JUST TO BE CLEAR AGAIN IK I SUCK AT WRITING. ENJOY MY PIECE OF CRAP! AND JUST TO BE CLEAR THIS WILL HAVE ANGSTY THEMES IN IT SO I'M GONNA SUCK SINCE IT'S MY FIRST TIME.
AND I'M TRYING TO ADD A BIT OF HUMOUR INTO ANGST. I HAVE NO CLUE IF IT'S BEEN DONE BEFORE AND WORKED. SO DON'T BE SURPRISED IF IT DOESN'T.
SORRY FOR THAT PIECE OF CRAP CHAPTER 12 BTW THIS HAS BEEN A NIGHTMARE FOR ME TO WRITE DUE TO MY BAD WRITING AND I JUST CAN'T THINK OF ANYTHING.
DON'T BOTHER WRITING HATE REVIEWS ATM, I KNOW THE FLAWS IN THIS STORY LIKE THE BACK OF MY HAND.
ALL RIGHT, SORRY FOR WASTING YOUR TIME WITH THIS LONG AUTHOR'S NOTE, ENJOY!
Darkness.
That's all there was.
Darkness.
The one thing she's ever focused on ever since she was thrown into here. The one thing that could let her escape when her captors beat her for information every night. A twisted comfort for her as every bit of her own humanity withered away, knowing that what came next was the cold dark abyss of the afterlife. She didn't have to feel pain there, didn't have to experience any more traumatising memories, didn't need to feel sadness, anger, guilt, the long deep dive into insanity.
Why did everyone she know fear the darkness? Were they scared of the threats that lurked there? Was it just the unsettling feeling? Maybe it's just something to name, hiding the fact that all the world is, is darkness. It's true when you think about it, it has always been true. The world is nothing but a thin bright blanket, covering the obvious void everybody somehow seemed to ignore. You didn't need to live in a post-apocalyptic world to know that, you just needed to look out the window, and take a long hard look at society.
That was all it took for the world to go mad all those centuries ago, a long hard look. Eventually you look for so long that you become the thing you see. Corrupt, greedy, cruel, anguish. For her, she became the worse-off victim of a cruel world. Maybe... maybe she's always been that, just took her a long time to realise it. To remember it.
The beatings went on and on, her outer shell suffering as she continued screaming in pain with her native tongue. But on the inside, it was almost like they were doing her a favour. On the inside, she didn't feel any pain, just peace. A twisted feeling of peace. She didn't care a bit anymore, like she was just watching it all happen like a movie. Was this it? Was her life finally coming to an end?
She shut her eyes once the final blow was about to come. This was it, her long suffering was about to come to a halt.
Was that it?
Had death finally consumed her at long last?
"Hey. East, you all right?" Ryan asked, constantly snapping his fingers in front of her face, "Helloooooo."
She hadn't died.
The tribal screamed in terror as she fell backwards. "Wait- what? Huh? Where- oh. Hey, Ryan," East stammered.
"Are you okay?!"
"Huh? Yeah, I'm fine."
"You sure? You've been staring at the ashes of the campfire for five whole minutes."
"Have I? Oh I didn't notice until..." The tribal began to fade off again back into her former mental state.
Ryan snapped his fingers again, adding in a light shake, "Hey, stay with me."
"Wha- oh sorry. Guess I'm not feeling myself today," she falsely smiled a bit.
"No, you're definitely not," he sighed, sitting down next to her. Glaring at his friend's scarred face. Reminding him of the agonising things she went through down in Omashu, "Listen, I know it's been tough for you since... you know. I... Christ now it's happening to me," he nervously chuckled a bit before getting back on track, "I just wanna say that if you want to talk, I'm open."
"Yeah, okay. You don't mind catching me up on what's happened lately do you?" She asked.
Ryan gave her a bewildered look, did a rock hit her on the head or something? He knew something was up with her, but did it really have to affect her memory like this? He wasn't a psychological expert but this wasn't exactly a positive sign. Was anything about her a positive sign anymore though?
There was a brief pause before the Californian caught her up. A day had already passed since they left Omashu as well as the retreating resistance fighters, they could've gone with them and gain whatever benefits there were. Instead they chose to go alone, forging their own 'destiny' and get back home a quicker way without any foreign squabbles. That was if they could find something that could help succeed in their goal.
The eyebot returned to the others at that moment, "Hey, mates. Ah, seems you've snapped out of your weird mental state."
"You find anything, DAVE?"
"There's a small farming town just two kilometres from here, people seem to be friendly but quite cowardly from my scans. A small Fire Nation outpost across the river over there, might be a problem if we enter their territory but it's best not to waste our resources and energy on them. Oh, and I saw a caravan heading to Ba Sing Se, at least from what I've heard."
"Guess we'll try the trading town, all our food's basically raw Chernobyl, wouldn't hurt to stock up there. Only problem is we have no money. Well if I've learned anything from living in the wasteland, people'll pay good cash for small jobs."
"We can try bullets," East said softly, still showing the effects of her unusual mental state.
"Bullets? Where do you think we are? The Moscow Metro?" DAVE scoffed. Nobody knew what he meant, neither did he. He had a bit of a habit referencing pop culture, but now he had no clue what he just allusioned.
"It worked with a shop before I got to Omashu."
"Uh huh, are you sure you haven't gotten any naturally implanted memories?" This horrible choice of words was in fact... well a horrible choice.
"I... oh God," she placed her hands flat to the sides of her cranium, suffering the pain of a nonexistent headache. What was she becoming? Was this turning down a path to insanity? This was what she felt before back when they broke her out, just after she beat that guard to human mashed potatoes. 'What had she become?' She thought back then. Didn't know why she was thinking that, why she illusioned herself with this false imagery of becoming a monster. It was as the toaster said, her mind was a chaotic mess.
East almost shed a few tears, would've helped with her stress. But something broke in her eyes, forcing them to remain stationary. All she could do was seal them, like when the Fire Nation soldiers came down to her every night, reminding herself of the darkness that was assured for her.
"Great, now look what you've done!" Ryan exclaimed, "East, don't listen to him. Remember whatever you want to remember." The son of a ranger didn't exactly know what to say to comfort her. He wasn't good with things like this, it was like taking care of your sad child. No, that was easier than comforting the mess of a person the tribal was right now.
"I should not have said that. I- I'm going to head out now. You uh... yeah I'm gonna go right now," the eyebot eventually left, embarassed and guilted. He expected redemption for saving Ryan's friend, to finally feel relieved of the burden he held back in the Vault, that he could just save one more life. Now, he was just making that life worse.
The scavenger gave her a bottle of pills, seeming to be a type of improvised antidepressants. Ryan took them before, trying to get over the death of Angela, they worked decently for him. But then again, East did know him for getting over trauma quickly. Nevertheless, she washed them down her mouth. Honestly, Ryan thought he'd have to teach her how to take pills but he was glad she already did.
Took a few minutes for the medicine to kick in. Soon, the pain, the guilt, the anxiety, all disappeared in a flash. Well maybe they didn't disappear, just weakened temporarily. But what mattered was the suffering was repelled for now.
By that time, the two wastelanders caught up with DAVE who seemingly hovered on the far outskirts of the village he mentioned earlier. "Oh, hey," he said, still guilty from earlier.
Ryan took note of his unusual attitude, but shrugged it off. "So that's the town, huh?" He observed. It was the usual settlement, people getting on with their peaceful lives, fields ploughed by the unusual mount hybrids, children playing cheerfully in the few streets. Pretty much the life envied by the many back home. And those who did only had those lustful lives snatched by warfare, enslavement or some other horrid invention by mankind.
But when you focus on one goal only you begin to forget your surroundings. And for them, it was easy enough to forget they were in a different world. Easy to forget their lush surroundings compared to the hell they lived in.
"It's so... peaceful," said East, admiring the scene.
"You were in Omashu before it got occupied though," Ryan mentioned.
"That was- that was different. The people there lived in fear, soldiers injured or dead came in every hour, supplies ran short days before the siege began. The other towns weren't that good either, just oppression. Here... it's just peaceful." It had been a while since she last saw such a thriving society, Freeside was just anarchy and chaos, Westside was no different besides a bit more order, maybe Goodsprings but they weren't as happy. Made her think a bit, the world was just a bright thin blanket over darkness as she had believed for a long time. But all of that was just from experience, observations, nothing actually made her think there was ever going to be a perfect life, not after what she went through. Maybe the world was more than a bright thin blanket, maybe the darkness was smaller, maybe it was all just a large mix, there wasn't any bright or dark, just grey.
What the hell were in those pills?
Ryan passed her response off, having the trio enter the village. A couple of the civilians greeted them politely, whilst others stared in silence inside their homes. The Californian and Tribal felt exactly how they did in Freeside, how they were treated by the locals, they were like aliens to them. DAVE especially since he was a floating machine. Hell, some people thought he was a travelling spirit. But they were still treated fair.
There weren't many kiosks for merchants, then again the population of this place lengthened at no less than thirty inhabitants. At one of the kiosks they purchased from, it seemed to be their most interesting experience there. The merchant was a bald, cruel faced man in his forties. His stock was filled to the brink with miscellaneous items such as vases, a weapon or two, like this was all collected from an adventurer's travels.
East didn't care for the products, she was more focused on the merchant himself, leaning backwards on his prized chair. His eyes reminded her a bit of the first Fire nation soldier she met back in Boshali, eyes that screamed war. His large scars should've already given it away, but she assumed he must've been a soldier or fighter of some sort.
"Draw a picture, it lasts longer," he said with a frown. His rough voice gave out a foreign vibe, still the typical American accent everybody somehow seemed to have. Yet this man just gave out a feeling he wasn't like Aang or a Fire Nation soldier, no he seemed like the wastelanders from their world. East suddenly remembered those holotags she found in the colonies, it reminded her they weren't alone. This guy couldn't be in their situation too could he?
"Jesus, no need for the hostility," Ryan replied.
"Jesus? Is that like a new slang term amongst the younger generation? Whatever. Now what do you want?"
"What exactly is your stock meant to be?" DAVE asked.
"What does it look like? A damn fruit stand? No, I sell whatever I found on my travels."
"Ah, an adventurer I see?"
"Used to be, before I got an arrow to the knee. So now I basically sell earned valuables from Omashu all the way to Ba Sing Se. Or at least I did sell in Omashu, ah I'm pretty sure you know what happened. The name's Tian by the way."
"Where exactly did you get this stuff?" Ryan raised an eyebrow.
"Oh you know, few ancient ruins scavenging, stole them from a few homes during my mercenary days, just plain found them. Yeah I've had a pretty wild life."
"Wow, you don't exactly look the type of person to be selling this stuff? In a farming village out of all places!"
"Expected my kind to look like a magician with a creepy voice in the middle of a city? Trust me, you'd rather have me selling this stuff than one of those perverts. And as for my business location, well I'm basically a travelling merchant, it may be more dangerous with the war and bandits but more profitable. So, you gonna buy something or are you, your metal pet and seemingly abused girlfriend gonna get lost?"
Well, now they know why the hell this guy still had so much in his stock. His damn attitude just drove away customers. And abused girlfriend? Did he have any right to call East that? If East was her old self she'd shove a chair leg so far up his ass that it would be a replacement for his tongue, but instead she stayed in her silent shell behind Ryan, who unsurprisingly wanted to do the same thing.
Nevertheless, this guy seemed to have been able to give them a lead to get home judging by his said travels. Maybe he picked up a hint? A screw it, they might as well ask him.
"We just want to ask you something," Ryan folded his arms.
Tian sighed, "It's still gonna cost you though. What did you want to know?"
"You don't happen to uh... well this is gonna sound weird, do you know about anything that can transport others to another world?"
He stared at them, either as if they were insane or literal aliens. But, he answered without hesitation, "Listen, in all my travels you are the most unusual bunch of people I've seen, so I'm gonna take you seriously with this. I might know a place." He suddenly stopped before he said anything else.
"Which is where?" DAVE asked. The prick of a merchant rolled his eyes and held out his hand, waiting for a payment of some sort. The Californian sighed, and gave him a silver locket from his backpack. "Oh Ryan, come on. Don't give up one of your prized possessions."
"This isn't even mine. Just found it off a dead guy," Ryan replied, "Think the picture inside was of a loved one or something."
"Oh, well go ahead! Sell that worthless piece of junk!" He said without even a touch of sarcasm. A worthless piece of junk fit to trade for information from a worthless piece of life.
Tian examined the locket, wondering if it would be worthy enough for the purchase. He came to a conclusion, "No."
"You're kidding, right? Fine, what would you suggest we should trade?"
The human asshole looked at East, examining anything she's able to offer. The tribal took it as a sign of her possible enslavement, and held her friend's arm tightly. Luckily, Tian took his eyes off her and back onto Ryan. Once again looking up and down before eyeing the contraption almost fused onto his arm.
"Your weird bracelet," he concluded,
"Wait, do you mean my Pip-Boy?" Ryan was dumbfounded. His Pip-Boy wasn't just something he stole off a dead guy, it was the last thing his Father ever gave him. He couldn't just give it up like that. "I think we're done here," he knitted his eyebrows, no longer bothering with the nice act, "So long, asshole. Have a sh*t day."
The trio turned their backs, and decided to head off.
"Wait!" Tian called, catching their attention, "How 'bout this? I'll give you a job to do in return for the information."
