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A loud shock-wave rang through his ears. The butt of the riffle snapped backwards as 15mm bullet flew free of the spiraled barrel. He watched the vector line pass straight through the heart of a rebel bellow; the sword of the young girl dropping in hand. Her body fell limp to the ground with a thud, blood flowing into a steady stream of sewer water.
"Keep firing!" his commander shouted, a blow hearted old man, whom looked as if he hadn't ridden a Chocobo once in his life. "Drive the swine back! Show them that they shall receive no mercy from the Empire!"
The sniper's eyes rolled. Of all the squads he could have landed himself on, it had to be the back water parts of the country side, fighting remnants of Rozarrian rebels barely managing to get by on scraps of bread. Dogs indeed. He knew deep down this fight would not last for another minute at most. Still, there was no point for his commander's sake to boast about it like this was to be the turning point of the war.
As he moved to reload the large rifle, he felt a hard hand come down on his shoulder. He exhaled in a sarcastic sigh before turning his yellow eyes upwards, seeing the fat commander towering over him. "I saw that, Grunt!" he bellowed.
The Sniper rolled his shoulder out from underneath the mans grip, causing him to slightly loose his balance. " Picking fights with me already? You know, keep up that attitude, and people are going to think you're drunk on a regular basis. Don't tell me that you've broken into the rations of celebratory ale early, again have you?"
"I don't care who your father is, I shall not be having your attitude infecting the men in the midst of a battle," the old man continued, moving a hilt to his pistol, and drawing it merely inches away from the snipers temple. "What was the eye roll for boy! Do you have a problem in my orders, or is this a sign that you've drawn up some feeling of sympathy for the enemy of the Empire??"
The teenager did not answer. He could only surmise a chuckle. Opening up a casing, he loaded the barrel and cocked the gun over the barrack once more, as if ignoring the other man entirely, searching for targets.
"What, may I ask, is so damned funny, about having a gun aimed at your skull??"
His eyes glanced down the sight, spying a small child peering out from a mass of toppled boxes. The child looked quickly about side to side before running out into the skirts of the fray, grabbing a body with all of his might in an attempt to drag a man off into the shadows. The man he was helping had a slash wound to the stomach. He would live if he received proper medical attention.
The sniper watched the two for a moment before raising the cross hairs of his scope, unknowingly, to the center of the child's forehead.
"Just the context of that question, sir, is idiotic if I may be so bold," he said softly eyes unmoving, hands steady. "The only thing I feel for these people is a recoil."
-Day 237-
The bar was packed to the brim with soldiers. Passing through the Capital city, they stopped merely for scheduled maintenance, and restocking of supplies. Dalmasca had been subjugated with an alliance with the empire for nearly two years now, but tensions still ran rather high. For their own protection the soldiers were ordered to stay within the quarters of the Air Ship, Odin. He moved through a sea of bodies, feeling as if half of the battalion had been stuffed into the air ship's bar. A celebration was underway for the return venture. Moving to the end of the bar he noticed another of the soldiers packing up their belongings. Quickly claiming the stool out from under the man, he nodded quickly to the other as he left. He received a quip of a smile back, though the sniper could only manage a shrug in reply. He was still in an obvious mood, counting down the hours until this bloody ship was to leave port. He couldn't wait to be out of this god forsaken armor, and give his father a good piece of his mind.
"Roan!" he heard a voice call from behind him, before he felt another body close to his backside. The crowds were more so likely due to the case, but arms wrapped around his neck in a friendly hug. The arms then snapped up sharply in a head lock.
"Hey now!" A smile begun to crack on the corners of his lips, tossing his head backwards. Brown highlighted bangs fell out of his face seeing the person who was playfully strangling him. Another male flanked him, his long blue hair pulled back into a tight pony tail. The two struggled for a moment before the grip was released. Roan fell forwards onto the bar, before he swung his hips, turning the seat about. He slouched backwards, moving his left hand to his throat. All's fun in love and war, he supposed but nothing stung quite as strongly as a headlock from another soldier who was a) a trained killer and b) arms were clad in full scale armor. Nooooot the best choice of fashion perhaps for the Arcadian army, when boys went to rough house.
"Espers above, Lau! The heck was that for?"
The other smirked, cocking his to the side. "Well someone has to make sure you stay in line," he said before leaning forwards, dodging someone moving past him. He squeezed in next to Roan, putting his elbow on the cherry wood counter. "You know the commanders may fear giving you crap because your father is a Judge, but I'm your friend. What else would I be doing in this battalion, instead of making sure you stay in line?"
Roan's head rolled, sarcasm dripping from his eyes. "Oh give me a break..."
Lau turned away, for the moment flagging down the bar tender. "Two glasses, please, Bhujerban scotch," he requested, placing two gold coins on the bar. The red skin Bangaa keeper nodded shortly, sweeping the coins quickly away out of sight. A snort came out of his long muzzle for stepping away to retrieve the order.
Fingers flicked upwards, one at a time, as he started to count aloud. "One, two - you know this is the fifth time you've bought me drinks over the last month now. If I didn't know any better, you'll ask me to dinner and a show the second we get back Archades-"
"Oh will you shut up, smart a**," Lau chuckled, turning back to the other. "You've been in a mood for the last three weeks now. And the quips have been running constant ever sense. You know we're out of our term in a week- You keep at it like this, one of these days Hegamen's gunna request that your skills could still be better used, or get your leave overturned and send your a** right back out into the Sandsea."
Roan told himself countless of times, knowing his father would never allow that, but he couldn't stop himself from shuddering. As if wearing a suit of armor wasn't bad enough, imagine it in near 90 degree in the lows every day for a near total of seven months, AND trying to keep sand from various sand storms out of said armor making your skin crawl like it was on fire. And that was just the weather - 'If there is a hell in Ivalice, it is within those sands.'
"Meh, I've done my time... If anything my contract ends in two weeks same as yours so it doesn't matter where they send me next. Once that time is up, I'm heading home," he said looking up to the ceiling, the hearing the echos of the bar bounce off the metallic platting of the room. "I'll walk the path to and from the Highlands a dozen times over if I have to - I just want a bed and possibly a front row seat at a night club down town."
Lau sighed. Mentioning something along the lines of 'spoiled brat' before two full glasses were placed infront of them. The drinks glowed with a crystalline blue. Lau took the two glasses before shoving one into the others hand. "That still doesn't explain your attitude. You of all people, I would have expected, should be glad we're going home. Seriously, Roan, speak. What's on your mind?"
Roan paused, feeling the cold drink between his fingers, the condensation dripping down the sides of the glass. He brought the rim to his lips, letting a swig slip. The drink burned in the back of his throat as he swallowed, shaking his head quickly as the initial shock set in. "If ever there was a story I needed to be drunk over... Its my father... Just thinking of the last things we said to each other before I was shoved into this stupid venture," he started, eyes staring dead ahead.
"Judge Ghis?"
"Yeah..."
The bar continued carrying on as normal, but between the two friends, there was a dead silence.
"You know it was his idea that I join the Imperial Army, right? He also dropped the bomb on me that he had signed a contract with some b*****d that owns about 60% of the steel mills that supply the Empire the supplies needed to build air ships. He's marrying me into their family as a 'business transaction'."
Lau whistled. "Damn," he thought aloud. "You've been engaged all this time and never told me?"
"The only way to break it is if one of the three of us die; Ghis can't use the mills if the shares fall to another one of the owners; The girl I'm signed onto is only fifteen- too young to run a business. And since the rebels and my mouth haven't killed me yet... That leaves the old man."
"...Roan, you can't be serious."
"Dead serious. There's two three inch gaps in his helmet visor. I'm the best shot this army has to offer, he boasted so himself. I can make that shot from 300 yards with a standard commission rifle."
"What you speak of is ludicrous," he said, tone becoming more hushed; he leaned in closer so that the other members of the bar should not overhear. "You cannot kill a Judge, let alone-"
"He's still a hume. Same as you and me."
"The man is your father."
