The Ashlanders - Chapter 6: The Blind Man's Last Gambit (Closed, Started)

[Fappy]

"For luck."

Pixie smiled, sweetly.

Stay safe out there, kid.

Crossing over into the kitchen, everyone's eyes feel upon Pixie. The silence in the room was suddenly much more noticeable, "Déjà vu," Pixie simply commented as she poured herself a tall glass of water and downed it. "OKAY." She placed the glass firmly on the counter. "This is it, Maidens. Today's the day we get ar' ship back. Today's the day we take the fuckin' psychopath down. A small army of Wilkes-Vines enforcers ar' waitin' fer us a few miles outside Yuteni. We're gonna rendezvous, divide ar' forces an' charge up Austin's ass. Bennie, Aesop, Warren and Brock, y'all're with me. Like we've discussed, we're ta' lead the Wilkes-Vines vanguard an' wrest control'a the ship. Everyone else?"

She crossed her arms and leaned against the counter. Looking to Carlos, she cocked an eyebrow. He nodded in return, "Y'all 'er splittin' into two groups: Jake, yer in charge'a helpin' out civvies. Amy and Whiskey ar' gonna accompany you. Tallahassee, Cameron and Carlos, y'all ar' gonna watch their backs. You know what that means, right?"

Cameron and Tallahassee exchanged looks before nodding to Pixie. She frowned, "I don' reckon any of us ar' gonna be able ta' avoid clashin' with the enemy. I understand how... difficult that may be ta' y'all." She clenched her jaw. "But please... please promise me y'all will look after yerselves. If you or yer fellow Maidens are in danger DO NOT HESITATE. This is war. It's kill'er be killed out there. If you can' stomach that, I'll understand an' I won' hold it against you. There's now way ta' sugarcoat it: they're fuckin' kids. I can more than understand any reservations y'all may have." She scanned the kitchen one last time before adding. "Now's yer last chance ta' back out."

Part of her had wished some of them would.

Bennie remained silent, keeping his eyes on Pixie's. She already knew his answer.

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"Little JJ is gonna be spoiled rotten, I can tell."

Tsubaki rolled her eyes and shook her head, "That 'name'." She said, simply.

She looked over her shoulder to see Bryan enter and sit beside her.

"... good to see you up and about, Commander."

"It's good to be up, O'Lafferty. If I had to spend another minute chained to that hospital bed I was liable to break a nurse's neck." Thought her words were clearly meant in jest, her tone suggested otherwise.

"Commander."

Tsubaki nodded, "Moon."

The whole team was here.

Ortega was still busy pouring over documents at the opposite end of the table. Discussing logistics with his team, no doubt. With a few Chimera squad members yet to spare, Tsubaki looked back towards her men who were seated nearby, "I apologize again that I won't be out on the field today." She sighed. "Please, follow the Colonel's lead as if he were me, okay? We need to show them how strong Samsara is, despite its squad leader."

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"Stay focussed."

Sprout covered his mouth and raised his eyebrows as he and Lilith exchanged looks. Everyone had been on edge, Sandringham especially. He was dying, after all. After loading his weapons and strapping them on, Sprout gave his new plasma pistol one last inspection before slipping it into the strap of his vest. No holster he had was big enough to fit the damn thing.

Looking to Maria and Elizabeth, Sprout grinned, "Y'all stay close, ya' hear?" He was still operating at well below 100%, but he'd hold his own in a fight far better than the noble or the doctor. His condition had improved, but being stuck in a stinky, cramped dungeon hadn't really brought him the comfort he'd needed to recover.

"Of course," Elizabeth muttered looking between the four of them. "We're all going to make it out. I won't settle for anything less."

Across the room, the old pros were still at work.

"Are you ready?"

Cranston nodded before looking up and meeting the spy's gaze, "Are you? You going to be able to keep up in your condition?"

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Scurrying over to the priest's side, Severa planted her elbow behind his back and rested her side across his abdomen. Holding the notepad up so he could see it too, she looked to Owain and scowled, "This is a private matter, Brother! Why don't you go fetch more wine or something while I read this to him. We ran out last night!"

 

[Daystar Clarion]

"Stay focused."

"Yes sir!" Lilith muttered under her breath sarcastically as she packed the rest of her things. Slinging her backpack over her shoulders, she crossed her arms over her chest, leaning against the wall as she checked her rifle.

"We're all going to make it out. I won't settle for anything less."

"Well look at 'er, Little Miss Candy Ass 'won't settle for anything less'." Lilith teased, winking at Sprout. "Better not go and die, kiddo, her highness won't be too chuffed!"

Loading her rifle to capacity, Lilith slammed the the bolt into place before slinging it over her shoulder along with her backpack.

"Are we going yet? I need to get out of this damn building before I lose my mind."

=============================

"Please, follow the Colonel's lead as if he were me, okay? We need to show them how strong Samsara is, despite its squad leader."

"Enough with the melodrama already, so you got clipped, so what? We all know you'd be going too if you weren't under strict orders to rest up, so relax, we got this." He smirked as he turned his attention to Ortega.

"I didn't get a chance to say earlier, Colonel, but my condolences about what happened to your squad." His expression hardened. "If we hadn't given chase to the Maidens, the outcome may very well have been different."

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"You going to be able to keep up in your condition?"

Sandringham smiled a little half-heartedly as he cocked his weapon.

"You won't have to worry about me. If I was only going to be a burden, I'd have made a point of dying 3 days ago. I'm getting your people out of this city Cranston, no matter what."

"Are we going yet? I need to get out of this damn building before I lose my mind."

"If everybody is set, then we won't waste any time." Sandringham spoke up. "My team and Cranston will leave first, and head for the east gate. We've introduced a bug into our radio encryption, so that Basilio's forces will be able to listen in without making it obvious that we're leading them. Once we have all forces committed to our position, we'll signal you on the back up channel, and then you leave via the south gate without hesitation. Understood?"

===========================================================================================================================

"Now's yer last chance ta' back out."

Amy didn't so much as flinch. She had days to ponder what today was going to mean, and she'd made up her mind. Her place was here, and Austin had to be stopped, at any cost. If he was going to prove willing to throw every last one of his 'children' into the fire to save his own skin, then so be it. Their deaths would be a result of his cowardice. Amy would take no pleasure in it, but if a hundred brainwashed orphans had to die today so save who knows how many thousands tomorrow, then neither would she crumble in the face of what had to be done.

 

[Dogmatic99]

"This is a private matter, Brother! Why don't you go fetch more wine or something while I read this to him. We ran out last night!"

How could she be so warm, how could anything? She sidled up to him and her body linked into his as comfortably as two old lovers, her body heat giving him something close to a feeling of life.

This was intolerable, martyrdom be damned! Florian had to get out of here. 'Remember that, you idiot? Stay alert, stay awake.' Of course he'd been waiting for days now. How many, he wasn't sure, time had started to blend together after the first two days as hunger and dehydration kicked in. The only thing Florian had to mark the hours now were the fresh marks in his chest.

At least the sounds of fighting outside had died down. Riots were always more of a sprint than a marathon. Still, there were the occasional gunshots and screams. 'Didn't this used to be a nice part of town? Florian was pretty sure it was, during the quiet moments he'd gotten a chance to wander over to the window and take in the view. He could have sworn this was an upscale spot, even during the family turf wars it was treated nicely, the local property owners knowing just who to bribe so that the killings were kept out of sight. Apparently even their wealth couldn't guarantee safety anymore.

What the hell was going on? There couldn't be any gain from razing half the dome like this. He'd had a lot of time on his hands to think about the rapid decay he'd seen during his brief time back in Frostfall. 'Focus Dammit, you wont be able to do shit if you don't make it out of here.'

"No one's ever written me a poem before." He managed to croak out, offering Severa a weak smile of blood caked teeth.

 

[The Funslinger]

"This is a private matter, Brother! Why don't you go fetch more wine or something while I read this to him. We ran out last night!"

Owain snickered as he headed for the door. "Demanding, much?" Shrugging on his coat, he checked his various knives and his pistol, as well as his pocket full of carbon. All there, all secure. He stepped out into the hallway, habitually checking all visual quadrants. He was getting very tired of this place. Soon though, he'd kill the Priest and they could leave. Although he'd have to endure Severa's whining for a while.

=================================================

"Please, follow the Colonel's lead as if he were me, okay? We need to show them how strong Samsara is, despite its squad leader."

"Aye, ma'am," replied Bryan. He'd give Ortega his best. Although inwardly, he was counting the days until he was no longer under the man's command.

==================================================

"Now's yer last chance ta' back out."

Neither Ruffles nor Whiskey said anything. Whiskey, however, had a particularly tight expression. She thought about those kids. She thought about killing them. Then she thought about Millie, and she felt a pit open in her gut.

 

[ProtoChimp]

Aesop remained clutching the sink and sobbing for what seemed like an age. His watch suddenly began beeping. Looking down he realised it was his alarm to wake up. How early had he been awake for? Now was the time to get ready, to strap on his guns, to sheathe his blade, to flush any dignity away and prepare to murder a hell of a lot of kids. Pixie was no doubt giving the speech right about now. He just wanted to stay there, pathetically hugging the sink all day, but he couldn't. No no he couldn't, he needed to go, to join her in the crusade. He begged to come after all, to be the one to put the bullet in Austin. What kind of coward would back out of that?

His legs shaking, he stood up. Diving his face in the water once more Aesop tried, and failed, to drown out his demons. At least he looked less shaken up, or rather looked like he was trying to hide it. Drying his face he set off to the kitchen. Pixie's speech was just about ending.

"Now's yer last chance ta' back out."

He was standing at the end of the kitchen doorway, he wasn't sure if he had been noticed yet.
===================================================
Alex hadn't been allowed to so much as move at all the past five days. Austin knew better what would happen if she had her hands free around an armed guard. She was spoon fed soup and canteens. She resisted at first, however she was a smart woman and knew that allowing your captors the pleasure of owning your food supply was worth it to at least survive. She was tired, her knees were exhausted from being in this position for so long. Her body ached, she just wanted to lie down, yet her bonds were worked tighter each passing hour. She had no opportunity to work on a way to cut the ropes and other bonds as she was on constant guard. Austin hadn't come to see has as often as she expected, she wondered why? He was obsessed with her after all. But there was another he was perhaps even more obsessed with. The one thing that drove her to despair and yet gave her the strength to continue. God she prayed for him.

At least her room had light. It was a flickering one that was giving her a headache but at least she could see. Young Austin could move but not by much. It was merely a closet, yet it became his prison. Perhaps even his tomb. He had sobbed, cried, yelled and screamed, yet often chose silence. Every time the soft voice came he snapped at it with all his might, his fear forming a bubbling rage that was, unfortunately to his captors, amusing. They were not pleases with the way Austin was favouring this one. He had done this a thousand times before, yet this one sibling was getting special treatment. Why? What made this one so special?

 

[Fappy]

Not a single soul stirred. Pixie closed her eye and took one long breath.

They're ready. They 'ave to be.

"Okay," She said, softly. "Let's wrap this meal up an' head out. Don' wanna keep those gangsters waitin' too long." Her speech done, Pixie picked up a plate and sat down at the end of the table near Amy. Looking over her shoulder, she locked eyes with Aesop and nodded. He didn't have to say it. She knew he was coming. He wouldn't miss this opportunity for the world.

Don' make me regret this, Aesop...

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Spoiler

They had taken three crawlers: Pixie, Aesop, Brock and Warren in the first, Bennie, Whiskey, Ruffles and Amy in the second and Cameron, Carlos and Tallahassee in the last. It would be a long trip across the desolate ashlands. Not a single landmark or settlement lay between them and their destination.

Yuteni really was a diamond in the rough, and a rather weathered gem at that.

Pixie rested her palm on the top of the steering wheel and cradled her cheek lazily with her other. With all the windows open, it was damn hard to hear anything but the violent wind surrounding them. The first few hours of the trip had been made in silence. No doubt everyone had a few things on their minds. Under normal circumstances they would all be excited, but the prospect of killing children tended to sour such things.

Pixie could feel it radiating off of him. The anticipation. The fear.

The anger.

Several hours into the trip, Pixie finally turned her head to address the elephant in the room, "Aesop," She said firmly over the roar of the winds, "Talk ta' me."

Meanwhile, in Bennie's crawler, very little had been said since their departure. Sure, Ruffles had made a few quips, but no real conversation had been held for longer than a minute. All of them were dwelling on one thing or another. Their anxiety was palpable.

Not bothering to turn around to face the others, Bennie began speaking, his eyes remaining on the road ahead, "I've killed kids before," His grip tightened around the steering wheel. "When I was no older than you, Amy. At that point we were already in bad with Wilkes-Vines. My older sister, Katherine, she was murdered in cold blood by Payton's top lieutenant. Ricky was his name, leader of Wilkes-Vines' old guard. Anyway, I was besides myself as you can imagine, but my father? He was fuckin' livid. So you know what he does? He comes to me and says, 'Sometimes people do terrible things, Bennie. Those people need to be paid in kind.'"

Bennie shook his head, pausing for a moment before continuing, "I broke into the man's home in the middle of the night dressed in all black. Balaclava and everything. I find his family: a wife and three kids. I could tell you everything about them, you know? Age, sex, names, even what they fuckin' looked like. I've never forgotten." He sighed. "So, I rounded them up. They cried, protested and begged for their lives. I made it quick. When Ricky got home? Well, I don't reckon that was all too quick."

Drumming his fingers along the top of the wheel for a moment, he finally looked over his shoulder. He wore a solemn frown, "Never forget their faces. It'll be what separates you from monsters like Austin."

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"You won't have to worry about me. If I was only going to be a burden, I'd have made a point of dying 3 days ago. I'm getting your people out of this city Cranston, no matter what."

Cranston nodded, "Good."

"... Once we have all forces committed to our position, we'll signal you on the back up channel, and then you leave via the south gate without hesitation. Understood?"

"Aye, Captain!" Sprout jeered.

It was finally time to get out of that stank-ass hole in the ground.

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Peering through the binoculars, Sprout could still see some of the scorch marks from their battle at the south gate earlier that week. The three Maidens and their damsel were held up on the third floor of an old, crumbling apartment complex, waiting for Cranston's signal. Handing the binoculars to Lilith, Sprout looked to her, "A lot more'a them posted there now. Reckon it's like this at all the gates. Think their diversion'll actually thin these numbers? 'Cause, I ain't likin' 'ar odds."

As the two 'veterans' spoke, Elizabeth looked to Maria, "So, you're really becoming a bandit after all of this?" She giggled. "I don't really see why people think it's so romantic. It's more just... dirty."

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"Enough with the melodrama already, so you got clipped, so what? We all know you'd be going too if you weren't under strict orders to rest up, so relax, we got this."

Under normal circumstances, Tsubaki would have been offended. Seen it as a breach of her authority. Instead, she simply furrowed her brow and nodded.

He was right.

"If we hadn't given chase to the Maidens, the outcome may very well have been different."

Ortega kept his eyes glued to the documents before him, "Thank you, but that isn't necessary, Harel. You had your orders and we had ours. As simple as that. Now," He looked to the room and noted that the last few members of his squad were now present. "Let's get this started."

It was basic stuff. Logistics, mostly. Where they had men stationed, how many reinforcements were available, secure and clear routes in the city, public concerns regarding the length of shutdown; all of this was covered in detail in the briefing. Considering their enemy's partnership, the execution of Sandrignham's squad and the capture of the young noble had been rolled together into the same directive. Additionally, orders from Lord Basilio himself required they try to apprehend any of the Maidens alive.

That made things tricky.

Though they were under Ortega's command for now, Samsara's primary objective did not change: bring Maribel back, alive. The only notable change was that Mila was assigned to their squad in Tsubaki's absence.

Grabbing some coffee in the back of the room with Asad, Tsubaki looked at Mila on the opposite end of the room, "I hear she's a good soldier. Look after the girl, okay?" Tsubaki smirked, though she hid it from her subordinate. "I know that's something you're good at."

Approaching Bryan and Jun from behind, Mila crossed her arms and cocked an eyebrow, "So, how tough are these kids, anyway? Hear they gave y'all quite the beating."

******************************************************************************************************************************************************

"No one's ever written me a poem before."

Severa giggled, "Well, I can be your first then!" Snuggling up closer, she unfolded the page and gave the priest one last, longing glance before clearing her throat. "Okay...

'I can touch and see you,
I know that you are real,
I can taste and smell you,
I know you too, can feel,

Your heart beats fast,
In tandem with my own,
Two souls of a kind,
Oh, how close we have grown,

Underneath this facade,
Exists a man I can love,
The little poor priest,
Is but a loose-fitting glove,

I pledge to you now,
I will do what I must,
I will guide your heart thusly,
For that, I need your trust,

Open your heart to me, O' Father,
Don't leave me alone,
If you open yourself to me,
I'll build you a throne'

After several moments of silence, she bowed her head a sighed, "I'm hopeless!" She shook her head. "I'm sorry, Father. I wish I were better. I have the passion, but not the talent."

 

[Evrant-Knight]

The last week or so had been... quiet for lack of a better term, though life for the citizens of Feroxi seemed to carry on as normal despite the happenings that had been going on. Viola had gone to visit Dante's office a couple of times to see if he had picked up anything regarding any sightings of the Maidens, unfortunately, the news was next to nothing; it appeared they had gone to ground.

