"

[ooc- Okay, so I decided to go with a bit of a modified version of the anime with Mieu's floating. This is not Mieu Wings, it's more of the fonons of the Sorcerer's Ring lets him hover, and only for short distances. This isn't gonna be the anime's "Mieu is sorta floating along behind everyone at-speed", it's gonna be, "oh, he can sorta kick his legs and struggle up through the air to get head-level, but he'd better grab someone before it gives out and he falls", provided no one objects.]

"... Um, okay..." Luke sweatdropped, but then something hit his head. "How can you talk?" He asked, picking Mieu up by the ring around his belly and holding him in midair.

"How cute...~" Tear temporarily lost sight of herself, before shaking her head and coming back to her senses. "I'm assuming that this cheagle can talk because of the Sorcerer's Ring around it; it has a special fon verse inscribed on it, and it a sign of the pact between Yulia and cheagles as holy beasts."

"I guess we can take it along..." Luke sighed. "Not like we can just leave it here." Turning to Jade, Luke nodded. "All right." And he proceeded to follow Jade.

Jade wasn't even going to comment on the amazing fact of a monster talking, now was not the time, they could deal with that later. The important thing was getting out of here as quickly as possible.

He led the group to a storeroom at the end of the hallway and frowned slightly at the mess it had become when the Tartarus made that sudden stop earlier. It had been nice and neat and there wouldn't have been a problem getting to the back wall where he had left the gunpowder.

Something would have to be done about this mess for them to gain access, and he could have a little fun while he was at it, at Luke's expense of course for the fact that they have to put up with him.

"A shame these boxes are in the way. I don't quite think my old bones can handle moving them...or climbing over them either..."

"..." Luke could take a hint, but before he could react, Tear was already ahead of him trying to move the crate by force. Not that a 110 pound woman could do much. "Just stop it." Luke sighed, and began pushing the crates. That cranky old man was going to pay for this sooner or later. But now was not the time.

Luke really wasn't being at all fun here, he had expected such a spoiled child to at least grumble a bit before doing such tedious hard work. Oh well, he would find some amusement here.

"Ah good, that should do well. I'm rather surprised at your quick compliance Luke, maybe we could make a soldier of you yet. Anyway, come to the back with me and bring your new little friend with you. Tear, keep watch for anyone arriving. Oh, and you might want to cover your ears."

"Give it a rest." Luke muttered under his breath. Jade was testing his patience, and he wasn't in the mood for it. Wait, was there ever a time people were in the mood to be agitated? Shaking his head, Luke just shot a glare at Jade and followed him with Mieu on his shoulder. "Why does Tear have to cover her ears?"

"Oh, I just doubt Tear wants to hear what we are doing back here, that's all."

Jade leaned over and whispered to the cheagle to breathe fire on the boxes in front of him and then waited patiently for the results of his "something fun" at Luke's expense.

Mieu didn't understand why the man in blue wanted him to breathe fire at the boxes, but the group had helped him, and he was a part of the group. Mieu hopped down from Luke's shoulder, and took in a big breath.

"Mieu.... FIRE!" The cheagle let off a nice large stream of fire, which instantly spread to the boxes, and, more importantly, the contents of said boxes. And, as everyone knows, gunpowder + fire makes glorious explosions.

As soon as the explosions started, Mieu flailed and ran behind Luke's leg to hide. "Mieu~!"

"What the hell?!" Luke quickly turned around and fell flat on his face covering his head with his hands. "You bastard, couldn't you have warned me first?!" He got up, dusted himself off, and proceeded to yell at Jade. "You're not supposed to be surprising me by pulling out something that huge!"

And unlike everyone else, Jade wasn't fazed in the least bit by the explosion. He knew that gunpowder and fire makes for a loud noise. He was most pleased that the large amount was sufficient for what he wanted it to do. It made a large hole, and any patrolling soldiers were likely to come this way to investigate rather than patrol. It would buy them some time to escape, but the amusement was also irresistible.

"Oh, I didn't warn you? You did ask why I had Tear cover her ears. Obviously someone was having some rather impure thoughts about me. I never knew you were that sort of person."

He stepped ever so slightly away from Luke to bring the point across of what he was implying there.

"Anyway, we have just reduced our chances of meeting Oracle Knights by a great deal. However, that will do little good if we don't run. Why don't you go get Tear?"

The explosion had scared Mieu, and the redhead apparently didn't like it. But the man who had told him to do it seemed pleased, not only with what Mieu did, but with the redhead's reaction, too.

"Mieu~~ Mieu did good?" he asked.

"You bastard..." Luke growled under his breath, as he went to fetch Tear. "Mieu, you'd better watch out if you ever follow anything that old man's got to say; more often than not it sees like crap's gonna happen. Next time, if you consider me your master, you'd better follow my instructions."

After getting Tear, Luke followed Jade out of the big hole on the side of the Tartarus and looked at jade. "You know the ship; where do we go now?"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Chapter 01 - SCENE] Between Good and Evil

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject