A gesture. Faded into the shadows, but to the waiting eye was very clear.
A rustle. So perfectly blended into the whispers of the wind, no one could hear it.
A steady breath. Quiet yet deadly.
The signal. Let chaos be unleashed.
A figure, moving quick and swift took a step onto the field. Not trees. They could easily be spotted. Quick footing was needed more for the approach then a swift hand for the kill.
Soft footing.
Gentil pacing.
One ... before ...
The other ...
Hands on the weapons, racing toward the circle of tents, criss-crossing between each other to avoid being an easy target.
But who was aiming at them?
The field only held laughter and smiles. Young and fragile.
Never suspecting that something could go wrong. Not prepared for a slaughter ... not deserving one.
The figures ducked as they came into closer range. The tents blocking the view of those in the center.
No precautions.
Nothing.
One young boy steps between the tents, lifts his head only to have his breath wisked away with a trail of blood. Splattered onto the tent.
No one heard him screaming.
He never had the chance.
One by one the enemy slips inside. The camp is large and greatly spread out. Two circles as they see now. Only a few victims to be rendered down here. This tiny circle of fragile victims. Ones who should have never been given the chance of victory; now laying with death in their eyes and blood on their lips.
Rapid movement, ducking; ensuring their own safety. The enemy knows they have won.
All but two of the enemy clears this circle and leaves for the next.
They reach the second circle as the first goes up in flames.
A signal. Something has gone wrong. The victims squirm about in a panic, never taught to fight what came through the tents with deadly weapons and thirst for blood.
No orders of defence are given. The remaining commander could not. One by piece, the soldiers fall.
Their youth not an excuse.
Too young ...
All of them ...
Yet not a soul left alive ...
.:VWV:.
"You there! Round up your party and gather all the corpse here. I want a body count. After, destroy everything! Burn it to the ground!"
Mystel tried his best not to gag. The heavy smell of blood was chocking him; the soon smell of burning flesh caused him to be nausious. Just because he'd had to do this before, didn't mean he'd ever gotten used to the manslaughter.
The men raced from one end of the camp to the other, assisting in the loads. Mystel watching as the bodies began to pile up. Some by pieces; others by wholes. Some soldiers stood aside to count, as if these beings had been some form of resource. Something they had to be sure they had enough of.
"Are you certain your alright, Master?"
Mystel cringed. Of course he wasn't. He'd just been ordered to kill off a huge population of 10 year old boys! How could he possibly be alright?
... of course. He was Captain. He had to be used to this.
"Fine."
"Lies, Master. The disgust is written all over your face."
Mystel turned fading, angry eyes at the acuser. "Are you claiming I can't stand this part of my job?"
"You seem keen on being able to read my mind today." Mingming bowed gentilly; no smile for the moment.
Mystel glared as long as he could and turned aside before it faultered. Her hand gripped his shoulders.
"I know how this wounded you, Master Mystel. Any man who brags they know the smell of blood has never seen it; and any man who has will never tell. Is this not the exact words you once told me?"
The blond remained silent. He had no words to tell.
Mingming sighed only in her mind. She paused for a moment and gripped to Mystel's wrist.
"As a soldier in the Kotan clan, I cast praise on you for a job well played. As a long time friend, I must tell you to not push yourself further then your sanity will stretch. Lord Hiro will tell you the same when we return. I am certain of it."
If Mystel had any comment to her concern, it was wisked away in the breeze and by a soldier's heavy footsteps.
"Captain Mystel." The man haulted and saluted.
Mystel nodded in acknowledgment as Mingming slipped away. As her pace lead her away from the scene, she heard Mystel's heated cries of horror and shame.
"What do you mean he's not here?"
.:VWV:.
Travis grinned to himself as he hopped over a fallen tree covered in emerald moss. His arm looped through the basket, the redhead took a dangerous dive from the cliff before him and landed square on his feet; ten feet below.
"Travis and Miguel! Do you two ever plan on listening? I said be careful. Take the safe route like everyone else next time." Kai sent glares to innocent faces.
