She remembered everything, all of her friends, her family, her entire life. Her struggles, her accomplishments...though after this journey so much of it felt like a lie.
And now she would have a chance to forget again.
She did so willingly.
It had been raining that day, the winds fierce, the waves of the ocean crashing against the isle. It was as though nature itself was gifting her with chaos and strife on this day, the day she would be chosen, to be elevated in rank. Chieftain. It was all her parents had ever wanted.
It was just one of many fights that she'd had with them, just another verse in the song of her life that was being played on repeat, over and over again. They wanted her to become somebody great, somebody better. They kept pushing her to her limits and beyond. They always told her that in the end, it would be worth it, she would be the daughter that they could finally be proud of. She always wondered if in the end, any of it would matter.
Her blade stabbed forward, straight for her mothers heart. This was her moment, this was her time to show just how strong she had become. This was when she would finally show them that she was ready, that all of those hard days they had put her through had come to fruition.
Victory had never tasted so sweet.
"......Truly you are gifted."
It was a lie, all a lie, but words she had swallowed whole none the less. Who was she to tell others that they were wrong, that it was not a gift, but a skill acquired over countless hours of time and effort?
She had arrived at their new home with hope. She was hopeful that those she had been close with had somehow survived, but even more hopeful that there were indeed at least two that had not.
She just wanted to be heard, damnit, she just wanted her voice to be heard. She just wanted to be able to speak what she was feeling. She couldn't do it here, in this tower, where her words would be swallowed up into a mute void the second they left her mouth. That would have been a cowards way to finally say it out loud.
She would say it when the time was right, and when he was able to hear her say it too.
And then she did say it, though under completely different circumstances, because she had no memory of the fact that she had wanted different circumstances. She had said it, but did it even mean anything to say it this way? When she could not even remember the why? Telling him that she loved him felt like a pointless act, even if it was the truth.
Sitting at a table, drinking tea, and talking about boy problems. This was friendship.
This was what she lived for. This was her life. Her short sword went slamming into the insanity creature. There was no greater fervor that she had yet to experience.
She summoned her Fear, sent it straight into her blade, imbuing it with power that made it glow a faint yellow hue. She then drove that sword forward, piercing, a blow that would render her opponent unconscious. It was a marvelous ability she wielded, but one that she should have perhaps shown a little more restraint with at that time.
She had brought her blade down on him again and again, her power now a force to be reckoned with.
She had been spending more and more time on her own, as of late, isolating herself from everyone ,but mostly from him. It was by choice, but it didn't make her feel any less lonely for knowing it.
She had left her to die, to be pulled in by that grey and to be destroyed by it. She had given up hope of saving her. She had forsaken her.
It was always such a struggle, to deal with her affliction, but this time it was worse than most. With support from him, though, she was able to fight it for another day
She had told him that she missed him, and he had accepted her words, accepted the apology for her actions within them. They could be friends again, and now they would go out on the hunt together. She was filled with a sense of joy she didn't even knew could exist for her at the prospect.
"You always said that it was for me, but that isn't even close to the truth. You wanted this for yourselves, and you never cared about me in the slightest." The words she should have said to them, but she'd never been able to muster up the courage to do so. She did know, at least. She knew what liars they both were.
Points: 88
Total Tally: 5194
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 1:58 pm
Giggle. “I wouldn’t pick anyone else but you two. I love you.” […hmph.] (Hehe!)
Her tail flicked back and forth as she eagerly watched her created embers glow, spark, and finally ignite. Her howling laughter echoed when it grew into a full out flame and spread.
Golden eyes glowed dangerously as she held up one clawed hand. “Megaera—“ She brought her claws down.
Gentle humming as she curled up in bed, but her tiny flames lit up her room and chased away the darkness. A reprieve and a blessing.
”School?” Her ears perked up at the mention. Maybe she would able to make new friends!
Her ears flattened against her head as she saw the oncoming flames. Kids, don’t anger giant old dragons. Whimpering, she held up her hands to shield herself and hoped for the best.
The glow of her eyes as she raised her claws. “I’m going to kill them!”
She pouted as she stared at the necklace and its flame charm.
”Hey, whatcha doin’?” She yelped, ears flattened.
Her claws reached for the branch of a tree.
She tried to grab his tail, but he pulled back just in time. He laughed.
She shrugged. “We could always go to the lava pools.”
Her ears flattened against her head as she entered through the front door.
”MegMeg! TisiTisi! Look…!”