Ryan turned his head, "What job?"
The merchant smiled almost sinisterly, "You see, there's this group of people just in the hills back west..."
"Well this seems like a simple mission," the scavenger said as they trudged along the upward path. "Just drive the Fire Nation scouts from this area, assuring the safety of caravans and merchants. What could possibly go wrong?"
"Ryan, I don't think you know exactly what he meant by 'drive away'. If we kill the scouts here and there, it's basically an extra declaration of war. They'll just steamroll through these lands with their tanks once they know the people here are hostile," DAVE stated.
"So what would you suggest?"
"Make them believe I'm a spirit that protects this region. Hell, there's at least a 79% chance in succeeding."
"Jesus Christ, when did you get so... intelligent?
"Well, remember that rock hit me back in Omashu?"
"You mean the truthful excuse that sounds like you ripped out of a Roald Dahl book? Yeah I remember."
"It sort of... stabilised the vital parts of my motherboard. Fixing my ridiculous personality that sounds like bad characterisation in a fictional story. Trust me, I'm surprised by it too. Chances in that were extremely low."
"You sure you haven't gotten a glitch in your system?"
"Scanning. Nope, everything working almost perfectly." What did he mean by almost? Then again, he is centuries old, so there's bound to be some faults. Ryan just shurgged it off as more bull
Back with East, she suddenly zoned out again. Now? Did it really have to be now? Numerable thoughts flickering all across her mind at an instant. She couldn't even make out what any of them were. You know when people get annoyed that they can't even hear themselves think? She was annoyed by the opposite. It was pain for her, even if she didn't know it there was always that small torturous thing that stabbed the back of her mind.
Why can't they just stop?
Why can't all of it just stop?
She suddenly stopped in place. Just staring at the rough soil she stood on. Her broken mind got the better of her, as if all her energy was just redirected into combating the suffering.
Something cold immediately pricked her on the neck. Then again. And again.
She tilted her bruised head to the sky, the cold substances fell all around her. It was as if the sky was crying. The dirt beneath her slowly turned damp, and dirtied her sandals before spreading to her feet. Then the air suddenly dropped, her legs began to shiver despite the fact she wasn't under fear of anything.
East noticed her friend laugh as he stared at the grey sky, "It's raining! East, you seeing this?! It's actually raining! Whoo!"
Rain? Oh right, that sort of weather where the clouds apparently dropped water. It rained in the Mojave of course, but it hardly did. Only a few rounds of droplets in the burning weather. East never understood why Ryan felt happy, to her this wasn't a nice feeling. It was just... depressing. And didn't help at all with her mood.
"I just hope my circuits don't fry," DAVE sadly said despite the fact that all his exposed circuits were clamped down with old road signs and number plates.
"It's cold," the tribal mentioned still shivering.
"You want a coat?"
East nodded. And was given a tan hoodie a bit too big for her. It helped a bit, but she still wasn't satisfied. She might not have been satisfied with anything for a while.
She took another pill, and once again the thoughts started to drown out.
"I'm scanning less than ten life forms ahead," said the toaster.
"So, DAVE, what's your idea?"
"Simple, really. Plus, the weather should increase its efficiency. I'll pretend that I'm a spirit cos (apparently that's what everyone assumes I am), and then eventually they'll retreat faster than the French. And yes I had to make that joke."
"What if they don't retreat and then attack you? Not everyone on this planet or whatever we're on is an idiot you know."
"Then I'll show an example of my wrath and reduce one of their arses to atoms."
"Fair enough. I'm gonna scout ahead, let you guys rest for a bit," he said, then left with a smile. Now it was just the eyebot and tribal, first time being alone together. No it wasn't in a romantic way at all. More of an awkward way, the only proper direct contact he had with her was when he suggested that East might've accidentally implanted memories. The claim was utter Brahmin Shetze, but it was enough to form their awkward relationship.
"Why didn't he just let me go? I'm more reliable when it comes to scouting," said the toaster, before looking at the girl, "So, how are you feeling?"
"Fine," she simply replied, not saying anything extra.
"Hey... about earlier. What I said to you..."
"It's fine. I'm not feeling myself today. What you said didn't make a difference."
"Those pills you're taking won't help in the long term. You need to see an actual therapist, or talk with one of your friends."
"You saying I should talk with you?"
"Me?" DAVE virtually laughed, "My research only knows how to cause suffering. Not how to treat it."
"Nen shetze Sherlock," she mumbled to herself in her native tongue, "You treated Akira's suffering, though."
"I can support medical procedures. Mental procedures are just not in me. Best I can say is talk to Ryan, tell him how you feel. Or go commit revenge on the Fire Nation soldiers when the time comes. Gut those heartless bastards!"
East nodded at DAVE's... actually, she won't lie, the toaster had a point. Back in the wasteland, the one thing that kept her going since her tribe was the lust for Legion blood. Those barbaric things she dreamt of doing for revenge never stopped lingering in her mind, one of the few things that made her happy. So what's adding one more to the list?
They caught up with Ryan not long after just as he crouched behind a tree on a hill. He had his binoculars out, scouting the outpost below. From afar it just looked like some camp with a tower. Below littered the pawns of East's suffering, equipped in their void black armour and skull masked helmets. God she just wanted to gut them all. Did she still have the courage for it? More blood? Maybe, but not in her current state. Besides, they were still going with the 'spirit' plan.
"Hey, guys," Ryan waved, "You ready, DAVE?"
"Just let me get everything into shape, all right. Wish me luck."
The flying toaster hovered down towards the outpost, feeling confident in this plan.
"What the hell is that?" One of the soldiers questioned.
"Identify yourself!" Another ordered.
DAVE began shouting with a booming ominous voice, "FIRE NATION, YOUR FILTHY FOOTSTEPS DESECRATE THIS SACRED GROUND. LEAVE IMMEDIATELY OR FACE THE CONSEQUENCES."
Ryan zoomed in with his binoculars, already entertained by this act.
"Can I see?" East asked.
"Oh, sure," her friend gave her his binoculars and replaced it with a sniper scope, "God, you finding it weird that the eyebot can talk that loud?"
"Not really, I don't know much about technology. Ryan... about my condition..."
"You don't mind if we save it for later do you? As much as I want to help we're in the middle of something."
"That's fine, I guess."
"Well at least you're more talkative now."
Back in the outpost. Things began to get a little more heated.
"Look, I don't know what kind of joke this is but you better leave. We don't give a damn if you're a spirit, this land will soon be integrated into the Fire Nation. Whether you like it or not," the soldier went into a defensive stance, dancing the flames around him and evaporating the rain.
"WHAT? YOU THINK SOME WORTHLESS FIRE WILL DEFEAT ME?! DO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE UP AGAINST?!"