"We made it, didn't we?" Travis motioned around him with a free arm.
Suddenly he yelped and hopped up quickly, glaring at his leg. Mathilda was scowling him from her 'trouble' positon on his foot. Hands on hips and eyes straight at him. She'd just pinched him with her tweezer like paining.
"Behave, Travis. Kai is trying his best to keep track of all of you and with over ten hyper boys here, you two are not the easiest to lead. You are not helping in the least. That goes for you as well, Miguel." Mathilda flew up in a heat and sat down on Travis' shoulder. "You two really are going to get yourselves killed one of these days."
Miguel laughed nervously and muttered his apologies. Travis refused but did after Miguel punched him hard in the opposite shoulder.
Miguel turned to Kai and the others, as they caught up from their man-made trail. "How much further?"
"Getting tierd, are we?" Kai smirked.
Miguel smiled. "Hardly, but the tag sure does."
And by tag, Miguel meant Brooklyn, who was last in line.
The boy in question ruffled his feathers in protest. "I am not! I'll have you know-"
"Only about a half a mile left. You can bicker when we get back and until then, choose to keep your mouths shut." Kai snapped quickly.
Travis smiled up at Kai who never noticed it. Over the time he'd been trained by him and talked with him, Travis had really grown to admire Kai. He was a great leader and everyone listened to him. Well most of the time. He understood things that Travis was sure no man had even thought about and he treated everyday like a precious memory. When Travis felt lonely in the night, he thought of how Kai could possibly be able to teach himself something like that. Maybe nothing bad had ever happened to him and thats why Kai was who he was. The redhead always slapped himself when he thought that. It couldn't be true in the least and he was acting selfish over his own problems.
Kai looked down at him, paused and then ruffled his hair affectionatly. Travis thought of Kai like another uncle now; he was really comfortable around him. So the fact that Kai was seeing him now through friendly eyes gave him great pride.
"Just don't pull that again or you'll be seeing yourself running more chores then normal." Kai commented and motioned the others forward.
Travis folded his arms with a half smile. "You sure know how to ruin your own moments, don't you?
The captain took off at a slow and steady pace. "I don't have moments. I don't even know what your talking about."
Travis did.
.:VWV:.
Alex was still staring out the ships window when Raul came in silently.
"You still seem fastinated." His voice spooked her momentarly but she relaxed.
"I never once realized something as simple as water could be so relaxing."
Raul looked sad for a moment, then glanced back at her starring eyes. "Alex, I must request a responce from you."
"Shoot."
Raul opened his mouth, then paused as if afraid of the reaction. He smiled suddenly with a sigh. "I-I forgot the question for a moment. Forgive me. As I was saying, why of all people would you come along with I? What do you expect to achieve going where I am?"
While Alex processed the words, Raul added. "The odds of finding any trace are closer to impossible then despiration."
Alex looked down and sat upon a crate in the corner. "I know. But I really have nothing to lose on this and everything to gain. I don't expect you to understand it Raul, but I have to find something. Anything. Even a small trace or a word. Any chase is better then no chase if you have nothing more to fail, right?"
Raul only starred at her. Alex felt her confidence slipping as she saw every inch of self-control start slipping from Raul's eyes.
"Yes; very true. But after so long and no hint of your ... further existence, what could you expect to find?"
Alex was startled by the question and it took a long while for her to come up with a logical answer. "Nothing."
Raul smiled sadly. "Then why the chase? Why all the stress over your shoulders for something that will not come true?"
Alex made a fist and starred down at it as it gripped itself tighter in her lap. "Because I have to know."
"Know?" Raul asked, tilting his head to the side.
Alex's eyes were covered with her bangs. "I need to know that what I feel isn't a different emotion thats being covered up. Like hatred or self-pity. I need to know that its real and it isn't something my mind made up in the process."
The room was silent for a long time. Finally Raul stood and caught her attention.
"I am sorry. I did not mean to make you uncomfortable. Please forgive me. I shall leave you to your peace."
