Viewing Single Post From: Ryzing Down

Viewing Single Post From: Ryzing Down
Psiwri	Mar 6 2008, 04:19 AM
Too Many Words Posts: 11,133 Group: Veteran Member #77 Joined: June 9, 2005	Arc 1: Scatter Chapter 1: Exposure Part 2: Information Abounds Tralstine, Seral. 7:28 PM August 17th, 848 The Battlefield "Such pain." Natalie said quietly, a sunken look on her face, seeing out into the scape before them. There was a lot to be seen. Buildings alight on fire, buildings half gone, debris scattered around their foundations. People destroying each other's lives as they gasp for breath and scream in agony in reaction to what they do each other. Though Natalie and Nathan were not aware of it, the battle was waning, leaving those still fighting few in number, making each fight, each kill, all the more personal. This didn't seem right, Nathan knew that long ago freedom was something he coveted, longed for, something good, something to strive for, this scene was not freedom, yet it was. He could move on his own accord, he could go where he wanted. He could, but he could tell he was on the strings of some unknown puppet master. He, and his sister (which he was now fully sure of after having heard their last name, what was it, Ryza?, from the armored woman) were free, but without direction, without knowledge, without any resources at all. In reality the only option they had was to follow this woman that allowed them to escape. Her word of freedom was a lie, he was sure of it. The scene before him was destruction, and in his mind he tried to reconstruct what this town might have looked like. He too in the sights, letting his mind fill in the blanks as he scanned. From what remains were intact it was apparent that the buildings of this place were white in color, with clay roofs red in color like the rust of an old weapon. The streets were narrow, paved with stones of gray. A single canal trickled bloodied water towards a river in the far distance. The place felt weakly familiar to him as he took it in. He was beset with curiosity now, and though he felt it was an odd question to ask first of all the ones flowing through his mind... "Where are we?" He inquired to the only source of information he had. No more than a moment later he added, "and who are you?" Amidst the sounds of violence still echoing in the ruined streets, the woman removed her helmet as a sign of sincerity, a sign of trust. Beneath was the face of a woman not young, but not old. Short auburn hair barely moved at all from the movement, clearly intended for fighting like her equipment portrayed well enough. "To answer your questions backwards, I am Amalia Bellum, a general of Ekenmire's army. As for our location, we are in Tralstine, of the country Seral, currently at war with my Ekenmire." Her answer was short and precise, not offering additional information beyond the direct, full answers asked of her. It was part of her professionalism and tact. Those two still needed to be brought to her Commander on their own free will. They themselves might not know it yet, but she would not be able to take them over by force, he had been sure to let her know of this. She stood there, looking down at Nathan in the eye, knowing that two questions could not possibly be all someone of his situation wanted to ask. During that short moment of wait, she reveled again at how incredibly young these two looked for their age. What had the Commander said, eighty six? They looked but sixteen at the most, fourteen to be more precise. She was told why this was too, but it was still hard to believe with the evidence right before her. Nathan spent a moment to process the information, Tralstine, Seral, Ekenmire... once again things that felt familiar, but he could not come up with specifics. Amalia said they were in that dungeon for fifty years? It must be an incredibly amount of time to affect his memory so. Oh yes, yes. He thought to himself, shaking his head back and forth quickly trying to bring back his easily lost concentration. What else did he want to know? There was the matter of why they were freed, who wanted them freed, why there was a war going on... and a more minor curiosity as to why he seemed to be able to stand just fine while Natalie couldn't even get on her own two feet. They had suffered the same conditions, what could be the source of this difference? In the end his least imperative question came out of his mouth first. "Do you know the reason why I can stand and move while Natalie is bound to the ground she sits on?" Hearing her name, Natalie tilted her head upwards at Amalia, intent on seeing her answer rather than just hear it like the previous questions. Amalia didn't answer right away, she looked around at the surroundings, seeing how the waning battle continued to progress, and what their current situation would be if they lingered around much longer. "We can't afford to sit here much longer but I will try and answer your question before we move on." The general dropped her thick war axe to the ground along with the equally thick shield of her other arm, taking up a more relaxed stance, though she still refrained from sitting. "In short, it is because while you have a strong grasp of the Reinforcement Ether Manipulation school, Natalie has none." Alright, that was just gibberish to him. Nathan could see why she made herself more comfortable. "Excuse me?" "Reinforcement Ether Manipulation, or REM. It is the only Ether Manipulation that works internally with the user, by strengthening the muscles and hardening the skin in most applications. I'm sure you've felt this yourself if you can move around in what is clearly a weak body." The comment was pointed to the fact that both of them were unhealthily skinny, bones being visible where they shouldn't be, ribs so obvious they could jump out and nip you in the face. Their less than modest rags for clothes didn't do much to hide this. She listened for any interjections, none came, which was nice. "I too have a fair amount of skill in REM, though as I am informed, far less than you do. Your use of Ether in your weak muscles is why you can perform as though you were in good health. Likewise, it is why I can move as I do despite the heavy equipment." She motioned at the axe, the shield, and the far from light looking full suit of grey-blue armor all over her body. There was a particularly thick sheet of metal on the right forearm that held the axe, which as Nathan looked at it, had a long handle and a two sided head, something that seemed worthy of both arms to be used well. "Consider yourself gifted, Nathan, I know you're using REM but I can not sense it, proving it's power is beyond mine." Again, she knew more than she was saying, but it was all a precaution. Avoiding to mention Natalie's equally strong but different Ether Manipulation, among other things. Nathan took it in, feeling a bit awed, but knowing it to be true. His earlier thoughts were only partly correct. Not everyone could do what he could, but he was not alone in it, either. His blanked mind lead him to gaze at his sister, who matched the gaze with a faint smile. She seemed to be taking all of this in rather amiably compared to himself, maybe she was took weak to react more strongly, it was something that bothered him. A man in armor not much less in volume than Alacia's approached the aforementioned with a look of intent. "General Bellum, a clean up squad from Seral is moving into the area, we need to move back to base." She nodded, acknowledging the information as she placed the helmet back on, took up the shield and the axe once more. "I'd love to chat some more but as you heard we can't stay here any longer, please take care of your sister this time, I can't have myself limited should a fight come up." The familiar metallic voice rang from the helmet that was still such a powerful sound to Nathan's ears. They began to walk briskly in the direction right of the orange sun sinking into the horizon. If Nathan remembered correctly, that meant they were walking northwards. Natalie riding on his back, his arms providing a spot for her legs to support on, her arms crossed in front over his chest, weakly holding on. This feeling was so warm to him, so familiar yet distant. Whatever it was, he knew that he wanted to protect her. The crew moved on, weaving around piles of debris, through streets or over leveled homes. In total they were eight, Amalia, Nathan, Natalie, and five other soldiers presumably under Amalia's direct command. They would come across stray near-corpses of those mortally wounded but not yet dead. The five soldiers with them went a a little out of they way of their path to deliver mercy killings as they passed. Eventually the group took to traveling through a thin alleyway between two taller, intact buildings. None of them managed to notice the long shadows projecting off the roof of both.
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