The sound of thunderstorms. She looked up.
The lava gurgled just before Alecto jumped in.
”I-I’m sorry! I j-just…fire!”
Voices rang in her head. Her ears perked up.
BERKBERKBERK.
”Look what I cancan do! PEEEERCY!”
She shrieked as the duck bit her hand.
Her head tilted as she met another student in the forest. “Whowho are you?”
Alecto stared at the burning kodamas. “Um. Sorry?”
Self Total 104 Excalibur5298
Syusaki
Offline
Bittiface
Sarcastic Hunter
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Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:03 pm
Otto was scared. He'd just gotten his memories again. Grown attached to all he used to be. However, as scared as he was, and as sacred and precious as his memories were, there was something too important to do.
So, one by one, he let his important memories become devoured in the name of having a future.
Out of anybody on the island, even over that b*****d Gale.. Eva chose him and him alone. She chose him. Something about him was special to her.... that made him happy.
How could he ever be that amazing? Clerise was tall, strong, fiery and warm hearted. Otto would never know such confidence or self assuredness. But around her, he sometimes felt that he could be.
He beat her! Last time she'd totally annihilated him, kicked him in the jewels, slapped a magic beard on his face.. humiliated him. But now? Now she was the loser. Maybe he'd finally gotten stronger after all.
He played his heart out, every beat played out like he'd been taught. He practiced for hours and days and weeks. His grandfather watched on with a proud smile. His parents hated his drumming. They wanted him to quit even though it made him happy. His grandpa was proud though. He'd always be proud of him. "What a talented grandson I have!" He would say each time, clapping his hands for the smiling young boy.
He had no idea where he would be going, or what sort of power he was being promised. That didn't matter. The uncertainty was simply a price to pay for the hope he was given. He would leave this town, this life behind. This place that would give him no future. Any life had to have more purpose than this.
Admitting his weakness, his feelings, to anyone was something he was rarely able to do. There were few he trusted enough to open up to as it was. Telling someone his troubles was scary. But Molly had a soft way of easing him into it. She wouldn't judge, but she would also help him figure out his problems without making him uncomfortable. It didn't hurt that she also gave him cupcakes.
Hide under the blanket, with a flashlight under your pillow. Otto was armed to the teeth. He had batteries, packs of them. About five stuffed animals with the toughest faces. No monsters would get him tonight! A power outage meant no night lights! But with his trusty army to protect him from fear, there was nothing any monster could do to stop him from sleeping!
Tilekt, that b*****d! He was friggn' creepy with his cat calls and leering eyes...
Vae was different from the rest. No matter how grey they all seemed, her bright heart shone like a diamond in the sun.
He'd get back those memories, all for the greater good...
Father of five? A cheating b*****d? Why did he believe this crap?
He'd killed it with a sneeze? Well, if they said so it must be true!
It would be kind of nice, actually, if they really were engaged....
He'd brought this little acorn to life, nurtured it into a fine tree. Otto felt so proud of himself, and for the life form he'd grown all by himself.
Quote:
Points: 84
Total: 5382
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:16 pm
Tomorrow was the day. Odd, really. She was to give up her life as it was, and start her new one tomorrow. "I will show them all..."
"Woah you got an A on the exam?" A friend of hers from college piped in, staring at Ceres with a face of awe.
She laughed. "Just barely. A few of the questions were just a total guess."
"How was your summer trip to the doctors Ceres?"
".....Fine." She whispered, eyes down. She shut everyone out, for as much her sake as theirs.
"Do you have any special talents?" Someone with a clipboard asked her, a interview.
"...To be honest? Not particularly."
"Well thats a unique answer at least."
Her eyes remained closed, wondering, hoping, that this might be the last test.
Smiling up at her mother she listened. Her mother was singing a song to her, their song. She didn't sing as much as she used to, but when she was sick this was a special time. A special memory...
A clash of a object against her sword, she lifted her eyes and watched her opponent. This time it was a horsemen, but if not one of them it would be someone else.
+ 70
total: 5452
Lilwolfpard
Magical Unicorn
Offline
Lilwolfpard
Magical Unicorn
Offline
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:19 pm
"Are you leaving today?"
"Tomorrow, actually." He smiled at his grandparents, knowing that he was leaving them for good... though he wasn't so sure they believed him. Part of him was sad of that fact.
A strong memory, so new, shined through.
"Please put some pants on!" He shoved the pair into Shilohs arms, one of his pairs. Boxers were not appropriate attire to walk around the dorms in....
