Chapter One: The Forsakens' Fourteenth
Eh Ah
Eh Ah sat on a wooden bench at the edge of the forest, right next to the beach. The entrance of the forest was guarded with a grand metal gate, fenced in so as to protect the wildlife inside. The beach was public property, and on a hot day like this, few were outside. Eh Ah didn't mind the heat as much though. He simply admired the ocean as far as the eye could see. Few ships were out today as well, which was odd, considering it was a very good season for catching fish. Right between the breeding season and the maturity season, which made good product for the fishing industry here. Technically, he wasn't supposed to be here. As conflicts arose between the three factions on the island, the curfew times were becoming tighter and tighter every week, almost to the point where you only had so much time in the morning to be out and about. The only thing Eh Ah really noticed were specks on the horizon. The traders' ships weren't supposed to be out today. Weird.
Suddenly, Eh Ah heard a noise come from the edge of the forest.
Diana Crown
Diana looked out over the hills. The day was quite warm despite there being a breeze to offer some semblance of cooling. The stone castle didn't provide much insulation, but it was very conservative, and their people were tough to the elements anyways.
Diana was in the line of the throne for the Magis Kingdom, a small kingdom made of stone buildings built in the mountains. They could see far out on the island and beyond. The kingdom was part of one of the three factions on the island, and her Kingdom (partly) cooperated with the others, providing protection. Her people were a more tough people, having been conditioned to be workers and fighters alike. She was on the outside open floor leading to the throne room, which then steeped down into the green rolling hills, which cradled the stone buildings which compromised the kingdom. The buildings were clumped in odd fashions, but they weren't architects. That job was left to the Aecrocians, the modernized capitalists on the island. Whatever worked for the citizens, worked.
"Ah, my lady, the Queen looks for you. She makes a request in the name of the Most High." A voice came from behind, near the throne room.
Warren Drake
Warren spent most of his time out in the forest. The deep forest, pretty much a jungle to outsiders. There were reptiles in this part of the island, where a river ran through and there were slight marshy areas. It was much cooler in here than in other parts of the island, which was why Warren enjoyed it. Other than hanging out with the wildlife, of course. It was nice to experience the fresh air, away from the village. Anything that resembled society bored Warren. Well, it wasn't bad, but he preferred his friends in the animal kingdom to the daily routine of civilized life. His legal guardians constantly reprimanded him for not obeying the curfew, saying that he would get himself killed by the Aecrocians, with their fancy weapons that shoot death, or the Magis, who would kill him by cold steel. His own village preferred bows and arrows due to their accuracy and the ability to seal poison and other toxins inside of arrows, guaranteeing a nice, quick death. That was for the warriors, anyways. He wasn't that serious of a person. He just had the forest to himself, always.
He noticed black bars standing straight up during his walk, which was unusual. He couldn't have ventured that far into Aecrocian territory. He decided to look, just to be sure...
Unknown
He mostly kept to himself inside the blacksmith's forge. He liked to watch the fires burn, licking the outside frame of the forges and kilns. The blacksmith took him in as a son, as nobody else really wanted him. The society he was born into was a regal society, one that took no imperfection as a given. He kept to himself in the back, flicking a lighter he found in the Aecrocian junkyard on and off.
"Good trade t'was last week, eh?" The blacksmith said in rough, gravely tones as he pounded the hammer on the white-hot steel. "Looks like the royals are gearing 'emselves uppen for war with them technofreaks n' the tribals."
He must've been referring to the recent conflicts between the three factions. He didn't really care about them, to be honest. There was no reason to. He didn't dwell within Magis society and would never really fit in, so why would he have to constrict himself to their rules and their dealings?
"Mm. Culd yeh come 'elp me 'ere a bit? Needa get this done while I pack up some of n' gear."
Rune
Rune messed with some clay, hanging his feet on the walkway to his cave. The cave he lived in was carved into the volcano itself, the one that looked over the opposite side of the Magis Kingdom. The Magis used this for their blacksmith forge, as well as using it as a sign of power and fear. The Aecrocians lived in skyscrapers near the Magis Kingdom and bordering the Atisi Villages. Rune didn't belong with any of them. He was on his own, one with the volcano. Well, not really, otherwise he would be melting at this minute. The only reason he hadn't been ejected from this cave by the Magis Kingdom is because they assumed he was dead some time ago. He was considered a societal reject and was thrown into the volcano some years ago. But something saved him. He didn't know what, he just knew something did save him. And he's been living here ever since. It was comfy enough; a simple carpet adorned the small, which only had three walls, a ceiling and a floor. The fourth wall was open to the small side of the island, away from the Aecrocians and the Atisi. Various bronze appliances he scavenged from the junkyard hung on the walls, as well as a forge carved of rock and magma. And a stove, powered by magma. It was a nice life, and it could've stayed that way forever. Things do change, though. They always do. While he was forming and reforming his clay, the volcano started vibrating a small bit. Rune looked around.
Alex Raman
Alex Raman was a Magis by birth, but he was an Atisi as a citizen. He loved being in the village, especially with his girlfriend. It was perfect. It was somewhat quiet, but the forests provided even more peace when he needed it. It was hot outside today, and his girlfriend needed to work now with the Aecrocians, so he decided to take a walk in the forest. He had stopped by the river to take a drink, when he heard rumbling in the distance. Birds flew rapidly in the sky. He had no idea what it was, but it seemed to come from the direction of the volcano. Was the volcano active anymore, anyways?
Lirian
Lirian looked down from the tree she was sitting on. She was at the near portion of the forest, where the cemetery of the Aecrocians was. She liked being here; it gave her some sense of energy. She was slightly worried about the conflicts occurring within the three factions; they were scaring all of the citizens. No one knew who was fighting for who and who was doing what. It was left down to peoples' imaginations, and when you put imagination in front of the truth, it let to disaster. She looked above the tree and saw some specks on the horizon. Ships? Maybe. It might be her vision, though. Nothing was trusted in this world anymore. Everyone kept to themselves nowadays. Nobody wanted to talk, except for the Aecrocians, who seemed to talk too much all the time. She then heard rumbling in the distance. She wondered what it could be. The Magis?
Cecil Palmer
"And that ends our broadcast for the morning, folks," Cecil said. He took a sip from his cocoa concentration. "I hope you all have a good day. Remember your curfew times, and be safe. Majesty to Aecrocia!" Switching off the transmitter, he got up and headed out into the main part of the skyscraper, looking down from the top floor. His boss, or pseudo-father, owned the whole place. The whole of Aecrocia. Well, not the whole of the Atis Islands, nor the Atisi and the Magis either. The steel city shined with the reflection of the sun, the bay loaded with trading ships that bolstered the economy of the entire island. Without them, Atis wouldn't be anything but a mere tribal island. And then the Magis appeared, who wore a medieval face. He viewed the rest of the floor, the workers busily entering numbers and words into the computer screens, getting cocoa concentration and soft drinks. It was a system. It was all a system, and that was all it was ever going to be. He suddenly heard a knock on the door.
Cromwell Jackson
Cromwell spun around in his office chair, holding a kitten in his lap. Typically, the bosses did not let pets in at all, but he had sneaked little wittle fluffykins into the office with no problems. He didn't really mind the routine, but it was nice to have a physical being with him. Even more so, a cat.
He was one of the people in charge of running communications through the city of Aecrocia. Mainly, he worked in military communications. That meant he would report any sightings and contacts to the heads of the military. Today was a relatively calm day, though there were heat strokes throughout the city. The sonar controllers reported that there may be anomalies out in the ocean, but Cromwell decided it wasn't of particular interest. Anything detected was usually identified on sight, and to have something be unidentified and still make it through was very rare indeed. As he was looking outside his office window, he heard rumbling coming from the mountain.
Arnequer
Arnequer was having more of a headache than usual today. First of all, the simple-minded morons from the Magis and the Atisi have escalated their involvement within the conflicts, risking more and more lives every day. Arnequer was responsible for the insurance of every citizen of Aecrocia's health, whether they were falling ill to disease, physical injuries, or accidents. To say that this was a pretty hard job would be a horrible understatement; it would be more appropriate to say that he was taking on a challenge meant only for the omnipotent.
And even more troubling was the fact that they were heading straight into the heart of the dry season, meaning that there would be a rise in the number of heat-related health problems. The Magis and the Atisi were not helping either, attacking Aecrocian citizens and each other. Arnequer provided overwatch for the circle of medical professors below, who drew up the diagrams and the charts for health management. They were in one of the tallest buildings in all of Aecrocia. The ocean was mostly calm like the land was today, but there was something like a fleet of ships on the horizon. Mostly like the traders who arrive for their bounties. He continued to watch, and kept watching, for any signs of anomalies.
Note: Oh god this took long. But it was worth it, now that I got the fluff out of the way. You can tell which characters are which and what the setting and factions are.
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Topic: Roll To Medium: Awakening [Chapter VI] (Read 145515 times)