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LP Chapter 29

Page history last edited by Volkes_Wagon 13 years, 1 month ago

White Paint, Brown Masks

 

     At the peak of the tallest mountain surrounding the Forest of Angels, it is possible to see the streets of its brethren city. It was a tradition of the Navi to go to the highest part of the terrain and look at the City every day, just to make sure that all was well and safe. The Minister was rather puzzled by this, and suggested a manmade structure be built that was even taller than the mountain and could be used to shoot arrows from. The leader of the Navi found the idea fascinating, and agreed to help the North build the structure in their village. The North laid out the stone foundation, which the Navi built on top of, adding wooden stairs and rooms along the pentigonal perimeter. It was clear that magic would be needed to keep the tent upright, so the people of the City cast a powerful Marksus spell, Levitation, on something that resembled a crow's nest, and then kept it tied down with wiry ropes. The Navi cut off the top of the tent, still laid on the ground, and the ropes were attached to the wooden rim. The structure was carried upright like a giant standing up from a long slumber. Quickly the rest of the construction was completed, and the Navi cast another Marksus spell on the ropes in order to increase the aim and power of an archer standing in the crow's nest. The completion of the Tent marked the third year since the Treaty of the Forest of Angels, and was hailed as a breakthrough in modern architecture [since of course there'd be awesome non-magic stuff that i have no clue how to do so i'm not mentioning them]; that is, the joining of South magic and North technology to create something neither could achieve alone.

--Black Hair, Red Skin, White Paint, Brown Masks

 

     Lightning struck.

     It was an instantaneous event. One moment Runo was running backwards with one eye on the Navi and one eye on the Tent. And the next his scarf was a charcoal mess. [yes he has a scarf it's striped green and flows out behind him. and as a clarifier, the lightning didn't hit him or the scarf, it landed behind him, he just ran into the air that was still super-heated. if that's possible.]

     The Navi seemed to have been waiting for it. Coolly she shot another arrow while Runo was still distracted, the blue light around her intensifying. He waved aside a swarm of Sparkflies [they love lightning, and only lightning. they travel at the speed of lightning times .95, but since they can instinctively predict where it'll strike, they manage to stay ahead] and ducked behind a tent, his back stinging a bit. If that had been a direct hit...

     He gritted his teeth. Fear of death would simply lead to it. He mentally smacked himself a second time when he realized that he had accidentally completed his line of thought.

     A sound of tearing fabric jolted him back to the problem. The arrow didn't make it past the tent's first layer. That probably meant he had time to figure out if the lightning had been caused by the Navi, or was just a coincidence.

     "Answer my question." A Sparkfly that still lingered around his scarf understood immediately that it was being addressed. It lit on his shoulder. "Did that woman make the lightning fall?"

     The Sparkfly was silent. Then it buzzed out its answer. "The Light of the Skies cannot be controlled, nor willed to fall; but a point may be set for it to reach, like an arrow to its target." It flew away before it could be asked another question.

     Runo could never get over how backwards his language issue was. The more primitive the creature he was speaking to, the easier they obeyed him, but the more cryptic their answers were. He had no idea what to make of this new puzzle.

     His line of thought was shattered by the sound of a screaming arrow. It sailed over the roof of the tent and dived towards him like a thing alive. He launched himself forwards, but the arrow turned in midair and tore at his pants before digging itself into the mud, quivering slightly. Navi arrows had moved before, but now it was suddenly so much stronger. The woman hadn't been waiting for him to make a move; she was making a move herself. There was no way that it had to do with wind. In fact--Runo gulped in a mouthful of air--the storm had reached a stiff standstill. There was no wind. The Navi's magic was something else.

     But what? She couldn't be controlling the wood or metal of the arrow; he had never seen her move her hands for anything besides aiming and shooting, and at the moment the tent was blocking her view. And the blue light. What could be causing it? [aw shucks i just realized it doesn't make sense for the shooter to be glowing...- __ -]

     There came another arrow whistling through the oppressing air. This time it came in from the side, arching towards his heart. It kept changing directions slightly, making its trajectory impossible to predict. Running, he knew, would only cause trouble. So he stood still and waited for the arrow to come.

 

     According to what Jay remembered from his life as a Blue Rider and what he had been taught in Angel City, magic was split into five general categories, slight variations between each tribe. The Navi was strictly Levista [i've discarded the old think-up-on-the-spot magic system. there're only five names now, at least in this context] magic; in other words, they could control one of the eight elements by making a specific motion.

     "Ah--so as the Navi point an arrow--"

     Yes, sir. They magnetically charge [?] their target as assigned by the direction of the arrow. Wherever their arrow would land upon release, the "charging" would occur. [yes? understandable? no?]

     "And this charging--is there any way to stop it?"

     In the same way as you would stop an arrow, sir. Keep in mind that the Navi can tell where an already charged object is by using their arrow like a compass.

     "They can charge anything?"

     Yes, sir.

     "Hmph." Vladimier fanned himself furiously with his sleek tophat. He must have felt terribly stifled with the wind gone. "At long last I take the initiative to aquaint myself with my neighbors. Alright, I'm ready for her now."

     Jay glanced down the side of the tent and saw the woman staring icily at the pair, slowly but easily drawing nearer. He shivered despite the heat that had plasted his hair against his forhead. "I'll cover you."

     "Listen, Jay." Vladimier met his eyes squarely. "There are some things you were meant to do, and some things you have no choice but to do. The best assignment is a combination of these two. What do you think you do best? Fighting people?" He nodded at the glimmering lights in the far, peaceful distance. "Or making them thankful?

     "Once a year this celebration happens. But this year is special. It's been fifty years [yeah, it's fifty, not twenty or whatever number i said it was. wait. what did i say it was? ...?] since the Angel's Treaty was signed, and for some incomprehensible reason, people have got to have an impeccable celebration for the number fifty. This is the most important day I have ever lived to see, and there isn't a single decent archer in Angel City. The Archer we had hired got in an accident, and the Navi, our backup archers, would rather use their arrows for other purposes. It's almost midnight, Jay."

     Jay's breath hitched.

     "What can you do? Think. What will you do?"

     He laid a hand on a closest rope. It was cold, wet, slippery. He could feel each small disturbance travel through the tight coils and snap against his fingers. It would be painful; but his hands were used to strings biting into their skin. He wrapped both of them around the rope.

     "I know...without even needing to think. I'll have to climb. Cover me."

     Vladimier raised his eyebrows. [these characters always seem to do this. i guess it can't be helped. they're anime characters, after all...]

     "I don't want to risk the magic in these ropes interfering with my aim." Dimly, he was surprised by how detached his voice sounded. But that was irrevelant. His mind was suddenly clear.

     Without waiting for an answer, he began to climb.

 

     The air had stopped moving, and the thin drops of moisture clung to Imaelka's clothes and seemed to fight against her movements like a pool of water. Her breathing was slow and heavy, even as her heart pounded painfully fast. Modaro's hand raised as if in slow motion. He reached backwards to draw an arrow from the quiver slung across his back. She imagined miniscule raindrops flinging from the ruffled feathers as they were dragged through the thick air, transparent beads covering his arm and springing off as his muscles flexed. She blinked, and the flat side of the silver stone was gliding against the wood of his bow. It gently rested on the leather grip.

     She managed to find her voice before Modaro could shoot. "You would kill me now?"

     "I do not wish to. I have given you too many chances to redeem yourself; you must be punished now."

     "For what? Implying that you're the weasel you are? I wonder what Father would say to that--his own daughter killed by the second-in-command when he should have been killing Norths. He'll blame you for loosing control of yourself before calling my actions worthy of execution."

     "Perhaps you joined the Norths. Perhaps you're a traitor wearing a white and brown mask. Look at you. You aren't even in disguise anymore."

     Imaelka wiped her forehead from sweat and glanced at her arm. There was no paint. It struck her that her face was now, for the first time, unpainted in public.

     She gathered herself and kept trying to subdue Modaro's temper. Her original goal of stopping the attack was discarded; all she needed to do was buy enough time for the City's army to prepare. Whether she lived or not was insignificant. "We're surrounded by well-reputed witnesses. You can't get away with lying."