Sometimes i wonder if my silly little skill will come in handy.... He touched the necklace, an Orca, gently. Was woodcarving something that hunters could use?
+30
total: 5472
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:26 pm
Memories stripped from again, he was becoming undone. All this time he was simply doing as he was asked. Tasks were given and he was to carry them out. It was how he was; you ask him to do anything and he would do it if he was able to. But to have it turned against him; to have Revenge take from him... He growled to himself as Protection watched over him. He wanted Protection to take whatever it was that he needed, he was willing to give what he could to the Last Legacy in order to put a stop to all of this. He did not want to be undone, but if he was going to be, then he will do so on his own terms!
"I rather go hunting with father than hang around here, Uncle. These tutors, these teachings, they mean nothing to me. I can't sit here and listen while I have the opportunity to go out there and do them myself."
With each punch and jab, he felt himself becoming better than anyone else in the House. No bodyguard or watcher or enforcer, not even his Uncle could measure to him.
"H-how did you, w-what.... HOW DID YOU BREAK ALL THE EQUIPMENT!?" exclaimed the Cocytus personal trainer, looking over the gym's equipment with broken bars and sand all over the place. The young man could only smile at it.
"So you finally show some promise." The woman spoke looking at the blue flame lit candle upon her table. Before her stood the young man, angered and breathing heavy. "Good. I wasn't sure you ever would develop anything."
"You got a letter from your father, Master Uru'baen." A servant held a letter, small and concealed as she slipped it beneath his plate at the dinning table. "He misses you."
"Adorian, Adarian, distract him! Silf look for an opening for us. We have to take it down! FOR FEURY!"
Pools of water; cold, dark, clouded, warn, reflective, these were the pools that would nourish the seed of the withered tree. The sapling needed water and only the water in his hands would help.
Uru felt the memories fall from him and he was content with their parting. He will miss them, but for a cause they will be worth it. Protection needed them, he had to obliterate the shadow that was threatening the world, his world....
"Excalibur, take it all if you must!"
Take everything that he was...
I have downed many beasts for you. This weapon will help me defeat more.
"Don't worry, the fragments are hard to catch. They like to run away."
"Fists it is!"
Everyone had weapons... looking at his two hands, he was beginning to feel useless in these endeavors.
With this blade, the Goddess' blessing, he will be of more use!
"Sorry for crashing the party, but looked like you needed some help.
"Are you hurt? Don't worry, I can heal you, you gotta be careful!"
"You can do better than that! If you can't land a hit on me... you shouldn't stand before me."
The Goddesses have made their chosen. He was a red-hearted.
"I have no reason to question the Goddesses... but I have no reason to trust them."
Returning to the Shrine, Uru placed the heart down onto the podium that read 'Affliction'.
He did it. The first creature he had encountered... he did it! With the help of others, yeah, but still.
Picking up the stone, he flung it at the fan, jamming it instantly. A good first shot.
He had to keep going, he couldn't stop now. The motions were set and he could not stop.
The updraft pushed him far off course and way up high, he was losing control of his glider! But when he opened his eyes again, he found himself gliding peacefully above the waterfall's presence toward the shrine in the distance.
"The wall is to protect us. It keeps things out from this side."
The tea was horrible... the memory attacked him like a ravage beast. Putting the cup down, he moved onto another. No more of that sort.
Opening his little book, he took his pen and went to work, writing down all the flavors he tried and the feelings that he was inspired with.
"Dear Father...."
"YOUR MAJESTY! YOU b*****d, GIVE US BACK HIS HEART!"
Points
Self: 100 (60+40) Excalibur: 5572
PhiferWolf
Loyal Werewolf
Offline
Inle-roo
Offline
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:33 pm
When the acceptance letter arrived, Taima let out a shriek so loud that it echoed all throughout the range.
Her exam had been nothing short of utterly ridiculous, but she approached it with the same kind of intensity as any other homework assignment. Her promotion to Year 2 depended on it, after all.
Half of the challenge of a free fall dive was being able to pull yourself out of it before you became a smear on the ground. It was fun.
Success was based on the player's reaction to the AI's movements. Beating the game consistently didn't mean Taima was good at it; it just meant she was a fast learner.
Taima hoped every day was a rainy day.
One of the first items that Taima had bought for herself was an oversized coffee mug. The first cup of the day always seemed a little better than any other.
She didn't always stop to help others in need, especially if she had somewhere else she wanted to be.