"Some tiny ball of scrap that looks like its falling apart," the soldiers around them laughed at the eyebot's appearance.
"OH I'M A WHOLE LOT MORE THAN A BLOODY BUCKET OF BOLTS. I'VE MASSACRED BATTALIONS OF YOUR TROOPS WITHOUT MERCY. I MIGHT GIVE YOU ALL A SPECIAL TREATMENT," DAVE's voice suddenly turned hellishly distorted, "Ö̶͚͎͖́̃̏̅͝Ņ̴͓̖̜͑̈́̇͑C̵̩̯̆̊͐̈̕E̶͔̺͝ ̸̡̱̺̣̟̃Y̵͚̭̣̜͐̈́͐̈́͝Ö̵̳́͠U̵̧̬̳̥̓Ŕ̸̪̤͈̰̾͆̓ ̶͍̙͆͝͝ͅB̸̨̲̦̘̬̓̈́O̶̢̭̖̒D̶͕͕̰̃Į̷̮̦͓̌ͅE̸̢̗̖͍̝̍S̵͓̐̌̽̀͆͜ ̷̛̬̮̔͗Ă̴̧͖̣̩͎͑͒̉R̷͔͓̎͋̉̕͜͝È̷̛͎̰͓̙̈́͋͗ͅ ̶͙͊͒͐̈́͂N̵͔̟̼̭̚͝͠O̸̱͇̞̾͐͑̓̍T̸̼͚̣͌͜H̷̛̯͎͂͆̓̕Ḯ̵̱̃N̸̢̥̞͒̀̉͗̆Ģ̷̘̝̓́́͠ ̷͎̞̃̿͘̚͝Ḇ̶̝͂́͛̾Ư̴̥̰͚̼͒̈́͑T̵̙̑̃̈́̂ͅ ̸̡͛T̸͉͉̮̀̽͒̈́ͅĮ̸̤̠̊͗̒͒̐N̸͉̺̖̤͌Y̶͍̝̆̋̆͝͝ͅ ̴̢̼̰͎̖͑̈́̓͝A̵̜͎͔̫̝̍̓̂̓͑T̶͓̖̳̺̐̇͋O̴͙̲͉̹̊̇̔̓͝M̶͎͍̃̔Š̶̢͚̠̳̾,̴̢͓̙̯̓̑̇͘ ̴̛͍̈́̌͆̃Í̴̧̛̠̒̋ ̶̤͖̼͑͛̓̀W̶̝̃ͅI̴̲̼̅̆̃̀̀L̷͕̜͚͚͓͗͝L̴̰͉̋̾͗̇̿ ̸̰͍͔̞̄M̴̪͛̉Ŏ̸̙͌̌̊̕V̸͈͍̆̏̾͑Ẹ̴̱̘͚́͆ ̶͛͊͜À̶̬̪̅́̏L̷̲̮͐̋ͅL̶̝͍̬̿͑͝ ̸̧̲̥͌̆̈́̕͘T̵̡̠̱̯̟̔Ḥ̶̉̋̿͝E̴͈͔͆̂̀̓̃ ̸̬̈́̀̀ͅW̸̢͇̼̺̆̀̐̚̚͜A̸̼͈̠̭͌̇̄͐͘Y̸̞͙̽̏ ̴͉̣͙̐́̽T̶̳͓̗͔̓̿̓͂͒Ö̷̰͇̮̙͆͒̑̓ ̴̻͎̤͈̪͆͌̈́̅T̸̡͍̖̦͋̂̋Ḧ̷͇́̋̔͋͘E̷̡͉̭͎̗͛̋̎͑ ̸̮͕̈́̓Ẇ̵̡͊́̑͘Ô̴̧̖̦̣̫͘R̶͕̖̾͆̐͆͐T̵̡͕̪̹̿͋͝H̸̗͇̄̽L̶̩̭̩̾́̐E̵̤̖͂̎̑͘Ṣ̶̡̋̎̕S̵̥͈͕̗̗͋̿̑ ̸̳̈́Ṡ̴̗̬̼͉́͝Ĺ̷̬͊͌͒͘Ų̷̇̇́͆M̷͙̥͚̬͛S̶͓̈́̌͐ ̷̲̤̽̽̐Y̸̹͔͋́Ȯ̵̟͙͊̄̃U̷̜͕͂̒̎͂ ̷̦̗̞͖͛͜W̷̬͓̮̻͆̒̌Ê̸̡̞̹̭R̴̛̜̖̄̄͒̎E̵̤̊̃͝ ̴͇͂͊̾̂̕ͅR̴̢̡̘͉̣͒̈́̅͠Ǐ̷̱̟̗͜P̷̜̙͙̊͝P̸̙̥̗̂̅E̸̞̖͚̱̔̊͆́Ḑ̶͇̝͉͓͋̀̏̾ ̷̲̟͎̑̎O̷̤͕̹̝͊͌̐͛̈U̶̧͔̳̺̖̔́̈́̎̅T̶͍̓̿̕ ̶̟̩͈̱̒͆̈́̚͠F̶̬̮̫̓̍R̵̖̠̀͆O̵̧̰̬͍̔͝M̵̩̤̥̘̱̈́̔̓͝,̴̟̪͓͊͗͋ ̸̛̹̤̏͒͛A̸̛̯̍N̷̢̬̮̂͜ͅD̸̠͇͓́̓ ̴̮̠̍͒Ḩ̷̰̱͚̉͑U̴͔̐̊̈́͠Ń̵̥͚T̴͔̭̣̱͈̽̈̋̀ ̸̰̝̜̔D̵͖͑̈̑O̴̡̝̔̅͑̕W̷̳͆̕͝N̸̰̜͔̈́̔̃͝ͅ ̷̯̦͗̑͠E̴̺̟͎̪̐̑̊͗̾͜A̶̧̛̒C̸̡̗͚̯̻͐͗H̶͉̭̭̯́̓͑ ̶̫̞̠͆̏̚Ớ̶͍̇́̈́F̸̣̀͗̒̈́͠ ̸̩̳̘͚̐͑̾ͅY̸̮̹͆͠O̷̦̠̞̓̚U̷̙̥̤̖͒̈͗R̶̠̱̔̊͆̃͜ ̷͓̗̖̼͇̃̎̃P̷̘̏͋I̴̹̊̾̈́̀͝T̴̡̖̳̖̺̒I̵̳̭̋̆̈̇͠Ḟ̶̠̤̫̳Ů̴̮L̵̬̖̗͚͗̉ ̵̨͖͓̖͎̂̋͌͋L̶̹̒̒O̷͓͛̌V̷̮̠̖̠͈̂̽̽͊E̸̢̺͇̋̍̈D̶̪̔ ̸̘̣͇͓͒̈́͐Ó̸͍̞̫N̵̘͉̅́E̶̗̊S̴̜̟̽͘.