     "Perhaps it's not a lie."

     "What proof do you have that I mean any harm? Because I don't."

     "The proof is those well-reputed witnesses you just spoke of."

     Imaelka hesitated. The soldiers that she could see were silent and grim, the picture of loyalty and unquestioning obedience. They had probably been selected to take part in the attack precisely for those traits. If they could follow a leader like Modaro, they would easily lie about her innocence.

     "You're wasting my time. I should have killed you long ago; but the advantage of letting you live is just too high. I'll give you one more chance. One last chance." He breathed in slowly, his equivalent of a comtemplative sniff, and relaxed his bow. "Say that you will marry me."

     She stared.

     "I never heard you say it from your own mouth, only from your father. Say it now. Will you marry me?"

     There was a dead silence. And then Imaelka laughed. "I've been looking for a chance to overturn Father's words for ages, and now here it is!"

     "What?"

     "If I say yes, you will let me live."

     "Of course."

     "...If I say yes, you will pull out the army."

     "Of course not. Ashalem, time is running late. Quickly answer the question. Keep in mind that it would be in everyone's best interest if you said yes."

     She grinned mockingly. Slowly, carefully articulating each word, she gave her answer.

     "I would rather die."

     There was another silence. It was longer that the first; she heard several fireworks set off during the pause. She couldn't stop smiling. Each second that nothing was done was a triumph, particularly with such magnificent parting words. She smiled as Modaro's face glazed over into injured shock. She smiled as it shattered in anger and the bow was realligned. And she would smile as she died.

     Suddenly he toppled over. A Navi had knocked his feet out from under him, and then Modaro was pinned to the ground by the Navi's knee against his chest.

     "Don't move."

     Merl pointed an arrow against Modaro's temple. She thought she was dreaming for a moment.

     "Merlaindalil!?"

     He was crouched with his eyes staring almost blindly at Modaro, bow and arrow shivering menacingly. He must have woven through the trees while everyone had been distracted and then attacked Modaro. Both his wounds were slowly eating away at his clothes, leaving a vivid red trail that faded black during the darkness between fireworks. His arrow tip didn't glint silver.

     Modaro gaped. "What--!?"

     "I said don't move." Merl coughed a little. "Tell yer men to turn round and sit tight in their tents. It's an order."

     "What--but you're just a--I'm a Commander, you--"

     Merl pressed the bloodied stone against Modaro's temple.

     "You..." He cast his eyes around frantically for help. His soldiers were silent. "...Ah, I know where I've seen you before! You were the one at the archery practice grounds. Yes--I remember you!"

     Merl faltered. It looked like he was trying, but his arm weakened. Only a professional could hold a bow string taught for very long.

     Modaro took heart in his apparent success. "You were the oldest person in the 10-meter range grounds. And no matter how long you tried to charge, you could never hit the target! You kept on trying, even when your meager magic had been completely dried up. And not once, not once did you even get close! And you know what I said?"

     He gave a quick little laugh, staring at the arrow tip from the corner of his eye. He's trying to buy time, Imaelka realized. And he's enjoying himself while he's at it.

     "I was on the second floor, walking by you [the archery grounds're mostly against the eatern hill], and I said to Recok--" He flashed a glance at one of the spectating soldiers. "That captain over there, I said to him--there's really no point in your type to keep trying, because every time you try to be a warrior, you'll just get in the way. You understand, don't you? Good, your mental abilities are intact. But just to make sure, I'll tell you nice and clear. You're more useful as a hunk of rock. At least then there's a chance you'll hit the target!" [im sry...i feel bad explaining this, but you know how they use rocks to make arrow tips? ...yeah]

     Modaro laughed. It was the most brutal laugh she had ever heard.

     Merl's bowstring loosened further, so that a shot would normally be less than fatal. "...My name."

     "What?"

     Merl spat a glob of red onto the ground. "Merlaindalil. Remember."

     "Oh! You're introducing yourself!" Modaro laughed again. "My apologies. I couldn't quite hear what your name was, could you say it again?"

     Merl's eyes lost their blind intensity.

     Suddenly Modaro dropped his bow and plunged forwards. "RECOK, THIS IS AN ORDER!!!"

     Merl let go of the bow string in surprise. The arrow glanced off Modaro's arm and ripped a gash across his back, but it didn't stop him. He scrambled towards the Navi named Recok. The aged man shifted in the trees.

     "RECOK!!! RANDE!!! LERI!!!" [these are more South names. they're quite common among Navi]

     Imaelka started to run. Modaro was screaming the names of every high-ranking officer who was there. A few of them fidgeted uncomfortably. The rest didn't even move.

     He saw her coming. His eyes bulged out and his screams intensified, drawing out a few reluctant officers. But she was already there. She closed her fist and looked down at him for a moment. There was fear written on his face, disbelief, and a pleading look in his eyes. She hated him. She really did.

     She brought her fist down with all the strength in her body combined with the momentum from her running. It landed somewhere sickeningly soft. He made a strange sound and tumbled backwards, flailing. She wanted to put him away, to get rid of him and lock him somewhere where she would never have to think about him again. She wanted to destroy him.

     Imaelka drew her hand back for a second blow. She was going to end it. All that hatred. All that sadness. Third blow. Where had it all started? It was beyond just a personal battle. Why had her father kicked the hornet's nest? Fourth blow. At what point did this battle end? Not with her own victory. It would end when her father saw what she was trying to protect.

     On the fifth blow, her hand landed on the ground. It was covered in blood. She looked at what she had done to Modaro's face, then turned away. She felt sick. Shakily, she stood up, looking around at the soldiers. "...I say it is about time for you to choose a new leader amongst yourselves." She found Merl still kneeling on the ground and went towards him.

     "...You're not gonna finish 'em off?"

     "No. If I did then I would be a hypocrit." [er...sp?]

     Merl gingerly sat down. He seemed too tired to talk, so she didn't ask him for advice. She needed help to sort out what to do. She still needed to see her father, but she didn't know what to say to him, if she managed to reach him at all. She had just attacked a Commander. Her head realed as the enormity of her crime sunk in. She had almost killed Modaro.

     "...Sorry."

     She looked up at Merl. His face was in his hands, and he was still bleeding. That's right, she also needed to get him to a hospital... "What?"

     "I won't repeat mahself." He kept his head down.

     "What? And now you give me sass?" They were both quiet for a while. "...I must also apologize."

     "What!?"

     "I won't repeat myself~."

     He looked at her angrily. "Sorry for what?"

     "Hmmn." She turned to watch the dwindling fireworks. "What indeed." She knew why. It just didn't seem right to say it at that time. She turned back and sat down with him. "Why are you apologizing?"

     "...He won't remember mah name." He cupped his chin with his hand and gazed listlessly at the lights. "I hate it when they do that. Like you're invisible. They only remember you when they start making fun of you, using names they made up themselves. I'm not a ragsack." He repeated it, as if to convince himself that it was true. "I'm not a ragsack."

     Imaelka nodded. "No you are not." She leaned closer. "But let me tell you one thing, Merlaindalil. Words are empty. It is the things they represent that truly matter. You, my friend, may be called a ragsack, but it would certainly be a very desirable ragsack that saved my life." She smiled. "I wonder what Modaro would say to that. He was defeated and made out as a coward by a ragsack." She pointed at his motionless body, which was being given first aid by one of the soldiers. "If that was the meaning of a royal Commander, I would very much rather be a ragsack of any kind. But your kind of ragsack is individual, and cannot be replaced. Yours is Merlaindalil."

     "...Really?"

     "I won't repeat myself, Merlsack."

     For the first time since they had met, she saw him smile. "Thanks."

     Then he swayed. His spine seemed to turn to jelly, and he fell backwards. She shot out her arm to catch him, but as his weight pushed down she realized how tired she was herself. She couldn't pull herself back up. They both started to fall. [i must admit i think this's kinda funny--but it's not supposed to be! it's a really short moment and very natural-looking in the film in my mind...TT - TT]

     A warm hand caught her. She saw Recok supporting her with one arm and Merl with another. "Ashalem. We've chosen our leader."

