ABANDONED BUILDING ACROSS FROM KREMLIN: Spade; > OUTSIDE KREMLIN: Spade, Xingese NPC's, (Alisa); > BUILDING NEAR RED SQUARE: Peizhi

[Guest]

A hand touched the top of his head, and he let free a soft breath. His Spade was there. Not Nanaya's, his. Knowing that now, he slowly stood up, and sighed softly, closing his eyes lightly. "Don't scare me like that." Saeji shook his head and smiled brightly at his older brother. "Never again, Spade, never again." He nodded confidently, completely sure that his alter ego had finally left to the world, dissolved to the winds. And then... a scream. He didn't know that voice, but Spade reacted badly. Saeji's visage hardened slightly as the man spoke directly to him, changing into a business tone, "Ace," Hm? Saeji looked back at Spade with powerful eyes, "Take back your order now and quit playing games; I didn't leave you the throne so you could desecrate it." He shook his head, he would take back the order, but he wasn't the one who would have desecrated it. "No problem, br--""We'll talk later. Come with me." He grit his teeth as his pained body was pulled along, and the pair headed towards the elevator. He was pulled into the darkness, and his back hit metal as his body started to heave. He wasn't used to such exercise. The elevator, huh? A hand went up to his ear, and he switched directly to all of the Xingese, "Time to make this official. Xing. This is the Emperor, Saeji Aeries. You should all know my voice by now." He closed his eyes slightly, and let his voice build up strength, "I apologize for the recent incident, I lost control of something that has no precedence in this world. I take back any orders that it gave; you are to resume your attack on RIOTE and Drachma's forces. Over and out." Disconnecting the channel, he watched as Spade began to rummage for alcohol, chuckling at the expression and actions that he gave. That was his brother, alright.

"Aeries!" Saeji turned to the source of the voice as well as Spade. "Y-yo~ Wagner, why the fuck are y--" So, his name was Wagner? He'd have to remember that for later... As they continued to talk, Saeji turned away and started tapping the wall with his fingers, making motions that didn't seem to have any use in this world; they were just motions to pass by the streams of time. "...g? Ace, lez go clean up your mess." He blinked and turned around, bowing slightly. "Yes, brother." He followed Spade out, but not before giving a bow to Wagner, "I apologize for my brother's actions. He can be rowdy." Turning away, Saeji and Spade left a confused-looking Wagner behind. Entering the metallic elevator finally, Saeji turned to Spade and was about to say something, when: "Now Ace, don't push all the buttons this time. We're kinda in a hurry. Don't wanna stop on every floor. I'm going after a girl before she gets herself killed. I can't really rely on the concussed man either." He blinked. "O-oka--Peizhi..." His thoughts went back to the other girl. Where was she, damnit? He had expected her to stay behind when Nanaya took over, did she listen? She had better have listened... They reached the ground, and Saeji stepped out behind Spade, his heart beating rapidly in his chest. He closed his eyes slightly, and made sure his glasses were on his face and properly adjusted. The faint red glow emanated from his face, and then he was dragged. Again.

"Cease fire. That's an order." He blinked, the entire series of events having gone by in a hurried blur. "What're you thinking? Can't kill a beautiful lady like that. Stop pointing your weapons at Ali--ALLEGATION that's what this is. Jeez. ...Shu, you alright there?" Jeez. Spade was a worse liar than he was. Rolling his eyes slightly, he turned towards the scared Xingese troops; "Ace, check it, some of your troops are over there looking scared." He nodded curtly and rushed off, his footsteps making noises amongst the silence, approaching the men, placing a calm hand onto the shoulder on the first. "It's okay, we'll be alright." He tilted his head to the side and smiled. Slowly standing up, he turned back to Spade, who was confronting this mysterious woman. "Yeah, you're that girl. Alisa, right? You owe me money." Like he said. BAD liar. And then... the unexplainable happened. Spade went into the ground, into a bow, into the snow. "Forgive me...I... Is it too late to love you?" A gasp. Saeji had gasped loudly, stepping backwards with a slightly incredulous look on his fa--

".............AaaaAAAAAEEEEEEEEEAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!!"

BA-THUMP. That was... that voice... no. His expression took on a slightly horrified look, and he turned around, trying to discern the source. Peizhi was in danger, he knew that much. Turning back to Spade, he looked over at the man with a look in his eyes that showed the utmost confidence in himself. "Spade... the girl I love is in danger." He smirked. "I'll seeya soon. Keep in contact." With that, Saeji Aeries ran off into the distance...

Blood. He burst through the door, and the first thing he was greeted with was blood.

Blood.

No, we got rid of that one. Nanaya was gone. All that he needed to worry about now was Peizhi and her safety. "I didn't......I didn't mean to....I wasn't......I.....I....." Blinking, Saeji turned his eyes to the girl who had huddled herself up into the corner. He stepped backwards, Saeji shaking his head. "-I....I'm sorry.....I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.....please.....no....no...please.....I'm sorry" He stepped forwards, standing in a pool of blood that spread out beneath his feet. The sound of a drip made him step back slightly, seeing the dead around them both. Peizhi... he lowered his gaze.

That smell.

He smiled to himself. He was completely himself, though the memories and knowledge of Nanaya was his, now. Maybe that was it? He was pretty sure that some of Nanaya had leaked into his mind, but he didn't care. Instead... he stepped forwards again, ignoring the scent of bl--ПРОКЛЯТЫЙ ГЛАЗ косоглазие! He turned around all of a sudden, as a waiting soldier lunged. Without thinking, Saeji drew his sword and stepped forwards. A single drop of blood flew from the place his foot landed, and it hit the ground once more. Before it hit the ground, Saeji had walked calmly past the man and sheathed the sword once more.

Upper Arm.

A red line crossed the upper arm of the man, dribbling blood down the appendage.

Collarbone.

Another line crossed over the collarbone, slicing through the bone with precise force.

Windpipe.

Through the neck, a thin line cut and stayed, dripping red liquid down the throat.

Temple.

Across his head, a line strayed between the temples, and the man was showing signs of pain, if nothing else.

Diaphragm.

Through the very middle of his abdomen.

Rib.

His torso showed another red line.

Testicles.

Yes, testicles.

Thighs.

Finally, a line across the thighs..

Heart.

Turning around, Saeji's hands gripped a knife, and the Emperor stabbed the man in the back of the chest as he slowly fell towards the ground, landing in a pool of blood, be it his blood, or that of others...

Still a killer.

Wiping his brow, Saeji stepped forwards and slowly approached the crying girl, kneeling down in front of her and smiling softly. Leaning in closer, he closed his eyes and planted his lips softly against hers. It wasn't a powerful kiss, nor was it a push. It was just a touch, and then he pulled away. "It's okay... we can be killers together, Peizhi~" He smiled, showing that he was, indeed, simply trying to lift her spirits, before he stood up and held out his hand, motioning for her to grab. She had taken his hand, and then--

“Emperor, RIOTE soldiers are swarming the streets of Moscow. We need orders. We may not survive if we stay. We... we may need to fall back.”

...

His expression darkened, and he spoke sternly into the speaker, now focusing on the real issue at hand. "GO. Get them out. Fall back." His radio was switched, and Saeji spoke an order over the entire Xingese army.

"This is your Emperor. Things have shifted. FALL BACK. TAKE ANY AMESTRIANS YOU CAN WITH YOU. We have been compromised. We are being overwhelmed. FALL BACK. Get to a safe location, and regroup with the rest of your squads." His radio was then switched to the Amestrian-Cretan channel, the man gritting his teeth. "This is Ace Aeries, Emperor of Xing. I have ordered my men to fall back for the safety of their lives. I implore you, do the same. If you cannot speak Amestrian, ask someone who can to help. I repeat, help yourselves and the others around you, as I fear that we will be overwhelmed. Reila Tsukino, Spade Aeries, Dietrich Von Vermont, do you read me? I understand that I may be speaking outside of my place here, but you need to get your men out. Safety over victory. We need to live to fight another day, nothing more, nothing less." His face hardened, and his hand fell to his side, sheathing the knife and looking at Peizhi with a slightly-frustrated expression. "We need to go. Now." Gripping her hand, he turned and dragged her out the door...

[Thread LEFT w/Peizhi+Tsu]

[Nyx]

Nyx blinked up at Daemon, who was oddly silent and not really doing anything. She was about to speak to him again, when Hild’s voice crackled on the radio. All RIOTE officers.... Destroy them all... She ignored the rest. That was all she needed to have heard. She looked to Daemon. “Okay Dae-Dae, I think Hildy wants us now. C’mon!~” And grinning at him, she took figurative flight, over the land. She glanced at her wrist. Still rather torn, but at least she could shoot once more, with some degree of accuracy. As she moved rapidly towards the RIOTE base, she put down any Amestrians, Cretarians, or Xingese that came within her path. After much movement, she approached the headquarters...

Nyx entered the base, and began searching around for Hild or Aurel. She instead found Surealis. But of course, she had no time to speak with him. She simply smiled graciously. “Hello Surealis. I’d love to talk to you now, you never seem to be about long enough for a friendly chat, but I have to find Aurly and Hildy. Bye-bye~” And with another courteous smile, and lowering her head a bit, she was off once more. Nyx really would have liked to stay and talk to Surealis, actually. Always hiding away, she never really saw him unless something big was happening. How very strange, he was... Ah well, all of RIOTE’s members were strange, to some degree. Therefore, Nyx set these thoughts aside. She had a job to do.

She managed to find the radio tower, and her luck held that Hild was still there. She contemplated speaking with Hild first, instead of Aurel. Personally, Nyx liked Hild more than Aurel. Not much more, but to Nyx, Hild was like a mother to her, despite her apparent psychosis, unbeknownst to the small girl. And even if someone outright told her Hild was crazy, she would never believe them; her loyalty to Hild was so great. If there ever came a time when Nyx would lose the ability to trust anyone, she would trust no one but Hild, and only her word mattered. Of course, Nyx would listen to Dae-Dae, Kiki, Aurly, Surealis, maybe even Nicky or Mr. Sadface, but if Hild said jump, she’d ask how high; If Hild said to cut her arm off, there would be no hesitation. That was the extent of Nyx’s ultimate devotion to the person that gave her purpose, home, and company. Likewise, the person who originally took those things from her was the one person in this world that Nyx would kill without her normal grace and mercy, should she find him; if Nyx ever found the man that ruined her former life, he would die slowly and painfully. He would feel three years of suffering, if Nyx had to kill him over the course of three years. At any rate, she shook these thoughts from her head, returning to the present.

Nyx glanced at Hild once more and decided Hild was alright where she was. She moved outside, and saw Aurel just as he entered a helicopter and took off. She had an idea where he was going, and began to move towards the destination of the helicopter, following the spinning blades of her personal North Star. She was fast, and managed to move fast enough that she kept the vehicle in sight until it landed some sixty meters ahead of her. As Aurel exited and began leading troops to combat with their enemies, Nyx moved closer.

Ah, Aurel. Or as Nyx referred to him, Aurly, though she figured if she ever addressed him as such, he may decide to have fried Nyx wings for his midnight snack, or some other humorous exaggeration of his potential anger. Nyx looked up to Aurel as well, though he was only second to Hild in her mind. Nonetheless, he commanded her respect, and as she loved Hild as a daughter loves her mother, Nyx loved Aurel as a daughter loves her father. Nyx was quite prepared to die in the name of either, and was perfectly fine with the idea that she was but a lethal weapon in the hands of two very well armed people. While many men of rank would resent that ideal, and would reject it, Nyx seemed to almost embrace it. She was proud to be a tool in the hands of the master craftsmen that would reshape the world in favor of peace. She regretted being used to kill, and indeed she did kill many, but in the end it doesn’t really matter. The end will justify the means, she was sure of it.

Nyx stepped forward towards Aurel. She gave a friendly, gracious smile and a wave. “Hi Aurel. Sorry if I failed too badly with guarding the Kremlin. If it helps any, the majority of Amestrians trying to take the Kremlin were either filled with arrows or crushed by falling debris.” Seeing some soldiers trying to advance valiantly towards Aurel’s legion, Nyx drew to her hands Hemera, and cocked back four arrows, her maximum firing load. Letting fly her drawstring, four targets she hit, three gifted with an instant death as cold steel and wood flew through eyeball, and then through the brain. The fourth wasn’t as lucky, and was hit in the bridge of his nose, skewing her arrow as it entered his head. He died moments later, but Nyx was not pleased, as her face showed. Cursed bullet… She would have normally killed all four the same way, a perfect feat of archery. No matter, he died the same, even if her accuracy was off a tad. She could be a perfectionist later. She then moved a bit closer to Aurel’s side, opening fire on the advancing onslaught of opposition, an onslaught prepped for the slaughter. And a slaughter it was, though beautiful, in its way. To Nyx’s vibrantly violet eyes, she could only see a thousand martyrs, ready to die not for freedom from RIOTE’s wrath, but as human sacrifices for RIOTE’s goal of ultimate, eternal peace. So in a way, they not only wanted to die for that dream, subconsciously, but it was destiny. And who was Nyx to deny them their destiny?

(~(xD Sorry for posting before you, Sal, but I felt Nyx should go find Aurel.)~)

[Guest]

There weren't many wounded amongst the fallen, but the few that were, they had pulled off of the street. Some... Some she just knew staring at them that they wouldn't make it in time. Others were more minor with only a scratch here and there coupled with a bullet hole. One she had no idea how he'd turn out for he'd sustained a head injury. And the young ambassador was off to the side staring at the men and the battlefield around them, the occasional trembling wracking her body. Death wasn't something new to her, she had killed for a year before becoming the ambassador for Xing. It wasn't new at all. But this? She turned her body slightly to look up the street towards most of the Drachman bodies, then the Amestrian's, and lastly her people once more. This was something else entirely. Her arms hung limply at her side as she stood there with her hair blowing in the wind. It had broken free of the bonds that had held it and was hanging at its full length all the way down to the back of her thighs. Maybe she should cut it... She should be helping them.. Why wasn't she helping them? It was cold here....

A touch. It seemed so far away, and yet she was drawn close by it, back from mist her thoughts had been dwelling in. “You alright?” She knew that voice. Blinking twice, she breathed in and turned her head to look up to her elder, her brows seeming to furrow as if it were difficult to focus on him. And it was. Ancestors knew why, but it was. It was like she had to wade through water to come back to the present as guilt rested heavy upon her heart. She had let them attack due to her inaction. She had almost let a firefight break out between the Amestrian's and her people. Recognition swirled into her green eyes as they regained some of the brightness they normally held, forcing a small smile but it was clearly fake. She couldn't pull up her normal mask right now. She couldn't. "I..."

