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Post by Iole on Jun 3, 2009 23:59:05 GMT -5
(OOC: Sorry for the wait) ??: Everything alright then? ::staring down, Oliver can see the man speaking to him is wearing an apron. Probably a cook. However he speaks with the same accent that those of the uptown regions use, like the man Captain Ames that Oliver had met only once. But when he looks up, he recognizes the man's face at once, from newspapers and posters, and a few rare public appearances. This man is no palace servant:: Regent: You alright there, son? ::Iole::Likewise. ::Iole rushes Yami again with her claws out, using them to counter the girl's blades::
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Post by Nu on Jun 4, 2009 0:08:34 GMT -5
::Yami::
::Yami turns her arms into blades and prepares herself::
::Kamikaze::
::Both Kamikaze and Nyx have been giving each other all they got. Both started to show signs of fatigue from the extended battle. Although one of her strikes got too close for him, striking the side of his face. His mask took the impact, but a small crack was made as a result. As the battle progressed, the crack began to spread. At the rate it was going, the left side of the mask would crumble::
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Post by Oliver on Jun 4, 2009 0:09:57 GMT -5
((I can't kill Malcolm McDowell! I can't! OH the humanity!))
Oliver is stunned for a moment, how he wonders, how could the Regent be here, cooking, and looks striking like an old Alex DeLarge. He backs up slowly, unsure if to stand or flee.
"Uh, ye, I'm 'ine! Why wou'd anyt'in be wrong?"
What providence, what divine intelligence that he should be here, yet, time runs short and he needs to flee. His eyes dart around, looking for a means of fleeing.
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Post by Iole on Jun 4, 2009 0:17:50 GMT -5
(OOC: Total coincidence, but when you mentioned that Oliver was near the kitchen, it reminded me of this scene from Heroes, and I thought Malcolm Mcdowell's character was dead on for the Regent in my head)
::Oliver::
Regent: You seem uncomfortable my boy. I understand, the palace is quite large and servants can get lost very easily on their first day.
::As he speaks, Oliver can't help but notice that everyone nearby is very pointedly leaving the hallway and the kitchen still visible from the door, as if they were instructed::
Regent: Unless there's another reason you're here... Oliver I believe your name was.
::He smiles a gentlemanly smile at Oliver's expression::
Regent: So Lillith told you about the passageway did she? I suppose that's what I get for being too good a host.
::Nyx::
Nyx: Why don't you just take it off? I'd like to see your face one last time.
::Her inability to express fatigue seems to be working in her favor as she flips over his blade before it reaches her stomach, sailing in with her own::
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Post by Oliver on Jun 4, 2009 0:25:36 GMT -5
"We'l sin'e I'm not dead yet..."
Oliver relaxes, looking embarrassed that he should run into the very object of his hate and yet, he talks to him like any other, not even a hint of fear or anger in his voice.
"Ye, an ye must be... ya, names Oliver an' yea... Lillith mig't of said sumt'in a'ong t'ose lines. So if ye 'new a'l along, w'y haven't ye fled?"
He looks down to his hand, those sharps claws of his could tear him down now. Take a piece of him as a trophy, what an oppertunity, yet, something in his voice. That soft, fatherly tone, encourages him to listen to what he could say.
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Post by Nu on Jun 4, 2009 0:34:25 GMT -5
::He dodges her attack by jumping back:: I vowed to never remove this mask. Only those that have defeated me or those that I call master can see my face. But since your a former student. ::He throws one dagger to the ground and reaches to the cracked mask and pulled it off, showing her his face once more, his hair that was tied to the back of the mask flows free as she sees his other eye now visible and still sees them both are still the same crimson color they always were::
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Post by Iole on Jun 4, 2009 0:34:54 GMT -5
::The Regent chuckles::
Regent: Come now Oliver, you know as well as I that a king holds no real power on the board. Perhaps there had been a time when a leader commanded his men and lived and died with them and his cause. But in this ever changing world, my young friend, the leaders are usually nothing more than symbols, figure heads, puppets of the beauracracy. Do come in, I've heard you like meat pies.
