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Soldier Mission - Favor for Fury
Topic Started: Jun 21 2013, 03:32 AM (2,033 Views)
Chaude
"Chaude"
 
Counting his timing, Rune expertly got the grenades to explode in mid-air against the ridge's walls. A landslide had roared down, as Rune was already running like there was no tomorrow. As the rocky boulders of various sizes came tumbling down, the quad-legged mecha tried firing at the larger boulders, before being overcome by the slide itself. The slide kept going still, destroying parts of a nearby farm field.

"Whooh, Rune, you sure know how to lay it on them!" Tepo finds him panting like he's about to have a heart attack.

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Knight
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Chaude
"SwordXRequiem"
 
The explosion threw Rune to the ground. For a few minutes he deliberately ignored Tepo's comment while panting continuously. A few minutes of relieve and rest he had earned after those daring acts. His body was at its limit, he won't be able to go on without rest. At least the landslide would block the path for a day, so a five minute break won't hurt them.

"Yeah, I just hope they will keep on laying low." He answered with a bad pun. Rune get up and lean on the wall. After finding the most comfortable position between the rocks, he took some deep breaths filling his lungs with fresh air. "Can you help me to stand and walk? We better have gone far enough when people checked for the landslide."

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Knight
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Chaude
"Chaude"
 
"I suppose I can. Can't let my contractor die on me," Tepo grins as he helps Rune stand and walk over to the girls.

"Well, we're finally free of those morons, so what will you two ladies plan on doing?" Tepo wondered.

"T-thank you for rescuing me, sirs. It may be possible to return to Grotto Village and seek refuge there."

"That means a seven hour walk from here," Emilia chimes in reality check. "If we start now, we can make it after sunset."

"You think you can do it, Rune?" Tepo asked. "I mean, you did go through all that to save these two."

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Knight
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Chaude
"SwordXRequiem"
 
"I was never good with hard works, but yeah, I might be able to walk for seven hours with occasional breaks," Rune answered calmly. He has started regaining enough power to stand on his own. "We better start walking before anyone got here."

Now, as he has calmed himself, he suddenly realized something. "Oh yeah, Mia, you should change your clothes. Slaves aren't supposed to walk this freely, aren't they?" Rune reminded the party about Mia still wearing her rugged clothes.

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Chaude
Blushing, Mai knew Rune was right about that, but where to get a fresh pair? Her mother chimes in.

"I managed to gather your favorite travel clothes and your father's sword," pulling her large bag over her shoulder and gently onto the ground.

Emilia searched and searched, finding and pulling out the articles of clothing and points out a rock to change behind. Doing so, it didn't take long before Mai returned in a light hunter green and beige mountain dress, with the sword strapped around her waist.

"Thank you for waiting. Shall we?"

As everybody began the long trek, the first 3 hours were uneventful, if not boring for Tepo and his self-mumblings. Though the first break everybody had bread Emilia brought along. As the sun sets low, there's about two hours of sunlight. Reaching to a three-way intersection in the mountain pass, Tepo mentions something.

"Oh yeah, turning to the left here would go down to the dig site I was stationed at a few years back. Wonder if that site made any progress?"

To turn left means going on a side route though Tepo explains that the area hasn't been mapped out much from wild beasts. Keeping straight would eventually lead to Grotto Village and dropping the girls off there and continuing the mission.
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"Sword? Didn't see that coming. Oh well, it wasn't like I never see girls younger than her with weapons." Rune thought. He refrained himself from talking during the three hours walk. Walking itself consumed most of his energy, talking would just waste more.

"Can we get there before the sun completely sets? It seems we wouldn't made it to Grotto village in time. A shelter for the night could help us a lot."
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Chaude
"Well...there's a couple of spots," Tepo hesitates. "There's this one spot another half hour from here, and there's the Beastmen tribe further off the road an hour away from here."

"But the Gro'ner Tribe is on good terms with Grotto Village," Emilia rebuke's Tepo's hesitation about the tribe.

"Yeah? Then tell me why I had to place my butt on the line from one of their raiders a while back?"

"How am I suppose to know? I haven't lived in the area since I was a little girl," Emilia gave up only turning to Rune.

"Maybe we could spend the night in that open spot Tepo mentioned?" Mia chimes in a little sheepishly.

Seems like Tepo is against the idea of asking the Beastmen tribe for lodging and food for the night.
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"I agree with Mia, I have enough running and walking for today. I don't want to get into more problems than we already have in our hands." Rune decided for the team.