There was no clear line between apathy and empathy; she just hadn't known enough about caring to care until suddenly, she did.
The barrier of her mother's wing as it curled around her protected her from the cold, the elements, and, most importantly, herself.
She read until the words blurred on the page, and she knew she should stop, go out, get some fresh air and maybe something to eat. She pressed on instead, concentrating until sentences made sense again.
Fighting was dumb. Fighting with humans was especially dumb.
The grey blobby things weren't a serious threat, not really, and besides, they had started it.
The glitter took forever to get out of her feathers, but it had been a fun night anyway.
It was satisfying in a way she didn't want to think about too hard to kill the monsters with little more than decent aim and the twitch of a finger.
The blade was large and unwieldy. Fortunately, it didn't take a lot of skill to use.
It was easy enough to cheer people on when they were all working towards the same goal.
She kept running into the same people fighting the same monsters, over and over and over. That didn't necessarily mean they were friends.
She didn't understand why the human her classmates had attacked wasn't dissipating.
The battleground below her was overwhelming. She didn't know what to do or who to attack. The sky was safety, and there were no enemies up here.
She was tired of being a pawn in someone else's game. All she wanted were answers, and the goddesses wouldn't even grant her that.
She belonged up here. She knew it more than she knew anything else.
Those damned harpies should have stuck to the treetops and left the sky to the real birds.
Prom had been amazing, even though it hadn't turned out exactly the way she had hoped.
There was no thrill in being the hunted.
She had taken something important from the person who meant more to her than anything. She deserved whatever retribution she got for it.
Overwhelming frustration added strength to her attacks. Maybe it was overkill, but she felt better.
<******** the gods. She hadn't asked to be made. She certainly hadn't asked to be made for this.
Taima's total: 102 Total total: 5674
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:49 pm
He slowly ran his finger down the list of schools. He had researched each one with care. “I pick…you.”
Taiki had always been the smallest of his family. But here? Here he was tall. He could tower over many and inside, he loved it.
A chuckle as he flipped open his book. “Strength is not always about physical power.”
Mild surprise. He took the wrapped box. “What’s this?” His brother grinned. “Just a gift for my smartie kid of a brother.”
He looked up at the school’s front gates. “So this is it. I see,” he murmured softly, but eagerly walked in regardless.
”Thirsty?” Taiki smiled and shook his head. “No, not for water, at least.” His smile turned playful as he returned to his textbook.
”…” He kept smiling. “Nothing is wrong, mother.” There was no need to tell her. He would shield the truth from her, no matter the costs.
Even as he fell forward, he kept smiling and hid the anger boiling beneath.
Tired, he crawled into bed and reached for his favorite book.
He stared at the owner’s son. He took in his fancy outfit and dark red hair and ears and smirk.
”Please don’t call me that. It makes me feel old.” He smiled.
The chair squeaked softly as Makoto took a seat.
Pure white snow. Laughter.
Wide eyes stared at the yuki-onna before he stumbled out of the room.
The teacup clattered quietly as he set it down on the plate.
A brush against canvas. He talked softly to his classmate as he painted.
He turned the page in his book. The skeleton smiled slightly as he kept reading.
Taiki listened patiently as his mother talked on and on about the customers. Steam hissed.
Boots crunched against the snow. He opened his mouth to say something.
He couldn’t trust anyone. Hands laced together and he smiled.
”Mother, I was thinking…”
A pale hand reached for the mirror while he stared at his reflection.
He raised his head to the moon and raised his bone finger toward the clouds. RingRingRing.
The school library was surely a sight to take in. Smiling, he wandered through the isles.
The taste of mochi was sweet. He nibbled on it while his brother ruffled his hair.
Narrowed eyes stared at the two hunters in front of him. Ridiculous.
Sad eyes watched his brother’s back shrink. Sighing, he turned around.
Blankly, he watched the rest of his family eat. He pushed his bowl forward. “I’m done.”
Self Total 112 Excalibur 5786
Syusaki
Offline
Ravvlet
Hygienic Waffles
Offline
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:50 pm
Wash looked out on the chaos that ruled the world, consumed by it - blinded. he couldn't let this happen to her, he thought distantly, falling to his knees. She would understand, surely. He would give up anything; everything, to chase back that darkness. For Denise, for Daniel, but also, perhaps more so than the others -
For her.