::He beckons Oliver back into the kitchen where he rolls the dough together, preparing it for the beef he has ground up in the metal bowl next to him::
Regent: It was... yes I believe six years ago when your friend came here. A fiery woman she was, so full of passion, hope, and idealism. Tell me, is she still so? Or has her flame, like so many of ours, been dulled by the harsh realities of the world around us?
::Nyx::
(OOC: Hot damn he's gorgeous! I was expecting scars or something)
Nyx: Those eyes never held any fear for me then or now.
::She raises her blades again::
Nyx: I suppose it's cruel irony that we both ended up serving different masters. The belief that you held and instilled in me to cherish will be what ends us. But we'll continue anyway. For I would sooner end my own life than bear the disgrace of betraying The Miss.
::NU::
::As Nu waits in his silent meditation, a voice sounds behind him. It's familiar, but it's not who he expected::
??: It failed, just as I said it would.
::A tall elven woman with an unearthly sheen to her skin circles behind him, shrouded in a dark robe-like dress, staring off with her flame colored eyes. Her white blond hair floats eerily around her face. She seems to float rather than walk across the ground, and her being seems incopreal like a reflection on a glass::
Jezebel: But it's too late to go back and fix it now. The Cetra is on his way here.
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Post by Oliver on Jun 4, 2009 0:44:18 GMT -5
"Yea, shes t'e same." Oliver looks at the Regent with a suspicious eyes. Years of propaganda and rally's and riots, and this humble sounding man is responsible for killing all his friends, massacring his citizens, and committing atrocity after atrocity.
"So w'at t'e catch? Goin' to try an' show me ye ain't such a bad man? Ye can't honest'y believe I'd swallow t'is charade so easily, do ye? If it was'in ye t'at did a'l t'is, t'en ye are jus'as guil'y as ye officials and bureaucrats and Bourgeoisie lap-dogs who did! Don'te'l me t'at t'e Regent can't control t'ose he pays!"
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Post by Iole on Jun 4, 2009 0:50:04 GMT -5
Regent: No charade my boy. What would the point be? I'm dead either way, whether from whatever from your assassination, or from Internal Affairs coming back to kill me as a cover up. It won't be long before they discover that the man they killed was merely a decoy.
::His eyes are very sad as he keeps them trained on the dough he's working with::
Regent: Oliver, do indulge an old man and let me tell you a story. If you do, I'll tell you the quickest way out of the palace. My men have already been ordered to evacuate, so you have nothing to fear from them. And with your youth you could be out of here in less than three minutes.
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Post by Nu on Jun 4, 2009 0:52:28 GMT -5
::Kamikaze::
((OOC: XD Not what you were expecting))
"Agreed. But reguardless of the outcome, I'll always be proud of you Nicole." ::They clash again::
::Nu::
"What matters is the stones have been restored, reguardless if the Regent was a false one. The ritual needed one more sacrifice to succeed. The Regent was choosen because he was no longer needed." ::He turns and looks Jezebel in her face:: "A shame such beauty is on a being of darkness."
::The roar of a tiger catches their attention:: "They draw ever closer. ::Places his hand on his sword hilt:: Soon we'll clash, Jas."
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Post by Oliver on Jun 4, 2009 0:57:11 GMT -5
Oliver crosses his arms, leaning up against the kitchen wall. "A'right. I'll humor ye. W'at ye wan'to say?"
In the back of Oliver's mind, he knew this was a bad idea, if not for a trap, then the timer of the bomb. He appears anxious as he stands there, tapping his hand against his forearm.