If she had been in her fox form, her ears would have perked up as she stood up a little taller. Soldiers. Lots of soldiers. Marching to the beat of the war drums. Marching to... “RIOTE?” Yes. To RIOTE. She knew that name from operations she had done. And she knew that wasn't good. Her face had paled a little as she stared in the direction of the gunfire and cries, debating if she wanted to shift forms again. She suddenly looked up at Xiao, he didn't know about her. What would he-- Her eyes lowered, why did she care? What did it matter at this point? Her people had seen, and they would probably speak of it. It didn't matter, her secret would spread. “Emperor, RIOTE soldiers are swarming the streets of Moscow. We need orders. We may not survive if we stay. We... we may need to fall back.” The orders had been given, and she had relied on him to make up for her short comings. No... no it was better this way, she wasn't a commander. Why had Saeji made her the commander, and him the 2nd in command? "Xiao..." They had to go. They shouldn't stay here, RIOTE would eat them alive! She wasn't just being negative, she just knew the might of their force.

Turning to face the oncoming troops, she raised her head a little higher and took a deep breath. She was moping. She couldn't be moping now. Xiao couldn't take all of her responsibility. She... She had to find her strength. "Ancestors help us..." She whispered as she changed forms, the imperial guards voice reaching her ear, “Men. It looks like we've got some more people headed our way who want a taste of our Chu No Kus. Let's show them how the Xingese fight!” It made the corners of her mouth tilt upward as she listened to the cheer. Yes, he was a far better commander than her. “Just a bit longer, eh?” Having him here did make her feel better, and... "Xiao, thank you." She murmured as her body began to change back into her chimeran form. He had brought her back down to Earth, and for now, she had to do what she could. Her hair and skin became red, white fur spreading across the bottom of her jaw to her chest and on her hands and feet. Her tail popped out once more along with her ears, the snout growing as she took another deep breath.

The marching was getting closer, and still no word from Saeji. If this was where she was to die, then her only regret was not telling Ayden... Not saying the words she should have right before he left. Ayden, I love you. Please be well. Ok.... She could face this... Then the radio crackled. "This is your Emperor. Things have shifted. FALL BACK. TAKE ANY AMESTRIANS YOU CAN WITH YOU. We have been compromised. We are being overwhelmed. FALL BACK. Get to a safe location, and regroup with the rest of your squads." Gosh, she really was being extremely negative wasn't she? What had happened to the pep in her step? Whipping about, she wasted absolutely no time as she bounded over to the wounded laying on the side. "YOU HEARD THE MAN LETS MOVE!" She barked, the snarl added because of her shifted form adding some intimidation. Why could she now move? It didn't make any sense... Lifting up two men, she slung them over her shoulder, turning her eyes back towards the oncoming RIOTE soldiers. They were only a couple of blocks away now. Maybe she was fueled by desperation, maybe it was some hidden reserve she didn't even know she had. But all she did know was that she wanted to live. She wanted to get these people home and out of this hell. Ancestors... why had she chosen to come to this war?

[Elastor Ito]

"You need a life boy." What was that supposed to mean? Fist...coming at...face!! He ducked just as it looped downward unexpectedly. There wasn't enough time to drop further... Just not enough time... So he let it hit him, angling his face to save his nose from being shattered. Knuckles scraped against his cheek, leaving thick black lines and trailings of pain. His body crumbled in shock for a moment, his mind buzzing with bruising, trying--trying to regain control of something, anything so he could move. Just move! Move before he cuts off your head!! He cracked open an unfocused blue eye and--

"No! You will not touch him!" ...Csilla? Blinding light filled the entire area...the smoke was long gone. Takatori disappeared into white, the girl stopped in front of him. For a moment--a brief moment...they were alone. "Ela! You need to get up! Come on!" Ela? Had she ever called him that? He blinked away the bewilderment and let her guide him to his feet where he then proceeded to stand there, trying to think of a way to get her away from him. Not that...he didn't mind her there, but because it was dangerous. Was 'go away' too harsh? Maybe 'stand aside'? 'Get back'? AGH why were girls so complicated? He had to waste precious attacking time trying to think of a way to keep her from getting killed. He...he just didn't know how to say it so...it kind of came out in a jumble like this:

"T-thanks... they shot you? Stay there dangerous I'll lead him away need to find Dietrich." Yeah, it didn't make sense to him either. Well, it did...just not while he said it. Ela let out a frustrated sigh and threw out his sword, charging into the blasting light to take a wild swing at Takatori's head. Despite being blind, the man dodged it well, just getting a scratch. But that scratch to Ela was just the tip of the iceberg--an iceberg named revenge. That scratch is for burning my favorite book. Now he just had to take his arm for the kitchen and his leg for the family room and-- Ela dove backwards to avoid getting his own arm taken off. That was so close. Focus, he commanded himself, eyes narrowing and following every blurred movement of hate incarnate. Today will be the day. This dawn will be the beginning of a new life free of the restraints of his man. He grit his teeth and threw himself down and forward, cutting at his ankles. If he couldn't run, all the better. He smirked, eyes ravenous violet. Anouk this is for you!!

[Spade Aeries]

"Of course its not you fucking idiot." It made him feel like a fucking idiot, which confused him. Was he really a fucking idiot? Because...he was kind of in the snow, prideless at the moment so... maybe it was true? Her words stung him for a second before he realized that she was saying that it wasn't too late. Wait. It... wasn't too late...? He looked up at her, emerald eyes glistening as the translation took root in his mind. He could love her. It...was okay that he love her. His cheek stung from where she had slapped him, but he barely noticed anything except that realization. His life... Spade's life was changing. He felt the wheels turning under him, veering off course and drifting with the E-brake back around to where he came. A man can start over. It's not too late. She didn't pull the trigger. She kissed him. It was...okay? Life...had given him something--something that Spade Aeries had not expected and believed that he didn't deserve. But would he take it? Hell fucking yes.

"Spade... the girl I love is in danger. I'll seeya soon. Keep in contact." Wh-what? He heard this off to the side suddenly. As his eyes were locked to the vixen stare laced with tears, he heard Ace behind him--his little brother seeing all this adult stuff. But...what about the Xingese? Wait. Girl he loves? Since wh-- Ace was gone. He heard his footsteps dash off. Spade would interrogate him later. WHY DIDN'T HE KNOW THIS?! I'm your older brother dammit! Only I'm allowed to keep secrets! He slammed his hands into the freezing snow and pushed himself up, boots slipping in mud and ice. More words happened. Alisa shot him a question in Ace's wake, but then all the radios in the vicinity sounded to life, blaring a voice they all knew. Hild. Spade felt his stomach flip-flop as he listened to Ali spit out her glorious answer with a grin. Did it...make her happy? She had been on the other side... So did it make her happy to switch over? Because of him... To the losing side--the moneyless side? He dragged himself all the way to his feet and gave her his crooked grin. Despite "say your last goodbyes, and just let my men kill you, please" he grinned right back and didn't need to say a single thing. Except, well...

"Sorry I spilled the vodka, love. Can I make it up to you?" A joke? Or was it. He wasn't really sure himself. Instead of thinking about it, he grabbed Ali's hand and shot a look behind him. To his radio, "FALL B-- --ACK. TAKE ANY AMESTRIANS YOU CAN WITH YOU. We have been compromised. We are being overwhelmed. FALL BACK. Get to a safe location, and regroup with the rest of your squads. What he said." Damn you Ace! Taking the cool away from 'older brother'! Together, Alisa and Spade, ran up to the troops nearby. Spade didn't stop until he found Shula, catching the tail end of whatever emotional outburst was happening. It shocked him into silence.

"This cycle won't stop until we all CHOOSE to stop it! Look around you! Is this REALLY what you WANT?! Hild, please... You're my friend. I still love you..."

"I may regret the killings, but I shan't regret that peace. That's why you must all die... So yes, Shula... this is my final goodbye...I'll never see you again."

Ho' shit. ...Ho' shit. He glanced at Alisa and visibly frowned. Spade didn't frown too often. Do something Aeries. Stop standing there like a drowned log. Nothing...was coming to him except the shock that Shula and Hild had been...friends? Shula was... No, it didn't surprise him, no. She was like that. She was...hah unbelievable. He shook his head and whispered five simple words into Ali's ear. "This is my friend, Shula." In other words, don't get the wrong idea. Before he was back on his knee beside her. He knew there was something wrong when he asked before. He fucking knew that shit. And...he had left her here to her own pain. No. Fucking no. Fuck that. Fuck this whole situation. Let the damn snow melt and drown it. "Shu, she...she's not worth it. Whatever fucking stupid ideals she has are more important to her. I... I don't even know what to fucking say to that. Like...what. That doesn't even fucking make sense. But...like this is coming from the guy who killed his best friend so... Yeah like..." God, he was so fucking bad at this. And...since when...when could he mention that offhandedly? Markus... It struck a chord in him that screeched a note too sharp, breaking glass somewhere inside him. He clenched a fist and suddenly regretted that he said that. It...wasn't funny. He was trying to make her smile by using his own pain... Was...that okay? Markus, is that okay, man? Do you mind? Cause like I'm at my wit's end here... He let a desperate look seep into his eyes. Placing a hand on one of her shoulders, which just happened to be her uninjured one (lucky bastard). "It'll be okay, Shu. Let's...all make it okay together. We'll show her, right? Right?" He looked behind him at Alisa and helped Shu to stand. "All of us, together. Ah...uhm this is Alisa. Alisa this is Shu. She likes wine." Cringe.

"Aeries, sir!! Aurelius has found our location. FALL BA--" A hand was held up, stopping the voice of the Central Soldier who stopped in his tracks with wide eyes.

"Falling back will do nothing. Reinforcements should come to us. Call your men."

"L-Lieutenant General Reila Tsukino..."

"This is all our men..." Spade's own words shocked him, sending chills down his spine. This...was all their men. And how fucking few were their numbers. He and Ace had both thought to fall back and regroup, but... regroup with...who? Where were the other troops?

"...What." The redhead shot a look at her counterpart redhead and a grave look fell over her face. "This is all your men? Briggs can't stand against this attack alone... They..."

"No...they can't." Spade interjected, his eyes dark. He felt it too. The sudden shock--the overwhelming power glowing, no, blackening on the horizon. As all light was sucked away from the morning. This...this was defeat. Defeat.

Reila seemed to snap out of it quicker, raising her head, golden eyes defiant, making reality smack Spade in the face like Alisa's hand. "We're retreating to Briggs." It was a decision--a decisive decision that Spade felt that maybe only she could make right now. He nodded without realizing that he was agreeing and then the two of them both pulled the radios to their mouths.

"ALL"
"FORT BRIGGS"
"CENTRAL"
"SOLDIERS...RETREAT!!!!!!!" Loud and clear. That was fucking order.

"Shu," he turned to the Ishvallan, a sullen look streaking over his face. "Tell your men too."

"I--I'll...I will cover your retreat." She collected herself and ran in the opposite direction, towards the screams--towards the darkness, disappearing into the white abyss. Spade only watched her go before turning back to Alisa, Shula, and all the men struck with bewilderment.

"Run," was all he said, "run to Fort Briggs."

[Guest]

Treading through the snow, Dietrich proceeded on with his trio of bodyguards. For once, he could focus on something that matter, thanks to Elastor. Loyal, trustworthy, rational. All good traits any Royal Guard had, but he… he was something else entirely. Different, but equal. In a good way. But he digressed. He was searching for the former fuehrer, Hild. To run her through would give him much pleasure, but would be risky. Then again, putting her on trial would be equally risky, albeit in a different way… Different, but equal. In a bad way.

Amid the sounds of the battle, Dietrich barely registered that a grenade had gone off in between himself and the rest of the Royal Guards. Stumbling rather unceremoniously, he manages to regain his balance, with Thum, Cravetz, and Florence grouping around him once more.

He had to pay more attention to his surroundings. He was used to the concept of Amestrian gunfire being a signal of the enemy, not an ally. He was on edge because he was vulnerable, and he was vulnerable because he was anxious. Anxious about RIOTE, the new Drachman leader, this war – though it was more of a conflict, an engagement, a skirmish. If things went well, it would be just a footnote in the history books mere decades from now. No one cares if alchemy’s equivalent to anarchists fails after one battle. And if things went South – quite literally – then it would evolve into something more, something greater.

Reaching the end of the street, Dietrich takes in his surroundings. ”Let’s skirt around this firefight,” he says to the trio, ducking into an alleyway.

The back streets gave them a brief respite from the area outside the Kremlin. The sounds of gunfire and explosions echoed through the thin walkways, but they were safe. Running over half-frozen puddles and around piles of trash, the group proceeded undetected for a few moments. Suddenly, they all came to a halt, watching as several Drachman soldiers ran past an opening farther down the alley. They hadn’t noticed them yet, but it was only a matter of time, and this back street would only serve as a kill corridor. Signaling to his men, they made their way back towards the Kremlin. At least there was support if-

”Противники!”

Oh boll-

Shots rang out as the Cretans scrambled back down the path they came, double-timing it. Thum was the first to round the corner, then Cravetz, followed by Dietrich and…

Florence dropped to the ground as a burst of shots ripped through his armor, lying almost motionless on the cold concrete. Only a thin vapor trail escaped from his mouth a few seconds later, a small sign he was still alive – for the time being, at least. His chances of surviving this conflict overall were particularly slim.

”Cravetz, secure us an exit. Thum, I want covering fire while I grab Florence. Once we’re clear, I want the corridor cleared.”

The two Guardsmen nodded. As Cravetz started to backtrack to their initial entry point, Thum was already peeking around the corner, squeezing off rounds at the approaching Drachmans. Crouching down and dropping his sword, he carefully lifts Florence’s body, dragging him around the corner as rifle rounds whip through the air and crack against the walls. Laying him flat on his back, he shouts, ”Now, Thum!” Thum grabs a grenade off his chest, pulling the pin and tossing it down the alleyway. He can faintly hear it thump against the ground before going off a few seconds later, the shrapnel digging into body armor, flesh, and concrete alike.

”Check on Cravetz. Now.”

”Yes, m’lord,” Thum replies before heading off.

Dietrich sighs. This… This SNAFU shouldn’t have happened. Not in a million years. And the situation didn’t seem to be improving by all that much.

Just then, a blaring message was sent out by the Amestrians, by General Tsukino and… The leader of Central – the other Aeries. A general retreat from Briggs? His heart sunk. He never thought he’d see the day, and certainly never expected to feel sad about it. And if Central followed suit… This was officially FUBAR, and he was caught in the middle of it, the one place he never wanted to be.

