Inverted IC

Play around with roles and whatnot in here, I suppose.

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JoshtheOverlander
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Inverted IC

#1 Post by JoshtheOverlander »

Darkness all around. Not a single sliver of light shining through. Is this what it's like to be one of them?
Maybe...
Well, one thing's for sure. I'm dead now. Can't deny that.
~Three Days Ago...
Draco stirred in bed, rolling around under his sheets, getting dangerously close to the edge of the bed.
~Elsewhere...
Nathan opened his closet, browsing through his clothes when he heard a heavy thump coming from the room next door. He moved over to the wall and knocked on it before calling out, "Hey, bro, are you alright in there?"
Not long after, he heard, "Just dandy!" being called back.
"You fell out of bed again, didn't you?" No response from Draco after that. "Anyways, hurry up and get dressed. We gotta get out there." Nathan got dressed and waited for his brother to do the same. It didn't take long before Draco stumbled out of his room. "So, are you ready?"
Draco lazily nodded his head with a loud yawn. "Let's go, bro," he slurred.
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The Rookie
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Re: Inverted IC

#2 Post by The Rookie »

Waiting patiently outside their rooms, Yin was resting underneath a tall oak tree practising his favourite pass time; drawing with charcoal.

Having seen the true horrors of the darkness, Yin had a fairly unique appreciation for the natural beauty of things. This morning his attention was on a lone sparrow dancing amongst the branches of an old willow. Yin had been watching him since the break of dawn, trying to catch the creature’s pose and colour in his work.

Suddenly there was a loud thud coming from within the building causing the bird to scurry.

Urrhh... It was bound to happen eventually.” Yin said with a groan while closing his sketch book. “I wonder if it was another bad dream.” Yin’s concern quickly faded into a smile while he hurried to gather his things “But the dude’s accident prone, so I wouldn't put it past him to take a tumble for no good reason.

Yin rose from the ground, satchel over his shoulder and his eyes on the door. “Guess we’d better get going.
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Re: Inverted IC

#3 Post by JoshtheOverlander »

The two brothers left the house and identified Yin easily from the other trainees waking up and leaving. "Morning, Yin," Draco yawned. He was rubbing his eyes, trying to his best to get himself to wake up all the way. He soon got his wish when a piece of ice slid down the back of his shirt.
Nathan dropped the ice himself. "That ought do the trick. Good morning, Yin."
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y7h65
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Re: Inverted IC

#4 Post by y7h65 »

"Alright Anne, like here's the plan~!" Rozalis said from her perch on the tree, hanging upside down until she was eye level with the taller woman, the dark forest far behind the front completely hiding them from sight. In the darkness of twilight only her form and eyes could be seen. "I've totally been stalking and watching this guy for the last couple of days and his schedule is, like, so totally devoid of throws and feints! Like, super easy for me to figure out where he'll be? "

Flipping off the branch and landing perfectly on the ground without a noise, she drew an arrow from her quiver before starting a rather complicated drawing of what could only be the block the target was living at, the workplace of the target, as well as their various routes and possible delays and interruptions. As the various scratches turned to more identifiable structures, she continued to speak with a grin on her face.

"So today, I like know he'll be ready for business at 10AM sharp and will totally be still completely hungover from the drinking he does every other night? The neighboring businesses are going to be closed since this guy," She paused to tap at one of the storefront. "Has to tend to his sick son, which I completely did not contribute to you by the way, so he won't be around! The guy on the other side is also sick for some odd inexplicable reason I totally cannot explain so both sides are clear~ And the store front across the street is totally shut down for the month so it'll just be the two of us. Three if you want to get in on the action! After I'm in it'll like, work super easy? Anyways, I'll llike tell him what we want, he follows the order, and then blam~! I totally blow a hole in his head! We'll have all our objectives done and look totally cool while we're at it! Then we run before anyone finds out we were here."

Standing back up from her now incredibly detailed and complicated map, filled with various lines, notations, and other small pointers apparently simulating pedestrian passage, Rozalis looked up at Anne with gleaming expecting eyes and a large smile across her face. "So totally a good plan, right?"

A small puff of steam rose into the air as Anne exhaled, considering the other Lost Soul's plan. After a few moment of thought, arms crossed as she stood above the sketches, she spoke. More thin mist trailed into the air with every word. "Killing a retired Guardian won't hurt their morale." Her tone was considered, calm, thoughtful. If not for the dim, muffled flickers of heat warming Rozalis, she would be the picture of stoicism.

Red eyes narrowed. "Are you trying to push the Guardians towards the edge?" A gloved hand twitched. "I do not understand why I am here for this plan."

"I totally thought you would like it if I would treat you to a sandwich?" Rozalis answered, tilting her head in confusion. "I heard his sandwiches were, like, to die for while on my last mission so I thought we should totally try some. Before I blow a hole in his head."

"I appreciate your concern, but to maximize the damage, he should be hung by his throat from an iron rod." Cloth and leather creaked under her tightening grip. "White-hot, just as righteously angry as the Guardians that find him, then keep at it, taunting them, twist their focus, and then-" Her half-formed snarl was forced back, slowing her breathing with her temper. "I have no objections to your plan, Rozalis."

"But that's like totally not my style~? I am not a torturer Anne, I am a killer." Rozalis affirmed with a smile, nodding her head as the math mentally clicked together in her head. "I don't like make people suffer, you know? I just kill them. I mean I am totally good at killing but prolonging it any more than necessary seems kinda um, harsh? Also, I don't want the people who find his body to be angry. That'd be totally terrible! I want them to be scared. I want them to feel that nowhere is safe, that nobody is safe, and that like you aren't safe just because you aren't near the front, in active combat, or even still in the army. I want them to know that my judgement is ever vigilant, present, and I will find all false heroes and they will know what it means to lie to those that put their hopes in you.

Rozalis paused for a moment, her expression still cheery and with a frozen smile on her face; a smile that contrasted a steeled look in her eyes. But only for a second before she sprung back up to a standing position, arrow already in the quiver as she arched her back, popping her knuckles behind her head.