As he awaited his trial, troubled with both his own safety and that of his family, he was visited by a stranger. A stranger that promised him the power to fight back. To save himself. To protect his son. 10 points
He was so tiny, delicate. Wash stood in that tiny room, Denise's tired eyes watching him, her hopeful smile - and he prayed. He prayed for his son, he prayed for himself.
He prayed for the strength to be half the father his father was. 10 points
And just like that, the cold metal of the gun was at his fingertips. He swung it around haphazardly, pointing it seemingly at random, and fired. A tentacle fell slowly to the ground, nearly severed in half and covered in glowing runes.
Wash was pretty sure he'd never seen anything so beautiful in his life.
10 points
It would probably cost him later - there would be guilt, and sadness; not for what had happened, but for what it meant. For the emotions and the memories and the doors it closed; doors perhaps ong since shut. But not today - not now.
Wash closed his eyes and instead was content to linger upon the doors it had opened.
10 points
"Son? Son, it's so good of you to call."
He'd smiled then, that wide, childish grin he'd forgotten in his years away from home. He found himself searching for his toes, as he told his father the good news. They were expecting a baby boy. He was going to be a grandfather. He felt as if he could almost see that warm, small smile again on that aging face, as his father said words that had meant the world to him.
"Oh, son. I only hope he's as good a boy as you've always been to us."
10 points
Wash let his breath out in a slow hiss. "I can see that, Jerry."
He paused, shaking his head, but otherwise remaining motionless. His old friend wasn't giving him much of a choice, and so he let the next words be dragged out of him in an irate whisper.
"I was there th' other day, in the life labs. Damn near everyone heard you, man." He pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Y'need to leave. Now," he added helpfully.
2 points
Would it be the same? Or had it just been that one moment; something that couldn't be recaptured? The air from her passing so close without touching sent goosebumps down his arms, a shiver down his spine. He didn't turn around right away, listening to the sound of her clothing hissing, the slide of her feet from her shoes - the thump of her jacket on the floor.
2 points
"Well, you're not alone anymore, right man?"
2 points
Wash lunged forward and slashed it in half. Heh, not so bad. It dissipated, and he had to resist doing a little victory dance. It was nice, hitting things. Therapeutic, even. He was beginning to see why Jerry could be so trigger happy.
2 points
It was dark, so dark. Wash was alone, floating in a formless void save that rumbling bass.
"But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away."
Sound, images, sensation - it all folded away in the wake of his soothing utterance.
He bowed his head for a second, forced himself to ignore the crowds. The ground's quaking. He focused on that voice, dripping words issued like barbs from cruel lips and twisted tongue. He glanced up, scanning the crowds, crouching, swinging his arm back in one swift movement. He would not go quietly into the dark.
Wash threw his shield.
2 points
Wash gently guided a rather off-kilter Jerry as far away from the Life Labs as he thought he could manage. He held his breath at every corner- and not just at the reek of whiskey and vomit on his friend's breath. He knew Sasha planned on making her own visit to the doctor. To run into her now might be disastrous. He tried not to eye the bottle in the other man's hand, but his mouth was set in a line of thinly veiled concern and, somewhere beneath that, a touch of sadness. He believed in Jerry, he knew he was better than this- the problem was, did Jerry believe in himself?
2 points
Wash swung his shied, wincing at the distant crunch of bone.
Julie.
"God our father -"
2 points
What is your name?
He held his hand over his heart. It glowed a deep red.
"Shaw," he responded to the strange door and it's stranger question.
2 points
Wash saw the flash of her hand from the corner of his eye - he had been watching, waiting; he realized. Hoping.
He relaxed by inches as he raised his own hand in reply, and made his way up from the water's edge to stand over her. He found himself fascinated with the small details - the way the faint glow of the moon through the clouds traced the smooth surface of the bottle at her hip. The sand that clung to her legs; the way the shirt wrinkled and moved with the curve of her body. His mind felt soft, warm; and he realized something.
She was beautiful.
2 points
They shared a look, then, the elder Washington Becker favoring the younger with a brief but warm smile.
Wash smiled right back, glancing down at his bare, wiggling toes even as he grinned. He'd do almost anything to make his daddy look at him with that sense of unspoken approval.
The click-clack of sewing needles from the other room. A sign that it was almost their bedtime, and Washington Becker Sr. had best get on with it. His father sighed, and began, a deep resounding bass.
2 points
Till death do us part.
"I do."
2 points
It made him smile, a white flash against his dark skin. He darted foward, clanging his shield against her weapons to push them aside -
And used the momentary opening to tweak her nose.