Actually, he felt some uneasiness with the beastmen. For the last few years of his life, Rune had killed numerous beastmen during the war. He wouldn't know what to do if he would met one of them. Of course, they wouldn't know about him killing their kind, but still... His heart wasn't prepared for those things.
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Chaude
With Rune's comment, things settled down, and the last half hour walk for the day came swifter than thought. As Tepo mentioned, there's a large open area with a previously built campfire and some logs near it. All it would take is some tinder and flint to start the fire up.

Much of the sunlight has set below the horizon, giving about another half hour of daylight left, if one were to reckon.

Emilia unwraps her bag and starts preparing dinner, but needs the fire to finish cooking. Mai is hesitant of their surroundings, but helps to her mother's beckoning. Tepo mentioned about setting up a perimeter and had vanished over the small rocky dune surrounding them on three sides.
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Rune was too exhausted to wander around anymore. Being finally in a place where he could rest, it seems Rune just want to lie down and off with his dreams. Unfortunately, there are still things to be done. He let Tepo handle with the perimeter issue, his energy level was not enough for helping him in it. Instead, he helped the girls with the fire.

From his pistol last magazine, Rune took out a few bullet and remove the gunpowder inside them. He shot it with his pistol to make a fire lit in the campfire. Finding flint and tinder was too troublesome for Rune. He proceed to tell what they have to do. "Tonight we better take turns guarding the fire. Tepo will take the first order, Emilia second, Mia third and I'll be the last. I won't last long if I were the first. Just wake the others if you sense any danger."
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Chaude
Emilia and Mia were shocked, yet impressed, by Rune's resourcefulness in starting the fire. As Tepo got back, Rune recommended night duty turns, with Tepo first up. Grumbling underneath his breath, Tepo knew Rune was right in this situation. After all, they're not too far away from a nearby Beastmen village.

As the night dragged on, Tepo spotted nothing. Switching later with Emilia, same thing happened. Mai's turn however...

Anybody who's a light sleeper could hear her distress.
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SwordXRequiem
This night again, another nightmare haunted his sleep. Here he was once more, standing in front of his best friend.

"Introduction, Cadet."

"Sir, yes sir! Ruindja Iorune, 14 years-old. Spent the last three years in boot-camp. Still green and all yours."

"Well, well, well, it's a coincidence kiddo, my first name is the same as yours. Ruindja Gillmore, second lieutenant of the 58th platoon. From now on, you'll be Rune and I'll be Gill. That will do until one of us dead. Are you clear with that?"

"Sir, Yes Sir!"

"Now, tell me, do you join this war to avenge your parents?"

"No, Sir! Both of them are alive and well. I joined to keep them alive!"

Suddenly, the scene changed. His hand holding a handgun. New model from the beastmen technology, still have the old way to work. You pull the trigger, and the man standing in front of the barrel died. For the thirty four time after he left the war, he killed his only lasting comrade again.

The reoccurring nightmare was the reason Rune chose to be the last watchmen. He would always woke up before the sunrise, covered in nightmares. This time, he doesn't have the leisure to cry over the dead body. Rune was alerted by a noise forcing him to woke up from hell.

Other than his nightmares, Rune's years of military service had sharpen his senses and awareness. Prolonged war has taken the toll in Rune's habit of sleeping, now he would react to most alerts even during his sleeps. Fully awake thanks to the nightmare, he quickly grabbed his pistol and sneak to see how Mia's doing.
Edited by SwordXRequiem, Jun 28 2013, 04:50 PM.
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Chaude
As Rune sneaked to the scene of Mia's shockful distress, he could see three things going on. First, Mia scared stiff looking back out onto the road. Second, Tepo's perimeter measures consisted in the form of miniturized turrets that have activated and are pointing their red targeting lasers back out onto the road. The third thing was what those red targeting lasers were pointing at.

Beastmen.

The turrets also had floodlights on them allowing both Rune and Mia to see the Beastmen clad in simple garments of cloth and leather. There were four of them. One looking like a golden lion, the other two looked like panthers, and the fourth one looked like some foxy priestess. One of the two panther beastmen had a bullet wound at the shoulder, as the priestess was using healing magic on him.

They mumbled in their tongue, unsure how to converse with Mia. finally the golden mane beastmen spoke.