" Oh but I totally love letting them know they're being hunted? Makes it more fun when the prey squirms before you like clamp down on their throat just when they totally thought they've gotten away!"

She giggled quietly to herself as she went over her last few targets. The feel of them knowing that they were being stalked by something they could not see, could not find, and could not hear but was clearly getting closer and closer to them and preparing to chomp down on their neck. The sweet feeling of them knowing their time was running o-

"Right~!" Rozalis exclaimed, snapping her finger as she remembered why she only had a few days to do the current set up. "He'll be moving soon! Like, sometime tonight soon. That's why we're here~ A little birdie told me that they were like thinking of reactivating him? He might be a coward but he's like a threat still~? It'd be like really pretty bad for somebody we don't know or care about? But we totally have to waste him today."

Having patiently waited out most of her companion's ranting, Anne cleared her throat. "Stay focused, Rozalis." She chided, ignoring her own momentary break in composure. "This plan is sound. I will contain him if he attempts to flee."

"Actually that like brings us to why you're here." Rozalis said, bashfully scratching the back of her head. "I don't like have any disguise ability and I totally need you to make me a Guardians recruit uniform? I turned all of mine into like halter tops and shorts? It'd be like less suspicious if I have a recruit uniform."

"Why not use one of the sentries? I am not your personal quartermaster."

Rozalis looked down at the face-down, hog-tied, and unconscious trainee guard that she was currently standing on. She frowned as she struggled to remember when he had gotten there, only to realize she had knocked him out not more than ten minutes ago. "I totally forget he was like here. You know how these knocked out guys are like."

"I am familiar with the sensation through you and others, yes. Let's go."

"But his clothes won't look cute on me." Rozalis pouted even though she had already begun stripping the unconscious man. "Can't you do anything about it?"

Anne rubbed her forehead, eyes shutting briefly. "Rozalis."

"Fiiiiiiiiine."
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Tyendinaga
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Re: Inverted IC

#5 Post by Tyendinaga »

They said that being a General was not an easy job. You're one of, if not the, most important person in the whole army; You're the guy who is supposed to be there to get things done when they need to be done. You have to run the army, taking into account the various soldiers and officers under you. You have to account for innumerable small things from the type of terrain, to the weather you'll be dealing with, to the kinds of enemies you can expect to be facing. For all intents and purposes you need to be nothing short of brilliant, personable, and devoted to your job; Many of these words are not words that are applicable to General Shuyin Lee.

At the sound of a knock at the door the general jolted in his seat, the book that was only just prior sitting on his sleeping face falling with a firm slap to the desk in front of him. The knocking continued, punctuated by a few seconds of rest each time. He let out a slight groan as he went through the motions, standing up, wiping at his face, and slowly making his way across the room. It was far too early for this [censored]. Once at the door he gave the handle a simple pull, the door itself coming clean off its hinges and toppling to the thatch floor beneath him.

'I should probably fix that one of these days...' the thought barely registering in his mind.

"Hello?" Shuyin called out quietly, pausing. "I could have sworn someone was-"

"It's me."

"Well that's descriptive as all hell, Who the hell is me?"

He let out a slight frown. It was early as all hell, he was tired, and the last thing he needed out of this was to be awoken at some god forsaken hour for some god forsaken reason he didn't care about. He also didn't need someone to be playing games with him. You'd swear they didn't understand the meaning of 'Do not Disturb'; It was like the concept of needing to sleep was completely foreign to lost souls once they fell.

"Down Here."

He blinked and looked down. Below him was a small girl, perhaps a whole foot and a half shorter than him. A Lost soul, probably barely ten years old. She was wearing some shoddy cloth garments that barely counted as clothing, and would frankly be better off used to sack potatoes, a cooking pot on the head and and carrying a simple sword fashioned of wood.

"Oh." He put on a smile soon after. "Well if it isn't Sergeant Pepper."

As he walked out of his shack, he scooped up the girl, placing her on his shoulder as he moved down the steps and into his poor excuse for a base. The whole place seemed to consist of a handful of shacks around a fire-pit, some hastily scrapped together walls, and a couple small towers; Not exactly the sort of place a general would expect to operate out of but it serves its purpose even if it looked like a trash heap.

"To what do I owe the honour?" He asked, looking up to his shoulder.

"I want you to play with me."

"Play what?"

"Swords!"

"Again? Isn't there anything else you can do?" He frowned. He already knew the answer. "I suppose not."

He let off a sigh. There truly wasn't much to do. Darkness wasn't hugely into building things, half of the Lost souls were dumb as rocks, most of the other half was obsessed with blowing things to smithereens, and kids weren't exactly common either. If you were interested in more than just fighting, Darkness wasn't exactly a walk in the park. As he circled past and the fire and nearer the gate his mind began to wander. There were a lot of things happening. Skirmishes on both sides, though things seemed to be in a stalemate as usual.

"When will Rosie be back?"

"She's gone? I wonder where." He paused. "Wait....They're gone?"

His mind kicked it up a notch. If they were gone that meant they were on a mission. But he didn't quite recall signing off on any missions. But he did remember signing off on allowing them to go get food. From a sandwich shop. Behind enemy lines. His mouth went slightly agape. He was supposed to be joining Rozalis and Anne for a job. He had completely forgotten. He was going to be totally. This wasn't good.

"Oh god, they are going to kill me." He immediately put the kid down and patted her on the head. "Sorry, this will have to wait for another day!"

With that he simply turned around and tore off into the Forrest, running like the wind. He was going to be a bit late.

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Re: Inverted IC

#6 Post by midnightblink »

Percival sat on a high branch in the forest about 100 meters from the Guardian trainee camp, his wings tucked behind his back to remain inconspicuous. He had received intelligence that a general was coming, and he had been sent to watch them. You never know what secrets you might find when a general was involved. Percival enjoyed being sent on these scouting missions, they got him away from the Darkness camp and all the vulgar ones who Lost themselves to insanity. He thanked the Darkness every day for allowing him to keep his mind, many Lost Souls have become nothing more than primal beasts acting on instinct, not the kind of people you can have intelligent conversation with.