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Post by Iole on Jun 4, 2009 1:01:35 GMT -5
(OOC: Yes I found the perfect picture for Jezebel. It's just too perfect not to post) ::Nu::::The dark spectre laughs:: Jezebel: And then you will fail. You'll beg for my aid towards the end. They all do. You really think you're the first to believe that hell is nothing? That darkness can be controlled? I have seen it many times before. The arrogant ones who hunger so for the power that they become blind to the price. ::Oliver::Regent: Oliver, when I was a boy, I was a lot like you. So full of that passion, that dream to change the world for the better. I believed that my father, the Regent before me, had done a miserable job of serving his people, and when I became Regent I vowed to tear down separation of the classes. I was so sure that I could make it work, that I could break down the red tape that my father had placed around the city. But all my attempts were thwarted by the system. My ambitions, while noble, were not at all practical. Certain decisions would destroy our country's stocks, others would embitter our already shaky allies. Not to mention the constant repairs made to the city during the time of heroes that we were still in debt for. It seemed that no matter what I tried, my subordinates would shoot it down. It was then that I realized that though I held the title, I did not pull the strings. I became bitter, disillusioned, and in that way I failed. Failed my dream, my country, and my people. And in my old age, these regrets weigh heavily upon me. Perhaps if I had tried harder, there could still have been change. And when your group, the LPA started rising, their passions and their ideals fueling them despite the atrocities of this cynical world, I realized the truth. In truth, I failed not because I could do nothing, but because I had stopped trying. But you, you and your generation, you still have that chance. You who have held onto your passions even as the world you fight for goes up in flames. And even if that world you hope to see crumbles to dust in the end, you will never stop trying to reach it. Whatever it is you hope to live for, be it freedom or patriotism or love, you must forge ahead. Make a better world than the pitiful broken one that those before you have left.
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Post by Galeon Chaos on Jun 4, 2009 1:15:35 GMT -5
The battle between Astaroth and Galeon continues inside the building as they throw each other into the walls and charge at each other jabbing either a sword and slashing with a scythe.
" More trouble then you thought huh?"
Galeon smirked as he laughed little bit jumping behind her and slamming his sword down into her tail. She then let out a loud shriek of pain. He then started to kick at her sides from behind her. He smirked as he unsheathed his larger sword and like usual started using it like a baseball bat at first hitting her upside the head and in the leg.
" How's that feel Astaroth?"
He laughed again but was stopped as Astaroth reefed her tail out from under the sword and swung it at Galeon knocking him into the wall.
" O-ow...Spoke to soon I guess..."
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Post by Oliver on Jun 4, 2009 1:47:13 GMT -5
As Oliver listens to the Regent speak, he is stunned by what he's been told. Here, painted as a fiend of the people and yet, he claims circumstance and bad fate is the source of his strife. Tried he did, but failed by the system. It's strange, but Oliver feels the man is truthful, it's something in his eyes.
"T'at's why I'm here, sir. Before t'e sun sets today, we'l see a new wor'd. Ye 'now, I'd a'ways pictured ye as t'is fiend to fear, a man in purples, reds an' golds t'at stood over his peop'e 'ike some earth'y manifestation of sin... but not any'ore. I'm sor'y t'ings cou'dn't of been different for ye, for all of us."
Oliver steps away from the wall and approaches the Regent. "If no e'se wi'l, I'll forgive ye sins and failures. Le'st I can do." Oliver steps closer, his hand extended to shake the hand of the Regent. Not bow or prostrate, not kiss his ring, but as men should meet, on the level. Their hands touch-
::Outside::
A horrible roar erupts from the palace, an explosion like no other seen in the city that illuminates the sky like an exploding sun. The entire world shakes around them, buildings fall, windows shatter and explode in. People are thrown to the ground, planes and airships are knocked out of the sky. A cloud of smoke, dust, stone and debris flow out and swallow the city as that tower crumbles under itself, pancaking atop itself, the topples over, crushing the streets and boulevards below.