"Where's the Gun Minstrel?" He called out.
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"Damn, the last thing I want to see for now..." Rune curses. He wanted to ask Emilia whether she knew about who the beastmen mentioned, but the situation has gone hotter faster than he expected. Without much choice, he decided to come out from his hiding.

He ignored the beastmen and walked to Mia. "Go back and ask your Mom to come here. Stay back in camp with Tepo," he ordered clearly to Mia. At the same time, he sent an e-mail to Tepo, asking him to prepare for battle if necessary.

After done with all that, Rune turned to the beastmen. He remembered how he killed hundreds or even thousands of them. He remembered all the bloody scene he saw from his sniper scope. It was awkward just to face them who knew nothing. He tried his best to look calm and composed so the beastmen wouldn't misunderstand him.

"We set up a perimeter to keep beasts away yet what we got are some beastmen." Rune sighed before continuing. "To answer your question, we don't know. Plus, we didn't meet any beastmen on our way here. So unless you tell me who - or what - is it and why you're asking us about it, I believe we can do nothing about it."

To gain their trust - or at least lower their guard - Rune threw his handgun on the ground. "In any case, we don't mean any harm." He crossed his arms in front of his chest, waiting for their reply. Hiding his right hand behind his left arm, he took out a smoke grenade from the bracelet. Covered by his arm and the night, it was his insurance for a battle.
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Chaude
Mia did without a word and rushed back to the camp site. Tepo replied back saying if they're beastmen, and especially if they start asking for a gun minstrel, first, that would be him. Second, best that Rune feint ignorance for avoiding a fight.

"Gun Minstrel is no Beastmen. He be Human like you, wearing a suit of armor, and tosses capsules that turn into those detestable turrets pointing at us right now," the golden maned beastmen replied.

The priestess-like beastmen seemed to have eased her tensions a bit when Rune lowered his weapon. The unharmed panther beastmen has something to get off his chest.

"Then what are these turrets? Surely he must be here! Bring out your companions, so we can see," the panther smirked with his demand.
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"Awww man, were you going to see or to capture and kill the Gun Minstrel?" Rune smirked back at the panther. At the same time, he send another reply for Tepo to stay at the camp so he could protect the girls and asked what business they got with him. "Could you at least tell me why you're searching for him? I don't want to get caught -or worse, killed- because of things I didn't know. Besides, I just met the man who build these turrets a few days ago on my way here."
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Chaude
"We were returning home from our duty, when the turrets sprang to life and shot at us," came the female feline.

"Kill him of course!" the black panther shouted as if it was common sense.

"Enough Dormar," came the golden mane leader.

Everybody suddenly went silent as Emilia had come out. At first she was shocked but then she remembered.

"Is...is that really you Yagar," Emilia spoke up.

The golden mane beastmen chuckled in surprise.

"We isn't it Emilia. Was that your daughter then? She do smell like you."

Emilia walked close to them, that not even the turrets could do anything if one of them would attack her.

"Mai and I are seeking refuge in Grotto Village. Mr. Rune here has freed Mai and some other slave folk from an auction yesterday. We happen to be heading in the same direction, so he offered to take us there."

Yagar mumbled in silence, reflecting on what Emilia had said.


"Then what about these turrets!? Surely, you have another member with you," Dormar tried to press his case.

"We..." Emilia began to speak.

Emilia has no idea that Tepo is the one and the same Gun Minstrel and letting her reveal his location would be very bad indeed.
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Knight
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"Are currently traveling with a murderer of your race. Is that what happened?" Rune cut to the chase of the conversation before Emilia could continue her sentence. He walked calmly - with his hands still crossed - next to Emilia before staring directly to Yagar's eyes. Even though he gave the impression of calm, his heart actually beat wildly inside. He doesn't have any chance winning any fight against the Beastmen group in this close of a range. However, Emilia was in a much greater danger. Were the beastmen misunderstood, her lives would gone in less than a second.

"Mr. Yagar, may I ask 3 question before we see whether the man we're traveling with to confirm his identity?"
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Chaude
"So be it," Yagar agreed.

Dormar tried pointing out Rune's comment of indeed traveling with one that kills their clansmen, much to Yagar's rebuke to silence Dormar's accusations without proof by word alone.
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Knight
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"First question: What are the crimes the Gun Minstrel have committed? Second question, is there any way to redeem the sin of those crimes? Please answer these before I ask my third question."
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