He mostly spent his time at camp in his tent, reading through books he came into possession of during raids. Growing up on a farm, he only received enough education to learn to read, and now he took all the time he could to expand his mind, when not not being sent on missions by generals.

Percival had been watching the camp for several hours, but he had been unable to see anything important. He had been their too long

"I must report back to the generals" he said as he stretch his wings and jumped from the branch. He pulled up 4 meters from the ground, flying through the trees as to remain unseen by the camp. He had been surprised how fast he had gotten use to flying after receiving his wings from the Darkness, and now he was able to fly through a forest with ease. It would only take a short time until he was back at camp.
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Re: Inverted IC

#7 Post by The Rookie »

Yin raised his hand in acknowledgement as he watched Draco throwing his arms around wildly, frantically trying to remove the ice from his clothing.

‘bout time you two were up. I’ve been waiting out here for ages

"It's always ages when you guys don't sleep as much as us," Nathan remarked.

If anyone else had said something like that, Yin wouldn’t have hesitated to demonstrate his 'Lost soul savagery'. Yin had gone as far as to dislocate a much larger man’s elbow in training for commenting on his pale skin.

Luckily for Nathan, Yin held the brothers in high regard, not that he’d ever say it out loud. They were the first trainees to approach the lost soul with an open hand instead of a fist, when he joined the light several months ago. The trio had been good friends ever since, despite their competitive rivalry.


Hey, there’s plenty of perks for not needing sleep.” Yin said with a subtle shrug. “Just ask your sister.” The pair exchange looks for a moment before erupting into laugher.

Meanwhile Draco had finally managed to shake the small icicle out through his pant leg. Cursing at his brother. "Damn it, Nate," Draco huffed. "Stop doing that!"
"It's the only way that I can get you to wake up all the way, bud. Don't get all pissy. Now come on."

You two ready for our morning sparing match?” Yin asked. “I assume the regular wager still stands?” “Loser buys breakfast.
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Re: Inverted IC

#8 Post by JoshtheOverlander »

"You're on, Yin!" Nathan said. "Let's go, I'll take you on! Draco will too! Whoever's left standing wins!"
Draco gave a weighty sigh and prepared his weapon just his brother did. "Let's get this over with." The guy wasn't one to wake up all sunshine and smiles, let alone to be in fighting spirit when his own brother forced him awake with a piece of ice down his back, but this was the usual routine between them and Yin.
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Re: Inverted IC

#9 Post by MrFlyingAmoeba »

EDIT: If it wasn't clear, the previous collab post happened before the events of everyone else. This one is closer, almost on par with current events if not equal by the end.

"Rozalis." Anne's hours of silence broke as she rose to her feet, abandoning the comfortable nook between tree and dirt. What would be considered improper and careless posture for a regular soldier became natural for those who could manipulate the elements. "The target will be opening his store soon." Rolling her shoulders, she began patting off the bits of grass that had stuck to her legs. "I assume you are ready, unless you have tired yourself from constant commentary."

"But he's like totally late!" Rozalis complained in reply, seated on a low branch of the tree as she tapped the back of her foot against the bark with enough force to leave small dents in the wood. "Doesn't he know you're not supposed to leave a lady waiting? Like, rude much? Like how can Shyuin be so rude to the two ladies that actually work with him?"

Jumping off the branch and landing feet first on the ground with a small puff of dust, Rozalis popped her shoulders as she began to pace the clearing. Clad in her new and already slightly modified uniform (with a cloak, minor cuts to the bottom of the shirt, and the rather cute beret she had brought to cover her ears), she had to admit that this was not entirely surprising that Shuyin was late. This wasn't the first, fifth, or even tenth time he had been late for something of this rough importance.

"But he's still super late! Like, two hours? Who does that!" Rozalis cried out dramatically, falling to her knees in mock despair. Then she glanced over at the now mostly naked guard bundled next to Anne with a concerned look, her ears twitching slightly. "Like, I think the guard's waking up again? Could you like give him a smack on the side of the head for me?"

Anne knelt beside the fallen guard, curling her arm around his neck. A few moments of constriction, and he had slipped back into submission. "General Shuyin," She stressed, "May have many reasons for his absence. We will complete our objective without him if necessary."

Shuyin silently cursed himself with each step he took. He had been running even later than he had expected, even as his feet tore up the ground beneath him, as the wind around him warped and weaved pushing him from behind and side to side through the tree's, even though he made Olympic athletes look slow in comparison; He still wasn't making up nearly enough ground. Running all the way from behind your own lines, and all the way behind those of the Light wasn't a short distance to cover.

"She's going to kill me." He continued to curse while jumping off and sliding down a cliff side. I suppose I shouldn't complain too much, I'd kill myself if I was running this late by sleeping in. He shook his head as he hit the ground leaving behind a small cloud of debris and dust as he took off once again into a dead magic assisted run. He let off a slight smile. For all I don't like using magic, it sure helps when you need to leg it. His mind shifted back to the two he was heading to meet. I'm going to need a hell of an excuse. He frowned.

As he continued to move forward the tree's grew ever more sparse and regular trails became more common, the occasional sign popped up, the occasional fence showing some property. Somewhere along the line he managed to turn himself onto an actual road, running down it full speed. He looked to the side watching as he ran by a small carriage. I probably look like a moron. As he neared a cross road he slowed his dead run to a regular one, and soon enough to a simple jog as he came to a stop. His eyes turned to the sign. Odessa, Tralee, Sal, etcetera I don't recognize half the places on this thing. His eyes glassed over as he continued to stare, eventually coming to the one he wanted, or at least he thought. That works, let's go with that.

Once more Shuyin tore off down the road. His mind wandered all the while. Maybe I could tell them there was a fire, or that I was held up by an army. After only twenty more minutes the general reached a point in the forest where two voices could be heard. After slowing down and taking a few more steps he came into view of both Rozalis and Anne. And a third party, a naked guard. He frowned a bit, and looked to the guard. Sometimes I wondered what sort of things went on when I wasn't around. Every time I wondered that I also knew full well I didn't want to know what the hell was going on. This was one of those times. I really didn't want to have to ask the question.

