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 Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 2:09 pm
Shin frowned as he watched him put the fruit back on the platter.
"You have to--"
He was going to say something like 'you have to eat something, regain your strength.' But fell short. Sunstrike really didn't need to eat anything all that often at all, or at least he remembered reading something like that in his file. Shin was forcing his mother-hen ways on his friend and the realization took him aback a little. His hand fell limp at the bedside and he leaned his head back, resting against the headboard as he stared at the ceiling. Being behind Sun, was advantageous as the Salamander couldn't see the confusion playing on his features.
"I don't know, somethings really wrong. But there's no time left now to bury myself in it."
"Well find out what's weirding you out Sun, but as a team, not you going alone to face gods knows what odds. It's not just because you can help get Sierra back I--"
There was a 'thunk' as his head bounced off the board lightly in frustration.
"Oh hells Sun, you're my friend... if you meant what you said the other night. And I don't like seeing my friends hurt."
"Has Vahn come back, yet?"
He sat in silence for a moment, and then sighed and nodded at nobody in particular.
"Yeah. He was brought in two nights ago, lost a day to sleep, came 'round today. While you were sleeping Aiysin dropped by to tell me her sister was back and Vahn was with her."
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 2:18 pm
Sunstrike hesitated when Shin trailed off. Feelings of remorse made him reach over and take the hot tea in a compromise, nursing the heat in bandaged hands.
"I'm sorry Shin, I don't...I'm unused to the concept of sharing the load. My teacher wasn't exactly apt at it either. And I did mean what I said the other night. I need friends, they tell me when I've been horribly stupid and put up with me when I'm more then a little..." He scowled and took a sip, finding it really nice actually, his ear wiggled a bit and he lightened up.
"Stubborn."
When Shin told him about Vahn he stared into his mug, stroking the sides of the glass with idle thumbs. Part of him had known exactly when Vahn had entered the grounds, and how long the darker man had been there, he was really just asking to confirm what the back of his mind was telling him. That was unsettling.
"What happens now?"
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 2:27 pm
Shin couldn't help but smile as Sun took the tea, even if he was only humouring Shin, the elf felt a little better.
"I think he's with Kimiho. She'll want to talk to you both separately, as not to let one's decisions influence the other. Kimiho knows you've agreed to help us, but won't want Vahn to say yes just because you did. He needs to have some degree of conviction if he's going to be any real use against them."
The 'them' was unspoken, but there would be no doubt whom he was referring to. Victor and Ra'kar.
"Then she'll probably bring him here."
He tried not to let the last be anything more than a simple answer, to a simple question. But nothing in life was ever really simple--
"I imagine that in a couple days, you'll both be in discussions with Lady Reiyvian, and part of the planning process as to what our best course of action is."
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 3:01 pm
His fingers drummed along the sides of the cup, this time a little anxiously.
"It's gonna have to be faster then a few days, Shin, I hate to say it, but I've got a terribly bad feeling about things. The kinda feeling that tells me to find a hole to crawl into."
More then that, something had happened when he'd been asleep, a dream that weighed heavily on his conscience. He shook his head to clear it, that wasn't ready to be spoken of or even thought of yet.
He sighed and leaned back, trying to relax.
"I don't know what to do anymore, things were so clear cut to begin with, now the waters are all muddied."
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 3:13 pm
Shin, knew the feeling. He was growing more and more worried about everything the past few days. Too much intel had come in that was ill-boding for all concerned parties.
He held Sun, not as a lover. But as a friend. Just another person, trying to survive this crazy world. The reassuring embrace and contact of skin and the silent knowledge that as bad as it all was and might get, they weren't alone.
He just nodded and held Sun, one hand running absentmindedly through soft red locks of hair.
"I'll see what I can do..."
He murmured gently.
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 10:30 pm
"Anything that will last. I suspect I'll have a lot of a** kicking to do."
He got up, having hardly touched his food. A single dribble of blood ran its course from under the lid of his left eye, which was soon wiped away even as he turned to the side.
He felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise a bit... feeling like he was being watched.
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Posted: Thu May 31, 2007 11:04 pm
Apparently the food had come and they'd eaten... or not. Whatever.
Kimiho just nodded and polished of the remainders of her food, enjoying her milk one moment and the next-- Her senses bristled, a sharp jolt ran through her limbs. Someone had breached DSG security from afar.
Her eyes widened and then narrowed as she eyed Vahn cautiously. How could she feel this? Kimiho was created as part of the Dark Sakura's defenses. One of her guardians, and as such she was directly in tune with every line of defense and would tell instantly if something had been tripped.
:: What happened?! ::
:: A breach, s'far away though.::
::Track it and raise anti-scrying defenses. NOW. ::
Seekers were released, and the anti-scrying barriers were activated. The hospital ward and any of the DSG estate would fade from Victor's vision. Sighing, the woman shook her head an looked to Vahn.
"What was that about, any ideas?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2007 1:36 am
"Eh?" He turned at the question, wondering what she meant.
He had felt just something akin to a gut reaction, or something superstitious. He had no real way of knowing if something was really going on or not.
He just gave her a quizzical look and turned away, waving a hand about. "I'm not that hungry... just keep getting headaches is all..."
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Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2007 9:07 am
She just kind of blinked at him dumbfounded for a minute and then realized that he thought she was talking about the food. Sighing she finishes her milk and gets to her feet. If he didn't know, then she had no reason to tell him just yet, that someone was trying to spy on them.
She had her suspicions of 'who' had been checking in, but wouldn't know for sure until the seekers returned.
'Seekers' were spirits who had been consigned to track energy trails. Handled by GUARDIAN scout classes, it was their generic ability.
"Let me know if you want something later then."