”Sullivan, I need the 1st, 3rd, 8th, and 13th Air Forces to help cover the Amestrian retreat, and MAJCOM to set up patrols on our northern border.”

”At once, Lord Dietrich,” Sullivan replies coolly over the radio.

Switching frequencies, Dietrich takes in a deep breath. ”The Amestrians have started sounding their retreats, and we must follow suit. Elastor, make sure Lieutenant Angelis makes it to her people, or we’ll provide passage for her through Creta. Once you have everyone, then come pick u-“

Dietrich pauses, glancing over to his left to see a young Drachman soldier staring wide-eyed at him, as though caught off guard. Reaching under his coat, he grabs his pistol and aims it at the young man, causing the soldier to raise his rifle in response. For a moment, it seemed as though the world consisted of only himself and the soldier. Silence fell upon the world as, for a brief moment, time stood still. And just as suddenly as it started, it stopped.

Dietrich fired two rounds while the Drachman rattled off a five-round burst. Dietrich’s eyes opened wide as the impact of the bullets forced him backwards, grabbing at a nearby dumpster for support. His chest screamed in pain as he looked down, opening his jacket. Of the three rounds that hit him, two failed to penetrate his Kevlar vest, though he was certain he had a few cracked ribs and bruises as a result. But the third had penetrated it, but not him, causing blood to leak out, staining his clothing.

Coughing, he looks over at the Drachman. Both his shots had landed – one in the stomach, and one in the chest – and both seemed to have penetrated the man’s cheap armor. A pity, really…

Thum and Cravtez came running back down the alley, rifles out and trained on the downed Drachman. Dietrich smirks, wondering if it he had only a few more seconds if he could’ve gone through this unscathed. Then again, at least life had slapped him in the face with a stark reminder.

”Elastor,” he says, breathing heavily, ”get us on the move ASAP.” Taking in a deep breath, he grits his teeth from the pain. ”Florence… might not make it if we wait.”

[Shula Brighton]

”I still love you too, Shula.”

Love was such a horribly dangerous and painful emotion, and so vague in its definitions. There was the genial love she felt for her comrades at work whom she'd smile and laugh with, but whose friendship wasn't terribly deep and rarely left the office except. There was the distant familial love Shula held toward her Ishvallan relatives who had interacted with her so little during her life, shunned more as she broke away from tradition to follow her own path; she would always care for them, but they would never really know her well, and she was fine with that. The deeper family love toward her mother and grandfather, and the father she had only started being friends with in recent years; the unshakeable, unquestionable love for her brother Aaron that no force in the universe would ever be able to undo. And then the lines of love begin to fade and blur, leaving confused heartstrings that criss-cross and tangle like a marionette's wires that have become a web connected to several others; cutting the lines to free one risks cutting all others and leaving all in ruin. The love she felt for Spade was as the love she had felt for Gustav; a perfect love and perfect trust of someone she felt safe enough with to reveal the self that she was afraid to be. Acra was a type of love she couldn't wholly explain, even to herself as it confused her relentlessly and was mixed with a longing, desire and need that left her frightened and ashamed of herself for having those feelings at all.

”You were my only friend, other than Aurelius...I couldn't face you, Shula. Out of all the people, you were the one I didn't want to face..."

The love for Hild was somewhere in that tangled mess that wove in and out and around Shula's heart, and as the former-Fuhrer cut herself free from Shula's soul the little Ishvallan crumpled to the snow in a heap. The brilliance of the dawn brought no warmth to her as she wept in the snow, clutching her radio as she sobbed openly. Hild knew she was hurting the people she cared about and that what she was doing was WRONG. She hadn't wanted to believe Hild was really in on this; that she was just swept into something she couldn't control and that if Hild was removed from it it would be oh so clear that her friend wasn't the bad guy at all and just an innocent bystander. Shula wasn't hearing this. She wasn't. She wasn't...

”I'm sorry, Shula, but I've chosen my path.” The sweet voice of someone she genuinely cared about changed to something harsh and cold as the damned snow that threatened to extinguish the very fire that breathed life into her and edged on becoming someone she didn't know at all. ”...I may regret the killings, but I shan't regret that peace. That's why you must all die... So yes, Shula... this is my final goodbye... I'll never see you again.”

”....Hild....” Sobs wracked her little body, surrendering to pain, not from wounds or fear, but from utter heartbreak. Shula had lost friends and family; in the last year and a half she'd lost far more pieces of her heart than she knew she could heal from. But those people she had loved so deeply had never, never hurt her that way. I love you, but you have to die now. She could see why Hallmark didn't have a section of cards devoted to that message. Shula had walked almost a block away from Spade and their troops, and she'd had a mind to go even further away if she could find the willpower to move. Was... Was she really so worthless? True, Raistlin only saw her as property and something to use as he saw fit until she was no longer useful to him and then to be killed in all likelihood. But coming from someone that she would have done anything for? Shula knew she would have done anything Hild had asked of her, be it fight to protect her, join her at a concert or drink poison for her and none of it have to do with her being the Fuhrer. It was because she cared. It's... It's like back at South, when they'd talk about me behind my back and took bets on how long before they made me quit. Do I really mean so little to people?

The snow crushed around her with the sound of footsteps that were drowned out by the sounds of people screaming and guns firing everywhere. The cold was overwhelming and somehow had a way of sucking the energy out of a person's body and left one unwilling to get out of it after a while. Part of her wondered if it was a RIOTE soldier there to carry out his orders and have an easy target. A dark thought in the back of her mind wondered if she cared anymore. After all, didn't Hild just say to be a good girl and die? She waited, remaining still as hot tears spilled down and burned against her cheeks before freezing against her skin, but no bullet ended her. Instead, Shula jumped slightly as a familiar energy moved and its body knelt next to her in the snow. A loud sniffle followed as she looked up into deep green eyes that she cared for and trusted so much and yet hid so much from. She'd never kept it a secret that she was friends with Hild, but she never openly talked about it, either. It wasn't anyone's business. But how long had he been standing there? How much had he just heard? Was he about to fire her since she was technically friends with their enemy? Didn't that count as treason or something, or was just being a silly little girl enough to get sacked for?

"Shu, she...she's not worth it. Whatever fucking stupid ideals she has are more important to her. I... I don't even know what to fucking say to that. Like...what. That doesn't even fucking make sense. But...like this is coming from the guy who killed his best friend so... Yeah like...” Spade... killed his lover, she knew. He'd also killed his best friend? She remembered when they were recovering from the festival that he'd been upset about his friend dying, but that couldn't have been the same, could it? Just how many skeletons were in this man's closet?? She didn't know what was worse, that he'd admit to that or that he was trying to use that to make her feel better. Her body trembled as his hand moved to her uninjured shoulder, followed by her whole body moving forward to bury her face against his chest, dampening the fabric. Yeah, he hated girls crying. Sue her.

”And my friend just killed me,” Shula replied, her words muffled by her own despair and the itchy wool of his coat. Her fist dug into the fabric and clung as she cired for a moment, her body insisting that the pain be pushed out of her before it destroyed her completely until she slowly let go and wiped her face with her sleeve.

"It'll be okay, Shu. Let's...all make it okay together. We'll show her, right? Right? All of us, together. Ah...uhm this is Alisa. Alisa this is Shu. She likes wine." That cringe. So... Spadey of him. Shula was terrified, feeling like she was losing her mind, and deeply hurt and Spade was picking on her drinking preference. Shula looked up at Alisa, her own eyes tired and bleary and the girl overall looking like someone had shot a ballista through her soul point blank as she tried to not instinctively shy away.

”It's, um... It's nice to meet you...” Her voice was barely above a murmur, lost somewhere between trying to swallow how she was feeling and incredibly shy, lacking her usual light and warmth. She was about to try and introduce herself more properly when another solider and Reila joined them. They were getting decimated and needed to get out of there before the four of them were all that was left. Shula's stomach sank as Spade confirmed that their little troop and a few scattered here and there were all that was left.

And then Reila finally said what had been the best and smartest thing Shula had heard all night: ”We're retreating to Briggs.” Spade and Reila both called for an immediate retreat, urging all of their soldiers to do the smart thing and run like hell. Shula looked away, stepping away from where Spade had helped her up and moved closer toward the middle of the street. There was something... strange. The light from dawn was breaking all over, but from the opposite end of the street, where she'd run from. Now what was coming toward them from the other side was darkness. An overwhelming darkness that seemed to suck up every trace of light that went against it. Shula was about to step closer to get a better look when Spade caught her attention once more.

”Shu, tell your men too.” Shula nodded, squeezing the button on her radio and swallowing it all down, finding herself having a hard time looking away from the approaching nothingness. What... WAS that? She shook her head, trying to look away. She had to get her men to get out of here.

”All South soldiers, fall back, NOW! Retreat to the ships and get to Briggs! And Amestrian, Xingese or Cretan soldiers you find that need help, get them out of here as fast as you can!! Carry any wounded you find and RUN!!” They were scattered since their orders had been to surround Moscow and flank it. But they couldn't all be dead and gone. All the wounded couldn't be beyond saving. Shula took another breath, holding down the button again for a channel that would be reachable by all of their soldiers and allies. ”Aaron! Don't try to find me out here, I'll find you at Briggs!!” Reila was staying behind to help make sure those who were left could get away, and hopefully she would, too. Shula looked to Reila as she ran toward the impending dark, wondering if she would see that general again and even if they would make it out of this damn snowball from Hell. Hopefully her men were doing as they were told and running like hell and taking the wounded with them back to-- Their wounded. Acra She hadn't seen her idiot since she left him on the roof with Spade and sent Wagner up to check on them. But he wasn't here with Spade.

Her hand moved to the her chest, clutching lightly above where the gem he'd given her hunt. Oh dear sweet Ishvalla... That idiot had better be on his way to the ships, or with Wagner, or even at the last standing bar and hitting on a pretty waitress! Well, at least at the bar. She could take that. But if he wasn't going home with them... would there even be a point to her trying to win her freedom back so she could live her life freely? Shula looked over to Spade and Alisa, then quickly scanned the soldiers that had amassed and were now running for the missing millionaire playboy. ”.....Acra?!”

”Run. Run to Fort Briggs.” Shula took a few more steps away from where Reila had run toward, terrified beyond words but not wanting to run even though her body moved on its own, not until she knew her own scattered men were getting to the ship and how things were done be damned. She needed to find her friends. She needed to make sure as many people as possible went home. A few more steps away, Shula's body beginning to surrender to the base instinct for survival and starting to run though her eyes going between the soldiers running and the marching feet of RIOTE and the dark, ominous power that sucked up the light.

”What.. what IS that?!”

[Dai]

"Dai, don't give up." A small smirk line the face of the man as Reila climbed off of him and faced the RIOTE soldiers around them. "Don't give up? You underestimate me, my dear." The instant that Daigoro felt Reila move, he stepped forwards and immediately reached for the pistols at his sides, raising them into the ear and grinning, pulling the triggers within seconds of each other. Darts flew through the air, colliding with target after target, knocking them down into unconciousness. Click, click. No more ammunition. Sighing softly, the weapons dropped to the ground, and the Alchemist ducked. His body may have been tired, but there was no need to fear the night. Drawing the tonfa, his body flowed like water, decapitating soldier after soldier, dancing a deadly ode to the world. He bit a lip, making each careful placement of his feet in order to suffice the next. Injuries burned, and he continued to move, slicing and slicing some more. Was that what he was? He hated killing. Having the fate of another in your hands was something that Daigoro had no appreciation for. Instead, all he could do was kill, and hope that he didn't see himself as a murderer. If he could do that, then... the last one would fall, leaving them in silence once more. He flicked the tonfa around once more, reaching down and picking up the covers, sliding them back and into the seat of his pants, closing his eyes as he slowly walked forwards. He aha te mea nui? He tangata. He tangata. He tangata. He smiled softly to himself, watching the woman approach him as such. He had seen her running, this time. ANd their bodies touched once more, Dai closing his eyes as she pushed herself into him, her face in his neck; hot breath on the exposed flesh. "Let's rendezvous with the others." He nodded, and watched Reila through curious eyes as she spoke to a soldier, and then broke the connection. S-soldier. Reaching a hand up, Daigoro instinctively went for the second-in-command, Nika's underdog. "Bastian." Static. "D-damnit..." Changing the channel, he reached Nika's earpiece, and spoke quickly and sharply, "Nika. We need to regroup. Get as many men out of there as you can, destroy all weaponry left behind." And then... a hand slid into his. He blinked, and smiled. It wasn't a saddened smile. That smile didn't hide pain. That smile... was truly sincere for the redhead, now. That smile... "Let's go." ...it was strong.

"This is Ace Aeries, Emperor of Xing. I have ordered my men to fall back for the safety of their lives. I implore you, do the same. If you cannot speak Amestrian, ask someone who can to help. I repeat, help yourselves and the others around you, as I fear that we will be overwhelmed. Reila Tsukino, Spade Aeries, Dietrich Von Vermont, do you read me? I understand that I may be speaking outside of my place here, but you need to get your men out. Safety over victory. We need to live to fight another day, nothing more, nothing less." They had just reached the other soldiers. W...what was going on? His features hardened, and he prepared himself for what was about to come. "Aeries, sir!! Aurelius has found our location. FALL BA--" Reila had held up a hand, and let go of his. He stood back, letting her take the position of power. He had no need to speak right now, all he needed to do was watch, listen, wait. When one watched, they saw truths. When one listened, they heard voices. And when one waited... "Falling back will do nothing. Reinforcements should come to us. Call your men." He looked around, and opened his mouth to speak. "Reila... I think th--" "--is is all our men..." So, the other had thought the same? "...What." A look. She cast him a worried look, and he returned her worry. Briggs couldn't do this on its own. They had lost. This was what defeat felt like. We're retreating to Briggs." No sooner than they had reached for their own radios, a third order went out. He didn't hold as much power as Reila and Spade, but you'd better fucking believe that he was giving orders here. "I am speaking to all Amestrian and Cretans. If you did not hear the orders, I repeat, if you did not hear the orders, You are to fall back. Fall back, I repeat, FALL BACK." Gritting his teeth, he lowered a hand and watched Reila run into that white abyss of darkness, simply saying: "I--I'll...I will cover your retreat." Hmph. Spade said something, and the red eyes met green. A confident smirk curled across his lips. "You know that I can't leave her alone." Then he was gone, running after Reila into the distance, willing his tired body to run beyond its limits. And what he came across... was... amazing...

He ran to a stop next to Reila, watching with eyes that spoke of incredulous and yet controlled nature. That was a black hole, sucking everything in. And behind it, Aurelius. Aurelius was walking calmly along, simply causing destructoin as he went, not caring for those around him. All he did was destroy. Daigoro... couldn't help but hate him. No, he couldn't hate that man. He had to... no, he hated him. Hate. Hate hate hate. Someone who killed like this, without purpose, without mercy... they deserved nothing but hate. No remorse? Nothing but hate. He couldn't hate, but he couldn't help but hate. Preparing himself, a metallic hand slid itself onto Reila's shoulder, touching it softly. He looked at her and nodded, before turning back to Aurel. Time to remember everything that he knew about black holes. A singularity, heavily gravity-driven. Ah, gravity. A force that even changed the face of magnetism itself, something that was both the same, and yet completely different. Kneeling down, he picked up a discarded cartrdige of off the ground. He'd never done this before, but he was pretty sure that it was within his abilities. Speaking out, he made motions to speak to both Reila and Aurel, though he wasn't sure if either were listening. "Hey, do either of you know what a railgun is?" He smiled softly, flipping the cartridge in one hand as if it were a coin. "Also known as a super electromagnetic cannon, a railgun borrows Fleming's momentum, and fires shells like a cannon." The cartridge flipped into the air once more, and Daigoro clicked the fingers on his left hand, waving it in the air and magnetizing the cartridge. He smirked internally. "Something like this, see?" His next click activated his magnetic field, pushing it up to ultra-high strength limits, and repelling the magnetized shell, pushing it forwards at a high rate of speed, streaming towards the black hole. He wasn't sure that it would do anything, to be quite honest.

[Guest]

Was this grand escapade going to end so soon? Takatori had barely had enough to fill his expansive stomach! He'd hardly kill his favorite toy so soon, but seriously? He was practically asking to be sliced into itty bitty pieces. Hm... Maybe he should let the dogs loose on one of the men in his various cells.... Raising his blade slightly to cut at the fox's paws, the rabbit was apparently fiercer than he initially expected as she came running at him shouting, "No! You will not touch him!" FUCKING ALCHEMY! He had curled away to the side to try to avoid it, but was still blinded by her goddamn fucking alchemy. Fucking bullshit needed to be fucking wiped off the FUCKING PLANET. GOD FUCKING WHORE! Two more guards had appeared from who knew where, ready to jump in should their bosses life actually be threatened. No, no he wasn't threatened right now. He was just FUCKING PISSED. He hated alchemy with such a fiery passion, it was a wonder anyone like Patience or the twins had been allowed to join his merry band of murderers. "I oughta have rabbit stew for fucking breakfast!" He mumbled beneath his breath.

The spots were beginning to vanish, taking a few steps to the side just as Ela burst through the light with a blow towards his head. Leaning to the side, he still felt the blade nick his cheek, warm blood leaking down his skin. And you know what? It made him grin. So the fox finally landed a shot. It made him chuckle. Swinging upward and then horizontally, his opponent was dodging well, that goddamn chittering starting up in the back of his mind. Why was this fight so boring now?! Oh yes.... As amusing as blind rage could be, it was plainly fucking blind. Nothing interesting about that, no matter how much you pondered the reasons why and how you had a hand in its creation. His eye narrowed as the boy was moving again, aiming to cripple the great Takatori. Pah. He had other things in mind. Jumping up just in time, a hand reached backwards down the neck of his trenchcoat, drawing out a desert eagle which glared at Elastor. And with a dark smirk, he fired at the violet-eyed fox, landing back a couple of feet as still felt the wind from the blades attempted bite upon him.

"Honestly kid, you should be blaming your parents for this. If they had kept up their end of the fucking deal, then maybe I wouldn't have had to give them a dance of death. I wonder if your sister will be as understanding when she realizes you are the reason her husband and children were taken from her."

He could smell it now in the air as he whistled shrilly, a rocket soaring downward to where he had been standing. The smell of blood and dirty sewers. The smell of blood and death. These are a few of my favorite things~ Smoke covered his retreat as the tall man ran towards the oncoming army of chaos. And ohhhhhhh how he loved chaos. It was what he lived for! Fuck order, fuck peace, fuck all that shit! Give me some gin! Shots... He could practically taste all the corpses that the soldiers of RIOTE had swallowed beneath their ranks, maneuvering himself till he could find his.... boss. Partner. Whichever the fuck it was at this point. As he came up on the rear of the demon army, he saw King Satan himself, Aurelius. He was looking mighty.... Takatori had to frown a bit, inwardly sighing as he knew he had to reign in on his mouth. Fuck. Men and women in white uniforms were pouring out of buildings and streets, mixing amongst the ranks of RIOTE. Some remained elsewhere, the assassins using their skills to the best of their ability.

Coming up alongside Aurelius, the tall man couldn't help but smirk, sword and gun still in hand. "Lovely day for a massacre, wouldn't you agree?" And then the smirk was gone as if it had never been, glancing up to fire at a soldier peering over a rooftop. He fell dead to the ground. "Got any orders besides tear those pussies to shreds? Cuz that's fine for me."

(( If there's anything I need to change, can do. ))

[Guest]

It all happened so quickly. He had hit his mark, yet he had failed to injure the Amestrian devil. The counterattack. The explosion. Marismo's intervention. For the dying Ivanka, it was all a blur that he struggled to keep up with. A whirl of darkness and fading colour. Before he knew it, Marismo was not longer by his side. She was in the enemy's hands, leaking a new stream of blood, her life balanced on the tip of a knife wielded by the grinning devil of a man. The Drachman titan was paralyzed with fear. No, not fear for himself, not for his life, but for Marismo's. He want to save her, he wanted to crush the skull of that grinning Amestrian bastard with all his might. But he could not move, he could not move without endangering Marismo's life. What could he do? He couldn't save her......

"Stand down, DOG. That's right, you obviously will obey me, obey capitalism in the end. No matter what flag you drape, you're still shit, just wrapped in silken sheet. Observe closely as she will peri--.........Not a step closer, or she will die."

A broken body, heavy with fatigue, fell to its knees and into the snow. Unable to move, Ivanka knelt their listlessly, wrought with despair. His eyes clenched shut, taking in all the darkness, for he was unable to look up at the grinning face of the murderous devil, nor at the pale, unconscious Marismo, whom was held in death's cold embrace. The words of the man, in whatever form they came, meant little to Ivanka, they were meaningless in the end. All that mattered was that he had lost, that he had been unable to protect Marismo. Unable to save her....

"Ahhh, so this is what innocence tastes like eh? Bitter and salty. The same as all you filthy pigs, there is no difference. In a uniform or not, this is the equality you wanted in your Communism, given by me, to you. Generous really."

Unable to tear her from the tainted, filthy grip of that depraved man.....

"Is this really the power of Drachma? Just look at you, there was nothing you could do. Even in your moment of hope, your moment of triumph, of desperation, I still stand. HAH!"

Unable to take action as Marismo was dragged away from him....

And then came the thunderous cacophony that, so immense that it shook the foundations of the mountain and echoed throughout Drachma. Slowly Ivanka lifted his bowed head and opened his weary eyes to take in the horrendous sight that sat at the top of the summit. A monstrous artillery cannon, a super gun, laughed from atop its lofty perch, looking down upon the denizens of Drachma, smiting the innocent with his booming voice.

More lives lost.....

"Aha! The mouth of the Emperor. What a fine beast of destruction it is. Consider this my gesture unto you, a Hell of a fuckload of explosions of a gesture to your Drachma. Feel free to stop them, I have drawn out my stay long enough. Guess connections in high places CAN save lives. For now, I bid you Auf Wiedersehn~"

The Amestrian devil slipped away into the night, along with Marismo......Ivanka grimaced as he fell forward, planting his hands into the snow, down on all fours, trembling violently. He could chase them, he could chase after them until they reached the ends of the earth. But could he catch them? Could he save her? Or would he just endanger her life? And to give chase would mean to abandon Drachma, leaver her people to the catastrophic judgement of the cannon above. His country....his little sister.....so many lives .....who could he save? He couldn't save a single damned person....

A step forward, heavy and numb.

A broken body, bleeding dry. Were it not for his mechanical limbs, he surely would not have been able to move.

Another heavy footed step forward in the bloody snow.

His blood, Marismo's blood, the blood of innocents, of soldiers, Drachman and Amestrian alike, a sea of blood now painted the face of the mountain. A tribute to death.

He pushed forward still. The pain was blinding and agonizing, but it was physical torture. He had lived with that sort of pain for ten years. It was nothing, nothing compared to the pain in his heart, having lost Marismo, having failed her. He failed her, failed whom he shared a loving bond with. He failed Marismo...he failed his father...he failed Anya. He was alone now, here on this cold, decrepit graveyard of a mountain, a broken failure of a man.

Another step.....

He climbed higher and higher, until the flaming wreckage of his helicopter came to view. The pilot was dead, he could already see his limp, mangled body hanging out the side of the cockpit. Pressing on, he approached the steel carcass of the copter, climbing into its open bay, he spotted large steel pillar in the corner in the corner. Titana Gneva, still intact. Good, that was all he needed. Ivanka brushed around in the snow and metal scraps, looking for unexploded rockets to fill the launcher with. As he stumbled around in the wreckage, another thunderous crack deafened his ears, and another dozen lives were extinguished. More blood he could have kept from spilling, had he been faster. Ivanka gritted his teeth as climbed out from the crash site, the pain of his wound still sapping him greatly. The blade of the accursed man was still sheathed deeply in his flesh, a physical reminder of his failure. For a final use for the felled mechanical beast, Ivanka seized the heavy sliding door of the helicopter, which had been blasted off and bent from the crash. With the Titana Gneva on his back, holding five rockets, all that were left, Ivanka trudged forward, dragging the great metal slab through the snow behind him.

He pushed onward. His mechanical gait was steady and power, but with every step, the world vanished into darkness for a single moment, only to come rushing back in it dizzying existence, bringing with it a fresh pang of agonizing pain. The massive artillery cannon crept closer into view as he finally arrived at its position. Several men stood close to its position, shouting in Amestrian, orders for the next target. The great metal monstrosity thundered again, and in another instance, another handful of lives slipped through Ivanka's cold, metal fingers. Why couldn't he act faster? Why did he feel so heavy? One of the soldiers spotted him and shouted word that Ivanka paid no mind to. In response, Ivanka gripped the metal door with both hands and propped it up in front of him. Several bullets glanced of the front of his oversized metal shield.

Fifteen soldiers between him and his target......Whether his failing body would hold out in this final task of his, it did not matter. If he could not stop that cannon from reigning death and terror upon countless more lives, then he was truly not fit to save anyone at all.

He held the metal door steady with one hand and drew back the other, then throwing it forward with tremendous, Ivanka's fist crashed though the metal surface and on to the other side. Now he wielded his shield from its center with on arm, and with the other, as he pushed forward steadily against the hail of bullets, using his free arm, the compact SMG, to pick off those who tried to flank him. He trudged forward steadily, advancing upon his target with every heavy step while the enemy soldiers tried to push him back with machine gun fire that played a rapid percussion of klinks on the front of the door and the grenades which Ivanka had to brace himself against as they exploded and embedded his cover with shrapnel. But the Drachman Titan persevered, pushing forward until he was only a hundred meters from his target. He was in range...... Wearily, slowly, Ivanka pulled his hand from out of the door, now scarred from the Amestrian assault, and he pulled his launcher from off his back, and took aim. But he did not aim for the artillery itself, no, he took aim at the face of the mountain above it. Ivanka steadied his aim.......the nearest soldier, taking advantage of his enemy's sudden lack of cover, fired a shot into Ivanka chest. New pain was added to the old, new blood spilled for from his pale skin, but with his final breath, Ivanka pressed down on the button of the launcher, and then darkness overcame him, dragging him into the void.

Four shots were fired in rapid succession, four rockets sped forth soaring through the air. Four explosions impacted the face of the mountain top, shattering the stone and ice, sending it rolling and cascading forward in a growing catastrophe, rumbling loudly with immense, terrifying magnitude, as if the sleeping, dormant ire of the mountain had been abruptly unleashed. The avalanche of stone and snow swallowed up the giant artillery cannon, and it, along with the men who manned it, were lost to the chaotic disaster. The Mouth of the Emperor spoke no more. The few soldiers who did not stand in the path of destruction simply stood in shock and awe of the seismic event. And the Titan of Kuvalda lied still in silence upon the blood stained snow.........

[Alisa Donnikova]

Heh... The boy could be a bit dense as she watched him steadily come to realize what it exactly was she had said. It made her chuckle to be quite frank, but this was the man that had appeared and turned her world upside down. The lone ranger wasn't alone anymore, she couldn't just be some buckaroo to wander the wasteland of the world doing whatever she fucking pleased. Well, she'd do that anyway, but she wouldn't do it alone! She could practically picture all the trips to the bar with him when the mood struck. Oh. Right. This fucking place. Это Россия. Spade seemed perplexed as the boy behind him went running off after some chick, raising an eyebrow as she realized how wet her eyes were. FUCK. Wiping them away hurriedly, she glanced about the familiar square in frustration, angry at how he had moved her twice to tears. She never cried. NEVER. Yet here she was, like some emotional bitch. God fucking ass....

Least she could tell Drachma and RIOTE to fuck off now. She realized now that Spade was grinning, pleased at her answer to the call given out. So what if she couldn't return to this god-forsaken place? Why would she willingly come back again anyways? Now.... now there was nothing left for her here. Nothing except sewers caked with blood, and harsher times. She couldn't even hear her father or mother in her mind anymore. She was clear. She was free. "Sorry I spilled the vodka, love. Can I make it up to you?" Blinking, she had gotten stuck on the word 'love,' knowing it to be a term of endearment. Ugh, fuck.... She wasn't getting used to that anytime soon. "You should be. You owe me a bottle of whiskey and vodka now!" She remembered way back when they first met, her bottle of whiskey had vanished thanks to him. Suddenly he had grabbed her hand, cutting through her thoughts. Rage flared up in her chest, the instinctual anger still going strong though she had to push it down. God dammit, she wasn't some useless whore! Gritting her teeth, she couldn't help but laugh as Saeji's orders replaced Spade's, relaxing at the whole humor of this. What a fucking pair. She kept up easily with him as he ran to his troops, narrowing her eyes at some of the looks she was getting. "Better turn your fucking eyes away, or they'll get stuck." She snapped at a couple of them, realizing now that Spade was slowing before a woman.

An Ishvallan woman at that. Something emotional was going on, you could tell by what was being said if not the expression on her face. But honestly? Alisa couldn't give a flying fuck. All she wanted to know was what they were doing to get the fuck out of this shithole. She had been here long enough to last her two lifetimes. And that was WAY too fucking long. Raising an eyebrow as Spade glanced to her, she... ok fine. Now she'll give some kind of fuck. He was clearly worried about her or something since he was frowning. She.. Had she seen him frown before? No... no she was pretty sure she hadn't. "This is my friend, Shula." Shula. Nodding once, she understood the particular phrasing he had used to describe this Ishvallan. So no threat. Good. Meant she had one less thing to worry about. And one less face to potentially punch. Drawing on her cig, she had almost forgotten it was there. Along with her pain. FUCK OW!! Her injuries seemed to slap her in the face with one of those jovial grins and a wave while saying far too pleasantly, "Hello." Fuck... She was about to ask some random soldier if they had painkillers when she actually listened to what Spade was saying. "...But...like this is coming from the guy who killed his best friend so... Yeah like..." Had he told her that before? She had to hide her surprise as she gazed at this man who was still holding her hand. And she still couldn't punch him. Fuck...

”And my friend just killed me.” Then the girl moved forward and face-planted into his chest. Her eyebrow twitched, a grimace spreading on her lips as she turned her head away. Lowering her eyes to the snow, she took one last good draw on the fag before casting it to the ground, stomping on it as if she could stomp out all the bullshit. She could feel the thoughts, the memories that wanted to surface but she refused to let them surface. She wouldn't be fucking mopey at a time like this. Besides, when the fuck had Spade gotten so close to this chick? Fuck... whatever. He had said they were friends, so they were fucking friends. No sense doubting it. "It'll be okay, Shu. Let's...all make it okay together. We'll show her, right? Right?" Spade was moving, which brought her brown eyes up to look at the Ishvallan girl before her. "All of us, together. Ah...uhm this is Alisa. Alisa this is Shu. She likes wine." Her eyebrow twitched again. Wine? Fucking really? ”It's, um... It's nice to meet you...” Considering how much this girl had been crying, it was hardly surprising that her voice was practically non-existent. God, she reminded Alisa of a fucking mouse.

"Yo. A pleasure." No, she couldn't come up with a better greeting. It just seemed like the perfect thing ya know? She wasn't some sweet tongued chick. She swore like a sailor, and honestly didn't give a fuck about propriety. It was good enough for this. More footsteps. More soldiers. She wanted to sigh. God damn military bullshit. Though... Her gaze came to rest upon this red haired woman who came strolling up. She was a leader, you could tell by how she held herself. But why was she.... OH FUCK. The Ice-Queen of Briggs! YEA! Recognition caused her to stand up a little straighter even if it did hurt her leg and shoulder, remaining as quiet as she had been. If she opened her mouth, she couldn't guarantee anything pleasant or proper for the situation would come out. "L-Lieutenant General Reila Tsukino..." Yup. It was her. Yeah, she'd just stay quiet. The exchange caused her to raise both eyebrows in surprise, glancing about to the meager force in the area. "Wow, Amestris really got their ass handed to them huh?"[/i] Fuck. She had said that aloud hadn't she? At least it had been practically a mumble! Heh... was it bad she felt some sort of pride at the Drachman's ability? Guess she was still very vaguely tied to this fucking country.

"We're retreating to Briggs." Fucking FINALLY. Could they just GO now? The mixed bitch couldn't help but smirk, waiting for them to finish up confirming whatever orders they were giving. Huh, so it seemed like Shula was also the head of one of the districts of Amestris. Ok, that was cool. Then he turned to her. Good, they could get the fuck out. "Run, run to Fort Briggs." "Don't have to tell me twice. Adrenaline was pumping through her system now, and she was rarin' to go! He almost seemed as lost as when they had first met in that bar looking all said and... in pain... She started to take a few steps, gently tugging on his arm as she broke out into a run, already thinking of the various ways they could get out of the city. "God damn, do you have any APC's left, or did those all get blown to fucking hell?" She asked as soldiers moved around them, all just wanting to get the hell out of dodge. Nope. Nobody wanted to be there. So lets get out!

[Envy]

//Gentlemen, BEHOLD! Envy actually does something//

Envy was glad to see even some resistance, even when it was a single helicopter. It certainly didn't seem so when someone on board started to attack. After seeing the first rocket to destroy something, Envy figured it would be nice to protect himself somehow. A small sparks of red light started to emit from his body and didn't seem to do anything. Of course it wasn't something that could be easy to tell. This protection, which covered all but his head because of the limits of his uniform, was a thin layer above the skin. It was an imitation of Greed's trick. Envy wasn't that adept in using that so it could have weak points. But it was still better than most of the defense. And it took only a few seconds to form. \par
It was all a bit hard to watch, seeing that everything around him had exploded and stuff, but he could clearly hear a Gatling gun or something similar. It had to be admitted. That person was quite effective, whoever he was. Some of the smoke had cleared out and Envy saw the whole hostage situation. It also gave some answer for how he was able to carry those things he carried and still ran so fast. That wasn't probably his only automail. Nikolaus didn't seem to be that concerned. He didn't, in fact, seem to be concerned at all. Not only did he retain his state of mind, he actually taunted him. Since there weren't that many soldiers around anymore, Envy could let out a bit of laughter. Not too loud of course, they weren't left alone just yet. This was actually good. A good show AND possible proof of the usefulness of his ally.

BOOM!

This sudden and familiar sound made Envy to divert his attention from something that could as wel be a war drama. There had been a large explosion. On Kremlin. Or where Kremlin used to be. And that caused Envy to crack his disguise again. But what did it really matter at this point? He could just say that he was having some kind of breakdown in there and no one would care. Besides, it wasn't like there were many to comment it either. Envy made a brief look at Niko and two other. They seemed to be very busy and his "partner" was doing just fine. And he didn't seem like the kind of type that would go down easily. Making some more brief looks around himself, to make sure no one looked at his general direction. He then made himself a black mask over his face and ran forth like no other. He was quite fast on top of being quite difficult to harm at the moment. He would reach Kremlin in no time, but it would still take a while with his speed.

//In summarison, he's been running to Kremlin this whole damn time. He'll arrive when I post next time//

[Reila Tsukino]

"Hey, do either of you know what a railgun is? Also known as a super electromagnetic cannon, a railgun borrows Fleming's momentum, and fires shells like a cannon. Something like this, see?"

"Psh show off." And the fear was gone in an instant. Who was this homicidal fool--this man that thought killing millions of people would save the world?! How anyone thought that way was so truly beyond her. Look, Dai is here with me. Try and blow this up! Reila felt pride swell in her, the ever-present cocky smirk replacing the grimace on her face. She watched Dai's alchemy spring to life, watching to see--to see just what would happen. Surely it would stunt him enough for them all to get away? She could depend on Dai, that much was for sure, but... was this enough?

Aurelius stopped his steady walk and turned to two newcomers that popped out of nowhere alongside him. One looked like a child and the other looked like a pirate. She blinked an inquisitive stare. They were going to die...and they were just standing there chatting casually...? Uhm...HELLO we're kind of killing you...pay attention? Reila nearly gasped when the magnetized shell bent into a slant of what it originally was, twisting and spiraling into blackness so deep she nearly fell forward staring at it. There was no Earth in that--no place...nothingness. Was that...was that what a black hole truly was...? She felt the hairs stand up on the back of her neck, every instinct demanding for her to run. RUN YOU FOOL--YOU'LL DIE! Then let it happen. Dai was here...here with her. He failed, but he was here. And if she had to die to protect the retreat of her people, she would. Reila Tsukino didn't run. Not today, not ever. Okay. Then if that wasn't enough for ya... There was still alchemy left inside her, just enough. Like the retreat in South City...except bigger. "Dai, don't move."

She sucked in a deep breath and let herself fall into the deep snow, throwing her hands on top of it, tracing fingers against the white. Construct it...construct it in your mind. It will be...huge...miles--miles of snow. Use it all. It was hard...so hard it nearly hurt. Gritting her teeth together, Reila shut her eyes tight. It was there. There!! A shadow loomed, growing and growing as The Great Wall of Xing in ice form materialized before them in an instant. It was shorter, yet taller, casting a cold haze over everything surrounding it. They...they were now standing on pavement, Reila on her bloodied knees. There was no snow. She saw it--her creation and smiled. That was her biggest ice sculpture yet. "Think I'll win the championship this year?" She laughed and pulled herself to her feet, staring defiantly at the giant, unbreachable wall. "This divides us and RIOTE. Now we can g--"

Through the clear blur, she saw a hand touch the ice. A single hand... And suddenly they were swimming. Reila lost track of how much water she inhaled, losing herself in wave after wave of freezing cold water. How could something this cold not be frozen? How!? Her wall...this was her wall she was drowning in... Sinking...to the bottom... Her eyes snapped open and she saw a hand reach out from the murk beyond the sun. It was Dai. Tight grip, they returned to the surface, gasping and spitting out the water from their lungs. It burned... Oh, it burned... How... could he have destroyed such a complex--such a big structure with one hand while talking? HOW?! ... She was speechless, and kind of just stared at Dai for a second like a waterlogged fish. This was HER element. It wasn't to be defiled by...by him. One hand. Just one hand. While talking. He didn't even look at her. They were dead. They were so dead. She had to run...to get out of there...to survive.

Survival of the fittest.

[Spade Aeries]

"And my friend just killed me.”

"Over my dead body."

”It's, um... It's nice to meet you...”

"Yo. A pleasure."

"God, people, the contrast hurts." A semi-laugh.

"Wow, Amestris really got their ass handed to them huh?"

"Yeah." While Shula was talking to her men, Spade turned a sad expression Ali's way. "I really thought we'd win, but ya know...shit happens. Guess the other side paid better?" He almost sounded...dejected. Almost. Would she stay on his side from now on? He wondered it, but he would never ask, as was the way of Spade Aeries: a man of many scars.

"Aaron! Don't try to find me out here, I'll find you at Briggs!!” He nearly jumped as her voice suddenly escalated in volume. Aaron? Her brother, right? He was meaning to ask her about that before...since the guy kind of vanished from his job as the Central HQ doctor. People didn't do that shit. Anyone with Shula's blood in them just didn't seem capable. So he was... here, in this shit-hole without Spade knowing? He raised an eyebrow, but said nothing, his mind milling over the fact that Shula was now scanning the anxious soldiers looking ready to bolt for the high hills. ”.....Acra?!”

...Fuck.

And he called himself a Brigadier General. Fucking what. "Uh...I ordered him to find you and I haven't seen him since... Wagner prolly stopped him." Right? Right. It was a guess, but Spade always won the guessing game because he was a fucking genius. So shove it and stop asking questions. It wasn't like he forgot about the guy or anything. No, not at all. He just kind of... went out of thought. Yeah, that was it. Because, well, he was distracted. What the fuck do you expect with two beautiful women hovering about him!? Jesus Christ! There's only so much a man can do.

"God damn, do you have any APC's left, or did those all get blown to fucking hell?"

"Any...what? We're boarding the ship as soon as it gets here. Wait, hold on, it looks like the Central/South one is loading up ahead." Squint. Alisa was pulling him in the direction his soldiers were now running in. He turned to go, watching Shu hesitate before all three of them began jogging towards the ship.

”What.. what IS that?!” Spade nearly stopped dead in his tracks, watching her transfixed in the wrong direction. No. Don't. Don't fucking do it. You know I'll chase you. I'll chase you down and drag you back, Shu. But she was right. What the fuck was that shit.

"That...that is Aurelius Carston Schwarz," Spade said as if he were spiting out a gulp of wine. "Amazing isn't it... It's...it's like all the light is being pulled in that direction..." He stared off behind his running feet and nearly tripped over a dead body sprawled in their path. "Screw that shit. We're getting the fuck outta dodge."

And yet... something about running made him sick. It wasn't him. It wasn't right. All those men died for nothing. They lost. This was defeat and he was fucking running. No, not just that, he was making his men run too. They were all fucking running away like pansies fearing death, afraid of the bleeding light and the screams of panic in the distance. This...wasn't him. He wanted to turn around and join the redheads. That look the man...Daigoro Ito gave him... That's what was unsettling him. That look. "You know that I can't leave her alone." They could do it. They could do it, but... what about him? Was he...just useless in all this? Could he not...do one meaningful thing? Oh god. I've made a mistake by running away. This wasn't him. Go out with a bang? Spade Aeries? Hell fucking yes. Spade stopped running. Woah, woah, woah. Hold up. Was that... a giant, menacing wave? What the FUCK was going--

Spade was a man of action, and a damn good floating device. Taking the hands of the two ladies, his eyes honed in on the approaching tsunami of doom. Next, they would be struck by lightning. It would fucking happen to them. "Hold your breath!" His only worry was if the ship would make it through the sporadic tidal wave. It had to. "Rodenkirchen, Schroeder! Water--freeze it befo--" Radio dead. The wave hit and they were kicking to the surface, swirling all over the place until they couldn't tell which way was up anymore. Hands slipping in the cold, he didn't let them let go. Spade's head burst through the thin layer that separated them from sky. Sucking in breaths of freezing air, jade eyes darted to the side, trying to find his bearings. The ship. Where was the-- Frozen. The water thinned out ahead, draining into the sewers, flooding them, but completely frozen around the ship. Others trekked out of the now ankle deep water, panting, alive--no dead bodies, no casualties. "Don't worry, Ali, I'll keep you warm~" Wink. WAITASECOND. HDSdhkjehfkjerfwa... "Fuck. My sunglasses."

"That should be the last of your worries. I...I failed... We need to run."

"I ain't running this time."

"Suit yourself." Reila looked almost sad as she turned to the men scattered about. "BOARD THE SHIP. STOP STANDING THERE LIKE DUMBFOUNDED IDIOTS. IF YOU WANT TO LIVE, GET YOUR ASSES ON BOARD."

"If I take longer than five, leave without me." Nothing like a chick in a rage. Jesus. You could always try asking nicely. He plucked a drenched cig out of his pocket and heaved a sigh. "Shu, have a light? ...Ah, nevermind I got this shit." Was he scared? No, not really. It was cool. Whatever happened, happened. He would, you know, just go with it. He wasn't going to tell Ali or Shu to stay there or anything either; he was finished with all that. Plus, he was done getting smacked. They could come or stay, and if they came, he'd let nothing touch them. No, not even a fucking black hole. Bring it. Reila was Reila and she was strong, but her alchemy was solid. His, well, ...wasn't; it was alkahestry.