"The man is an opportunist," Roan corrected, his eyes narrowing, looking to his friend. "To him, I'm just another one of his pawns on a chess board. You don't know him like I have, he treated my mother the exact same way. Well I'm not doing it. It was bad enough he forced me to join the Army to better his standings in politics," he spat, his tone raising. Few of the other men turned his way, eyebrows raised. Roan quickly raised his glass in their direction, forcing a look onto his face as if he were starting to turn for the worst in a drunken stupor. "'JOIN THE ARMY!' They told me~ 'SEE THE WORLD' they said, 'It'll be FUN!' they said~!"
A few of the onlookers laughed, raising their glasses in compliance before returning to their eyes amongst their own parties. Roan's expression returned to the norm as well, though he couldn't help but keep a small smirk on his lips in self amusement.
Lau lifted a hand to the brim of his eyebrow, rubbing his forehead. "After one sip, you're acting like your drunk that's forced you to start talking about not only killing an Imperial Judge but a blood relative as well. I'm tempted to ask the bar keep, what the hell did he put into these drinks."
"I'm not drunk," he started, lifting the glass to his lips again, "Not yet at least... I don't expect you to understand Lau. I didn't even want to get you involved with this, but hey. You asked. Hopefully it won't even come to that. Another option is just leaving without a word... I refuse to be his tool. The man has no honor in him. Everything's a stationary game. He could rip another man's heart out if it thought it would grant him eternal life, and not shed a single tear. I'm tired of doing his bidding. I'd rather serve the Empire till the blackness takes me, but not even my loyalty to the Emperor and love of country can save me from him."
Silence eased between them again. The moment passed before Lau shook his head. He turned fully to the other, eyes serious. "I'd see you run, rather than bring the Armada down upon your head. At least between the two, it would be the more graceful of the two options. My uncle is a port master in Balfonheim. The scenery is not much but hr may be able to to give you a place to stay. His rent's reasonable though there's a minor downside. You'll have to shack up with me."
"Been doing that for a half of year now, so my a** can deal with it for another year or so," Roan continued closing his eyes. He didn't feel too comfortable to the idea of leaving Archades behind, but killing Ghis would give him a similar end. Exile or a life in prison perhaps whenever he was caught. "Yeah, I can drink to that."
The two raised their glasses towards each other, latching arms in a lock leaning in like brothers before downing their drinks in a single gulp.
That was when the warning lights started flashing. Roan's eyes lifted to the speakers as all men in the bar fell silent.
"-ATTENTION ALL PERSONNEL. RETURN TO YOUR POSTS. THE SHIP SHALL BE LEAVING HARBOR AT 13:00. MILITARY PERSONAL ARE TO RETURN TO THEIR ROOMS, AND REPORT TO A DEBRIEFING AT 13:50."
Lau raised an eyebrow, pulling a pocket watch from a side satchel. "... That's in ten minutes time. How the heck do they expect to launch an air ship in that time, when the men where on leave for the night?"
"I'm not sure," Roan said, placing the glass on the counter and jumping to his feet. "But I'm about to find out." The young man pushed his way through the crowd of soldiers, seeing a man in ships uniform directing people into a stair well. "HEY!" he yelled, the alcohol thick on his breath. "What the hell is the captain thinking? Taking off like this? I got two weeks left before I'm on leave; I'm not getting carted around again for random a** bull s**t!"
The officer didn't blink to his tone, pointing down to the stair well as if shewing them away. He seemed preoccupied. "The Odins been called back to the Fleet in Central Rozarria. Its out of your hands, soldier, just do as your told."
"We just got out of that godforsaken desert- " Roan growled in disgust. "Why the hell are we going back?"
The officer turned fully to Roan, opening his mouth as if ready to tell the younger man off, but he stopped. Roan had that effect on people unfortunately for his reputation. His eyes scanned him, uncertainty in his eyes, mixed with an odd sense of shame and pitty. "I'm... I'm sorry sir. I'm sure you'll find out as soon as we get there but... The Dreadnought Leviathan.. the ship has been destroyed."
-to be continued-
 AquilisNoctis · Mon Feb 27, 2012 @ 06:24am · 0 Comments |
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