"Okay, Who the hell is this?"

"Sir." Anne stood up once more, bobbing her head at the General. "This one is our distraction. Captured much further south a few days ago to keep their attention away, doesn't have a viable means of escape that we've noted. Rozalis took his uniform. Barring use as a hostage, I intend to kill him once he is no longer useful."

"Like, you're super late!" Rozalis shouted from the branch she was hanging from, dangling casually upside down with the beret held to her head with one hand. "We were supposed to meet up like almost two and a half hours ago? Totally unacceptable? What do you have to say for yourself?"

She paused and scrunched her face before turning to glare threateningly at Anne, which was about as effective as if a puppy had attempted to do the same thing. "And no killing the hostage! We've totally ruined his career already, we don have to like kill him too? His week's bad enough that ending it with him dying would be like a huge bad joke? Totally faux pas."

Shuyin pinched the bridge of his nose. Is this really the sort of conduct I can expect from my own soldiers, I know I'm far from the greatest example of what someone should be but there are limits. He inclined his head, looking up and down Rozalis. Here was have one of our own combatants wearing an enemy uniform here. He turned to Anne. And here was a blood knight who was apparently intent of killing the prisoner after they were done. I can't say that I'm very pleased with all of this, not in the slightest. He began rooting around in his pocket, eventually pulling out a piece of crumpled paper from his pocket, the rough plans.

"I know I signed off on this but I can't say I approve of these methods. Or anything I happen to be seeing at this moment." His face was like ice. Like I'm the one to be talking about it, I signed this [censored] without reading. He turned to Anne first. "I don't care what you happen to believe," He motioned towards the prisoner. "We do not execute prisoners, not those we've captured and doubly not those that have surrendered to us. Our job is to fight their armies, not to inspire fear, not harm innocents, children, men or women, not even simple town guards if it can be helped." He took a deep breath. "Once we're done, this guy is getting released. And he'd better damn be in a position to get home."

Turning to Rozalis he held the paper in front of his face, giving it a quick look over. His face softened. Aside from impersonating folks she hasn't done anything else, seems she didn't poison a single damn person, kill anyone, or break any bones. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't expecting this to have been bloodier. "Well," He inclined his head to her. "I can't say I like the idea of a false flag operation..." It kinda breaks the rules. "...But I can't be picky right now, do we have any additional targets we can hit besides a sandwich maker while we're here?" He paused. "And sorry to keep you waiting."

The corrupted Guardian kept her silence for a few seconds, then exhaled a harsh breath. "Understood." Anne dipped her head, deeper than before. Her shoulders straightened. "I will defend him myself. Ah, sir, I should mention, the guard for this area has not been seen on patrol for approximately a day, and no replacement has appeared as of yet. They might be preparing a trap, although I have seen nothing to suggest this for the past three days."

"Hmm, fine I'll forgive you this time!" Rozalis said before pointing an accusing finger at Shuyin with a joking smirk on her face. A sign that she wasn't serious just yet to all that knew her closely. "But if you're late again I swear I'll kill you~!"

With that she swung herself around and flung herself off the branch, pulling a perfect three point landing, and started to pace the clearing as she arched her back and popped shoulders. As she walked the cloak started to settle on her body, covering her from shoulder to her ankles and obscuring her tail in the process. "But I'm not like false flagging? I don't think there's like any sort of light faction at war with each other? I just need some like totally uncute clothes?"

She laughed and attempted to strike a pose showcasing the clothes in question for a moment before shrugging the cloak back over herself. "But like, serious?" She said, voice amused and a smile on her face but a certain clinical flatness was present in her voice. "I'm doing like a day ops? As much as I prefer my normal clothes and as ugly these clothes totally are, my normal set of clothes draw attention. Totally love it when drawing attention is not a problem but like right now? Between my ears, tails, and my normal clothes covering less than some swimwear I've seen, I'd totally stand out? That's not what we want."

Slapping the beret on her head, Rozalis's grin turned feral with large canines showing. With the hat on her head and cloak over her body, she looked like any other Guardian; albeit one that was dressed just a bit more heavily. "Now that we're all here, we should get this party like started. The guy's not just a normal sandwich store owner, he's got pretty good unidirectional defensive earth and air magic. Retired due to injuries sustained from retreating while under heavy attack from forces of the Darkness? Basically, he got scared and like told his men to run instead of holding ground? They awarded him for it and he's been like playing it up since. But a little bird told me his retirement's going to be ending reaaaally soon~ Coward that he is, he's been delaying it by saying he's totally not ready to get back into the military and he's like got some stuff to clean up but he's like run out of excuses? He's being reactivated tonight and we're like totally going to stop that from happening."

She glanced from Anne to Shuyin, her smile predatory for a moment before receding to the normal airheaded grin that she always wore as she started to sprint ahead, backwards, towards the town. "But like not before I get those sandwiches! OK? We kill him, like, after the fact?"

Well, it's a bit relieving to see there is some sound reasoning behind this. Shuyin let out a simple sigh. Perhaps there's some way I could sneak another objective in along the way back home. He glanced from Rozalis who was off in the distance to Anne only a few feet from him. He couldn't help but feel slightly worried. She took things too far. Rozalis took things too far too but not quite like Anne did. No time like the present, I suppose. Turning back to Rozalis he took off into a sprint, tailing her on their way towards the city.

"Rozalis, General, the...guard?" Outstretched hand falling to her side, Anne watched as the other two sped away, glancing at the comatose Guardian. Frowning, she pulled a large brown bag out of her pack, pulling it open over the guard. A gag was tied around his mouth, enchanted against the usual tricks to break such things and dabbed with sedative. Lookout and backup from just outside the town, then. The unstable Lost Soul began quietly following the other two, the extra weight over her shoulder unnoticed. Once she was a little closer, perhaps she would conceal them within the ground.