2 points
He swung the huge, oversized sword at the wyvern, and felt the satisfying bite of steel into flesh.
2 points
Now, Sally intoned calmly.
He pushed off with his back leg, throwing all his body and momentum into the strength of his arm and the shield in his hand - letting it fly toward her like a discus. Midair, something erupted from the runes on its surface, and it crackled with electricity. It would connect with a burst of light, before clattering off to the side.
2 points
He wondered what part of her, what dark and secret part, that this foreboding man could draw out; had drawn out on so many occasions. He was no fool; he'd heard about the spars - there had been more than one, and the pair had a rather violent history. As for Sasha - well. She was complicated, fractured. He trusted her, in spite of this. Believed in her.
"She gives an' takes as she pleases."
2 points
Whatever happened, it didn't seem to have changed how he felt about her, in this moment; this hour. They could worry about tomorrow, tomorrow.
2 points
He took the small case gingerly into his hands. Such a small, delicate thing. But made of metal and firmer stuff, that would bend but not break. Not unlike a certain hunter they knew. "Thanks. I'll tell her." Wash paused, before adding, "I know this means a lot to ya. I'm sure it will mean a lot to her, too."
2 points
Often, it wasn’t even the big things that mattered. Sometimes, it was about the things you didn’t do. He would not spend much time reflecting on that early morning near the end of summer; but it changed something for him all the same.
That warm, wet day he almost took a train.
2 points
He didn't know anymore. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, may the name of the Lord be praised. Somehow, the man didn't have it in him to praise anything. But as Sasha made her plea, his eyes widened in horror. God, Sasha. Why did this little slip of a girl have to be here- why did any of them? They'd all done their jobs. They'd been good little hunters- assets to the cause. It was he that had questioned, doubted. He who had nearly betrayed them.
2 points
f this was sin, then he was a sinner unrepentant.
He remembered how good it had felt, when he woke, to realize he had slept at all - to realize she was still there, not forever; perhaps for a day, a night, an hour - and to find her all the sweeter for it. A forbidden thing, a strange and intoxicating fruit. The way she fit into the circle of his arm, the sight of her hair trailing across her face. Looking up at her - the weight of her body in his arms.
2 points
It rankled. He said he'd be safe. He'd be careful.
2 points
Wash stood and slowly picked his way back to his room, thinking upon all that he had seen; all that he'd remembered. Memories scoured away by the inevitable roll of life.
Maybe it would be better to lose them, after all.
2 points
He bowed his head. "Cher, mo l'aime toi." He released the coverlet, letting his hands fall limp into his lap. "I guess... I guess I just don't understand. I trust you, Sasha, an' I believe in you. You can turn this around."
Quietly, he added, "You'll never be nobody to me."
2 points
"Amazing grace! How sweet the sound," he sang, matching his father's voice, that deep baritone -
2 points
He nearly jumped out of his skin as something settled heavily on his arm. The piece of stone was gone, and in it's place was - huh. He hefted it appraisingly, rising to one knee.
A shield.
2 points
Her kiss distracted him, her hot breath against his skin intoxicated him, distanced him. Nothing mattered but the brush of skin on skin and the connection, intellectual, emotional and otherwise, that they had won through time and trial. It was so new, so...fragile. Precious.
Wash sat up on his arms, straining, muscles bunching and cording to lean over her and lay a kiss against her own cheek.
2 points
He watched in horror as the flames and molten rock ate away at her, licking their way up her gracefully arched brows, thick rows of lashes, reducing the slight curve of her cheekbones and the gentle turn of lips into so much burned meat. Even that was soon consumed, until everything was as ash. Muscle and bone followed, in that cruel flame.
2 points
He'd hoped to frighten them or buy time, to keep death at bay - and in a way, he had; but something had come in it's place.
Pain, robbed of the release of death.
2 points
More quietly, he added, "I wish it were easier, too."
2 points
It wasn't desperation so much as certainty - she had given him something he hadn't known he'd lost. Something minute and precious.
He could feel again.
2 points
His reaction was quicker this time. As she pulled back from the jab, Wash grabbed her arm, and spun around to put her back against the front of his body, gripping tight. He used his shield to push the blades at bay for a moment.
2 points
There was no wall. The goddess's eyes were everywhere.
2 points
"Wherever you go, darlin'."
2 points
Wash knew that those calm, rational words had to come at a cost.