     "Mmn?" It was nice in his arm. It reminded her of her father. She slapped away her childish self and tried not to drift into sleep. "Who?"

     "You. It didn't take very long to decide, but I didn't want to intrude."

     "...Oh. Then...may I ask a favor? Three, actually."

     "Of course. I am second-in-command Recok, by the way."

     "Nice to meet you..." She forced her eyes to stay open. "Please take Merlaindalil to the hospital, pull back from the war...and take me to my father."

     "Understood. I'll take care of it, Ashalem. You rest."

 

     Runo prided himself for three main things: his hearing, his communication, and his speed. Perhaps his pride was leaning towards arrogance, but he had an excuse: he was still alive, a remarkable phenomenon considering what he had gone through. So he waited for the arrow, hand poised in front of his chest and eyes closed, with calm assurance that it could do no harm.

     He could hear the hissing of a sharp point piercing still air, the muffled tearing of feathers rippling through wind. He could feel the cold stone pass through the gap his cupped hand made [as in, like when you hold a glass of water, the arrow goes through the place where the cup should've been], and the second he felt that it was time, his hand snapped shut, his fingers curling around the wood like his life depended on it (which it did). The grooves in the wood slid across his palm so fast that it burned.

     He opened his eyes and grasped the rest of the shaft with his other hand, skipping backwards to keep the silver tip away from his shirt. The feathers at the end helped to stop the arrow from slipping further.

     The pull was strong. Remembering how long it took the ambushers to aim, Runo deduced that the longer a target was held, the stronger the pull. If the Navi was perpetually changing targets, then the arrow would be pulled more strongly in different directions and would seem to turn in midair. [is it...too complicated?] The blue light--he still didn't get that. Most likely it had something to do with the pull and the lightning. He wouldn't know, since he had never dealt with electricity before. At any rate, if the arrow's pull towards him grew any stronger, he wouldn't be able to stop it. Time was of the essence.

     When he had wrestled the arrow into control, he ran towards the Navi, wildly planning out what to do. He had more or less figured out what the Navi were, but how to stop it he had no idea. Maybe he should just knock her out like he had done to the others. But what if the magic didn't disappear when she lost consciousness? It could even grow stronger--he had seen it happen before. He could be stuck carrying an arrow around until she woke up again, or worse. No choice but to persuade her to cooperate.

     The Navi was staring straight through him with a blank expression on her face, faintly reminiscent [argh sp] of a goldfish. He was tempted to look over his shoulder and see what she was staring at, but since he didn't hear anything out of the ordinary, he kept running and started picking persuasion tactics. She wouldn't be easy.

     Then he saw a Sparkfly. A few steps away from the Navi, a Sparkfly zipped in front of him; not the same one as before, but it seemed to want to tell him something. It glanced at him with its black insect-eyes for a moment.

     And then the world turned white.

 

     "Yandebaba," Fenrika [fenri is derived from the Ancient South--in other words, Spellcast--word for "dream" (fahnr). "ka" is a royal/upper-class ending, usually for females. haha i just made up name patterns!!! <3] breathed. "I'm saved by her enemy." [...just call it a South saying. yes. from now on, if anything doesn't make sense, just call it a South saying...oh and the reason they only say yandebaba's name, not her enemy, is because if you speak the name of her enemy, he'll drop whatever he's doing and see what's up. he may or may not help you, but in the meanwhile everything he should be doing--like blowing wind or growing trees or making the stars and the sun revolve--will be ignored and may get messed up.]

     The smoking hole in front of her was partially obscured in her eyes. She had momentarily been blinded by the lightning. It wasn't nearly as strong as the first fireworks had been, but it hurt all the same.

     She was so close to being defeated. He had been so close. Yandebaba, he had actually caught her arrow with his bare hands. But luck was on her side, it seemed, and she nodded her head for the lightning and her own magic. The threat was gone. Obliterated. She turned to check on her twin sister.

     "I get it."

     The hairs on the back of her neck shot up. She looked around with the corner of her eye.