As he walked towards the place were everything vanished, he felt that maybe... he would vanish too. No, this, if anything, would succeed... Aurel had a brain in his head like any human. He only needed to incept him. Stab yourself in the foot--no. Who the fuck would do that?! Don't answer that. Call off the attack...ugh. Maybe he inhaled too much water because seriously this thinking thing wasn't working. Wait. Yeah. That. He stopped just out of reach of the giant, gaping black hole and ducked around it slightly to see the other too baboons standing around their leader. Fucking die. Ooh...one of them was female. "Hey there, beautiful. You look like a fairy princess that fell out of a children's book. And what's with the eye patch, tryin' to be Edward Teach or something? Oh that's sad: Aurel, man, hate to burst your bubble, but mullets are kind of out outdated... the reason is because..." CLICK. Flint and metal, no spark, but the sound. His suffering Zippo was out and presented with a canny smirk. Let us retreat. Let. Us. Retreat. A cold mismatched stare met him. Cold. Red. Blue. Spade spit out the sopping cig. And then Aurel turned away.

"What a waste of time." There was blood dripping from the corner of his mouth... covering his hand... What? Spade blinked. Was that... from Reila? He smirked. So, she hadn't failed. That, and that alone assisted with the inception, convincing them to allow the retreat. The black hole seeped into the air, drawn back to Aurel as if it were a part of him. Spade wouldn't be surprised if it was... The brunette turned--turned and sprinted as fast as his manly, ex-playboy legs could take him. In a breeze of wavy hair, he flopped into the nearest seat on the ship in a heap and didn't wake up until they reached Fort Briggs.

However, little did the unconscious Spade know, but letting them go was all a part of Aurel's master plan...

[EXIT MISSION]

[Note: Takatori and Nyx were meant to be incepted too, but if you don't want to, I let it discreet so you can choose whether or not you want to. Also, don't post until I crank Aurel out after Hild posts.
It kind of just happened... If you need me to change anything just let me know. I'll take out or erase the entire thing if I need to.]

[Csilla Angelis]

War just happened far too fast! Elastor mumbled something about “dangerous” and “Dietrich” before throwing himself back at Takatori. And all Csilla could do was just... stand and watch. For whatever reason, Elastor seemed intent on finishing off this man. But apparently, he was already done. He was smiling as he pulled a gun from his coat, pointing it at Elastor. Her eyes widened as she her the gun shoot and watched as a bullet whizzed past Elastor's side. He winced, indicating to Csilla that he must've been hit. Csilla didn't have much time to react because she heard Takatori whistle shrilly and then... A ROCKET? SERIOUSLY? She was about to scream to Elastor but once again, he seemed to be on top of things. Like, her for example. He grabbed her and flung themselves away from their current location. Everything went black for a moment for Csilla as she heard the rocket make contact with the ground and explode. She turned her head, burying it into... a coat?

Oh. Yes. There was someone on top of her, after all. Elastor had tackled her to the ground and placed his body protectively over hers to shield her from the majority of the blast. She knew he was sore, bleeding in a few spots and had just been shot. She wasn't exactly fit as a fiddle herself. And yet, he was willing to sacrifice so much for her. It was almost... He really is a knight. No, not in shining armor on a valiant white steed. He was quiet and serious and oh, so irritating. Not to mention confusing. And yet...

Csilla turned her head to look at him as he gently raised himself off of her. His icy blue eyes scanned her face to make sure she was unscathed. She just lay there for a moment, the snow chilling her back. But she was already cold, inside and out. And yet... she felt a warmth in her chest. Something she felt only a few times before.

And yet... he was. He just... was. He wasn't what she expected, what she had thought she needed... what she thought she wanted. Her vision of him was changing. He was... her dark knight. He was what she suddenly wanted... what...

What you need.

Csilla felt herself gasp as Elastor helped her to stand. She could've sworn she had heard her mother's voice just then. And it helped her to take that last step. So she did. She stepped forward, throwing her arms around Elastor's neck and planted her lips against his. Those lips that had so many cruel things to her and then in the next moment, had been so kind. She didn't understand it, but she just kept her lips pressed gently against his. And it was like all of the world just stopped. All of the war, all of the hate... it just drifted away.

But a voice crackling across the Cretan radio channel shattered that silence. Alarmed and suddenly scared out of her wits, Csilla broke away from Elastor, stepping back shakily. Amestris had ordered a retreat? Then she looked at Elastor who appeared... well, he didn't look like himself. And then it had hit her as to what she had just done. How could she be falling in love with someone who may hate her? With a shuddering breath and tears in her eyes, she fled. She ran, switching to the Amestrian channel. “This is Lieutenant Angelis! I need the location of Brigadier Generals Aeries and Brighton. I need to find Brigadier General Brigh-... Shula! Shula! It's Csilla! Where are you?? Oh, where are you??” She practically shouted that last bit into the radio, her voice barely containing the sound of the tears running down her cheeks.

As her feet pounded on the street pavement, running to where she hoped Shula would be, she heard marching behind her. RIOTE had unleashed their full wrath. She could her people coming after and all she could do was just gather light and shoot it off behind her. She didn't have the strength to fight anymore. She just wanted to run. Run back home where everything would just turn out alright again.

[Guest]

”Viktor, I need you to change back and lay him down on his back gently. Flat on his back please. It'd be good if we had a blanket so we could wrap him in it, but we can do without for now.”

”Yes, yes,” he sighs, his mind wandering as Cora starts talking to the man again. She… She had mentioned it. He would have to swear her to secrecy eventually, but for now…

Standing on his two feet, he walks over to Apos, his body slowly returning to its normal state. First was returning to his normal size, both in terms of height and muscle mass. Kneeling down next to the man, his bones were already reshaping back into their human forms, gently reaching out as his hands finished their transformation.

”Do not worry,” he says, gritting his dulling teeth as his snout retracts back into his face. ”I am know what I am doing.” With a small but warm smile he slowly helped him down onto the floor. By the time he had Apos lying flat on his back, Viktor was back to normal. How much was slightly? Damn it Cora, he was a soldier, not a doctor!

Springing into action, Viktor heroically searched through the store, quickly finding a stack of small boxes. Grabbing two, he returned to Apos, gently lifting his feet and sliding a box under each. Aaaaaaand done. Then, clothing…

”Just, er… ‘chillax,’” he says, awkwardly loosening up bits of his clothing. Getting through that surprisingly fast, he moves onto his final task.

”Blanket… blanket… blanket…” Looking around with no success, he gets up and heads into the back room, hoping to find a sheet or blanket or something… ”Ah-HAH!” he shouts triumphantly, taking an afghan out of a desk drawer. ”This should do fine…”

”ALL… SOLDIERS, RETREAT!”

General Reila and Whiskey-General calling for a retreat? There was a term for this in Amestrian. What was it?

”Everything is going to Hell in a gift basket, da?” he asks, unfolding the afghan and slipping it over Apos. Looking at the other three, he sighs, pulling out a few tactical maps before unfolding one of them. After all, they needed to now where they were if they wanted to get evacuated.

[Guest]

"Apos? What are your plans after the war?" His fervent mind was suddenly snapped back into action, the man weakly looking at the woman with the raven-black hair. P-plans.. after the war... His mind tried to move through the haze of cold and frustration, attempting to see exactly where he was going after this. He'd had plans. Yes, plans were good. What were they, again? Shaking his head slightly, the mist that covered his mind began to clear away, his body shaking itself slowly back into the routine that it knew off by heart. "A-after th' war..." His voice was strangely weak. This wasn't right. This wasn't good. He couldn't be weak. He couldn't be so weak in front of such a beautiful woman. He couldn't be weak in front of those that were from Briggs. But there was something that annoyed him, it was the fact that he couldn't help it. "Lemme tell y'something... I ain't really much of a soldier. I'm good physically... an'all... but I ain't the right man mentally. I'm..." His body was moved, and he took in a sharp breath, more worried by the sudden motion than anything; his mind had been too hazy to hear what Cora had been saying to him. Gritting his teeth once more, he took in an internal bill of strength. "I-I'm a scholar, of sorts. Don't look it, eh?" His chest heaved up and down as he laughed softly, a slight look of pain crossing his face.

”Just, er… ‘chillax,’” He blinked, and his feet were moved up onto the boxes, elevating them from the rest of his body. Yes, that was good. That was where most of the damage would be, they needed to be higher than the rest of him. Back onto his original train of thought, Apos continued. "An' I decided... at th' fight wit' Creta... that I didn' know enough..." He closed brown eyes, trying not to remember what had transpired on that day. He hadn't been able to save Shula. He hadn't been able to do anything except stand there and worry. "So after th'war..." Finally back on track with her question, he opened his eyes and looked directly into those ravishing blue orbs, grinning at the woman with a confidence that he shouldn't be having right now, "I'm leavin' the Amestrian Military, if temporarily. I'm gonna go on a trip through the desert to the East. Y-yeah... through Ishval to study their history and their religion... to Xing in order to study Alkahestry and some martial arts... and then back through Xerxes, t'learn the truth about what Alchemy started ask..." He closed his eyes as the blanket slipped over his body and up to his neck. O-oi, Vi..." He smiled at her and brought an arm out. His arms were fine, they didn't need to worry about that much. "L-lemme see your hands..." When/if she obliged, he would take them and peer closely at the circles on them, smiling internally. Ah, that was rare. "I-I see... y'er a water-based Alchemist, aren't you? T-the circles on your wrists, they're f'er manipulation." He let go of them, and smiled softly, leaning back down and opening his mouth softly, choosing to sing. If he would keep himself awake, then...

"He said... son, have you seen the world? Well what would you say, if I said that you could? Just carry this gun, you'll even get paid... I said that sounds pretty good..." He chuckled and closed his eyes, continuing to sing as whate-- "ALL CENTRAL SOLDIERS, RETREAT!" So... they lost, huh? That... that was new... "L-let's get out of here... guys..." And as he closed his eyes, his low tones spread out among the group. They would continue to do so, until they reached wherever they would be reaching...

[Thread LEFT]

{Vi, if you want me to take the Alchemy part out, just lemme know. Took a bit of a gamble, so... yeah. ^^;}

[Guest]

An explosion shook her out of her sobbing stupor, Sablya stopping suddenly and turning around to stare out over the expanse of ice, snow and blood. She reached up a hand covered in steel and wiped away a stray tear, stepping forwards into the snow. Fire rained down from the sky and she could onyl watch in awe as the great weapon known as an artillery cannon fell from grace and landed in the snow. She slowly staggered forwards, staring at this with eyes wider than the world itself, wondering if this beast was finally going to end this war. She shivered, feeling that Drachman cold for a second, before laughing softly and shaking her head slowly. "Have we won?" Well, had they? Stepping forwards, she started to trek through the snow. She had heard that Ivanka was here. Kolokovsky, correct? Gunfire had erupted for but a second, and that was all it took for Sablya to run forwards, streaming through the snow with eyes that were belaying something completely new. She was furious, angered, ready to rush headfirst into whatever danger she came across.... and there he was, falling backwards into the snow as if the world was just slowing down before her. The sun slowly rose over the mountains to the side, but she had no care for that. The light would simply show the extent of his injuries. The light... would simply bathe them in it's deathly glow. Gritting her teeth, Sablya shouted out loudly, charging for the small group of Amestrian soldiers. The men hesitated for a second, seeing a small woman charging and not understanding what was about to happen. She raised an arm, and the steel gauntlet collided with his face, knocking him backwards and into the snow, face and skull shattered from the strength and force. A shout came from the nearest soldier, but Excalibur was drawn faster, and the noble and golden sword once more bit down and drank blood.

She gripped the hilt with two hands and pulled it out of the first man's body, shouting with rage and slicing clean through the stomach of the second, taking it in one hand now, and pulling Caliburn out of its sheath. She smirked internally and held the two blades in her hands, stepping through and decapitating the two men in front of her. The swords sung their golden tunes, and she watched the blood fall into the snow. Pulling them up, she flipped them around in her hands and knelt down, shoving the two swords into the stomach of the first man she'd hit, finishing the last kill. Closing her eyes, she drew the swords out of his body and resheathed them, sighing softly and turning towards Ivanka now, realizing exactly how much damage had been done to him. The burning gun's light overshadowed the burgoening sunlight, Sablya closing her eyes and stepping forwards. The man was a bloody mess, with an exposed abdomen and everything in between. She sighed softly, and knelt over him, looking him over. "Fool. You are willing to die for this country? I wish I could be that loyal..." She laughed dryly, but got no response. She needed to keep him awake. As long as he was awake, then he would survive. If he wasn't awake, then she needed to wake him up. And with a person that was unconscious, sometimes a subtle feeling was more necessary and useful, than a slap to the face. She went onto her knees, and crawled over his body, ignoring the blood that now stained her blue dress. No, there was no need to worry about something so trivial. She was over him completely now, her face blushing slightly. No, this was something that would wake him up, she had no feelings of the sort towards this man. Leaning in closer, she took a breath. "Do not misunderstand, Ivanka. I am doing this to preserve your life; nothing more, nothing less." Having affirmed that, she leaned in as close as she could, hot breath skimming his face as she planted her lips against his. The lips were a sensitive part of the body. If he was to feel the heat there, then it would hopefully at least keep him somewhat awake. Pulling away, Sablya looked at him. "If you could feel that, focus on that warmth. That will keep you awake. Focus on that warmth, and the motion that I put you under. Do not let your mind return to sleep." She got up from her straddling position, and stood up straight, kneeling down and gripping him as carefully as she could, hoisting his weight onto her back as well as she could.

"Stay with me, Ivanka." Taking her first step forwards, Sablya began to slowly trudge through the snow, heading down the side of the mountain and towards safety. She wasn't going to let another person be lost in her sight. Not now...

[Thread LEFT (w/Ivanka?)]

{Che, if you wanna post at all, feel free. Otherwise, just assume that she left the thread with Ivanka}

[Shula Brighton]

Alisa seemed more than ready to run toward the ship, tugging at Spade's wrist in a 'Can we PLEASE just get the fuck out of here' sort of way. Can't argue with that at all. But whatever it was was coming up the street toward them and sucked all light and brilliance of the morning toward it. It was terrifying and amazing, and something in Shula wanted to know what it was. Fear gripped her heart and froze her feet as she stood for a moment, watching and listening to the death marching up the street. But... the light... What on earth could DO that to light? It was like the complete inversion of Csilla's beautiful light alchemy.

She didn't need to look at Spade to know better than to leave his side. By now she was surprised the man hadn't put a leash on her to keep her from running off or getting lost and into trouble. "That...that is Aurelius Carston Schwarz. Amazing isn't it... It's...it's like all the light is being pulled in that direction..." Spade was practically running backwards, his own eyes glued to the darkness on the horizon until he nearly fell tripping on someone. Mentioning that it was Aurel, however, did not immediately prompt the logical response of running like hell that it should have. Aurel was the one who did this. He's the one who convinced Hild that this was what was needed and right. This was his fault. "Screw that shit. We're getting the fuck outta dodge."

