Chapter 3
"We are nothing like God. Not only are our powers limited, but sometimes we have to play the devil himself"
Nicholas The Punisher
(Trigun)
The explanation for the kicking techniques, artilleries, and firearms can be found in Wikipedia. Cliff's style of battle is heavily influenced by Randel Oland from Pumpkin Scissors. This chapter is pretty much inspired by Rudy's prologue story from Wild ARMs : Alter Code F.
I'll explain more about this story and its characters on the author's note below.
The sonnet in this chapter rightfully belongs to Wilfred Owen.
After one exhausting day the café closed at 11 PM, giving the four drifters and mayor's family a chance to rest.
"So, it's your shift to stay as the receptionist tonight?" Sophia asks Alvin who is swaying around with his chair on the receptionist table, "That means I can sleep peacefully right after this"
"He-eh, Misses Bricks requested me to for tonight and it's not like I got anything else to do. So, here I am" The lanky guy lankily responds, "And not to mention Cliff can't be counted upon when it comes to wake up all night long. He will doze off any second and Marilyn would have to kick the crap out of him to wake him up the next morning. You know, just like always"
"Hehe, that's right" The dark haired girl agrees with a big smile on her face, "By the way, I'm going to get myself a coffee. I'll make one for you if you want"
"Huh? You're going to drink a coffee? Aren't you going to sleep soon?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah right! I forgot!" The dark haired girl put her palm on her forehead with a very stupid face. She is really a forgetful person, "Thank lord you mentioned!"
"OK, don't mind it" Alvin says with a deep understanding inside his voice, "Either way, I would like a coffee. So, if you please"
"Yes?" Sophia questions, still with the stupid face.
"If you please…." Alvin starts smelling something stupid, "I don't mind a coffee"
"You want me to make you a coffee?"
"Yes…because you offered me in the first place"
"Oh…I must have forgotten again!" Sophia dashes off to the kitchen right away, "Don't worry, I'll be back with a coffee!"
"Goodness…the only thing she could remember is the things she forgot…" Alvin shakes his head to release his confusion, "How come she never changed at all? Why she never forgets her own name is beyond me…"
A moment later, Sophia comes back with a cup of coffee. Alvin gently accepts the coffee after thanking her and sips it. "Wew, this should let me stay awake for the night" The green haired man expresses his gratitude, "Man, I'm sure gonna miss this place when we leave it"
"Same here, the people are all nice and gentle" The purple eyed woman seconds his opinion, "Thanks god they are yet to find our secret, or else their treatment would have been so much different"
"Hey, don't start talking like Marilyn" Alvin quickly disputes what Sophia just said, "It's rather unnecessary"
"I don't like it whenever Marilyn stated this, too. However, from what we have experienced, it's true…every word of it" The forgetful girl calmly answers back, "Then again, if we manage to get our payment without any sort of problem, we can get out of here clean and might come back someday in the future still clean"
"Now, that's what I want to hear" Alvin smiles, finally the atmosphere has gotten lighter, "You're going to hit the bed, now?"
"Yes, I suppose"
"Then, good night"
"Night" And the two part ways. The other one goes straight to be and the other one…stays at his current position.
Meanwhile, Cliff is reading the twins another story. "Finally, