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 Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 4:32 am
He would never know, never see the pain which had ensued after his departure. Nariko had made damn sure he was long gone before her legs gave out and that strength disappeared, left with exactly what she had started with....nothing. It was then she had realized the extent of that robots unheeded wisdom, but in the end....she was right. Right all along.
It had been ages since she'd given up counting and let that too slip away from her conscious since she'd seen him. Yet not once did she go looking...knowing if his cave was in the shape it was that he would not have returned. Pushing the pain of loss from her mind which was Dutch, she did her best to move on with her head held high. Her research had finally paid off as she met up with a vixen named Nimur who recognized her as her mother's child; who was in fact one of the higher commanding officers of the Spartan base. Immediately she had accepted the position amongst the ranks as a PT trainee to give her time to make up her mind. While there wasn't much to do other than learn and train she took it to heart...trying to find joy in otherwise her obsession in life. Of course...it didn't come so easily.
As hard as she tried, she could not shake off that feeling of hollowness as she knew damn well she wouldn't see him again. She'd met a few spartan boys at the base who were genuinely good fellow unlike her prior encounters, however the walls she'd built up to protect her wounded soul kept them out. She'd be damned if she let herself get hurt like that again, and opted to give them nothing but the cold, lifeless shoulder till they lost interest. She knew that relationships were fruitless, at least for her....no one could live up to her ideals; and she decided she would settle for no less. It was just easier to explain she had a foolish crush on Master Chief than go into detail about the real reasons.
Heading on the trail home after morning exercises, it wasn't until she reached the fork which lead up to her old training grounds; long abandoned after that day. Unsure what lead her up the once familiar path where she spent nearly ever waking day, she stopped at the treeline to see the place was indeed un kept. The tall grass covered the plateau except near the edge and around where her punching bag once hung, now tucked away under the tree in her hiding spot. Walking across the meadow quietly as it was rare for her to talk much unless spoken to; she placed a paw on the trunk of the tree with a touch of a smile crossing her lips...but even then it held no spark of life.
"Good to see the storms haven't knocked you down, old friend." The vixen whispered, looking around at her home away from home to remember the memories.....but ended up sitting down against the trunk of the tree to take in the day and relax in the shade after a hard morning of exercises.
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Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 11:12 pm
He traveled to the the Police Station, making sure to take a long route around the vixen's house and rested there, pondering everything he was told, what he remembered, and even things he thought he knew. But the eerie silence of his room and the entire building had him too distracted. "Too quiet" he said to himself as he got up and left, traveling now to the Southern beach where foxes played endlessly for days on end, enjoying the warm sand and calm ocean. "Now it's too loud....I preferred it when it was quiet" he grumbled, leaving and deciding to just become a drifter, unknowingly much like another fox has taken up.
Several weeks later he found he was passing through a small trickling brook, only about a mile away from the Eastern shore mountain pass. He knelt down in his surprisingly clean attire of ODST armor and all, taking off his helmet to sip from the cool water that flowed from an underwater spring
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Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 11:45 pm
Nariko wasn't sure how much time had passed since she had taken a rest under the tree; yet she wasn't aware of the small pair of eyes on her as its silent form lingered in the tree she once lived with. Her eyes closed as she lingered in that calming zen like state, the dragon slowly moved down the trunk of the tree...eyes on the spartaness.
It is time... The soothing voice rang through its mind as the serpent traits in him cracked a smile; letting go of the tree to float and curl down to snatch the ornate pins in her hair. Flicking his body away the Sake dragon glided along the current as the Vixen had shot up and turned his way. "What the hell! Give them back!" She hissed and leaped to her feet, she wasn't sure what the little creature wanted or even where the hell it came from but she wasn't going to let him have her pins; as they held such great sentimental value.