And that was it? They came, they saw, they got stomped into the ground and they were leaving? No way in hell that could've been right. No fucking way. Shula's own steps slowed down, even as she saw the ship landing up ahead. Their friends had been butchered that night. They'd come to try and take out RIOTE and get back at them for what they did to Amestris, right? Her steps became even slower as she realizes the horrible truth that when you sat down to think about it, things seemed so fuzzy. Their orders had been to march into Drachma and kick ass. Those were the orders from on high, and she delivered them as such. But was it really so easy as that? Just come with that as the intent? What had happened to any of the strategies discussed? She'd given her own troops a good set of marching orders to surround and swarm and Central's had been the same. But things had been so chaotic and everything had just gone to hell... Was it just bad planning? Not thought out well enough? Or was RIOTE really that strong? Shula's foot slipped a bit in the snow as her running stopped altogether.

Snow... Snow is made of water. Her eyes popped open wide as though lightning struck. Water is made of hydrogen and oxygen. If I dissociate the water molecules I have just enough powder left and I can ignite the hydrogen and-- "--they'll go from original to extra crsipsy! CHALK!" Shula didn't notice that Spade was a few steps ahead of her still and had stopped running. She didn't notice or care that her own thoughts were a frantic, whirling cyclone of chemical formulas trying to recalibrate water on the fly and take the temperature and altitude into account and that anything coming out of her mouth was likely to be interpreted as gibberish. She also didn't particularly care how it looked as she groped all over herself, looking for a stick of chalk in one of her many, many pockets. "Fucking CHALK! WHY are there so many pockets?! Chalk, chalk CHALK!" The arrays on her bracelets would do quite a lot and redirect it, but they weren't designed to deal with anything from water. She needed to draw out the array as fast as humanly (or superhumanly) possible and get closer in order to detonate it. Even if it didn't work, it would still hurt like hell.

Back pocket in a little twist holder under the heavy outer coat and those stupid side panels. AUGH! Shula looked like the happiest woman on earth for just a moment as she had what she needed. Yes, it went against her own moral code. Yes, she'd probably hate herself for it. A lot, and probably for a very long time, if not forever. BUT if she could make it work and make the shot count? Then all of their friends wouldn't have died for nothing. The tiny Ishvallan dropped to a knee on the street, using her arm to brush away the snow and immediately start drawing directly onto the ice-cursted asphalt. She just needed to get that set up to work with her own fire arrays and-- *bzzzzzt!*"This is Lieutenant Angelis! I need the location of Brigadier Generals Aeries and Brighton. I need to find Brigadier General Brigh-... Shula! Shula! It's Csilla! Where are you?? Oh, where are you??” The frantic sketching stopped. Csilla. Csilla needed her and was calling for her. Shula quickly pressed the button, trying to hurry with the array with her free hand.

"Csilla! Csi, we're a few blocks south of the Kremlin, and our ship's landing! Run north and we'll fi---What the shit is THAT?!" A giant wave of water was rushing through the narrow street. It was taller than they or their soldiers, and even coming upward wasn't slowing it down any. SHIT. She looked down at the unfinished. No way she'd have time to change it and with the water that close she'd kill all of their own soliders. Shula's wrist was grabbed tightly by Spade as she was yanked close, Spade trying to get two of his own men to freeze the water in a fast attempt to stop the tsunami. "Csilla! Where--" Shula was cut off by a blast of water colder than she'd ever felt or known could exist. She was pushed off her feet, tumbling in the water and bounced all over and kicking frantically until she no longer knew which way was up. Her eyes were shut tight, and she hadn't taken a large enough breath before it had hit. Panic and the need for survival tore at the back of her mind as she tried to pull her hand free so she could swim easier, forgetting entirely that it was Shade who was holding her wrist as he kicked furiously upward. She hadn't swam since she was seven, and wet wool was heavy. Finally her little head breached the surface of the icy water and she coughed hard as she tried to breathe in at the same time.

OHHDEARFUCKINGGODIT'SCOLD!!! But they were all okay. In the morning light she could see further up the street their men were getting out of the water where it thinned and flooded the streets and they had all survived. Shula kicked hard, treading and haiting how suddenly her nice warm wool pants and coats had become incredibly cold and heavy, making it that much more tiring until it was finally low enough for her to touch ground again. She looked up at the ice-encrusted ship. Aw Hell's bells, what next? She coughed hard again, trying to expel the last of the water from her lungs as she tried to get her radio working again, not immediately seeing Reila pass by to board the ship. "Csilla! Csilla?" Dead radio. It was just as waterlogged as they all were. But they were alive. Very cold. Very, very wet. And alive.

[/i]"Shu, have a light? ...Ah, nevermind I got this shit."[/i] A light? She didn't have a lighter but she had her... oh HELL. Shula growled audibly in frustration, all the saltpetre washed from her hands and all of her pockets drenched. The extra she'd had with her would now be ruined, too. Just add water and I'm as useful as a fucking wet match. Great. Spade moved down the way they'd run from, his resolve having returned on the matter. Shula hadn't been asked to stay or come. Much like when he found her in the broken remains of her home, she hadn't be asked what she was doing or wanted to do. Just seen what he was doing and could act accordingly and however she wanted. Spade walked down the street to where RIOTE came marching. Shula followed. Shula would always follow. But when she'd promised that she'd follow the man into hell or darkness, she hadn't realized tha she would be doing so quite literally.

The black hole was large and, quite frankly, amazing and in it's own way, beautiful. Fragments of light and dust gathered around the rim and swirled down into a funnel of blackness. All that fell into it became one with this blackness to which Shula could see no end or escape. It was as The Nothing. All that is, was, and would be were consumed by it as though they never were. Shula took a small step backward to stay away from its pull as Spade found a small gap to the side of it where people undoubtedly were. Shula moved her hands together, trying desperately to make a spark, just in case it might work. Metallic friction, but no spark. Her fire was drenched. She reached for her gun and moved closer to the side where she'd seen Spade vanish through as he rambled distractingly. Something else moving caught her attention on the next block down the sidewalk. Csilla. Csilla was running and firing blasts of light. Not saying a word, Shula ran off across the front of that horrible, insatiable nothingness and away from Spade. Spade told Reila he'd be five minutes. That gave her just a few minutes left to grab Csilla and get her back to the ship. He probably didn't even see her run off. At this moment that didn't matter. Csilla could not be left behind.

Gun raised, Shula shot, aiming for where the light had been aimed as she drew closer to her friend. "CSILLA!" Panting hard, Shula ignored her body screaming by now as it shook violently from the wet and cold that seemed to cling to her soul. More shots fired, Shula not aiming for appendages or joints. She was aiming to keep one of her best friends safe. She nearly crashed into said friend, her breaths shaking and ragged. "C-Csilla! We have to leave now! If your radio works, tell Reila we're coming or she'll leave without us!" Shula was still dripping, water dripping off the ends of her hair and face, the blue of the uniform much darker and clinging to her, making her seem that much smaller inside of it from the bulk. She pushed her gloved hand against Csilla's back, urging her to run and run ahead. There was no time to think about the right or wrong. Shula ran behind Csilla, firing at the soldiers that chased them. At this present moment if she'd had the capacity to really think, Shula would have sent a silent thank-you to Raistlin for granting her new lungs and allowing her heart the strength to keep up with it; running like this was something she'd never accomplished before on her own.

The ship was closer and closer. There wasn't time to see if the black hole was still there, gone or had turned into penguins dressed in tropical shirts. The RIOTE soldiers had stopped firing, and that was all that mattered. The ship hadn't left without them yet. They could LEAVE now. Outstretched hands grabbed for the two young women to help them in, the ship, its pilot, and all passengers more than ready to get out of the snowbound shithole and back to their own shitholes. Her breaths ragged and painful, Shula leaned against the wall of the ship and slid down to the floor, praying her heart wouldn't simply explode while she tried to catch her breath. Hopefully they'd have the heat cranked to fucking tropical heatwave so everyone else who was drenched wouldn't get hypothermia. Blood-coloured eyes closed for a long moment as her body calmed down, shaking violently from cold, fear and pain. But no tears would come. Right now she didn't know if anything would work right again. She just wanted to go home and curl up on the sofa with Acra to watch a movie and fall asleep with her head on his lap while he pet her hair. Or laying down to snuggle... Acra... come home to me? Her eyes stayed closed, lost somewhere between sleep and being too terrified to sleep fromt he horrible things too fresh in her mind that would haunt her soul and devour her dreams.

EXIT MISSION

[Guest]

”Yes, yes,” Came her compatriots answer, much to her relief. Even Vivian was speaking to Apos, distracting him and keeping him awake. The biggest thing was keeping him aware and not unconscious. If he fell unconscious, he could fall into a coma. That was the last thing that they needed right now, nor the best suggestion at all for him. Who knows if he'd wake up again? She couldn't have that in the least bit. Nor did it seem like his new lady friend would like that either. Heh... She could see it between them. There was some sort of connection crackling between them, it was clear as day to her. Ah well, Cora was ok with how she was in her life right now. Minus the guilt from.... She closed her eyes and lowered her head, staring at Vivian's injured arm. She could hear Viktor moving about, gathering what things she had asked him to do, glancing over to see that Apos' legs were getting elevated as they spoke. "Thank you Viktor..." She whispered, feeling the bones knitting together within the Cretan girls arm.

”Ah-HAH! This should do fine…” Sounded like --"ALL FORT BRIGGS SOLDIERS...RETREAT!!!!!!!"

She stopped for a moment, yet she managed to continue her alkahestrical work. Immediately she looked to Viktor, but he was continuing to move about as if the announcement hadn't been made. ”Everything is going to Hell in a gift basket, da?” "L-let's get out of here... guys..." The young doctor took a deep, cleansing breath as she nodded once. "Yeah... I'm almost done here. I'll call it in--" "That won't be necessary." Vivian spoke up, her good hand touching one of her ears. So she had received orders of some sort? She began to speak in Cretan which Cora only understood about a quarter of. Well.... guess that took care of how they were getting out of there. Straightening her back a bit, she slowly removed her hands as the final bit of bone tissue knitted together, a smile spreading on her lips. "Ok, you are done Captain!" "Thank you Doctor." Sliding up onto her feet, she threw her things into her pack as she could hear orders flying across the radio, walking towards the door and carefully peeking out. Coast was clear. Excellent.

An APC came rolling up a few minutes later, the tires screeching to a halt as a feeling of dread began to fill her soul. What was this sensation? It was so.... ominous. It did not bode well at all. Two men came out of the APC, speaking in their native tongue as Cora turned to Viktor. The two men picked up Apos and carefully carried him to the vehicle, biting her lower lip as the Captain rose up and walked forward. "Guess we managed to make it out huh?" She managed a small half smile to her partner, following after the Cretan militants alongside him. The tall and the small, the fighter and the healer. They weren't separating anytime soon, were they? The thought made her smile as they slipped inside, escaping this madness. She ended up resting her head on his shoulder, some of the guilt of all the... people.. she hadn't helped. Hadn't saved. But she had saved three. Four, counting that RIOTE dog. But so many were being swallowed up even now, and they were escaping. Her pouty lips pursed a bit as they rocked along, leaving behind the shadow that crawled up to take over Moscow.

[THREAD LEFT]

(( Sorry its crappy, hope it all works! ))

[Guest]

Wow... her arm felt really warm... The doctor was good at what she did. Maybe she should tell Dietrich to investigate some alkahestrists for the Cretan Crown Alchemists. Though... they'd probably have to change the name then if that were the case. Even... Her lips tightened slightly. Even if she didn't end up returning to the royal guards necessarily. Sabbatical. Research... Maybe. She'd... she'd have to figure something out depending on her lord's answer. "A-after th' war..." But now to hear this. She could hear he wasn't doing so well, but shock did that to a person. It was a mean girl that could wreck you so hard and fast you wouldn't even know. "Lemme tell y'something... I ain't really much of a soldier. I'm good physically... an'all... but I ain't the right man mentally. I'm..." Her eyes watched as Viktor laid him down. Good. That'll make things better for him. "I-I'm a scholar, of sorts. Don't look it, eh?" "Oh? A scholar? A scholar of what?" She asked him softly, smiling slightly as he tried to laugh. But she didn't like to see him in pain. God.... it was hardly surprising considering he had jumped out of a helicopter.

In the end... it didn't matter. They were receiving aid now. Briefly she turned her attention to the young doctor, some stiffness beginning to return to her arm. And less pain. Well, minus what was resonating from the giant gashes upon her arm. She should at least make sure to make some sort of effort to thank the doctor greatly for this. "An' I decided... at th' fight wit' Creta... that I didn' know enough..." That.... Her lips tightened again as her blue eyes rested upon this man who claimed to be a scholar. Had she really improved since then? Did she really deserve the promotion she had been given? She had lost just about all of her men, but had completed part of her objective. Distract the Drachman's. "So after th'war..." Her eyes refocused as she realized she had been zoning out. Brown met blue, and she felt herself blush to see such a confident grin upon his face. It made all that worry sort of take a step back, as if it would be ok. How could he do this upon only having met her moments before? Must be part of his charisma to be sure. "I'm leavin' the Amestrian Military, if temporarily. I'm gonna go on a trip through the desert to the East. Y-yeah... through Ishval to study their history and their religion... to Xing in order to study Alkahestry and some martial arts... and then back through Xerxes, t'learn the truth about what Alchemy started ask..."

She felt her eyes widen, he.... Traveling. It wasn't like she knew what she'd do if Dietrich gave her an answer she wouldn't be comfortable with. Would she sit at home with her family? Help watch over her siblings while conducting research? What... What should she do? O-oi, Vi..." The Amestrian chimera slipped a blanket over Apos, blinking as he said her name. "Yes Ma---Apos?" He was calling her a nickname, she didn't have to rely on formalities. That... was strange. Tilting her head slightly, she felt the blush worsen just as it was beginning to vanish to see him smile, watching as he reached for her hands. "L-lemme see your hands..." "I... alright." What was he on about? He had called himself Mimicry, and he was a State Alchemist.... But she couldn't really see any harm in letting him look, following his motions as he examined what she had taken so long to figure out. "I-I see... y'er a water-based Alchemist, aren't you? T-the circles on your wrists, they're f'er manipulation." She couldn't help it, she felt pride swell in her breast, a smile prickling along her pale features. "Indeed. Water has always been a love of mine, so it seemed... natural." She answered as he let go of her hands, falling quiet as he laid down and began to.... Her eyes widened once more as he began to sing. And surprisingly? He had a beautiful voice.