̸͓̍̏̓ ̶͖̎́̑̿́T̷̛̰̫̪̄͒̌̎R̵͔͒U̵̗͖̦̱̤͊̅͝S̴̡̙͛͗̊͜ͅT̵̯͑ ̵͈̳͚̪̜͆̔̋M̸̡̻͈͒͆E̸̡͍̋̒͑̚͝,̴̖̓̌ ̵̨̍I̷̪͒̆̃̍'̵̪̇́M̶̾͛̀͜ ̷̨͕̍̑N̵̹̐͂͝O̸̦͎̗̜͑͛͛̕͝T̸͕̽̃͘͝ ̵̨̖̽̎̄̓G̵̟͉̩̤̼̓̈̂̂E̷̬͚̳͖̗͝N̵͔͗̀̎T̷̰̝̯͍̆L̷̯̎È̵͕̠͚̆͒ ̵̭̣̼̏W̴̠̄͘H̴̰̋̓̑͒E̵̠̯͉̍̈̈́N̸̝̄͌́ ̶͎̥͉̥́Ī̸͍͖̟̒͝T̶̨̗̱͔̣̽̀̌̐͘ ̴̛̱̮͆C̶̨̯͚̚Ö̶̱̹́͂Ṃ̴̧̆͋́̈́̌E̴̠͌̓S̶̪̞̹̾̌͆̽͛͜͜ ̸̢͎͍̮͙̓͊̋̋T̵̝̩͓̑̒̀̄͜O̶̹̠̣̒́̃͌ ̵̨͙̦̬̈́̂͘K̴͖͇̞̞̪̋Ì̷̥͕͖̳͉̐L̸͙̮̹̟̲̿͠L̸̖̞͖̤̇̏̈́͘͘I̴̖̩̳̔̋N̸̩̲̾̀̚G̷͈̿̇̐͠͝,̷̧͉̟̳̪̅̐ ̵͓̑͗͆̋Ä̴̲̆N̷͚̲̾̔D̴͙̫͖̀͋͜ ̷̙̋̃̒͘Í̸̥̠̪̝͎ ̴̦̱̚D̶̠͕͈͕̱̓̎͂O̸͕͙̺͂̆̒̈͜Ṋ̸̦̔̊͂̕'̶͔͋̈̎T̶͍̮̠̜̫̑̓͠ ̶̛̳̗͛͝P̶̥͓̥̈ͅL̷̨̼͉͘A̵̢͈̐̓́N̶̛͈̐̀́ ̷̳̯̓̄T̸̠̦̽̋̿͂͘Ö̸̜̻̽̂͘ ̸̢̼̻̖̓Ĝ̶̢̝͎͖͑͘ͅÍ̴͉̞̙̒̚̕V̷͎̋͐̽͘E̶̘̎͒̌ͅ ̶̦̋̊̆͠͝Ą̸̳̹͆̏̎̓ͅN̶̼͈̒̊̇Y̸̳͆̂̏ ̴̮̀͛̀͒M̴̦̌̔̕E̵̡̹͙̱͂R̸̰̹͖̺̣͛͝Č̷͉̜Y̸̹̥̻̠̜̏̄͠͝ ̶̨̮̋̅̋̀̓Ţ̸͙̈́͛Õ̵̙̥̋ ̸̧̨̓͑̕͝͝T̷̟̫̃H̸̖͊͗̌̽͝Ẽ̴͉̦͓̒ͅ ̶̘͕̓̂̿̉̀W̵̲̆̋̈́Ö̸̰̫́͘͠͝M̴̡͉̩̝͓̈̍̏̐Ḗ̸̩͚͉͋̚N̷̗̭͇̺͇̒͊͂̅ ̷̛̩̠̀A̸̛̲͚̲̿̆̈́͝ͅN̸̺̙̭̻͎͐̂͌̆Ḑ̶̻͇̍̿̔̉̔ ̸̧̞̘̪̹͒C̸̠̳̥̣͈͐̊̚H̸̪͊͑I̵̜͔̪̐̈L̸̝̖͗ͅD̶̩̭̒͒͜͝R̴̡̗̲͉̚Ę̵͉͍̪̀̉͘N̴̢̦̬̯̼̆̀,̵͉̦̿̌͛̓ ̴̤̼̐T̴̬̃Ḩ̷͉̫̜͈̕Ē̵͚͚̅Y̷̥̠̓̉ ̷͔̺̅͗W̴̧͈̳̱͝I̵̛̦̦͖̗͎͋̏͝Ḽ̸̥̥͠L̴̬̪̝̀ ̷̰̤͎͕́͂̐͝F̴̨͇͓̣͙͋͋Ę̷̝̻̞͎̓̀͑͒͝E̶̯̓̑̋̑̚L̷̢̹̺̗̲̇̐ ̸̬̥̖͍͆T̴̆̕͜H̷͎͊̽͜E̴̡̤͍̓̃̽͜ ̶̞̏Ļ̵̹̦̆I̸̪͚̅̄̆͠T̸̖̎́̏͜Ė̴͉̟̙̩̎̚R̶͍̻̯̠̮̋̉Á̵͕̺͍̣͍́L̸̡͔̙̃ ̴̡̨͚͕̓͗͘ͅS̵̢̨̳̓Ȇ̵̝͉͌̏͝V̷̭̤̣͇̪̒̏̏Ẻ̸͇̩̹͑̈́̿N̷̯͚̎ ̸̖͇̺̆͐̉͋͜͝P̵̠̳̱̰͕̒͝Í̴̟̈́ͅȚ̶̓̈́̌̕͝S̴̱̤͐̓̕͝ ̴̲̼͓̾̾͊͠O̷͉͙̲͉̪̿F̴̦̩͍̞̜̾̔̋̐ ̷͔͆Ḩ̸͎̫͆͐͋̚É̶͍̮̲͐̿́Ľ̴̛̛͎̉̒L̵̛̩̘͓̹̊̾̃̈͜ ̶͕̹̗̪͈̅̽Í̵̢͙͈͙͙̓̾̃N̶̫̭̓̐̀̄͋ ̷̙̮̑͊̍̔ͅA̴̛̬̥̰͔͋̇Ḷ̵̢̡̛̂̔Ĺ̷̨̖͎̇͜ ̸̹͇͎̻̇̅͘T̸̳̬͂̀H̷͚̋̂Ė̸̯̻͔͒͝I̸͙̦̼͓͑R̴͍̫̖͝͠ ̴̨̞͙̈͘̕N̷̙͔̯̓̉͛̏ͅÊ̷͈̽͊R̶̡̗͔͋V̴͖̬̦͖̞̈́͝E̷̜̝͒̃̈́̈͛S̴̜͕͕̻̟̿̏.