"I did not expect my duty to be so literal. Both of us are lucky the General was here."
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midnightblink
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Re: Inverted IC

#10 Post by midnightblink »

Percival had flown far enough from the camp that now he was flying high in the sky. As he got closer to camp, he lowered his altitude and surveyed the area. He dove down for a landing in front of general Shuyin's base of operations, quickly ascending the steps and knocking on the door.

"General Shuyin, it's Percival, I've come to report from my scouting mission" He waited a few seconds with no reply, so he knocked again

"General Shuyin, are you there?" Again no reply came. He walked back down the steps of the structure. The general must have been away from camp. He heard thunking coming from the side of the house and decided to investigate. It was a little girl practicing her sword fighting against a nearby tree. He decided to approach her to see what she knew.

"Greetings mademoiselle, did you happen to see where the general ran to?" Percival asked. She lowered her sword and turned to reply.

"He left a couple minutes ago, I asked when Rosie will be back and he said they were going to kill him. I hope they don't, we're suppose to play swords!" The little girl than began bashing the tree with her sword again, obviously preoccupied. She must be referring to the mission he had overheard Rozalis talking about close to the village. This would be a great chance to prove himself to the general, so he decided he would join them.

"Merci, mon petit chou." The general could move fast when he wanted to, so Percival knew he didn't have much time. He quickly lifted off the ground and flew in the direction of the village
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Re: Inverted IC

#11 Post by The Rookie »

The trio formed a triangle at the centre of the small arena, each spaced few metres apart from one another.

Ok, you guys know the rules.” Yin spoke in a low serious tone. “This is a sparring match, so magic is off limits”. “If you’re knocked down or if an opponent draws blood you're out. Agreed?” The brothers nodded in unison.

Yin pulled a small steel blade out of his boot “Ok, we go on the sound of the dagger. Get ready.

Yin threw the dagger skyward, while locking eyes with Nathan. It was an eerily tense few seconds, the sound of their clothing lightly blowing in the breeze was the only thing that could be heard while they listened for the signal. Cla-tunk. The sound of the steel blade burying itself in the hard clay like dirt shattered the silence, and with that sound Yin was on his first target.

Yin lunged at Draco, his fist flying. His punches fast and precise, striking his opponent's elbows, shoulders and ribs, anywhere that would prevent Draco from raising his large clumsy broadsword. Forcing Draco on the defensive.

Watching from a few feet away, Nathan had lowered his guard. He was taking the opportunity to study his companion's technique, as well as letting the completion tire each other out.

Suddenly without warning, Yin's arm shot up in Nathan's direction; a small black ball flying towards the surprised bystander.

Nathan was quick to raise his spear, blocking the projectile with its handle. However upon contact the ball exploded into a cloud of thick smoke, blinding him. Nathan had dropped his weapon in the confusion, an advantage Yin exploited. Grabbing the fallen spear Yin struck Nathan in the gut with the butt of the staff, winding him. Yin continued his savage barrage, discarding the spear in favour of speed. Nathan was dazed and off balanced, barely able to stand, but he couldn’t expect any mercy from his assailant. Yin struck Nathan's jaw with his elbow, followed by a fist to the lower ribs and finishing by collapsing his opponent's leg with a swift side kick.

The whole thing was over in a matter of seconds, and Nathan was on the ground before he knew what hit him.

"Nothing personal, mate." Yin mocked as Nathan rolled around on the ground, clutching at his stomach. Nathan managed to sputter out a response between gasp. “Get stuffed, Trickster."

While Yin had taken the time to gloat, Draco was already bearing down on him sword in hand. Yin was now at a disadvantage. The reach of Draco's sword far exceeded that of Yin's daggers, trying to get close would be tricky. Yin prepared to avoid Draco's blow by ducking underneath his swing, unfortunately for Yin, Draco was planning for this. Draco booted Yin in the face, using the momentum from his swing to full effect, sending Yin reeling.

Somehow managing to stay on his feet, his head ringing from the blow, Yin prepared to retaliate. Drawing his daggers with rage in his eyes, Yin began planning out just how he'd bring his opponent down. But before he could even move something on Draco's face caught his eye. He was smiling.

"What's with that look?" Yin asked with a sharp tong. "You haven't won yet."

Draco didn't say anything; he just lightly tapped his nose. Suddenly it dawned on him. He hadn't noticed at first, but as Yin wiped his nose his hand came away bloody.

"Damn" he muttered. “I guess breakfast is on us”.
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MrFlyingAmoeba
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Re: Inverted IC

#12 Post by MrFlyingAmoeba »

Defense in the war between Darkness and Light was a nightmare. How could anyone defend against soldiers who could shatter bedrock, set the air aflame, or teleport beside your commander and kill him in the span of a breath? Different doctrines had been tried over the decades of conflict. Massive skirmisher screens seeing the rise of aerial knights clashing in the skies while the ground buckled under the stress of a hundred soldiers struggling for subterranean dominance, dizzying layers of espionage and counter-espionage, huge tracts of no-mans-land, and many more strategies discarded or refined.

Individual soldiers often favored their own personal styles within the larger combat doctrine. Upon reaching the fringes of the treeline bordering the town, Anne had planned to slip underground until only her eyes upward remained above, further hidden inside the undergrowth from prying eyes. The unfortunate naked guard would also be similarly buried, one of her arms firmly locked around his neck to discourage any sudden movements should he somehow awaken from the repeated bouts of unconsciousness.

Red eyes set in black sclera kept vigilant watch as she moved onwards. If her aid was needed, she would need to shatter the enemy momentum with her joined fury and discipline.

Percival slowly lowered himself from the air as he approached the village, sinking into the cover of the forest. As he got closer to the ground, he lowered his bare feet, folding his wings and landing into a sprint. He began running through the forest. As he moved quicker through the foliage, he saw faint movement at the edge of the trees. It was then he saw the unmistakable silhouette of Anne. Why did he have to find her first? The only thing greater than her disdain for him was the seething rage that could be released at any moment. He took a second to survey the situation and saw that there was a man next to her on the ground, tied up and in nothing but his underwear; a hostage maybe? He decided the best course of action was to simply address her directly, you never want to surprise Anne Nilva.