Hannibal meanwhile, well every time that Viola had come back from an excursion, she'd find him sitting by the windowsill, watching for any signs of them, the usual look of fear in his eyes, probably thinking about what they'd do to him if they ever caught him. Poor kid, he'd need cheering up at some point. Viola figured that the Gundersons would know about the lock down, so they'd know that Hannibal would be trapped in town whilst it was going on, so escape wasn't an option.

Then again, the two of them would only be bringing more trouble with them even if they did leave. No, they'd have to end this man hunt whilst the lock-down was still going on. "But how?" she asked herself.

Viola entered their hotel room, having just come back from refilling their canteens from a nearby well. She found Hannibal sitting at the window like he had been. After taking a sip from her own canteen, Viola sat down at the bed opposite Hannibal.

"Seen anything interesting?"

 

[Daystar Clarion]

"A lot more'a them posted there now. Reckon it's like this at all the gates. Think their diversion'll actually thin these numbers? 'Cause, I ain't likin' 'ar odds."

Grabbing the binoculars, Lilith scoped out the gate. There were a lot more of them posted now. Ten or so. "I reckon a lot of them will head off when the distraction goes down." Clenching her jaw, she paused for a moment before turning her head to look a the boy.

"But not nearly enough." She bit her bottom lip. "This is a good vantage point, from here I could do some real damage, or at least get them into cover while you three escape. Once you guys get out, they'd have no reason to keep the city on lockdown, and after a few days of laying low, I could get clear of this shithole." She smiled as she turned to face the boy, holding out the binoculars.

"I don't like that plan though." She winked.

=========================

Asad sipped his coffee, grimacing slightly. Shit was awful. Asad raised his eyes to follow the Commander's as she pointed out the Mila woman.

"I hear she's a good soldier. Look after the girl, okay?"

Asad raised an eyebrow, smirking slightly.

"I know that's something you're good at."

Asad took another gulp of the coffee. "I'm good at many things, Commander. Shooting, drinking, eating chips, naming cats after comrades." He furrowed his brow slightly as his face softened. "Taking care of women isn't something I've ever been lauded for." He winked at Tsubaki.

"I'll make sure nothing happens to her." He added, averting his gaze as he glanced Mila. "Although I'm sure she can take care of herself."

 

[ProtoChimp]

Aesop knew as she looked at him, she didn't want him to fuck up. Disappointing Pixie always made Aesop feel extra ashamed, moreso than his usual self destructive thought patterns.

Later on as he sat in the crawler with her, he was strapped up to hell. They might as well have called this the kid killing car. He had strapped pistols damn near all over his body, side straps, ankle straps, even tied in uncomfortable places. He didn't want to be constantly reloading. Maybe it wasn't a smart idea but Aesop wasn't a smart man.

"Or rather a dumb boy."

He shut his eyes tight as if that would make his shrill of a voice disappear. It didn't sound like the old Austin. No, this was a high pithced, demonic squeal. It didn't sound like him at all and when Aesop thought of his face it was misshapen and twisted. A broken mesh of skin and bone that could still speak despite having a crushed jaw. Was this what his memories had reduced to? Or what Aesop wanted the end result of Austin's face to be.

"Aesop, Talk ta' me."

Aesop couldn't snap out of his reverie and answered her, not trying to cover up how he felt as he spoke which he had done his whole time with her. "And say what exactly?" His tone was much less respectful than usual, despite not intending it.
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"Seen anything interesting?"

Hannibal nodded as he tentatively took the canteen from her. "This guy across the street keeps moving boxes full of old rocks and stuff. I don't even know why but he's just going back and forth and back and forth, carrying these boxes full of rocks. Its not even carbon its just rocks. Might just be a crazy guy." He sipped his canteen as he thought about them, they who wanted his head. Just how many could really be in the city? Ortega's men had killed a lot of them. He saw their bodies lying in the street, blood pouring from open wounds in their skulls. After seeing so many people die it didn't bother him anymore, unless it was in bulk such as then. Even now however it only so much as makes him look away.

Still, they were persistent, and he'd dealt with their kind before. They didn't stop unless they were satisfied with a kill. He needed to find a good place to hide rather than behind Viola's back. Or perhaps just the right places not to go. Then a thought came to mind.

Standing up he said, "I know it might not be smart but, I need to go out to find someone. Alone. He doesn't like meeting people who stand out and um... sorry no offence." Hannibal held his forearm nervously.

 

[Terratina.]