2 points
Shaw closed his eyes, running across the bridge, willing it to hold -
2 points
Denise Richard, the nameplate read. He smiled slowly, meeting her eyes.
2 points
It was time to go back - Wash met Amphi's eyes, his own tight and sad.
I won't let anything happen to you, he'd said. And he'd meant it.
2 points
He led the students - children, he reminded himself - away from the base, to their friends, to safety. He was certain he was doing the right thing.
He'd promised.
2 points
He dropped the heart on the pedestal, cheeks wet with tears -
and raised a hand to his face, marvelling at the wetness. What had happened? He couldn't recall.
2 points
Quote:
Wash's Points: 130 Excalibur: 5916
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 2:55 pm
[ Olivia ]
Olivia didn't want to let them go. They had finally been returned to her in full. Given back so she could remember everyone and everything without having to try to make sense of the scattered memories. She wanted to hold them forever, precious things.
But if she didn't, what she was trying to hold onto would be in harms way, gone if she did nothing. They needed to be protected like they always tried to protect her. So she let some of them go, whispering a silent apology.
Quote:
It was a memory she didn't even know she had. One of a power embracing her, wrapping around her, fulfilling her with something greater. From all the other candidates, she had been chosen as Hubris.
"Do great things," her voice held a hint of sadness, seeing her daughter go off to a new place without them. But the hug was full of pride and hope, and although her intentions were something a little different she hoped she could for her mother's sake.
"You are always a tiny powerhouse, aren't you?" She sounded relieved, she sounded happy. She sounded a little proud of her.
A crown was placed on her head as confetti rained down upon her and a trophy in her hands. Olivia glanced down first noticing something they had been seeking. A key! And another, a plaque reading You're Super Talented!
Fluffy Olivia puffed up her tiny little cheeks and glared at both of them (was there a hint of a growl? Oh yes there was!). Her friends were not going to fight!
Well, yes they were those colors. But once she heard him state such a matter, she blinked a few more times, watching him make it across to her as well. His voice sounded familiar to her as well.
Olivia let the words sink in, unsure of how much more she could break at this point. If it even really mattered if they were all just fake. But, they had lived, she told herself.
Quote:
Safe. Warm. Yet cold. A strange sound echoing in her ears and a haze that followed until she found herself awake.
Viola'i was very much ready to attempt to flip over the pianoforte. She smashed down a few keys and some how managed to get a tune from it that was accepted by the device.
At least she had a distraction as she felt the sudden warmth peel away. As much as the hug was nice (and from Andrew! She got to touch him!), the lose of heat was very much welcoming.
She was alone surrounded by others, their faces blank. No features, nothing. Couldn't remember them. She was alone and falling.
"I'll try to run next time," a promise she wasn't sure she could keep. There was something about a fight... and throwing herself at it.
Viola'i had to pull back a little to finally see. And then tilted her head, confused. Because she was seeing herself, so much blue but so very pale looking forlorn and out a window with dull eyes.
Pain actually began to register, the cuts began to burn and the bruises began to ache. She could feel her fear shield waning, but she needed to protect the others. It had been what she wanted to do, she didn't feel pain normally so she could easily throw herself into the fray.
Stepping towards the Ruins was overwhelming at first, filling her with so many questions as she navigated herself about the heaps of cars and debris that littered the pathways.
Viola'i stared happily at the new gloves she had created, with them she would be able to punch things perhaps a little bit better.
The first punch she threw made her feel all the more stronger.
Viola'i opened her eyes, unaware she had closed them or that they were there but they were. Solid. More solid, that's how she felt. More defined, complete.
She didn't scream. Maybe too bothered by this whole thing. She had come so far after all. This really sucked. She wanted to reach out as he pulled out her pulsing glowing heart, wanted to snatch it back. It was hers....
With a skip and a bounce, Olivia joined the battle and punched the creature.
She was denied the white door just like so many of the others, she had wanted to see what was behind it. But they wouldn't allow her. She could hear fighting, battles between so many of her now comrades. It made her feel sad that she was being left out of the fray.
Viola'i reached for the first cup she saw and nearly choked with the emotion that overcame her. Her eyes flashed and grew wide.
She moved quickly, the memory still clung to her. So heartbreaking, maybe the smile of the Goddess would make her happy again. Maybe she would have another cookie for her.
Viola'i grinned, continuing this dance, slashing and swiping as he tried to parry and dodge and offer his own offensive moves against her lethal form. She was a master, even after she had lost it only to regain it again, while he was a bumbling fool, too unused to his oversized weapon.