̸̼̜̠̪̅ͅ ̵̧̗̞̜̓͛̑͠A̴͍͓͑̅F̵̯̰̥̱̰̃͊́̿T̸̞̤̈̓̎̀̋Ě̵͎̲͉́͠ͅR̵̙̖̉͐͘͜ ̷̭̊͌̕̚T̴͙͉̲̥͖̋̇H̶̢͇͉̗́̄̔͘͠Ạ̴̯͕̝͈̑̆͂͊T̴͉͈̜̬̥̅́,̷̮̲̬͝ ̴̭̱̰̆̽̐Ï̵͇̪̳̦̙̊̎'̸̠͚̬̲̓̄͐L̵̫͐̆͊L̵̳̣̈́͒̅̀ ̸̣̱͌̌̄̈͗H̷̬̬̑̾́̏A̸͕͚̾̿͘ͅN̸͎̩̤̣͇̈́͒̑̑̃G̷̛̬̀̽ ̵̲̣̭̹̅̂̀̚Ť̴͍̟͉͖̱͌Ḩ̵͓̮̒̆E̴̹̙̹͒̓͜͜Ị̶̠̻̳́̉R̴̰̭̲̮̜̀͆ ̴̯͔̍̄̂Ĉ̴̪̆́̂Ȯ̷̳̭̈́̚͠R̶̺͈͈͍͋̒̂̉͋P̴̖̯̯̌̀̎ͅS̶̼͍̮̼̰͂̑Ë̵̟͐̾Ş̴̼͔̼̹̓̎͠ ̷͖̟͕̓̏̏͘̚ͅB̴̮͇̻̱̆͋͂͌̀Ÿ̶̢̲̹̲͔́̕ ̴̝̜̯͉́T̷̹͍̣̥̟́͊͒̒̎Ḥ̵͎̰̭̅͆͝ͅĖ̶̢͍͑̌Î̴̩̩̭̗͚̉R̴̺̈́̈́̿̌ ̶̦̑̿̎Ẽ̷̢̧̧̮̓̑̿N̵̦͎̫̜̾̋̈͘͝T̴̛͙͕͓̅́R̸͈͖̠̳͍͗̏̉͑̈́Ą̷͙͔̬̒́̕İ̷̹̺Ľ̶̩̜͉̗̹̾̇S̷̠̻̏̀͗ ̷̟̎̏Â̸̳͍̭̈́Ċ̷̨̢̛̙̹͚̒̚͝R̴͓̠̮̙̂̀̕Ó̷͎̑͗͝S̷͔̯̃͋̅̐Ṡ̴͍̐̈͘ ̴͚̙̒̅̓͛̍Ț̴͚̹͂͒͝Ḧ̴̨̪̎̾̃Ë̸͔̼̻̹́̉͑͗ ̷̟̾À̵̱́̍̉Ń̷̳͇̞̼͂͋͆̔N̵͇̺͚̅I̴͚͈̺͆͂H̶̨͔͖̺̩̽I̴͖̊̇͋̚L̷͙̑A̵̡̱̘͚͠T̵͉̣͚͓͔̑̿͠͝Ê̷̙̰̔̍̚D̵̨͕̳͈̈́̽͑̀̚ ̸̢̲̠͛̃̆́͜V̸̨̝̪͕̑͐͠I̴̛̭̩̅͝L̶̜̹̦̞̖̀̎L̵͕̜̏̃͂̎̊A̷̱̲̞̳͂̃͜Ģ̶͑̊͗̚͝Ẹ̷̞̤̫̥̃̎̅̿̕S̸̨̲̏̂̓̊̃ ̶̡͙̹̅T̴̯̠̓̾̆͋̔Ḩ̷͕̞͓̈́̉E̶̹̬̙̟̖̋Ÿ̶̧̮́͘ ̸̢̰̜̗̆͆̇͗͝O̵̡̕Ņ̷͙̦̰̳͋̈͆͊͘C̶̩̠̪̺̑́͑͌E̸̩̦̝̘̙̐͛̆̚͝ ̸͉̍̀U̵͎̐̈̃Ț̸̝̓T̵̩̾E̵̛̪̘̰͓̍͂̚͝R̶̫̅͆E̸͎̤̯͍͛͐̌͘Ḍ̷̢͙̄̐̊͜͜ ̵̫̊̎T̶̢͕̫̺̭͒̂̐͗͊Ḧ̸͚̘̩͑E̸̦͆̌ ̸̕ͅT̸̖͔͈̥̑I̵̲̬̔̇̐̂T̸̘̩͒Ḻ̷̨̝́̊Ę̵̖̠̮̑̊̽ ̸̰̩̫̌̌'̵̱̞̤͂́͑͘H̷̡͉͌͝Ò̸̤̐M̵̼̞̮͇͎͊̈́͠E̴͙̤̰͒͜͠ͅ'̶̮͎̣́.̵̡̺͎̗͓̿͒͂̓͘ ̴̧̰̩̿̚M̵̢̲͙̟̃̌̔͊́E̷̘͊̈Ḁ̸̛̮̜͂̌͝N̸̬̰̫̜̄Ẁ̶̢͉͓̙̱͝H̷̥̻̤̎͆͐̃Í̶̯͕L̴̠̝̆̚È̵̢̗̯̺̇,̶̮̯̿ ̶̗̥̳̱̽Ý̴̖͔͗̎͜͠ͅO̴̤̿͑U̷̠͎̎̂ ̴̢̦̟̯͐̽ͅW̵̡̤͐͒Ḭ̶̯̊̓̅̚͜L̵̠͌̈́̅Ḻ̵̛̬̼̭̀́̅̃͜ ̶̝̃Ă̸͎̈́ͅL̶͙̙̿̀L̸̖̹̲̉͐ ̷̹͙̲̽B̶̨̛͙͔̞͛̈̏̿E̴̘̦͖̦̿̓̄̚͘ ̴̢̰͒͌̇S̴̺̗̞̘͍̈̒̈Ṯ̵̢̼͎̄̊͆U̵͕̹̦̥͌͂́̈́C̶̻̗̹͓̆͗̕K̵̺̘̿̆̂͌ ̶̡̗͓͓̋̈́̾́͠I̸͉̪͇̱͍͒̋́̾͝N̵̢̨͙͖̾͆͋͠͠ ̷̗̲͇̦̾̎͌̕͝T̷̨̮̩̓̈H̶̯̫̀̏̂̑̾͜Ẽ̵̢̪̫͈͓̕͝ ̶͖̣͍̒̊̿͋̽D̵̳̂̾́́A̸̛̜̘͛̎̚ͅR̷̞̔̑Ḱ̷̛̝̰̱͇̓ ̷̢̺̝̌̓͊͠Ả̷̩̟̝̎̈̈́B̷̘̚Ŷ̶̨̤̜̘̗S̷͉̆͐̂̾S̵̼̼̈́ ̸̢̜̥̦̓́̽̎͘Ơ̷̩̲̲̮̾͛͑̽F̴̱̫͐̏͌̓̓ ̸̫͉̾̄̄T̸͕̬̪͚̃H̴̹͒̋̄͝Ȇ̶͚̳ ̶̟̞͆̌͂A̸̳͛F̷̛̥̯̄T̶̟̝̭͌͗Ę̷̬̟̺͉̾̿̌̑͠Ȓ̴̭̊͊ͅḺ̷̐͌͛̀Ḯ̴̜̣͚̆F̵̝̬͍̽̆̅̌͜Ë̴͍́̓͝,̵̬̲̄͌̏͠͝ ̷͕̺͈̤͛F̷̰͊̾̕͝O̴̱̊͊̓̑̎R̴͔̜͔̔͂̇͗C̵̱͉͚̻̭̍E̷͈̞͖͋̎̑͜D̶̼̫̑ͅ ̴̡̛̖͖̞̀̔T̸͉̬̬̞͐̇̋̚Ọ̸̾̃ ̵̧͋B̸̝͎̩͊̑͆̏̚Ḛ̵͇̓͐̃̏̀ͅ ̵̝̠̕Ẇ̶̘̦̝̞̪̑A̴̡͇̋̏͛͝T̴̢̫̻͚̋̐͒͋͠C̵̜͔̍͜ͅḦ̵̡̜̦̯́̅̓̈́̿Į̸̜̋̋͋̇́ͅN̸͖͍̥̺͑͠Ǧ̸̡̘̜̟́̋̊͘ ̸̢̨̮̿B̶̪͇͉̥͝Y̵̢̤̫̬̻̅͂̐̃͝ ̴̳̘̠̔̑̋͛̕T̸͖̈́̔H̶̯̘̃̍̕Ë̷̡́̚ ̵̨̱̲̹̐̐́̽R̵͖̾̈́E̵̡͎͕͊͗Å̶̛̩͎̎̈̍Ṗ̷̲͕̇̏Ě̸̡̪͓͜͜Ṛ̴͇̬͍͑ ̴̝̻̈́A̴̺͛̈͊͒̕S̸̨͖͎̹̿̑̾̅ ̴͔͌͝Ý̸̳̺̙̒͜Ǫ̴͓̐̏͘Ů̸͇͍̓̒̐̃R̴̜̟̻̊ ̸̟̤͙̲̈́̽̾̂͝Ơ̷̮̥͙͓̂͊L̶̗̏́D̶̛̘̦̭̤̽̕ ̴̟̙͔̣́͆͋̋̕L̶̳̆̿̈́̾I̵̫̖̜͂̒̄̈́V̸̺̳̲̫̣̀̀E̷̗̓̿͌͝S̶͕̻̦̽ ̴̬͉̱̣̆͂͝W̷̨̱̥͉͋̓E̴̳̳̟̽́̔̎́R̴̦̭̓E̵̛̫̾̄ͅ ̵͍̟͔͎͂ͅD̸͓͊̓̈́Ê̷͚̯͈͋̎͝ͅS̶͈͌̎͊͜͠ͅT̴̪̩̀̓R̶̬̜̐͆̉Ȱ̸̧̰̥̺Ỵ̸͙̔͛Ë̴̙̘́̎̓͝D̴̥͉̺̲͙̅͂̈́̆͝ ̴̜̫̅͗̓̒ͅA̸̹̦̝͆͝ͅT̸̠̅͑ ̸̖̯̻̈́͗̑͠T̵͎̂̕͝H̴̼̹̰̫̚Ê̴͔ ̷̺̝̂̅̐͜H̷̱̃A̴͙̻͒̍͂Ń̸̦̘̯͎̼̈̾́̎Ḑ̶̞͔̥̌̐́͒Ś̸͙͊̈́̈́͠ ̴̲̩̎͝O̶̱͇̪̭̅̋͝͝F̶̤̜̈́ ̶̗͖̖̱͂̓̈͗͜M̵͇͔̎̌̃̒͝Ŷ̵̡̫̗̼̈́̂́ ̵̹́̔L̵̢͐̑A̶͓̍͛̌̽͝Ș̵͈̅̆̀̿͛ͅȄ̶̗̮͕̭̗̆̚Ŕ̷̗̩̀̎̎̕ ̶̧͠Ď̷̙͎̗̬̟Ị̷̦͘C̵̠̤̔̈̓ͅK̵̛̳̺͒̀.̴̰̖̞̳̑̒̋̅ ̶͓̚N̵̛̜̦͚̥͉͂O̴̩̼͚̻̍̽W̴̤̼̭̑̐̃ ̵̲̱̥̂͊̈́̓Ë̶͈́̏̍Ḯ̶̜͖͓̀͊̓T̴͖̩͈̟̺͛͂H̶̨͔̭͙͈̏Ẹ̷͔̜̈̈̉͠R̶̫̽̀͂͝ͅ ̸̢̡̙̈́̉̋̒̾F̸̻͓̝̦́̆́͋͘*̵̡̘͐̅̄̓͜C̵͕͌̇Ḱ̵͖͎͇̻͇ ̵̢̹͙̳͗̓́̚͠O̵͓̙̓̈͝F̵̫͉̖̻͈̽F̸͎̤͕͕̜͋ ̶͚͌O̴̼̣̍͂̓̕͝R̸͉̙͠ ̵̼̠̼͓̜̏͛Y̴̙͕͎̰̩̓̐͋͝Ö̶̳̱́̆U̸̳̽̄̚͘R̵̲͆͗ ̸̛̣̣́̍͘P̷̬͚͌͜ͅḬ̵̧͇̩̾S̶̛̰̉͛̿S̸͉̎̒A̷̺͑N̶̙͙͚̈̿ͅT̷̲̦̟̠̑ ̴̲̻̰̒Ẇ̶͙͕͚̪̱̋̀̽͌Ì̴̤̃V̴̖̟̙̜͂E̸͇̤̜̣͓͑̽̔S̷̤̮̅̎͝ ̸̨̮͔̥̲̈́̈́̕A̴̦̼̬͌͐͘͜͠͝N̷̘͌̀̓D̶̞̫̤̱̈́͋͆͆̚ ̵̥͓̗̰͑̄̈́C̸̡̿̉͛̌Ḥ̵̛̛̋͊Ḭ̷̞̗̤̠͆L̵̞̽̉͒͘Ḏ̷̏R̸͕͌̂́͜E̴͔̎́̕͝N̶̢̆ ̴̤̭͈̐̅̆́͘G̵̣͎͍̦̓̅O̸̰͆̎̏̍̐ͅ ̴̲̦͕͈̈́̚B̵̭͖͛͝ͅÝ̶̭̀̓̐̾È̶̘͠ ̴̨̬̙͖̀͗̅͛̈́͜B̷̨̛̍̽̈͝Y̴̯͐E̴̫̠͘.̸̞̳̥̖͛̅͆͑̿ ."