Jun for the most part just sat listening to the briefing, taking everything in. Everything seemed pretty standard for a briefing about runaway Maidens and a dome on lockdown. Except for one thing...

Alive. They had to take them alive.

Just what the fuck was Lord Basilio playing at?! They were, by definition, bandits - people who tried to be wise guys, people who broke established laws and ran rampant across the Ashlands. They deserved to be killed without mercy. What was the point in leaving such scum alive? It was pointless, anyway. Those questions would go unanswered.

'Never question, always obey.' He thought bitterly.

Of less concern was the matter of the 'name', whatever that was. Whatever Asad and the Commander were going on about. In a small moment, Jun's anger turned to puzzlement - more empty questions. At least there was somewhat of a change of pace here.

Speaking of which, he was more than happy to leave Mila to Bryan and the rest. Just another joker.

***​

"So, you're really becoming a bandit after all of this?" I don't really see why people think it's so romantic. It's more just... dirty."

Maria leant back, "Well, I guess I have to follow the li'lest bandit until he's all well and good. Staying with 'em might be nice, I'unno. Whaddya think?"

She ended the last sentence with a wink and began a new one, "Eh, the romance's in the freedom. Go where you want, take what you where and don't let nobody tell ya otherwise!"

"Or... Bang, bang." Maria added, making a gun with her hand. Afterwards, she quietened down, "Shame most people don't think more than about it than that..."

Of course, there were those who turned to banditry out of necessity. But those sorts surely weren't romantics.

 

[The Funslinger]

"So, how tough are these kids, anyway? Hear they gave y'all quite the beating."

"Well I don't know about Asad here," said Bryan, grinning at the new arrival. "But the excuse I'm going with is that I'm the CQC specialist. And we never got close enough for me to do any o' that."

===============================================================

"Never forget their faces. It'll be what separates you from monsters like Austin."

Ruffles listened to the story impassively. He'd never heard it, and it surprised the hell out of him. 'Great,' he thought. 'The guys I might be working for killed Bennie's sister... Jesus...'

================================================================

Eddie stared at the ceiling. The ceiling seemed to stare back. The chains of the manacles around his wrists and ankles were coiled in a heap next to him as he lay sprawled on the floor. He continued to stare at the ceiling, because it was the only thing to stare at besides the water.

Payton had left it there before he had left. "Business to attend to, Mister Canton," he had said, cryptically. It was strategically placed so that if Eddie were to get up and walk forward to get it, the chains would spring taut, stopping him feet short of it. It continued to sit there, chilled. Glistening with condensation that drove him mad.

Still, even that steadily rising desperation was a reprieve. Something to think about. Payton hadn't lain a hand on him in four days. Because four days ago, he'd given Eddie the means to torture himself, when he explained quite bluntly that Yuteni had been attacked by Father Austin. This had meant little to Eddie beyond a vague sense of general sympathy until the old bastard had added that Yuteni was the location of the safehouse in which he had stashed Millie to keep Whiskey in line. And that the men assigned to guard her had not reported in since the attack.

It had been two days since Payton had last given him a drink, and the old survivalist trick of sucking on his shirt sleeve had long since ceased dredging up saliva. Eddie got to his feet, and his head swam and throbbed with dehydration. Again, he shuffled towards the bottle. The chains clanked and lifted. He was brought to a halt. Sitting down at the literal end of his metallic rope, Eddie strained forward. The bottle remained resolutely out of reach, glinting wetly at him. He slumped back down, feeling the force of a thousand hangovers, despite being stone cold sober.

 

[Dogmatic99]

It wasn't the finest piece of literary work he'd ever heard. Even Florian's pain addled mind could tell that much. Still... it had that same earnest air he'd seen Severa throw into everything he'd seen her do. The woman was mad as a hatter but she was honest.

'Is it mad? She knows what she is and embraces it, carves out a path of her own choosing despite what the world demanded of her.'

He couldn't be serious. The woman had spent days draining him like a leach and stripping him of any dignity he held dear.

'Wasn't pride supposed to be a fools game? Something that weighs you down as the ash sweeps you away.'

And the poem did get better. Hadn't he struggled against the collar, feeling it tight against his throat each day? Hadn't he hidden himself from the other maidens for fear of being cast out into the cold, throwing himself into their own problems to save dancing around his own? That was no way to live.

'And here she is, offering love of all things. Not to the solider or the servant... but to me.'

"I'm hopeless! I'm sorry, Father. I wish I were better. I have the passion, but not the talent."