When earth stops moving and the sounds of the horrible blast subside, where once the Palace stood is a tomb of marble and stone. A rip in the mighty wall of the city-state and for many who have lived their lives behind them, this is their first time able to see the world beyond the wall. It's a strange and foreign sight of the world, filtered through the dust, smoke and haze of an world shattering event. A band of peasants, the salt of the earth, disenfranchised and destitute have done what no one else could do for them. A people have stood up against a perceived tyrant and brought them down without the known aid of demigods and heroes, the resolve of a people have defeated their master.
Connolly stands back up, bruised and with a horrible ringing in his ears. He stands, in awe at the sight of the once great Palace. "By gods... he did it..."
Sid, sniping from a third story apartment window, had taken cover when the blast occurred and now looks out from the shattered window at the destruction. "Ollie..." He sighs out, then chambers another round.
The battle itself has stopped, least temporarily, as soldiers get back to their feet only to turn and gaze with awe and shock at the destruction of such a great monument to power and wealth, now nothing more then a heap of jagged stone.
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Post by Iole on Jun 4, 2009 2:03:32 GMT -5
::Just Before the Explosion::::The Regent takes Oliver's hand:: Regent: It's far more than I could ask. Merely seeing you has made an old man very happy. ::Nyx::::Both Kamikaze and Nyx are thrown off their feet, just before their blades meet. When the dust starts to clear, and Nyx staggers back to her feet, her black eyes grow wide as they land on the palace, probably the only range of emotion she's capable of showing:: Nyx: The Miss. ::She abandonds Kamikaze where he fell, surging forward as a shadow that slinks along the street towards the ruins:: ::Astaroth::::Astaroth's rage makes her stronger as she clashes her scythe with Galeon's swords. The impact as they meet shakes his arms and threatens to throw his weapons from his grasp, and it's all he can do to keep a safe distance from it's blade. Then they too are thrown by the blast, crashing into the wall. From his vantage point on the floor, Galeon can see Astaroth looking not at him in anger, but towards the source of the blast with a look that can only be called fear and concern:: Astaroth: Yami. ::It's all she says before she spreads her wings and takes to the sky towards where the palace once stood:: ::Iole::::Iole and Yami charge, but halt and stagger on shaky footing as the palace roof below them starts to quake. Iole knows what's coming, and she doesn't have a plan. Before she realizes what she's doing herself, she leaps forward and spreads her wings, wrapping her arms around Yami. The two are thrown with tremendous force and Iole can't tell the sky from the ground. As she flaps her wings trying desperately to stay airborne and keep the girl in her grasp, the rip-tide of the explosion threatens to tear her wings right out of her back. Then they hit the ground, their flight coupled with Iole's hardened skin allowing them to survive. Yami is out cold, but Iole doesn't have time for rest. As quickly as she can manage, she limps toward the rubble:: Ollie.... ::She kneels down and starts frantically moving rubble out of the way, digging deeper and deeper into the ruins. He has to be here. She hadn't come this far only to be too late:: www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcMJlTjzZgs&feature=related
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Post by Galeon Chaos on Jun 4, 2009 2:11:56 GMT -5
Galeon blinked as he stood and watched Astaroth fly off towards the palace.
" Wow...That was something..."
He picked up both of his swords and sheathed them quickly and turned back to look at the Palace.
" I sure hope Iole wasn't in there...Jas and I wouldn't hear the end of that one..."
He sighed as he sat in the now hole on the wall and looked out over the town.
" Darn demon...She's lucky I don't have my full powers back yet...."
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The LPA
Experienced Novice
?Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.?
Posts: 142
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Post by The LPA on Jun 4, 2009 2:56:17 GMT -5
The surprise of the blast, unexpected by the Regent's forces, gives the LPA the upper hand and a push is swiftly followed. Rallying cries echo through the streets. Chants and songs of the revolution fly high into the sky, like the smoke from the ruins of the palace. The Regent's forces are pushed back, hard, some routed and cut down by the people others surrender or retreat, fleeing from the city. A new life has been injected into the revolution, like hyena's to a corpse, rebels descend on upon the palace grounds to gloat over their victory. They plant flags of the revolution into the ruble, and wave banners in the sky.