"Bon soir, Madame Nilva, I've come to see if I could be of any assistance in this mission."

Anne's descent into the earth stopped, having turned to face the other Lost Soul before his greeting. "Foolish and unnecessary, Lueur." Her chilly tone warmed slightly. "Conceal yourself. We may need to extract the General and Rozalis." She began moving further into the ground, the guard limply pulled alongside.

"Of course, how foolish of me. One moment." Percival's magic began coursing through his body, and slowly, it was as if his color was fading. Starting at his head, his blond hair lost its yellow hue, seemingly turning into strands of clear crystal. This effect continued down his face, and began spreading to his entire body, even his pants, his only form of clothing, turned to solid ice. The feathers of his wings hardened until they were as sharp as knives. The transformation complete, his body was now a single piece of ice, and through this shard you could see the forest behind him, forming an almost perfect camouflage.

"I cannot fly in this form, but it should be almost impossible to see from a distance."
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y7h65
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Re: Inverted IC

#13 Post by y7h65 »

The two men watched the sandwich store from a building across the street. So far, nothing suspicious had happened. Nothing that seemed to be suspicious. No monster, no berserker, no obvious and blatant force of Darkness that they could see. Hell, the store hadn't even gotten a single customer yet despite being about half an hour into morning service.

"Light damn this," One of the men exclaimed, putting down his sword. He was younger than his partner, fresh enough out of training that he had yet to acquire that hardened feeling that veterans had but experienced enough that they could no longer be called a greenhorn by any meaning of the phrase. "Why are we watching a retired Guardian and sandwich store owner?"

The older Guardian sighed, well used to his junior's impatience. "Because he may be the target of an assassination."

"But why, sir?" The junior asked, frustration filling his voice. "Who would assassinate a sandwich store owner in the middle of the day, in the middle of the village? Who's stupid enough to think that's a good idea?"

"Son, our lot is not to ask questions." The senior replied snappily, tone detached. "For all we know, the Dark may have some goal to accomplish that would be done so from this. It is better we remain vigilant than to allow the Dark leeway."

The junior muttered an agreement before taking up his sword once more. Minutes passed before the senior paused and turned to the doorway.

"Strange." Murmured the senior, one hand going to the handle of his blade. "Our relief should have arrived by now."

A moment passed before the senior stood up and made his way to the door, a wary air about him. "Stay here. I shall check the ground floor to ensure that nothing has happened to them."

The junior nodded in acknowledgement and then the man slipped out the door, closing it behind him. The sound of footsteps on stairs echoed through the room. The junior, a feeling of anxiety slowly filling him, reached for his sword. In the early morning sun of the room, the light filtering through the small cracks of the drapes of the room,there was a strange coldness in the room.

Suddenly, a slam and the sound of a body hitting the ground. A few more thumping noises. Then, silence. For what seemed like minutes, but probably no longer than a few seconds, the junior stared at the door with the expectation of something about to come through the door. Moments passed and, slowly, silence filled the building. Then the door creaked open slowly.

Before he even knew what was going on the Junior had already smashed through the door, sword going straight through the door and splintering it. To his surprise, nothing awaited him on the other side. Out of the corner of his eye he saw his senior and the relief crew, both of them, lying on the ground deathly still. Then the sound of fabric shuffling above and behind him. Turning and trying to bring his sword about, he was greeted by a being covered in shadow with gleaming solid gold eyes and cloaked in rags. Without a cry, he swung up and thrust his sword into the being, only for it to evaporate as the sword passed through and sunk into the wood wall. Even as he realized the implications, the sound of feet slamming into the stairs echoed out behind him. Spinning about, he only managed to catch a glimpse of pearly white fangs, red eyes, and a manic grin before he felt something cold slam into his side.

Stumbling backwards, clutching at his bleeding side with one hand and grabbing at his sword with the other, he could feel his body slow as the area around the stab numbed and heated at the same time. A poison? Paralytic? He had no time to figure out as the white... blur, his own vision having already begun to fail, dashed at him, a purple stained steel talon in hand. Then, darkness.
_____

Seconds later, Rozalis exited the back of the building into the alleyway, where Shuyin was awaiting. She flipped the knife in her hand, the blade red and purple, and flicked it softly to remove the blood before wiping it down with a cloth. As she did so, she glanced at Shuyin with a smile.

"That's like, all the guards!" She said, voice chipper as she worked the blood off the blade. "All of them are totally out of it right now. I think we could kick them for like a few hours and they won't, like, feel it at all."

Leaning back against the wall, Shuyin gave Rozalis a small smile. Ethical issues of using paralytics aside a job well done is a job well done. "I'd give you a promotion but Darkness is kind of a cheap [censored]." He responded jokingly. As much as he wanted to joke about it, it was true to an extent. Shuyin could barely afford to house, feed, or pay his people. Even though his was small, most of the armies weren't even capable of that. Most didn't even have anything resembling formal structures and looked more like roving mobs. He gave his head a shake. It's not time complain about [censored] I can't control right now.

Turning to the side, he looked down the alleyway. There was nothing to be seen but caution wasn't a bad habit. He murmured momentarily to himself. Perhaps we should interrogate one of them? He Turned back to his partner. "Did you by chance overhear anything interesting during all of that?"

"That's like, totally no biggie." Rozalis responded, waving off the compliments with a laugh as she casually flung her knife back into its sheath. "I'd totally drop a promotion if it meant I had to stop doing this."

"But now that you mention it..." She muttered pursing her lips as she tried to recall what she heard in the house. To tell the truth it was actually really hard to remember what just happened because she was more focused on keeping herself out of sight and detection rather than what they were saying.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, gently smacking her fist into her open palm as her eyes brightened, as s she remembered something that seemed like it could be important. "They totally said my plan and target was stupid! Like, rude? I wish I could have let them know that I totally plan this out? I mean, like, I'm not that random."