"Florian." He whispered to her, gently placing his hand over hers as it held the poem. "I don't... I want..."

What did he want? This had to be delirium setting in, his mind breaking along with the rest of his body. It was too much of a struggle to form words by this point, let alone think clearly. All he knew right now was how good her hand felt under his.

 

[Fappy]

"I don't like that plan though."

Sprout relaxed his furrowed brow, "Was gonna say, Lily. Damn..." He laughed. "No one's playin' hero today, got it? We're all makin' it through that gate as a team."

"Eh, the romance's in the freedom. Go where you want, take what you where and don't let nobody tell ya otherwise!"

Sprout looked to Lilith and snickered while he whispered, "I'm in it fer the poon."

"Shame most people don't think more than about it than that..."

Elizabeth nodded, "I admit, I never knew bandits to be anything but backstabbing opportunists until I was taken aboard the Maiden. Now they just seem... well, I guess like everyone else." She placed a hand on Maria's shoulder. "I feel like I've been stumbling around in the dark all this time. So quick to judge; to accepted spoon-fed truths. I had no mind of my own. I wish I could have met you sooner, Maria. You're a better person than me." She offered a sad smile.

"Dramaaaaa queeeeeen." Sprout muttered to himself.

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"Although I'm sure she can take care of herself."

"That she can," Tsubaki agreed. After taking another sip of her bland coffee, she continued. "She may not look like much, but she's one of Ortega's best and that's saying a lot. I'm not sure how much of their field work you've been exposed to these past few days, but they're locked airtight as far as spec ops squads go. Lord Basilio tells me they're even higher caliber than we are, hence the secrecy." She shook her head. "I still don't know what that's about. I've known our Lord for nearly eleven years, Harel. Just when I think I know what he's up to I..."

Tsubaki sighed, pressing her fingers against her forehead for a moment before taking another sip of her drink, "I'm sorry, I should have mentioned this before. The other day, when Lord Basilio checked up on me in the hospital, I... I'm sorry." She frowned. "You didn't need to see that. None of you did."

********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"But the excuse I'm going with is that I'm the CQC specialist. And we never got close enough for me to do any o' that."

Mila put her hands on her hips and cocked an eyebrow, "But you can still shoot a gun, can't ya'? I figure there's going to be a lot of 'guns' and 'bullets' involved in this Op." She teased.

********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"And say what exactly?"

Pixie's expression didn't change, "What's on yer mind. I know that look, Aesop. You ain't foolin' no one." She put a hand on his shoulder and looked back towards the road ahead. "You don' 'ave ta' do this alone. You've got people that understand you. I know what yer goin' through more than you know." She met his gaze once more and repeated herself. "Talk ta' me."

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Florian. I don't... I want..."

Severa dropped the notepad and held his hands in her own. Resting her forehead against his, she hushed him, "Hey, hey, hey, it's okay, Father. It's okay. I'm here for you." She kissed his forehead gently. "What do you want, Father?"

 

[Daystar Clarion]

"I'm in it fer the poon."

Lilith crossed her arms over her chest, a wry smirk curling her lips as her eyes narrowed. "How's that working out for ya?"

"Maria. You're a better person than me."

Lilith pretended to gag, snickering as she put her hands on Axel's shoulders.

"Axel." She cooed. "You're a better person than me." She spoke as softly as she could, with her poshest accent. "Please, dearest Axel, please would yo-PFFFFFFFT!" She tried her best not to laugh.

Really she did.

"Oh god, are you two gonna kiss now? Jesus!" Lilith clutched her sides as she struggled to breath.

===================================


"You didn't need to see that. None of you did."

Asad shrugged his shoulders. "Weren't your fault, and it's not like you could have told him to back off or anything, so don't worry about it." The man coughed slightly. "Holy shit, this coffee is terrible." He chuckled.

His eyes staring into Tsubaki's, he furrowed his brow. "You don't have to do what he tells you, ya know. I don't care if he is who is, tell him to fuck the fuck off next time, okay?"

He smiled at her disapproving look. "Politely! Of course!" He added.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

"This guy across the street keeps moving boxes full of old rocks and stuff. I don't even know why but he's just going back and forth and back and forth, carrying these boxes full of rocks. Its not even carbon its just rocks. Might just be a crazy guy." Hannibal said, taking a slow, tentative sip from his canteen every so often afterwards.

Well, I've seen and heard about stranger folks before.