(ONCE YOUR BODIES ARE NOTHING BUT TINY ATOMS, I WILL MOVE ALL THE WAY TO THE WORTHLESS SLUMS YOU WERE RIPPED OUT FROM, AND HUNT DOWN EACH OF YOUR PITIFUL LOVED ONES. TRUST ME, I'M NOT GENTLE WHEN IT COMES TO KILLING, AND I DON'T PLAN TO GIVE ANY MERCY TO THE WOMEN AND CHILDREN, THEY WILL FEEL THE LITERAL SEVEN PITS OF HELL IN ALL THEIR NERVES. AFTER THAT, I'LL HANG THEIR CORPSES BY THEIR ENTRAILS ACROSS THE ANNIHILATED VILLAGES THEY ONCE UTTERED THE TITLE 'HOME'. MEANWHILE, YOU WILL ALL BE STUCK IN THE DARK ABYSS OF THE AFTERLIFE, FORCED TO BE WATCHING BY THE REAPER AS YOUR OLD LIVES WERE DESTROYED AT THE HANDS OF MY LASER DICK. NOW EITHER F*CK OFF OR YOUR PISSANT WIVES AND CHILDREN GO BYE BYE)
The two wastelanders literally dropped their scopes as they took in every cursed word. It was like listening to the Devil himself. East vomited behind the tree, she may have seen things like this actually happen before but when given a warning that would make any living being within a ten mile radius piss themselves... it was just horrifying to think about. It was worse when it came from one of the few friends she had, well closest thing to a friend other than Ryan.
For the Californian, he was just astonished at these words. They were definitely a bluff but he was just about convinced that it was something the toaster would actually do. In reality, DAVE's limits were just committing huge massacres. It's not like he'd do actions worthy enough from a forsaken raider.
The Fire Nation troops seemed to have sh*t themselves from the cursed speech check, and retreated faster than the WW2 French stereotype. Wow, that unusually went to plan. In Ryan's experience, there was always this one thing that would make everything go wrong and they had to improvise in order to succeed. This case, everything went pretty decent.
DAVE floated back, "How was that?"
Ryan was speechless for a brief moment, "I... you... what? That..."
"Oh shetze," East cursed as she vomited again.
"The threat wasn't even that bad. I just made up whatever came to mind. Overall I'd rate it a six out of ten in my opinion," he glanced at East, "How are you vomiting to my false demonic threat?! It's not like you people are new to this stuff!"
On the bright side, at least the tribal's mind was taken off her condition for just a brief moment. Honestly, it felt nice, besides the vomiting and almost a fear of her friend. Seriously, DAVE sounded more intimidating than Caesar's legion.
"Let's just head back. Forget this ever happened and wait for our reward. If this whole job was just a dupe, who's gonna do the honours of killing that son of a bitch?"
"I think I've done enough for today," said DAVE, "How about East?"
"What? Why me?" She asked almost worriedly.
"According to what Ryan told me you're pretty decent in bloodlust. And you haven't killed anybody lately. I'm pretty sure it would help to kill the guy who assumed you were 'Ryan's abused girlfriend'. Plus, most people with her condition would be very uncomfortable with violence, might be the opposite for her."
"I don't know if I could. Not with my condition."
"Don't worry about it, East. I'll blow that pricks face clean if the time comes. Oh right, you told me earlier that you wanted to talk about your condition. what's up?"
On the way back to the prick merchant's kiosk, East explained how she felt the best she could with her limited vocabulary. All of it was very hard to explain. Most simple terms she could say was 'living hell'. She told her about the cruel voices that laughed in her mind, the dark thoughts plaguing her own self dignity. Everything she felt that tortured her in every second since Omashu. Her words could fill a whole book, that was if the writer was competent.
Her friend wasn't that good with psychology, but he said what he could now that he had a wider view of her situation, "Look, I'm not always good with giving mental advice. But... all I can say is that we're here for you. You're not alone in this cruel world, you're never alone with friends like us. Don't feel so helpless, cos deep down, you've always been that courageous young girl I knew before all of this. You're not weak, you're not some turd in the wastes, you're a mentally strong girl with a passion for murdering fascists even if you don't seem like it. Besides, nobody's gonna come after us, you don't need to worry about the Fire Nation or Caesar's Legion. We're safe." He lied at that point, Ryan knew East was wanted as a dangerous criminal. Plus the Fire Nation's technology seemed to be enough to almost flatten the Earth Kingdom. Safety wasn't exactly assured for now.
Nevertheless, the tribal kept it in mind. Her condition gracefully weakened a bit, not much but she felt slightly more like her old self. It didn't take hours of therapy like it usually does for many, just some comfort from her close friend.
As they arrived back, Tian greeted them in his usual attitude, "And I was starting to think sending two kids and a weird spirit looking thing to do an adult's work was a bad idea. How'd it go?"
"Fine, I just threatened to cover their villages in the guts of their friends and families," DAVE replied, "Now about that information."
"Wow, I guess I underestimated you little bastards. Fine, you well earned this information. Let's start with a problem, I don't have anything to help you on your little insane journey-"
Ryan cocked his revolver, "You utter bitch."
"You didn't let me finish. I don't have the information, but I might know a place, if it exists."
"I swear to your worthless Gods I will fill you with so many shells."
"One: I'm atheist, I don't believe in any Gods. Two: I have no clue how you'll shove some rocks inside of me. And three: I'm not saying it doesn't. There's this legend in the Si Wong Desert about a library of vast knowledge, I know a professor called Zei who most likely is still searching for it. You'll know him when you see him. That's all I can give you."
"How far is this desert?"
"If I gave you a few maps will you get out of my face?"
The Californian, obviously pissed, accepted his offer. As they grabbed the maps and left, he asked the eyebot, "DAVE, you mind telling me when he's gonna die? That's if you can still do that."
"He has a small tumour in his brain, a year if he's lucky. Don't worry, the turd's sure to die an agonising death."
"Good. The bitch deserves it."
East suddenly joined the conversation, "Hey, Ryan?"
"You okay, East?"
"Yeah, is this a bad time to mention that I found a Brotherhood of Steel holotag a week ago?"
There was a brief pause just as they all stopped moving. "Say what now?"
AND THAT'S THAT. THE TWELFTH CHAPTER THAT MAY OR MAY NOT SUCK. NO I'M NOT TURNING THIS INTO AN ANGST STORY AT ALL. HAVE A GREAT 2021!