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War is Not the Ugliest of Things

Posted: Thu Aug 02, 2007 2:45 pm
by Vesper Fiend
Invasion – Day One

What happened between the start of the invasion and the Rikti withdrawal in Talos was unclear. At some point Ves had the presence of mind to say something on the comm. Someone, Jason maybe, asked where she was. All she could come up with was “Talos. Somewhere in Talos.” Before she knew it, other SJS students were converging on the area, possibly trying to regroup. When the Rikti pulled out of Talos, all of them returned to campus together. Ves swung by the dorm long enough to find undamaged clothing.

They were gathered on the school grounds hoping to hear word, having been joined by others from various parts of Paragon after the first wave of the attacks had ceased. Ves and Arthur held a whispered conversation apart from the other students, as she caught him up on what she knew of the attacks. He held her hand in his, and she felt it was that alone that kept him rooted there. Arthur wanted to go out and fight and strained at the proverbial reins, reins that Ves imagined she held at the moment, reins that pained her to hold.

With a furrowed brow, Arthur all but snapped out, “Why do we have the damn hero licenses? You said yourself you can take the ground troops.”

Ves glanced around to ensure that his outburst hadn’t caught anyone’s attention as she told him about the drop ships, the bombs, the blasts raining destruction from the sky from impregnable flying weapons platforms. She told him indirectly about the people dying.

Arthur looked down. “Maybe so... I understand Ves, I just…”

“Just what? If this is another invasion? If this is REAL war? What...? What can we really do? I mean... the BEST heroes could hardly stop 'em last time...”

Only moments later, the discussion within the group mirrored their own private whispers as another wave of strikes was announced and Gabe began an impassioned attempt to rouse everyone into fighting the invaders.

“I'm sure you've ALL fought Rikti before.” Gabe challenged.

“Yeah,” Ves intoned quietly.” Stragglers. Beaten leftovers from an old war, skulking about.”

“Yes, Gabe. Leftovers... Starved, sick, stupid.”

Ves almost winced as Artie added his voice to hers, trying to help her convince the others. She couldn’t help but feel sick to her stomach. She knew they needed to wait. They couldn’t go out onto the field and be an unknown rogue element facing an unknown situation. ”Artie’s a fighter, though. What am I thinkin’, I’m a fighter!” Holding him back, holding back herself, hurt something inside of her.

“That wasn't a whole alien race intent on slaughterin' everybody. Gabe, the very BEST we had to offer went up against the Rikti... The very best...” She wouldn’t admit it, but she was scared, not for herself, but for Artie, Sam, Eddie, Bryan, Alice, Jessiy, Bri, Jason… everyone she knew. Names ran through her head faster than she could make them out. This had all the look of a full-blown Rikti invasion. So many of the world’s heroes had fought in the last war and died. What did a bunch of high-school teenagers, superpowers or not, have to offer in a real war? How could they possibly compare themselves to the likes of those heroes lost in the last invasion?

Suddenly, it was over. Kalie had slipped away in the confusion of the argument to try to find her lost father. Gabe went after her. Others trickled out to see what was going on or to fight the Rikti on the streets.

Arthur whispered quietly, “Ves? Thanks for... forcing me to use my brain.”

Numbness flooded Ves. Her stomach churned, leaving the bitter taste of bile in her mouth. She wanted to throw up. Artie was right. They should be out there, doing whatever they could, but she just couldn’t bring herself to say those words.

Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 2:02 pm
by Vesper Fiend
Invasion – Day One – Sometime Later

When the next wave of destroyers was sighted heading towards Skyway, Ves couldn’t’ refuse. She and Artie took to the streets with the others to repel the invaders. Skyway. Atlas. Talos again. As before, the Rikti struck, and then retreated. There was so much damage, so many lives lost. How many of them had just narrowly missed dying, saved only by being whisked away by the med-badges if their injuries threatened to become too severe? Ves felt herself spinning, and found staying on her feet to be a supreme struggle.

“I dunno if I can do anymore of this...” she said out loud, to no one in particular. Without waiting for an answer, she made a beeline for the nearest teleportation point, to find a way out of the crowds, away from populated areas. On the way, she heard several voices ask after her on the comm before turning it off. Someplace the Rikti wouldn’t attack. Someplace where there was nothing worth attacking. The first place that came to mind was Eden. Once there, she flew straight up, as high as she could go. It was quiet there, deceptively peaceful. It was easy to forget a war might have started maybe less than an hour before.

Feeling a little clearer, she took stock of her surroundings and chose a tall spire on which to set down. She wrapped her arms about her knees, and put her head down. Her eyes were closed for only a minute before she heard a familiar voice.

“Ves?” Arthur’s voice.

“Hmm?”

“Talk to me.”

“’Bout what?” With effort, Ves opened her eyes. She felt so drained, so weary.

He reached a hand out to her, a hand she didn’t even notice at first, a hand that seemed to anchor her as she took hold of it. Still his voice sounded distant in her ears. “Whatever you like. Or nothing at all.”

“It's just all so... so... senseless...” she started, and before she knew it, she was babbling incoherently about warships circling an open field, dropping their explosive ordinance on the grass and the adjacent parking lot.

Five of them circled that empty spot, blasting anything and anyone that tried to get too close. Several students, including Ves, were hit hard just for trying to get close enough to see what it was about that spot that was worth a repeated attack. None of them had a chance of getting a good look with five ships so close together. It was as if the Rikti were taunting them. Dropping bombs for the sheer sake of dropping them, to make a point, to tell everyone watching that they could as they pleased without fear of reprisal. To let them all know that they were too insignificant to stop the strikes.

It was, in hindsight, an absurd moment to fixate on. There was no way to know what those five ships were doing, but Ves couldn’t put into words what she was feeling. Something about the invasions… something during them was… off.

Finally, her shoulders slumped, she said, “I just... I need some time to get used to this. Rikti... Attackin’ the city... It's... too much.”

“I don't expect to be able to figure the Rikti out. But, this world beat them once before. We'll pull through, Ves.”

“That's just it... Did we?” She was a little surprised at his puzzled look. “If we did, then how come they're back?”

“Like I said, I don't know.” She wondered as Artie paused for a moment if there was even an answer to that question. “Ves?”

“Yeah?”

“One day at a time. Right?”

“Yeah...” She nodded, adding almost in hindsight a small smile. “Yeah, you're right.”

Arthur put an arm around her, pulling her close, and Ves thought, as she leaned against him, that she could almost forget that maybe a war was starting today… Almost.