Leaping after the dragon, the small creature was surprisingly fast in the air; and immediately she escalated her run into a full out sprint. Tearing after it as she was sure the little b*****d was indeed mocking her with them; trees, meadows and clearings whizzed by at the speed they were tracking. Jesus, this thing can move! She thought, keeping all her concentration on not losing sight of it when she noticed the incline under her steps; breaking out of the treeline and onto a very familiar path. The small dragon however wasn't phased as it flew right up through that east pass till it reached the summit, and darted off over the trees...thankfully not heading down to the beach for the time being.
Panting slightly she halted to a skidding stop at the summit of the trail and found her breath catching in her throat to realize where she was. That little sh*t....it has to know. I can't be here.... She thought, her eyes scanning the shoreline and see for the glowing creature she'd encountered before....but hesitantly backtracked till she was hidden from view from the beach but could still see the dragon and her pins nestled as well behind a tree. Glaring hard, she seriously began to consider if it was really worth it to chance a hillside chase when falling would equal hitting that beach.
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Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 11:52 pm
After his brief sip of the crystal water, his ears picked up the sounds of a commotion behind him. Curious, he put his helmet back on and walked towards where the commotion came from, soon entering the vast meadow. He looked around for what had made the noises, but saw nothing. Very confused, he walked to the middle of the thing and motioned his head to the pass, swearing he heard something from there. At this point, he didn't care about risking his life to venture to the Eastern shore, so he started trekking up the hill, looking around for any clues that may have made the sound. It wasn't long however he found he was looking from the top of the hill, seeing the beach as empty as it always was
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 12:07 am
In her quiet resolve she hadn't even noticed but a few turns away was Dutch, as her full fledged attention was on that little dragon. She watched with a seething anger as it curled and flew around in that little circle, just daring her to come and get him. Oh....i'll get you alright. She thought, peaking her head around the ledge's wall to see the empty beach and no sign of that creature. Maybe it was elsewhere today? Nariko could only hope....because this Sake dragon wasn't going to make off with her pins.
Taking a few steps back quietly, she could see the fair distance between her ledge and the tree which hid the dragon. A jump which would have been suicide for any normal fox....but a grin on her lips kept her from chuckling. She wasn't any normal fox.
Oddly enough the dragon stopped in mid flight and floated there, as if he was listening to something. It wasn't anything Nariko could hear, especially not that creature; so taking a few more silent steps she sprinted to the edge and jumped. Soaring across the open distance, she adjusted one arm to reach up for the nearest calculated branch and the other to grab that damned dragon. Snatching both as the tree shook for a moment and she dragon began to thrash and wriggle, she nestled her body against the trunk of the pine and smirked victoriously.
"Got you." She hissed quietly and snatched the pins from its mouth and quickly stored them in one of her armor's compartments. Taking a moment to look at the thing though, she was surprised it had a lot of the same identical colours as her mother did. Then again, she'd never really seen one of them before; so who was she to know.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 12:20 am
Looking over the landscape, something red caught his eye and he soon saw that horrible figure he had been trying to avoid for so long. But he also saw another figure creeping up on the forested area in which she had suddenly vanished to. "God damn it's that sea monster again!" he growled as he picked up a rock, throwing it at the creature with precise aim.
He walked down the hill to the sandy beach below and waited for the beast to come towards him. Picking up another rock, he chucked it at the creature again, this time aiming to get the thing mad enough to chase him, and sure enough it worked, and he soon found he was running for his life. But he had an advantage up his sleeve.
In his previous travels to this shore, he had noticed a small cave. Enough for someone his size to just barely squeeze into. He ran to that opening and took a baseball dive inside, making it just as the beasts head collided with the rock wall. With a sigh, he turned on the night vision in his helmet and began crawling, knowing exactly where this tunnel took him
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 12:59 am
Interrupted by the sound of a voice, she turned her head to wonder who else could have been up in this area when she froze; watching that familiar armor head down the trail to the beach. No.....please no. She begged to whatever higher forces may have been listening, yet she was sure it was him as the rock hit true with that creatures head. Without another moment to dwell the creature had turned to chase the ODST and she found herself flinging the dragon away as she leaped back to the ledge and ran across back to the path.