Raul bowed his head, turned and left. When he was still halfway inside the doorway, Alex spoke up.
"For the record, you already trashed my peace."
He chuckled as he left down the hall, leaving Alex to ponder over the conversation with confusion.
.:VWV:.
The entire trip was as silent as the dead of night. Neither Tala nor Anko spoke a word to one another as the rowboat swayed on the gentil waves. The tension was so thick around their tiny vessel that either of them wouldn't have minded jumping if it meant the end of the eerey silence.
Neither was happy.
The only noise that ever bothered to steal a few echoes in the air was the paddles when they slapped the waves a little harder then normal. Or the few cups of water that swished from one end of the boat to the other.
The sun was beating down on them with an intense stare. It burned their eyes and caused them to tear. The salty liquid dried to their cheeks as quickly as the sea did to their bodies. Anko's pale skin had already begin to show a deep pink and her cheeks were flushed from the long burst of heat. The redhead across from her had already removed his shirt and was constantly dipping it in the icey waters below. At some points he'd splash Anko to make sure she didn't pass out. He needed not be a doctor to realize his companion had a major case of heat stroke.
Even though the tension was still thick, Tala made sure to keep Anko cool at all times. There was no shade so that was the best he could manage. He would let Anko rest from her half of the paddling and take it up as she regained next to no strengh.
Tala hadn't slept in nearly three days and it was really starting to get to him.
"T-Tala?" The voice cracked from her parched throat and she gaged on her own words.
It startled Tala since he hadn't heard speech in a while. Yet still he reacted quickly.
Pulling out a small bottle from under his cold wet shirt, Tala uncorked it and handed it over. "Don't speak until you drink something. You'll make yourself sick."
Anko really didn't need much of an invite. She chocked back half the bottle before she handed it back to Tala. It was one of the few things they had left that didn't reek or taste of too much salt. He accepted but did not drink as Anko had thought and instead placed it back with the bag of food and other supplies, wet his shirt and placed it on top.
"How are you feeling?"
"Honestly? Tierd, cranky and too hot for the average being." She spoke slowly but somehow she managed it all in one breath.
"You should sleep then."
"Me? Tala, you should be sleeping."
"Somebody has to row."
"Let the ocean carry us."
"Not likely if we want to hit land sooner then survivable."
"You havent slept in days."
"Only three."
"Tala..."
"Your the one who's sick, not me. You need more rest then-"
"Then I can handle? I can row for a few hours. Sleep."
"I've learned to not argue with cranky or drunk people before. Somebody always starts up a fight by throwing things and trust me it's never I."
"If you had learned to also not argue with sober people, none of this would have happened."
"Was it my fault that you didn't pick up our supplies on that little walk of yours?"
"And what exactly were you doing that entire time?"
"Trying to plan out our next move. Now stop arguing with me and try and get some rest. Look, the sun is setting now so the air shall be a tad cooler. Sleep. You will feel better. We've but a day or two left of this travel. Then I will rest. Does this comfort you?"
"Not in the least." Anko finally replied as she slid off the bench of the boat and onto the floor where the salty water splashed onto her face and chocked her once more.
Tala gripped the paddles and mentally prepared himself for a full nights work of heavy travel. The lack of sun meant wonders for miles; not having to struggle to stay concious.
"I'll be in comfort when you finally get to close your eyes and stop badgering mine."
The redhead smiled up at the sky as his blue eyes watched the fading sun with great encouragment. With a deep breath in and a shift of his position, they were well underway.
His mutter would lay in Anko's sleeping ears until morning. "Don't count on it."
.:VWV:.
Author's Note: Kill me! I took way longer with this chapter then I ever needed to. I'm sorry. Forgive me!
Thanks to all the people who put up with my stalled updates! I know I have no 'scedule' but I at least try to get one chapter ... a ... month. 'sweatdrop' I swear I am trying to get over the habit of stalling but old habits die hard after all.
I'm hoping the next chapter will be up remotly soon but as always, no promises.
Thanks a ton guys!
R&R!