Welcome Guest [Log In] [Register]
Welcome to the End Run Roleplay Forum! A place to let your characters run amok, even after the OCT ends.

Please, link your character's (or characters') deviant art reference sheets in your signature, so that others may know who your characters are and have easy access to the information.

Also, make sure to check out the Board Rules!

Username:   Password:
Add Reply
  • Pages:
  • 1
  • 3
[Completed] Aftermath
Topic Started: May 20 2012, 08:21 AM (972 Views)
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
((For sort of a prelude to this go here: http://safayia.deviantart.com/art/R2-Epilogue-303277351 ))

Amelia stood trembling, her bare feet soaking up the cold from the floor, and the chill of the metal planes seemed to chill the air. She was alone, but at the same time she was surrounded by bodies. Metal bodies. Though not a one ever experienced the warmth of life, they at several points held that warm life in their cold shell, and in doing so seemed to take on a piece of that life. Their dents and scrapes and malfunctions seemed to make them all alive, to give them all a heartbeat of their own. Their bodies told stories of their pilots, some of victory and some of defeat, but all of them bathed in blood. Their bodies whispered stories to Amelia, who cringed at every red word. But the stories kept pouring into her mind, and her thoughts drowned in red. That noble color that represented her proud nation now leaked, tainted, from her torn hand. Amelia watched her cuts cry her own blood, and she clenched her hand into a tight fist to stifle them, yet the blood continued to flow. And those red words of war continued to circulate in her mind until she felt herself being lost to them. She shook her head and paced the floor, but those metal bodies still surrounded her, still whispered to her. Louder now than ever before.

"Leave me alone!" Amelia screamed at the bodies. At the words. At the red. They all heard her, she knew, but none of them ceased to torment her thoughts. "Leave me alone!" she cried again, thrusting her bloody fist at the metal shell of the plane. They never left her alone. And somewhere amongst these whispers of metal and blood came the soft voice of a man garbed in blue. He too whispered his story, and Amelia heard it again. And again. And again.

In her frustration she let loose a wild howl, as if to drown out his words. But the second she stopped she heard him again, so she just kept screaming.
Edited by Safayia, May 26 2012, 09:38 PM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Ra-ooo
Member
[ *  * ]
He'd heard her subdued panic leaking into the real world from her dream. He'd heard shuffling in the dark, footsteps quickly leaving the barrack, almost silent but just enough sound to rouse him from his doze. Xander was a very light sleeper.
He sat up and looked around at the sleeping airmen that filled the room, then at the door. Still open, just a crack. He slid out of bed and slipped on his jacket and pants, then strode for the door without a sound.

Nathan's fleeing figure was running, seemingly without direction, and heading toward the hangars. He stood on the doorstep of the barrack and watched, hands on hips, face an expressionless mask, as she vanished from sight. A sound from the roof made him look up; Nathan's staravia. He met the bird's gaze for a lingering moment before sighing through his nose and stepping off into the grass to head to the hangar himself.

It was a still night, no wind, no stars, clouds blackened the sky of them and made the air the faintest bit heavy. Rain was on the way. The grass was covered in dew and the dirt was cold, clinging to his bare feet and the cuffs of his pants.
Finally he arrived, just in time for Amelia's screams to start. He flinched as the sudden sound brutally shattered the silence. And he stared at what he was seeing, what he would describe as someone losing their sanity right before his eyes.

"Jesus Christ.." he muttered under his breath. Should he do something? Go over to him? ...Was he bleeding? What the hell had happened?
And suddenly Nathan was getting closer. Or rather, Xander's feet decided he was going over to Nathan whether he liked it or not.
"Hey." There was little chance his voice, still asleep itself, could overcome her screams. "Hey!" A little more force in it that time.
"What the hell are you doing?!" And now he was yelling, trying to get over her howls. "Nathan, what the fuck are you doing?!"

He reached out to grab her by the shoulders, make her face him and maybe throw in a good solid shake to try to snap her out of it.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
A firm grip on her shoulders frightened Amelia, and for that instance she ceased her screams. And in that quiet moment she heard a voice, as that grip turned her body to face a man. She recognized his face, and recognized his voice, but the fear and anger welling within her had distorted her memories. Amelia wondered if the figure shaking her was real, or if those red words had finally dragged her mind down to the pits of insanity. The chance was not worth taking.

She struggled against Xander's grip and resumed her bouts of shrieks. She kicked and twisted and pushed against him with her bloody hands until finally she wrenched herself free. Amelia stumbled back and stared at Xander, eyes wide with fear and legs trembling violently. No matter how long she stared, she could not bring herself to see. Xander's familiar figure took on a different, yet equally familiar, form; the shadows that haunted the back of her mind.