After a few moments of silently looking out of the window together, watching the world go by, Hannibal silently stood up from his chair. "I know it might not be smart but, I need to go out to find someone. Alone. He doesn't like meeting people who stand out and um... sorry no offence." This raised some suspicion with Viola as she turned to face Hannibal.

"You sure about this Hannibal? What if... you know who finds you? And just who is this person you're trying to find?"

 

[ProtoChimp]

"Talk ta' me."

Her hand on his shoulder usually helped him. Feeling her touch usually calmed him, as if he was being blessed by a saint.

"You delusional bastard."

'Shut the fuck up.'

"You know I'm right."

'SHUT THE FUCK UP!'

"I don't know what to say." He finally answered. "Everything about me is because of him. I'm not my own man anymore. I'm not me, I'm not myself. I... Sillah," saying his real name hurt more than any other words he could muster, "Sillah died with his friends. I'm the after effect of Peter's war. Everything about me, my ideals, my attitude, my fear and wanting to run away and puss out of every damn situation... I never used to be like that."

Looking ahead at the ash as the land ran under their crawler Aesop swore he could see Yuteni, as if they were driving through it. "I was more of a man when I was 16 than I am now, but that was because of what he was teaching me. I feel like I'm-"

'Don't say it. Don't say it you fucking idiot, do not make her doubt you any further you fucking imbecile.'

"Killing your father?"

'Shut up. Please.'
===============================================
"You sure about this Hannibal? What if... you know who finds you? And just who is this person you're trying to find?"

"I know, its stupid to go alone, but if I'm quick, if I'm in and out in a few minutes they won't have time to get me. I ran all the way here from fyrestone I can run if I need to."
===============================================
"How long do we plan to stay here Father?" Asked Heath as he finished off his tea.

"Well, we've never conquered a city before. Yuteni may have had," Austin chuckled, "downright awful defences, but nonetheless there's still an entire city full of children and pretenders down there. And we can't risk any casualties."

Heath was going to mention the likely amount of casualties from the initial attack and the battle they were winning by a landslide below; but he was smarter than that. To Austin there were no casualties. None, and to deny him was disobedience.

Austin continued, "I need to address everyone face to face to see whether they are true children or not. This is the same problem I am having with those poor girls we brought on before the attack. Some are definitely children, others could be pretenders, which is why we must be ever careful."

"But what of Franklin and Isabel? Are they not pretenders?" Queried the child.

Pouring some more tea Austin answered him, "Franklin is without a doubt. Isabel I believe may just be confused. If she is a pretender then of course we know what to do but if she is not, and I believe she is not, then she can indeed be saved."

"Wait, why is Franklin still alive if we know he's not one of us?"

Austin smiled and leaned back before answering him. "He is our test. Any aboard this ship who go to him are clearly pretenders. It saves time to thin out the crowd. We must adapt if we are to win this war my boy. It may not be noble, but it will shorten the war for years to come."

"Wait, what if those who go to him are just confused? Like Isabel?"

Austin poured milk into his tea and looked at his son. "Heath?"

"Yes father?"

"Don't question me."

 

[The Funslinger]

"But you can still shoot a gun, can't ya'? I figure there's going to be a lot of 'guns' and 'bullets' involved in this Op."

"Oh, I'm good fer that," said Bryan. "But y'know... there's no fun in making it too easy, right?"

 

[Evrant-Knight]

"I know, it's stupid to go alone, but if I'm quick, if I'm in and out in a few minutes they won't have time to get me. I ran all the way here from Fyrestone, I can run if I need to."

All Viola could do right away was sigh at that response. "Look, Hannibal, let me level with you. I am concerned for your safety. You and I both know that there are some mad as a march hare Bandits in Feroxi that are out for your blood. I just can't sit idly by and watch you walk out of this room into a situation with limitless unknown possibilities. Surely there is someway that I could hang back, out of sight, and provide support in the event that something does happen." She then said with a raised voice, deeply concerned for the young lad as Viola stood up from her chair.

"Besides, you didn't answer my other question. Just who is this person that your meeting?" Viola's tone was a bit calmer, but still carried a bit of tension in her voice.

 

[Dogmatic99]

"What do you want, Father?"

'I want my freedom. I want out of this room. I want to feel the wind in my hair again. I want to see the people I love one last time. I want to sleep and never wake up!'

He had to remember what was important here, he couldn't let himself slip into her games, however tempting it might be. He had to keep the things he held dear and hold onto them tight. They were his anchors. The reason he was still forcing his heart to beat.

"I want my name back..."