Iole is swamped by cheering soldier's, they push her aside to climb upon the mass of stone a metal which stretches on for blocks and rises nearly two stories above the streets. It is at this time, she feels a caring pair of hands on her arms that pull her up from the ground.
"Iole, are you alright, vhere are you hurt?" It's Sid, even through the ringing in her ears, she can hear that accent.
Connolly and many of the other Red Dragoons arrive as well, but their mood is not as joyous as their counterparts. They've lost a great soldier today, they bow their heads, covers over their heart as Connolly leads his brigade in a somber prayer, before the ruins, for their fallen comrade.
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Post by Iole on Jun 4, 2009 3:12:31 GMT -5
::Iole can't answer Sid except to say this::
I have to keep looking. He has to be here. He's not... he can't...
::Even with his arms around her, she keeps digging through the rubble. Her knuckles are bloody from her efforts::
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Post by Oliver on Jun 4, 2009 3:25:31 GMT -5
Sid pulls her away from the rubble, it was no use to search, not like this. "Iole, stop!" He insists. "He's dead, he couldn't of survived that. Don't hurt yourself too." He kneels down beside her, his hand resting on her back. "Iole... there's nothing ve can do now." He looks up, watching the scene unfold above them. Like shadows against a fire-lit sky, the LPA soldiers dance and cheer. Their bodies silhouetted against the smoke. Sid shakes his head, feeling a little disgusted by their actions. "I think ve best leave here for nov, Iole. Let's go back to the flat, you need to lay dovn."
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The LPA
Experienced Novice
?Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.?
Posts: 142
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Post by The LPA on Jun 4, 2009 4:10:34 GMT -5
There's a series of footsteps behind, its Connolly and the remainder of the Red Dragoons. Sid looks up to him, then back to the shocked Iole. Connolly nods, placing his beret back atop his head. He turns to one of his soldiers, mutters something then they run off only to return a moment later. "Iole, civilian's aren't allowed to be in the warzone." He turns and takes what the soldier had retrieved for him, then steps close behind Iole and kneels, she feels a blanket wrap around her, followed by another soft item. It smells strongly of Oliver. It's his scarf that he wore regularly, left behind before he left in the morning. Connolly places that too over her shoulders. "I was suppose to give it to you earlier, but with what happened this morning. I'm sorry. We're going to get you out of here for now, no fighting it. Commitsar Reynard is calling for a cease-fire to allow the foreign relief workers into the battle zone. If there is any developments, we'll let you know. Let Sid take you back home." "Come Iole." Sid helps Iole to her feet, its obvious he wasn't going to take any objections from her and in her state, she wasn't in a condition to fight it. "Comrade, do you have a car?" "Yes, take the staff car. I don't think I'll be returning back to camp tonight." "Very good sir." Sid guides Iole away from the ruble and pandemonium, his arms around her waist and shoulder, keeping her supported. "Let it out, I knov I vish I could." He whispers to her as they arrive at the staff car. He helps her into the passenger seat before walking around the car to the other side. He starts the car up then gives her one last light rub on her back. "Let's go back to Ollie's flat, the street vasn't hit in the bombings." ::Back at ground zero:: Connolly marches up the mound of rubble to the highest accessible spot and there he stands, looking out through the gaping hole in the wall, basking in the glorious sight of the green fields and meadows. It's been since the time of the Harvester when he last saw the outside world and what beauty it held. He turns around then, to gaze back at the smoldering city, it's ugly and burnt, but it is theirs, the peoples. A baptism through fire, a phoenix to be reborn. He reaches into his breast pocket and pulls out a flask, filled with fine whiskey he's been saving for this day. Quickly opening it and raising it in a silent toast to his beloved city-state. He puts it to his lips and downs several gulps, then pours the remainder of the liquid on to the rubble at his feet, a toast to the fallen. Here, he perceives he stands, at the threshold of the beginning of the new world that was long since prophesied. www.youtube.com/watch?v=arYCFuOdLKQ
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