She nodded to herself as she begun to walk down the alley towards the sandwich store, whistling a jaunty tone before pausing and turning around with a grin on her face. "Oh and like, they know we're coming? That might be important?"

Of course they do. Shuyin let out a deep breath. "Well, that's no obstacle. They won't be able to stop us anyway." He inclined his head to the skies. Or at least I would hope, how much defense could they possibly afford to put on a sandwich maker of all things? He brought his head back down, watching as the image of Rozalis continued down the alley way. He took off after her in a quick jog. This was going to be a long day.
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Re: Inverted IC

#14 Post by JoshtheOverlander »

Draco laughed softly and put away his weapon. "If you two really are buying, we could try out this sandwich shop I've heard about."
Nathan got back on his feet and dusted himself off for a moment. "It better not be too pricey."
"We could try haggling with him," the brother suggested. Nathan snickered, trying to hold his laughter back.
Yin smirked and, with a pat on Draco's shoulder, replied, "You, haggling? How about we just go somewhere else if it's too much."
The three of them moved along, making their way out. It might take them a little while to get there, but not too incredibly long. Along the way, the trio had started up a conversation. "They say that a guard went missing. Think something's up?"
"Pfft, guards? Forget about that subject. Guards are just washed up adventurers that get their dreams crushed early on," Nathan joked.
"Most of them are just inexperienced men trying to protect their homes and families". Yin said, almost defensively "We can't all be soldiers, Nate". Yin's voice started to trail off, as if his mind was elsewhere for a moment.
"Yin?" Draco asked, snapping Yin back into the present
"Huh, oh it's nothing. Anyway, what's so special about this guard? Someone you know?"
"Not really, I just heard the rumors floating around. It's not like I-!" But he was cut off when a woman with blonde hair and faded blue eyes stopped them.
"Excuse me, young men, but could one of you point me in the direction of instructor Red's house?"
Nathan gave her quick directions to the house and watched her leave."Who's she?" Draco wondered out loud.
"I don't know. Think she's someone he knows? Maybe she's a soldier," Nathan suggested.
Yin laughed and said, "Not sure. She's not exactly wearing attire suited for a soldier, is she? Maybe she's just a friend or relative. Anyways, let's hurry up and get to that shop already. I'm starving."
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y7h65
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Re: Inverted IC

#15 Post by y7h65 »

Walking down the Alley Shuyin held up a small map in front of his face. If you could call it that. It looked more like something hastily scrawled on a cocktail napkin than an actual map. He inclined his head to the sky. It seemed they were still headed northish along the alleyway. At the very least that would put them adjacent to the street the Sandwich shop. I suppose approaching from the front would be a bad idea, I wonder if they warned the guy already. You'd at least think they would have. He brought his head back down and looked to Rozalis.

"You know," He paused. "Now that I think about it I don't actually know a thing about you."

"Really?" Rozalis responded quizzically before turning backwards to face Shuyin as she continued down the alley, backwards. "I mean that's totally bizarre? I'm sure sure I've like, talked about myself a hundred dozen times by now? Weren't you listening all those times?"

Thinking of it Rozalis was eighty, no a hundred, percent sure that she's mentioned it at least once! Of course thinking of it she may have slipped in those tidbits here and there in the middle of her speech or just hinted at things here and there. Not exactly a good way to tell people about your history?

"Well, maybe not. Like, maybe I slip it in here and there?"

Shuyin gave a slight hum in response. Would I really have missed that much? He inclined his head to the sky above, briefly pondering the thought. Now that I think about it I don't even know how long I've know her for. Was it months? Years even? Everything just seems a bit fuzzy. Is the darkness getting to me? It wasn't a great feeling. He lowered his head back down to Rozalis, giving a slight smile.

"I'm sure you've mentioned it." He answered with a slightly amused tone. "Its probably just slipped my mind." No, no it hasn't you lying [censored]. you can barely remember what you had for breakfast this morning. That's because I had nothing this morning. Yeah but if you had something you wouldn't remember it. He gave his head a short shake and a sigh. This was not the time to be pondering the effects of god knows what on the mind.

As they continued walking he looked down the alleys out as they passed by. A Bread Shop. Bakery. Tannery. Candy Shop. Butcher. Brew- Wait, Butcher? He stopped in his tracks and looked down the way towards the butcher. Wasn't there supposed to be one of those close by? His mind drifted to the [censored] map in his pocket. "Isn't there supposed to be a butcher near the Deli?"

"Like, what is it?" Rozalis hummed as she backpedaled to where Shuyin was standing and glanced at the building with a large rectangular sign stating that it was ''Closed. Will return in a month.' covering the doors and windows. Staring at the sign, she tried to recall where she had read it before she actually looked up at the name of the place.

"Oh right!" She exclaimed as realization struck her, her expression lighting up with a smile as she remembered why the sign seemed so familiar. They weren't just close to the sandwich store, they were across from it! "Like, this is the butcher that closed up because of all that totally nasty meat they were selling! Which means the sandwich is like, right over there!"

With that proud declaration and a smile on her face, she spun around and pointed... at the building across the street. It's windows shutters were closed despite the words beneath the hanging sign outside of the building declaring t to be open.

"Yep that's it alright!" Rozalis stated confidently, nodding to herself before walking to cross the street, turning to keep herself facing Shuyin as she did and smiling a borderline predatory smile. "Not sure how I totally missed it since I've spent the last few days trailing this guy? Well, like, it's time to earn our keep?"

Breaking into a slight smile, Shuyin offered a nod in return. "Yep." He glanced from Rozalis and to the Sandwich shop behind her. "It'll be a real shame if he gets your order wrong." Well at the very least you'll have a hell of a time getting a replacement meal out of management. He glanced up and down the street. Nothing. It was time to play the waiting game.

Inside the Sandwich Store
"I am not coming with you and that is it!"

The yell broke the relative silence and peace of the argument as Davison, the Retired Guardian, tugged his arm back from where the escort Guardian had decided to grab onto him. The Guardian could only sigh as his companion kept watch by the door, hand on her flintlock as she watched the two argue it out. It had been almost an hour since the store had opened and they had started trying to convince the man to move to no avail.