     "A path may be set. An arrow to its target. The lightning"--he waved a finger at the sky--"was drawn towards me in the same way that your arrows were drawn towards me. Except you couldn't choose when to fire."

     He was covered with a charred mass that made him look twice his size. As he spoke, the mass separated into small, wriggling...Fenrika didn't dare look fully around. "And? What do you hope to gain by this discovery?"

     "Your fear."

     "Ridiculous, I will not be frightened by such a thing. The lightning will come again. And if it does not, I can shoot you with my arrows--"

     "Why are you afraid then?"

     Fenrika paused. With injured pride she swiveled around, surveying him with venemous eyes. The sight she saw put her off guard for a moment. He stood just like he had before the lightning had struck, calm, but watching her with intense animosity and ready to spring forwards at the slightest irritation. His golden eyes had catlike slits instead of pupils, with a deep black ring surrounding his irises. They seemed to pin her against the wall, boring into her soul, dragging down her mind. And all around him were Sparkflies.

     She struggled to remember her goal. "I don't know what you're talking about."

     "Everyone's afraid of something." The Sparkflies had formed something resembling a cage that ran down to the ground, connected by touch to each insect as they arched over the South. They had acted like a lightning rod, directing the lightning into the ground with their own small charges. The red-haired South hadn't even been touched. Now they were beginning to disperse, buzzing with insect wings and electric sparks. "You're afraid of me right now. I want to know why."

     "I'm not afraid of you!" She set an arrow as smoothly and calmly as she could. Her hand shook. "You're nothing but a hindrance to the Master's plan! Controlling mere insects changes nothing!"

     "The Master?" He gave a devilish smile. "Ah, I see. So that's your fear."

     She stared. Her mouth moved to form words, but no sound came out. Her mind was at a complete loss.

     "And I don't control insects. I just ask a favor, and they do it. Want to know why?" He started to walk towards her. The dust clung to his feet in billowing clouds. "They know they've lost the fight before it's even begun. I can break them in half without batting an eyelash, and they know it. Insects are simple, you see. They follow out of fear. That's why they're dull."

     He had crossed half the distance now. Fenrika tried to stay focused and aimed her arrow again, determined not to slip.

     "People are different. Some people, when they're afraid, do everything they can not to listen to you. Others obey your wishes twice as adamently, all the while looking for a chance to run away. People are anything but dull. But watch this."

     He was right in front of her now. She was mentally screaming for her hand to let go of the bowstring, but it refused to do it. It felt like someone had ripped out a piece of her gut. She just couldn't shoot the arrow.

     "Let go."

     Her mind went blank. The words echoed in her empty brain for a while before she could comprehend the meaning. Her first instinct was to do the opposite: hold on. But then she looked up and saw the South's face. It was so overflowing with killing intent [pshh yes XD manga thing, in hxh it's called nen] that his black thoughts were almost visible, obscuring his face except for his yellow cat eyes. His wrath filled the corners of her sight, suffocating, constricting, demanding. Her knees buckled. Vaguely, she heard her bow and arrow clatter to the floor. The magnetized arrowhead grated softly against the ground.

     "People are still too easy. My specialty isn't controlling animals. I tame them. And I'm going to tame everything in this world that has a voice and doesn't know what to do. Taming people is just the first step. I'm aiming for things stronger than them." He bent down so that his eyes were level with hers. "I'm going to tame a demon. Release your spells."

     She couldn't think of resisting. She couldn't think at all. One by one, she discharged [?] each target she had marked. She stopped glowing--instead, the electric charges of her targets became visible, feeding into her clawed hand until all that was left was the South's heart. She hesitated, her hand still frozen in the claw. The arrowhead was still edging stealthily towards its destination. Somewhere in the back of her mind, the part of her that was still conscious was nawing nervously. She didn't know what she was doing. All she could remember was that something had happened to her twin sister and her Master. Her conscious self wore away at her nerves. The Master. She needed to help the Master.

     "The Leader guy? Don't worry about him, he's fine."

     The veil lifted, and like water held up at a dam, her mental abilities flooded back. She blinked hard and stared at the face in front of her.