"What are you?" Amelia wailed, her voice strained and throat sore.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Ra-ooo
Member
[ *  * ]
It looked like he'd almost gotten her back to her senses, but then she started fighting against him, smearing her blood all over the front of his tank top. She wrenched herself free and he let her go. She stared at him and he looked back at her, face set and body braced as if she were about to attack him. He was at a complete loss for what to do. The only solution he could come up with was to slap Nathan across the face, and that somehow didn't seem like the right thing to do just now.

Then she howled, "What are you?!" Xander couldn't help but scoff.
"Nathan..." He relaxed and put his hands on his hips. "What the hell's the matter with you. Come here, come on." He gestured for her to come. "Tell me what you're doing flipping out in here in the middle of the night."
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
Amelia shook her head and held her torn hand close to her like an injured animal in the shadow of a predator. She stood, watching him, waiting for him to make some move. In the quiet of the moment, she could hear her haggard breathing echoing in the vast dome of the hangar and the whispers of those metal bodies surrounding them quietly resumed. In response she thrashed her head around and gripped her head in her hands, letting loose one final shriek before her voice could carry out no further. Then all was quiet again.

With a shaky sigh, Amelia looked up from her hands and returned her gaze to Xander. She tilted her head slightly in realization, for in that brief moment her mind was her own again.

"Xa-Xander?" Amelia whispered, her voice now low and rough. She took a tentative step towards him, clutching her wounded hand once more as if to protect it.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Ra-ooo
Member
[ *  * ]
Xander didn't move, he stood with one hand on his hip, the other lowered back to his side. He wasn't about to go near someone who seemed to be unhinged, because quite frankly he was tired of getting kicked in the crotch. Still as stone he waited for her to get it all out.

And finally it seemed that she did. She said his name with a look on her face that showed comprehension. He smiled slightly without meaning to and just nodded.

"Yeah." He took a few steps toward her after she stopped, the distance between them now arm's length.
"You all right now? You wanna tell me what the hell happened to your hand?"

Because physical injuries were far easier to deal with than emotional ones.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
Amelia responded to Xander's question with a blank look, before she turned her attention to her own hand. For the first time, she seemed to recognize it had been injured, and realize to her horror that she had been bleeding for all this time. She thoughtfully ran a finger from her undamaged hand along the cuts and gashes in her flesh, and flinched away when the pain of the wound was finally acknowledged by her body. Amelia turned the attention of her frightened eyes back to Xander, as she prodded her brain for an answer.

"I think ....," she began. "I-I think I-I got it from ..... from the fence ....." She then held out her trembling hand slightly for Xander to see.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Ra-ooo
Member
[ *  * ]
Xander took a look at her hand as she held it out. It didn't look terrible, but those cuts were messy and the fence was certainly not the cleanest thing you could injure yourself on. Xander's eyes rose from her hand to her face.

"You wanna go to the medic?" If it were his cut he would've blown it off and let it heal on its own, just keeping it clean. He asked, rather than dragging Nathan off to the med tent, in case he felt the same way... and also just in case Nathan didn't want to see anyone right now.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
"N-no! No!" Amelia drew her hand in sharply. She examined it again and muttered to herself. "I-It'll b-be fine. I'll b-be fine." She then nodded to affirm her own statement and instinctively reached for her scarf, only to find nothing there. The air around her seemed to grow colder as her mind was drawn back into reality, and she shuddered. Amelia tilted her head towards Xander. She was desperate to keep up the conversation. The last thing she wanted was to be alone in the dark again. "What-What're yo-you doing h-here Xa-Xander?" Amelia asked politely, straining her distressed face into a small smile.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Ra-ooo
Member
[ *  * ]
He'd figured she wouldn't really want to go, though for a different reason than the truth. He nodded and put up his hands innocently, he wasn't gonna take her there if she didn't want.
His hands fell to his sides, thumbs in his pockets. He chuckled at her question, eyes steadily on her all the while.
"Just seeing what the hell you woke me up for." And that smile certainly wasn't fooling him. Had he not seen her screaming at the darkness only a handful of minutes before? Even if he hadn't seen that, it was clear she was only wearing a mask. More of a torn, thin veil really.

"Nathan. What's the matter?" He asked. The hangar seemed to grow even quieter in the silence following his question.

Outside the door it had started to drizzle. The tiny water drops gleamed pure white under the orange lights that illuminated the camp. They drifted in the air like falling feathers, moved by the slightest stir as they meandered to the ground.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
Amelia bit her lip at the question and remained quiet for a long time to steady her breathing once again. In her heart she knew there was no denying the issue, but her mind and body were tired of the stress of her memories and secrets. She wanted to hide them away, never acknowledge their existence, in the hope that if she never remembered then she could march forward proudly, free of this guilt and pain that scoured her every moment.

No. There was no problem.