She rubs her head, not quite wanting to talk about things in such an open area now... but their defenses had been activated. Logic told her it was fine, but her gut and her senses were still on edge.
Nothing screamed 'intruder' to her however. So she decided to proceed with their conversation.
"Vahn, what do you know of Reapers? Death God's?
And why would Joshua, the captain of the team that called themselves 'a** Tear' at this years Heaven or Hell tournament be after your teammates?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2007 11:42 am
"As far as I know, there is no such thing."
He had said it matter of factly, without even realizing he had said it. To my people, there was no such thing as the "after life". You simply lived, and you simply died.
So I had no reason to really ever wonder or care about... anything concerning that. It would have certainly made a lot of us think twice during fighting..."
He squared his jaw, before looking towards her again now. "Joshua... I can't say the name rings a bell. But I do feel like I've met the guy before..."
He remembered seeing his elimination match with the Judge on the jumbo screen, at the same time Sun's was playing out.
"Figures a guy like that would be with that other monster...." He was referring to Tzen of course.
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Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2007 3:59 pm
"They are quite real, let me assure you."
She waited 'til they were back outside before continuing in a hushed tone.
"It concerns me that two of Team A.T. have attacked you and Sunstrike both and both within close timing of the other. What concerns me more, is that Joshua more than once implied and then straight out said, he was coming after ALL of GLACIER. He was using it to try and get Sunstrike to unleash Sali, but there was no hint that it was a bluff."
Rubbing the back of her head awkwardly she pressed forward with the story's telling. It wasn't casual, rather serious and matter of fact. Joshua had been an unseen enemy, and it was unsettling. It was going to be hard enough dealing with Victor and his ilk, now they had someone else throwing a spoke into their wheels as well.
"Joshua used you and your teammates against Sun, Sun went ALL out."
Shrugging glanced at Vahn,
"He tried to murder Sun... and nearly succeeded. I don't know-- if Tzen and Joshua are working together or separately, but they are a very real threat to you four. Victor and Ra'kar are our prime objective, but keeping you and Sunstrike in one piece is part'n'parcel to that... So we can't afford to ignore this development."
Kimiho stopped walking and turned so she could see Vahn's face.
"What's your stand on it?"
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Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2007 9:48 pm
He took in this rather surprising development with silence, head lowered in thought. His right hand involuntarily clenched tightly, even as he started remembering what Tzen had been jeering at him through their fight.
"....."
Looking up, he dismissed her with a hand. "I don't need a babysitter. Just tell me what I have to do."
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Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2007 10:10 am
"Let us see what happened that night so that we can try and understand what it was within our mistress' mind that broke."
The woman was very serious, very grave and all business. Yet there was something about the determination in her eyes. She would exhaust every other option before she excepted the decision she knew had already been made by Sierra long ago.
"If there's any chance at all to save her... we have to try..."
Brushing the hair from her eyes as she smiles and turns to Vahn mid-step, she adds carefully.
"We are at war Vahn, it hasn't been declared yet, but the Dark Sakura is holding her breath for she knows will surely come."
They were heading uphill now, back towards the infirmary. She had to finish up this talk quickly, then she would take him to see Sun. While they caught up-- she intended to call a meeting of powers.
"What we need from you, is an alliance. We need you to work with us, not as an underling but in a position of authority.... We want you to reclaim your title as the first GUARDIAN...."
She didn't say anything more, just waited for the protest or explosion that she was almost certain was bound to follow.
It had been a long, long time that Vahn had been expelled from GUARDIAN. Although, the decision seemed mutual at the time. Kimiho suspected that he would have left anyway...
No doubt it had left a bad taste in his mouth.
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Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2007 1:55 am
"What--- you mean let you muck about in my head?" He arched an eyebrow, even as he shook his head. "No way. There's been too much of that done for me to even pretend to liking it."
He kept his arms against his body, trying to be as relaxed as possible, even as she continued on talking.
"I'm not looking for war or anything of the sort. Things can still be salvaged and contained. There's still time left---- "
Memories of finding the ruins of what was once the Kyonuske Clan in Guldor... "And there is no way I am going to assume responsibility or leadership of anyone. I already tried and failed. I won't allow a repeat."
His jaw was squared as his tone of voice was firm, even as he stopped walking completely and faced her.
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Posted: Sun Jun 03, 2007 11:26 am
"Reiyvian is more skilled at plucking specific thoughts from a person that I have ever met, I believe it's due to her remarkable respect for privacy of the mind's inner workings. She will not go 'about' in your head like a wanderer..."
She attempted to interject while he was shaking his head. She'd rarely met a person who DID like someone puttering about inside their thoughts and memories. It was too easy to come across things that no individual should have to suffer another person seeing... But Reiyvian was the best.
"She would simply see what happened that night... nothing else. She's that specific in her skills as a voyeur."
"I'm not looking for war or anything of the sort. Things can still be salvaged and contained. There's still time left---- "
"You sound so mu--"
'So much like her,' was the unfinished thought as Kimiho shook her head sadly. So desperate to save everyone or to die trying-- Her fist clenched as she pushed the sentimental thoughts from her mind, an image of a pale, red haired woman chased to the recesses of her mind for the moment.
"I wish it were so Vahn... but your brother is already assembling his forces. If we wait too long, we won't be in a position to do anything about it. Every moment we leave them alone, they get stronger."
She placed a hand on his shoulder and gripped it lightly.
"You can't let your inner demons stop you from doing something. That is the past, this is the present... and if we want a future then we need your help. You do not have to lead very many, work with the other commanders and take merely one division. We will handle the rest."
She held his eye as she added softly,
"This time... You have nothing to lose and everything to gain Vahn."
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