     "You're helping him the wrong way. Did you see that just now? If I wanted to hurt him I would've done it a long time ago. I'm actually trying to help him right now. Do you see, he needs to sort out what happened with the Minister. He thinks he's obliged to murder a whole city in cold blood, but he's not a cold-blooded person, is he. The Minister can help him figure out the difference between what he needs to do and what other people want him to do. Encouraging him to do things that he's not even sure are right would just push him over the cliff. Killing us wouldn't help him in any way. So please. Let me go."

     Her mouth was moving like a goldfish again, this time while her teeth were chattering. She felt numb and frozen over with a layer of ice, even though the air had become oppressingly warm. After a while of quiet deliberation, she discharged her last target.

     She still couldn't think clearly. She was certain that the South had used magic on her, but it was supposed to be impossible to use Levista on a living creature in any way. Somehow she just felt so...dependant. In a good way. It was almost like...she trusted what he was saying. "You promise? You promise we can stay together?" [oh dear it sounds weird--she's referring to her sister and yera. he kind of like adopted them--didn't have space to put that in here.]

     "Yeah. I give you my word--and I never break my promise. I have to go now. Could you go check on the Leader's daughter? Bring your sister with you."

     Her patted her lightly on the shoulder, and then he was gone.

 

Table of Contents

Chapter 28

Chapter 30

Comments (13)

Volkes_Wagon said

at 11:44 pm on Nov 27, 2010

hold on a sec. is it even possible to be "thrown forwards" by lightning? @ - @

Volkes_Wagon said

at 11:27 pm on Dec 3, 2010

woah, cool. click on the speech bubble next to "last edited"

Mokona Go said

at 12:34 am on Dec 4, 2010

O_o

Volkes_Wagon said

at 10:54 pm on Dec 4, 2010

i learned today how lightning works. i was...very ignorant. pretend that ruru got hit and somehow miraculously is still perfectly fine. minus some burns on his hand and foot.

Volkes_Wagon said

at 11:57 pm on Dec 12, 2010

okay no ruru only got hit once. i don't care anymore that it doesn't make an iota of scientific sense, it's MAGIC - 3 -

Mokona Go said

at 11:01 pm on Dec 4, 2010

nah, he's already dead.

Volkes_Wagon said

at 11:30 pm on Dec 4, 2010

pfft

Volkes_Wagon said

at 6:50 pm on Dec 6, 2010

MAJOR SPOILERS but if i don't put a note to myself I'll forget this for sure and i just made this up so here: basically merl can see the "shadow cast from fate". a shadow is cast by an object obscuring light, right? it a person twists fate for their own reasons with enough resolve and enough impact, they will be "spiritually dense" (*cough i might change that term) enough to "cast a shadow from the stream of fate"; time and light are really similar aren't they? anyways, this shadow normally can't be seen and does nothing but erodes the soul, a process i've yet to elaborate on. it's very burdensome to carry such a weight on your footsteps. as you will see (maybe?) it's very connected with the production and consumption of Lachryma. i don't know how yet...haha...
i'm proud to finally come up w/ an original way to do smth cool w/ shadows; ppl have already used it in so many interesting ways...<3 but i'll cut it out if you guys think it's ridiculous. it's in its developmental stages. and now the climaxes of this arc are gonna change like mad...

Volkes_Wagon said

at 11:17 pm on Jan 22, 2011

i'm cutting that out. too complicated.

Ava Knight said

at 11:00 pm on Dec 17, 2010

really, i am so lost...
i've reread the story sooooo many times and i'm still confused
but i really wanted to make an anime for this, i just need the software

Volkes_Wagon said

at 8:35 am on Dec 18, 2010

hahah. maybe reading the comments will help clarify things.
but yes it's a mess cuz it's a spazz story and that's why it's fun. XD
still...i can clarify smth if you don't get it, just say which part...

Volkes_Wagon said

at 2:31 pm on Dec 23, 2010

...i am a horrible person.
forgive me. TT ~ TT
...
uwaaahhhhhh TT O TT

Volkes_Wagon said

at 4:58 pm on Dec 31, 2010

urgh >.< FINALLY!!! the longest chapter i've even written is comPLETE!!!!

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