"Look, Sir." The Guardian said with a tired voice, hoping that the damn obstinate man would just listen. "We have reason to believe your life is in danger. You were to be reinstated at the end of today so we are merely moving up the schedule."

"And I'm telling you to step off!" Davison growled in response, hands slamming into the counter and causing the piece of furniture to jump slightly at the impact. Davison stared down at the smaller man, his years of retirement having to failed to soften the muscles that bound the retired Guardian's frame. "I was promised one more day and I plan to spend the last day of my retirement serving this community before I get thrown to who knows where."

The younger guardian was about to open his mouth to give a rebuttal when he felt a hand grab his shoulder, giving him a small squeeze. Turning around he saw his partner, tired smile on her face.

"Ah, just give it up." She said, shrugging. "He's not going to move with just the two of us here. Maybe the captain will do something about it."

He sighed as he accepted the line of logic and turned around, walking away from the counter and towards the door. She was right, it was unlikely the man would listen to a rookie such as himself. Reaching the door at the same time, he reached towards the door to pull it open when both him and his partner froze. The two of them turned their heads till they could make eye contact, confirming what the other felt. Every instinct and nerve in their body was screaming at them to not open the door, every sense yelling in alarm at the fact that there was... something, on the other side of this door. Something horrible.

Reaching for his swords, his partner reaching for her pistols at the same time, the two of them tensed as they sensed the presence draw closer and closer and closer. Finally the door handle rustled, someone clearly trying to open it on the other side, before it was thrown open with a hearty and cheerful cry of "Good morning!".

Even before the greeting was completed,the Guardian and his partner had leaped back, Davison's cry of surprise deaf in their ears, and weapons already drawn. Silence filled the sandwich store as the girl, shorter than all three of them and clad in a white uniform, gazed at the three of them with confusion clear on her face as she tilted her head slightly to the side.

"Like, is there a problem? Am I interrupting something?"

The girl's question snapped them out of it. The Guardian and his partner sheepishly put their weapons away even as Davison's shouts of how "What do you think you're doing?! You'll be scaring away all my customers!" filled the room before he ushered the girl over to the counter. Chuckling sheepishly, the Guardian stuck his hand out in a gesture of apology before he caught sight of the girl's face and froze, the girl's face spurring recognition from somewhere.

Even as the girl walked over to the counter and put down an order for three sandwiches, he waved off his partner's attempts to get them to leave and continued to stare at her as he tried to pin down why she seemed so familiar, why he felt that something was so wrong. It wasn't until a few minutes later passed, the sandwiches already ready and about to be placed down on the counter did he notice the slightest flick of a tail from underneath the cloak. A bolt of realization struck as the image of that face, stuck to the billboard of one of the more dangerous members of the Darkness.

"It's her!" He shouted while drawing his sword, already charging to clear the distance between him and the Assassin. "Rozalis Aerius!"

The sandwiches hit the counter at the same time as a feral smile broke free across the girl's face.

Outside the Sandwich Store
It had been several minutes since Rozalis had entered the store. Minutes spent without any noise or sound, an oddity when one was only used to seeing Rozalis without knowing the girl closely. Then, a quiet 'pomf' followed by the muffled sound of two gunshots. The sound of wood being parted by several objects could be faintly heard followed by another gunshot. Then what sounded like as if someone had pulled a chunk of stone out of the ground, multiple strikes of metal against stone, and then the wall facing the street broke open as a large bloodied, bruised, and shot twice man tumbled into the street. A cut up apron and rough pants and white shirt was all his garments, the white of his apron and shirt blossoming red around two shot wounds. To his back was a massive free floating shield of stone layered with metal, protecting him from whatever was still inside and blocking off the scene.

The man pulled himself to the fight, coughing and wincing as he stood up. An arm immediately went to his side, wincing as he did. A broken rib, most likely. He stumbled a few steps forward, away from the store, when a noise that sounded as if a whip had been cracked filled the air. The shield behind him shattered, the center perfectly penetrated with a single hole. Directly across from him was a spoon, embedded into the wall next to a red dressed man. The man looked down, realizing that the spoon had passed through him on it's trip into the wall, a massive exit wound now on the front of his chest. He never got a chance to contemplate or wonder how a spoon had managed to punch through both his shield, the metal plate under his shirt, and his torso while still retaining enough power to stick itself into the wall. A second whip crack and he felt something touch the back of his head for a moment followed by the darkness of death.

A butter knife slammed into the wall next to Shuyin, above the spoon, as the large burly man fell to the ground dead. Perfect kill shot to the back of the head. Behind him laid the shattered remains of his store. The interior was totaled with giant gouges of the ground having been torn out of the floor, ice spikes penetrating the walls and ceiling, as well as burn marks everywhere. Pinned to the wall by an ice spike was the body of a woman, her Guardian uniform cut by several stabs and slashes from a bladed weapon and a pistol still in her left hand. On the other side of the restaurant, a shattered sword in their hand, was another Guardian, this one male. He was leaning against the wall and the front half of the sword had been rammed into his right thigh, keeping him from moving. A large spray of red and pink on the wall behind his head, the single hole in his forehead, and a discarded pistol next to the body all pointed at a very quick death if not exactly a peaceful one. Finally on the broken counter, next to where the sandwich store owner once stood, were several coins. Three sandwiches worth of cash.

In the center of this malestorm of death and destruction was Rozalis. Her uniform cut and frayed at the edges, with smoke and blood visible against the white of the stolen uniform. Her beret was missing, her ears twitching slightly in the open. A massive smile was on her face and, in her left hand, a paper bag of sandwiches. She whistled cheerfully as she crossed across the street before presenting Shuyin the sandwiches.

"Annnnnd we got Lunch!" Rozalis declared with a grin, her voice full of cheer as she almost bounced up and down in place. "Oh and there was like, two other guardians in there? Totally like, tried to protect the target? They couldn't protect against some of our less crazy guys if they tried, nevermind me!"
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