She could see the speed that Dutch ran, and of course the speed of the creature. Flinging her body over the rocks and ledges, she rounded the mountain side till she was far above the scene looking down; time enough to see him take a dive into what seemed like the mountain. As the creature slammed into the rocks, she felt her tense shoulders droop in relief....at least he was going to be okay and had a plan of attack from the start.
Unsure where that little tunnel lead, she wasn't sure which alternate way she should head. Certainly she didn't want to head down to the beach with the creature, nor did she want to return the way she came since logically....the tunnel would assume to open at the other side. Stepping back against the stone wall, she kept herself out of sight of the creature way down below.... What...do I do now?
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 1:26 am
With excellent skills in a military crawling, he shimmied his way down the long tunnel, and just as he had remembered it, it took a sharp turn up. He examined the hole and tried to remember how far of a climb up he had, but it was his only choice, so up he went.
After several minutes of squeezing his way through the shaft, he finally made it to the top. To most others it seemed a dead end, but he had broken through this tunnel before and knew that he had covered the opening with thin, almost unnoticeable rock. The entrance came out right next to the stone cliff that overlooked the very entrance, and little did he know Nariko was up there.
He pushed against the rock that should move, but it didn't budge. "What...the?" he spoke out loud. "This shouldn't be sealed." he said as he tried a little more force, feeling it move, but only a little. It came to his attention that something was in fact on his little hidden entrance, and it was movable. But how could he give a proper push when he was counting on his legs to keep him from plunging back down the shaft
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 1:42 am
In her silence which had become her days, she began to hear things she never would have heard otherwise. Peeking over the ledge for a second she was thankful the creature still seemed to be investigate the tunnel which Dutch had disappeared into. Knowing her luck he was probably out and gone back into the abyss; which was all the better. She didn't need him hear ruining the little progress she had made since he left.
Then she heard it. Bristling she looked around....was he here? She could have sworn she heard his voice. "Am I really that pathetic that I'm hearing him now?" Good lord, if she knew of any psychosis clinics in these lands she had half a mind to admit herself. However luckily for her sanity she heard it again and looked down at her feet only to feel the ground shift under her. It......couldn't be.... Nariko thought and stepped gingerly off the rock as quietly as she could before sweeping the lose dirt around to see the lip of the rock. Taking hold and lifting the rock up off the hole completely her eyes widened as her tail doubled in volume; stumbling back a few feet till she landed on her rump. The utterly chaotic expression on her face was completely unreadable, but her feeling of shock lingered on her tense frame despite the flood of emotions.
This....isn't what I meant for something to do.....
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 2:03 am
Just as he was about to give another push to the rock to see if he could move whatever was on it, the thing moved and there was Nariko, just as in disbelief as he was, but he was still in mid push and in a dangerous position he felt his legs slip and soon he felt gravity take his heavy body back down the tunnel. He tried oh so hard to grab onto something, but only managed to hurt his fingers in doing so.
Finally he landed, and with the tunnel being so narrow, he landed feet first, which he felt the shock of pain run from his feet all the way to his waist. Fortunately, the boots absorbed the impact, but it still hurt.
Now seeing the light, he looked up and started to clamber back up the shaft, a bit more in a hurry now since the beast was now resorting to a breath weapon, and blue cackling energy shot towards him, hitting the stone wall of where his feet once were. "Phew...close" he mumbled as he continued climbing up, soon reaching the top, and being blinded by the overpower of his night vision.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 2:20 am
Prepared to ask the male if he was alright, the vixen barely had time to let out a small gasp as he had slipped and disappeared back into the shaft. Pushing the rock off her she was about to head over when she heard the creak of his boots on the rocks. Thank goodness.... She thought with a sigh escaping her lips, as much as she would have liked to try and get him out of there if something had gone wrong; she never like that extreme of tight spaces.
Watching as he came back out of the hole and seemed to pause in the light, she took note that the colouring on his visor was different. Night vision, I bet. Nariko thought as she stood, grabbing the rock with her other paw. Walking to his side and setting the rock down, she used her height and both paws to lift him right out of the hole and made sure to be gentle as she couldn't keep him off the ground for more than a few moments to put him down on his feet. Wasting no time she pushed the rock back securely over the opening least either of them wanted to take a fall down there.
Taking a few steps away, she rested her back against the rock face to keep herself out of sight from below; not really knowing what to say...but knew she just couldn't say nothing at the same time. ".....Thanks again....Dutch." Her voice cracked painfully from the lack of use and the run from earlier; clearing her throat a moment later as her eyes drifted off to the side.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 2:52 am
Just as he got a foot hold, he was picked up by the spartan and put back on the ground. He deactivated his night vision and looked to the ground to see the beast still pawing at the rock wall, occasionally stepping back and shooting it's breath weapon into the small hole.
He turned back around and made a running sprint to the rock wall, planting his foot on the wall and pushing himself up enough to grab the upper ledge and pull himself up. He heard Nariko speak, and was a bit confused, but didn't ignore her as he walked over to the other side where some boulders rested. "Thanks for what?" he asked, not trying to play coy or anything, but all the same.
He got infront of the boulders and tested it, finding he could in fact move it, and sure enough he shoved that thing right off the cliff where it landed on top of the unsuspecting beast. He went over to look and examine the thing, and sure enough he saw that the boulder caught the things head. But to his shock, the headless body was retreating to the sea. "I just can't kill that thing" he cursed outloud
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 3:11 am
Perking her ears and turning her head to watch him charge the wall and hoist himself up onto the next level, she remained where she was. If she wanted to move it would have been far, far away from here....surely En was going to be all up in her face wondering why she was so frazzled again. Shooting a glare up as he asked his question but anger couldn't come, letting out nothing but a quiet sigh.
"You know. I didn't even notice it was there, so be it denying or it was really just chance you saved me. So...thank you." At this point, she supposed it didn't really matter what the reason was for his actions; as she watched the boulder sail down the to the creature. Peering over the ledge, she couldn't help but wince as it seemed to have lopped his head off.
That was easy enough.....wait, Holy...hell... She thought with a raised brow to see its body lope back into the sea as the curses of Dutch rang loud. Amazing....really. Sinking down to a seated position against the rocks she pulled out her note book and a pencil and began to quickly jot things down before she would forget.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 3:34 am
He shrugged his shoulders. "Consider it luck that I even heard you to begin with." he said as he too sat down, with his feet dangling from the cliff. "Watch the rock" he said as he was well versed with knowing what would happen next.
Sure enough the thing shook a little bit, and soon blue sparks phased through the boulder and glimmered in mid air for several moments before vanishing altogether. Dutch had yet to figure out what that was, but he had learned from the last time that it meant some kind of rejuvenation or something odd like that.
"Oh well. I tried" he sighed as he stood, making his way back down the cliff, pausing only a moment to glance at what she was doing, but soon shrugged that off too as he jumped down from the rock face, not entirely sure what to do now
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 3:45 am
The rock? Looking up at him for a moment she shifted her body to look down the ledge to see. It amazed her what she could see, and already her mind was ticking like clockwork as once more she furiously scribbled into her notebook. Flipping the page she made sure to write everything she looked at the pages and blinked in thought.
"Amazing.....its like....it has the ability to break itself to its purest form....energy.....and then...teleport it?" She was speaking more to herself at this point, as if to see if it even sounded sensible. "I wonder if its turning that energy back through the chain to make its body right now." If only she could see, well....without being maimed and killed.
Completely forgetting about the initial reason she opened her mouth to thank him, her eyes lingered over the ocean as she shut her book and stood. Brushing the dirt and debris from her armor quietly.
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