"Mama?" asked the stressor, smashing a clumsy handful of building blocks against the woman's leg.
The woman stared at a place on the wall and made no indication that she acknowledged the stressor's existence.
"Mama?" asked the stressor, pressing a stuffed rabbit against the woman's arm.
The woman stared at a place on the wall and made no indication that she acknowledged the stressor's existence.
"Mama?" asked the stressor, pushing a book into the woman's lap.
"What?" the woman responded, pushing the book away from her. She looked at the stressor with lost, tired eyes and still couldn't make anything make sense.
The woman stared at a place on the wall and made no indication that she acknowledged the stressor's existence.
The little girl picked up the book and looked at the cover. It looked a lot like the night sky.
This was what made mama talk to her.
Excalibur Total: 6030 Mimsy's Total: 10
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 3:16 pm
Bix was himself again. Fully. He remembered everything and why he was here. He was unsure if he was ready to sacrifice all of his memories. He needed something to fight for. He needed his friends. Best friends and even casual ones. He needed to remember Gale and Ceres and Before. But... he had plenty of painful memories. He had memories of his family, things that made him doubt and pause when he shouldn't.
He could part with some of those.
"Last pick." "I'll take Charlie. That means you get Ferdinand." "Ugh s**t.." His face turned red and he shuffled to his team. He could hear them laughing and high fiving on the other team. No one ever wanted him.
"Three beers dude! All it takes it three beers and hes WASTED."
He closed his eyes and leaned in for the kiss before he could regret it. When their lips met he only could hope that she'd return it.
Shadow run all by himself. ALL. BY. HIMSELF. Score.
She wiped his tears away as he sniffled uncontrollably. Mom always knew how to make him feel better. "Now don't you listen to anything they say.." She shushed him and kissed his cheeks. "They don't understand. You are special, my special boy. One day you'll figure it all out. Don't worry."
"Your Valedictorian.. Ferdinand WIlkins Jr."
"We have to find him! We can't leave him! He's not gone.. he's just missing. WE HAVE TO FIND HIM! I HAVE TO PROTECT HIM! HE'S MY LITTLE BROTHER!"
He'd passed! He was officially a second year student!
The creature dissipated around his weapon and he was left breathing heavy in the aftermath. He'd won.
Sticks in his hands, drums all around him. Cymbals crashing, the snare rattling.
"Of course they'll like us, Screech. We're way better than our parents, right?" He gave her a reassuring smile and tangled their fingers together. "You'll be the best mom."
"I'll help you. I promise."
" I cared about her before all of this, too. I don't want her hurt any more than you do, and I'm sure as hell not going to consciously walk all over her heart and hurt her. I'm not going to let myself do anything that's going to make her come crying to you or anyone else."
Quote:
Rikki's points: 70 Total Points: 6170
Posted: Sat Aug 24, 2013 3:22 pm
"You can't do this anymore! You can't keep running! You have to man up!
You have to man...
You have to...
You have..."
What did he have to do?
Quote:
Feng's Points: 70 Total Points: 6180
[I messed up the calculation of Feng's points in my last post so I'm just going to slap this one in a new post]
“I love you, my sweet Marcus, I love you in a way I cannot describe. I loved another once. I remember that much. I remember the pain of loss, of rejection. We both know that pain if in different forms. But I love you so dearly. And what I love in this life I plan to keep. I will not let you be free of me.” He leaned down, and Marcus flinched, fingers still on the bracelet. A smile, Dis gave it a glance. “I love you my darling Marcus, and I would give you everything that I am.”
"I will mourn you one day Marcus. I will mourn you, because I love you in a way I do not understand. You are more than a friend, and you are far from a lover. You are my Marcus." The echo of boots faded in time with the clock. "And I will help you if only you will listen."
A man that offered a life with prupose, a life away from the slums, from being just another statistic. He'd take it.
"Live."
Dodging questions.
Asking questions.
Could he be happy in this world?
Fighting friends.
Choices made.
Bonds broken over lost trust.
Graduation.
His first kiss with her.
His first fight with her.
Questioning God.
Dare he ask what he didn't want to know?
Advice freely given.
Thrown back.
Self righteous.
Crippling ignorance.
His pride.
His talent.
His betrayal.
Could they have been happy? Together?
The news.
He was better off without her.
He didn't care. Even if the child had been his- It wouldn't have been able to be happy in this world.