"He said... son, have you seen the world? Well what would you say, if I said that you could? Just carry this gun, you'll even get paid... I said that sounds pretty good..."

"ALL FORT BRIGGS SOLDIERS...RETREAT!!!!!!!" "ALL CENTRAL SOLDIERS, RETREAT!"
”Everything is going to Hell in a gift basket, da?”
"L-let's get out of here... guys..."

*Krrsssh* Cap-...*ksssssssh* --amp. *krrsh* Sullivan. Captain *krsssh* Duchamp, retreat. I repeat retreat. *krsssssh* RIOTE forces will overwhelm us. We are to fall back to Fort Briggs and bring what survivors we can. "Understood Sullivan. Duchamp, out." Hopefully they were still alive.... "Yeah... I'm almost done here. I'll call it in--" "That won't be necessary." The doctor and Viktor had done enough, it was her turn to do something else. "Davidson? Come in Davidson. We need a pick up at...." She relayed their coordinates as she glanced to the three about her, Apos' song constant throughout. It was comforting, which was just about perfect about this madness. RIOTE and the Drachman's must be quite formidable in whatever they were doing to force them all to retreat. It was.... highly concerning to say the least.

"Ok, you are done Captain!" Blinking, she carefully bent her arm, ignoring how the wounds hissed at the tugging and shifting of her battered flesh. Wow...."Thank you Doctor." She murmured softly, sliding her gloves back on as she kept an ear out for the sound of the--- APC. The wheels crunched against snow and blood, pushing herself up carefully, standing tall. Yes... no matter what... She was the proud daughter of the Duchamp family. Even if her military rank was stripped away, her alchemy cast down.... She had that. Hell... even if that was gone, she... She was her. She always found a way to move on, to continue. Despite all obstacles. Despite.... Frishkoff and Nelson came running in, taking Apos with them back into the APC. Still he was singing... Her back was tall as she slipped into the vehicle, moving past Cora and Viktor to be with Apos. She was responsible for him, and... Glancing amongst their little party as the doors closed and they began to move, she sighed slightly to herself. They were the people she was closest to here and now.

Opening her mouth a little, she too began to sing with Apos, but she took a harmony line instead. She had heard enough of the song to get a gist of it, her own eyes closing as the two of them sang their little duet, riding off out of this madness.

[THREAD LEFT]

[Alisa Donnikova]

"God, people, the contrast hurts." Heh, well duh. Shu was a mouse who could become a lion (as she had decided), and Alisa? She was a rabid dog. Just a fucking fact of life. Yet even as the thought penetrated her mind, her lips had formed a thin line in her disgust. Yeah.... she had earned that title alright. What a fucking brat she had been... Spade was turning to her again, so she looked right back at him, noting the sad expression though her own remained sort of neutral. Ok, so maybe some of her discomfort was showing through. She just wanted out, ok? "I really thought we'd win, but ya know...shit happens. Guess the other side paid better?" Her back straightened a bit as flames licked in her eyes, one of her hands tightening into a fist. What the fuck was that supposed to mean huh?! WHAT THE FUCK SPADE?! "Oh sure, they paid fucking great if you wanted to get a new asshole..." She muttered under her breath as she turned away from him to stare instead aaaat..... Huh. Yeah, the giant black ball of death would do. Fucking RIOTE.

Well, now Spade was dealing with shit, and Shu seemed to have gone off her nut a bit, but whatever right? They had other people to worry about and that was... stressful she supposed. Wasn't like she had really done much worrying like that ever. Guess that was going to change now huh? Least now they were moving right? "Any...what? We're boarding the ship as soon as it gets here. Wait, hold on, it looks like the Central/South one is loading up ahead." ..... Seriously? Why the hell did she know more of military vehicles than him? SHE WAS JUST A GODDAMN MERCENARY! Fuck! "Oh great, a fucking ship. Better hope Crimson Testament doesn't decide to use some missiles." Yeah, she knew the Head of Defenses title. Hild's debriefing had explained some of the players, but not really so she had to do a bit of digging on her own. It had been worth it to know. Fuck what an asshole his alkahestry could be. She didn't want him touching her ever. Could they just GO NOW?!

Spade was stopping. Oh for christs-WHY WAS HE---- Oh for fucks sake. Shula was standing there, staring at the impending doom that was rolling down the street like a pacman eating up dots. Since Spade was stopping, SHE had to stop too. Apprehension was picking up in her chest even as a grimace formed upon her lips, staring at that giant ball of black. Oh, good, he was still running. She pulled a little bit more, her teeth grinding against each other as she had to resist shouting at both of them to get a move on. "That...that is Aurelius Carston Schwarz. Amazing isn't it... It's...it's like all the light is being pulled in that direction..." She jumped over some of the bodies, and almost tumbled since he had failed to notice it from staring back at the leader of RIOTE. "Screw that shit. We're getting the fuck outta dodge." Fucking finally. It was her survivors instinct beginning to whisper at her that they had to keep moving, had to get out of there ASAP. The enemy wouldn't slow up, and who knews if they had any other tricks hidden up their sleeve? She sure as hell didn't want to risk it. Fucking crazy fucks. Her job hadn't been near worth what she had gotten paid at all! Fuck that. If they stuck around too long they'd--

OMG SPADE WHAT THE FUCK?! Her arm jerked as he suddenly stopped in his tracks, letting out a yell of pain from her shoulder. "Oh for fuck's sake Spade--" No. Why the hell should she even continue that thought? She stared at him, and she could see the look.. in.... Holy fuck. Her brown eyes followed where he was staring, all of her body going limp as she stared at that oncoming wave of water. "Fucking fuck..-- "Hold your breath!" Taking a deep breath, instead of forcing her body to prep for impact, she let it relax instead as Spade's orders were lost to bubbles. The only thing that tightened, was her grip upon his hand, the water tugging and pulling as a spoiled child would in anger. Fuck. OFF. That's all she could think as her body was thrown around along with Shu and Spade in the FREEZING COLD WATER. FUCK DRACHMA AND ITS CLIMATE CHRIST!! Kicking up towards the surface, she gasped in the cold air and instantly regretted that she did. Cold + Cold = BURNING LUNGS. "I swear to fucking Christ I'm going to murder the shit out of someone..." She muttered, taking a step as they reached shallower water. Oh god her leg.... Blood was trickling down her arm as she shivered, turning her attention to Spade, "Don't worry, Ali, I'll keep you warm~" With a wink. God dammit.... "Fuck. My sunglasses." She couldn't help but laugh, smirking as she was about to offer a comment, but the Ice Queen of Briggs spoke first.

"That should be the last of your worries. I...I failed... We need to run."

Whatever, this is what happened in the goddamn military. Gotta be ready to lose, Amestris. And damn right they should be.

"I ain't running this time."

She stared incredulously at Spade. You... He.... Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr---"rrrrrrrrr---Spade, come on! I thought we were getting the fuck outta dodge." Buuuut her words didn't reach him. "If I take longer than five, leave without me." She rolled her eyes and even Shu was freaking out still! Earlier she had been going on about chalk or something, probably some alchemical trick or whatnot. Fucking military. Strings of curses went off in her head as Spade let go of her hand, standing there as she watched the two militants turn towards the GIANT BLACK BALL OF DOOM. What didn't they get about the impending death right fucking there?! UUUUUUUUGHHHHHH. FUCK HIM. FUCK HER. FUCK ALL THIS SHIT. What did she do? Pulled out her Cutlasses, thats what she did. What did she do next? She walked after the two of them grumbling all the while as she raised her guns and fired at the ranks of RIOTE. Yeah, she wasn't fucking coming back here ever again. Every inch of her screamed for her to just go to the ship, just get back and away from... that. Yes, that thing ahead of her. Bodies fell as her bullets reached their marks, providing some cover for her love and his friend as her eyes blazed with fury, fear, and fuck-alledness. God dammit all.... This was why she'd end up dead. Cuz she was protecting someone's ass. Guess she couldn't quite shake all of her humanity huh?

It was kinda strange. Spade was just walking up calmly, talking to some of the bigger RIOTE dogs that were there, pulling out his lighter-- Ohhhhhhhh. Oh she got it now. Shu was shooting and saving her friend, turning one of her pistols over in that direction to help give her cover. Alisa was standing a good ways back still, not wanting to get any closer than she had to. God dammit Spade.... But it had worked, Aurelius was turning away and heading back. They all were. Was that what he had done to her? Aaaand they were running now! Good! Laughing, it was almost a kind of cackle as she bolted back towards the ship with the Head of Central and Head of South, arms swinging to help propel her forward as her cowboy boots clicked on the snow and ice. What fucking bullshit this all was.....

She practically stormed into the ship, falling into a seat next to Spade before she let out a snarl of pain. "Aaaaarrgggh, GOD DAMMIT IT HURTS! IT FUCKING HURTS!" She screamed, receiving many stares and glares for her outburst. She wanted to snap at them, but she didn't, glancing to Spade to see he was asleep. A-and.. and... Oh fuck.... Her anger was just gone, gritting her teeth as her leg and shoulder throbbed, instead rather.... tired. The Survivalist wasn't such a survivalist anymore. She was risking all for one man, and one man alone. She watched him sleep for a while before leaning her head back and staring up at the ceiling, thoughts rolling about in her head as much as she hated that they were. God dammit she hated thinking so much.....

[EXIT MISSION]

[Xiao Yu]

Shortly after Xiao had uttered those quiet words to Ace, he heard the emperor's reply across his radio channel. So a retreat it was to be. Yet, just because they were retreating did not mean they had to go running off with their tails between their legs! Xiao turned to help a wounded man stand when he saw.... Jeu-Hee sprouting a tail? He blinked once... twice. He then shook his head quickly. Now was NOT the time to wonder at the changing form of his commanding officer, nor at the obvious irony of his earlier thought. He fired off one of the exploding bolts into the advancing RIOTE troops, echoing Jeu-Hee's shout. “Men, let's move! To the airship outside Moscow! NOW!” The wounded man he was assisting was finally up and he quickly directed another soldier to help him along. He then went to find more, getting them to their feet and with soldiers who were unarmed. The RIOTE troops grew closer as Xiao helped the last Xingese man to stand, throwing his arm under him to help support him. “Come on now. We've got to get going.” One arm free, Xiao occasionally fired back exploding bolts to keep the RIOTE soldiers distracted enough so they wouldn't fire their own weapons.

It felt like ages before they finally reached the airship. They got all of the wounded on board and then stood outside the ship, preparing a perimeter. Some of the RIOTE soldiers had followed them out and it was time to make another stand. At least until the Emperor arrived with whatever Xingese he could find. Then it would be time to get out. As Xiao stood with his Chu No Ku, his hookpak thrown over his back, he waited for the moment they could fly back to Xing. He wanted nothing more than to hug his son and just... sleep.

[EXIT MISSION]

[Csilla Angelis]

"Csilla! Csi, we're a few blocks south of the Kremlin, and our ship's landing! Run north and we'll fi---What the shit is THAT?!"

Csilla breathed a sigh of relief. Shula had heard her. And... what the?

"Csilla! Where--"

Shula had shouted in alarm about something and then the radio had gone to static. That definitely did NOT sound good. Muttering a curse to Ares, she kept running, trying to follow the sounds of battle. She felt like she would never make it to Shula when she heard gunshots coming from ahead of her?? She ducked her head down reflexively before glancing up. “SHULA!” The small girl looked soaked to the bone, but Csilla didn't really have time to register why. She continued shooting of light into the troops as she flipped to her radio. “General Tsukino, we are on our way, do not take off yet!” She kept her pace with Shula and thankfully, they soon reached the airship. She pushed Shula to get helped aboard first before she got in safely herself. She trailed off Shula slowly, slumping down onto the floor next to her. She watched as a soldier wrapped Shula in a blanket before glancing at her. She shook her head, which caused her to wince. Gingerly she touched her temple. Oh. Yeah. She grinned at the soldier, “Hey, got a bandaid?”

She zoned out as someone (she wasn't entirely sure who) re-bandaged her calf wound, wrapped her shoulder and yes, even got her a bandaid for her head. She glanced over at her dearest friend and sighed. She wiggled her way closer before throwing an arm around the dripping girl. “We made it, Shu. And as soon as we get back, I'm coming to visit you in South, no matter what Spade says.” She rubbed her friend's arm, Csilla's head resting against the top of hers. She let her eyes drift close, falling into an unsteady sleep. The war was lost and so... she was afraid... was Csilla's heart.

[EXIT MISSION]

[Guest]

The time to worry about appearances was not now, it was time for haste, and she could move so much faster in her chimeran form. She didn't even catch Xiao's surprised glance to her before jumping into action, “Men, let's move! To the airship outside Moscow! NOW!” Shifting her grip on the people she was carrying, she waited long enough to make sure the others were moving before allowing herself to leave after them. She had done a poor enough job leading them, the least she could do is make sure they got out even at her own expense. The sight of the RIOTE soldiers sent such shivers across her fur, causing it to stand on end as she licked her snout again out of nervousness. Glancing back towards Xiao, he was up and moving, now going herself. Thank goodness he was providing covering fire, her hands were full.

Her nerves were shot, but at least one could always rely on adrenaline to get them up and moving. Thats all she had going for her by that point, carrying more than just the weight of the two injured shoulders she had slung over each shoulder. Who knew her shoulders could be wide enough for them? She didn't before this! No focus... Oh god it was hot.... She was working up quite the sweat, staring onward down those streets hoping the next would reveal the airship to them, just hold on till then.... Her back was starting to ache from earlier when that man had thrown and pinned her against the car, gritting her sharp teeth together as her ears laid back. Everything just smelled of blood and smoke, like some grim barbecue that only the grim reaper enjoyed. Just keep moving... They would make it.

Finally the giant ship came into view, a couple of militants aiding her in getting the others on board as she glanced back towards where they had come. A couple of RIOTE men were coming into view, gritting her teeth as she placed her bag down and pulled out her sniper rifle, assembling it in all of a minute or two. Peering through the scope, she lined up the shots and fired, ensuring their escape as they waited for the rest to get on board. It was strange.... She felt better with her rifle back between her hands, her tail twitching occasionally as she perched there until all were on board. Pulling back inside, she curled up in a chair and let a great amount of air out in a long sigh, her form slowly shifting back. Had they joined this war for naught? Shivering violently now that the fur was gone, she wasn't sure if it was just from cold or not, bringing her knees to her chest as her face rested against the tops of her knees. Tears were beginning to fall as she futily tried to keep herself from crying, calling out over and over in her mind for Ayden. She could use a hug from him right now....

[EXIT LEFT]

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