With painstaking effort Amelia maintained her slight smile, but when she opened her mouth only broken cries came forth. She bit her lip again to stop them, but her fragile composure had broken apart by then. Tears rolled down the sides of her face. Amelia shook her head in frustration. She tried to voice her thoughts again, but nothing would come out. There was no problem. Why couldn't she believe herself? Why couldn't she speak it? Her frustration welled within her, and mustering all her effort she forced the words out.

"NOTHING IS THE MATTER!"

And then it was quiet. The sheer force that she put forth to speak was all that had held her together, and with it expelled her will crumbled into dust and she fell to the floor, overcome by the sobs she had fought back for so many days.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Ra-ooo
Member
[ *  * ]
Xander knew something was the matter and knew Nathan ought to let it out somehow. But Xander had been hoping for something more along the lines of an exasperated sigh, spilling some of his burden, and some drinks to finish it off.
He was not expecting this nor was he at all prepared for it. Nathan collapsed to the floor in a crumpled sobbing heap. Xander could only stand where he was, his hands held up slightly, awkwardly, at a complete loss for what to do.

His hand slowly came up and ran through his hair. He looked over his shoulder at the open door, as if someone would be standing there watching this scene. His eyes quickly scanned the planes surrounding them, as if more people would be watching from under the shadows. Finally his eyes returned to Amelia, who showed no sign of letting up.

"Nathan..." He sighed. Hell, what was he supposed to do? He took a few steps over to him and stood over him, looking down. "Nathan," he said again, purposeless noise.

He got on one knee before Amelia and tentatively put his hand on her back. The weight and warmth from his hand seeped through her tank top. He didn't have anything to say any longer, and that was just fine.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
The sobs came out, sharp and disjointed, and with a relentless force that wore down on Amelia's trembling arms, threatening to collapse her whole body to the cold floor. She sat precariously, practically convulsing, as her eyes drained the water from her body. Her screams resumed, laden with her misery. She grew angry with herself for her inability to stop, for her weakness, for her pain. The cold air encased Amelia, almost as if to mock her, to emphasize how alone she was without the heat of another to comfort her. Nathan was not there. Her mother, her father were not there. Her brothers, her sisters, her nieces and nephews were not there. They never would be for the remainder of the war. She was alone with her fears and sorrows for what could be years. Yet in that moment of isolation Amelia felt the heat of human touch upon her back.

Almost instinctively, Amelia threw her arms around Xander and drew her head beneath his chin. She rested the weight of her shivering body on his. Her wild sobs continued and she tightened her grip around Xander, never wanting that heat, that support, to leave her alone in the cold again.
Edited by Safayia, May 21 2012, 11:06 AM.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Ra-ooo
Member
[ *  * ]
Xander wasn't the most empathetic guy around, but he had it in him. Buried rather deep in him but still there, and being dredged up now by Amelia's painful cries.

Though the hug, or rather tackle, was a little more than he was ready for. He tensed in her arms, drawing away from her slightly, and his hand gripped her clothes. But he resisted pulling her off, and resisted pulling himself free.

Nathan was hurt, you didn't cry unless you were hurt. There was not a lot Xander could do for him, not understanding where this was coming from or what had brought it on, but he recognized bottled up emotions when he saw them.
Nate, you need a good drunken bar fight to get this out of you.
Looks like sobbing into Xander's chest would have to suffice for now.

Xander let out a tense sigh and relaxed somewhat. His hand eased its grip on the back of her tank top and he rested his arm across her back. He swallowed, his throat pressed against the crown of her head as he did.

And he took in another deep breath and let it out through his mouth. He stared off into the darkness of the hangar, still on one knee but not bothering to adjust his uncomfortable position. He could wait for as long as this needed.
All of this under the pretense that as soon as Nate was done, this would never be so much as whispered of again.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Safayia
Member
[ *  * ]
Amelia continued to sob into Xander. Her cries and shivers and sharp breaths and hiccups were all that were available to measure the passing time. Time passed slowly that night. Her arms grew stiff from holding onto Xander for so long, and her legs were numb from lying on the floor undisturbed, and it seemed as though the sun had left the earth, for it did not rise in the sky after such a length of time had passed. It was the longest night Amelia could remember.

However, all things, good or bad, eventually come to an end. Amelia's body had exhausted all its tears. She could cry no more. Yet she remained in Xander's arms, a shivering, pathetic mass of a human being. She sniffled and panted, her face red from tears long since passed, and her upper lip glistened with mucus drained from her nose. All gradually faded to silence again. Except for the rain, which gained more force in the passing time, and lightly tapped the roof of the hangar. Amelia listened to its pattern and to the low thunder that rolled over the land. With a final sigh she held herself a little closer to Xander, but never once raised her eyes to meet his.
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ZetaBoards - Free Forum Hosting
Free Forums. Reliable service with over 8 years of experience.
Learn More · Register for Free
Go to Next Page
« Previous Topic · Kanto · Next Topic »
Add Reply
  • Pages:
  • 1
  • 3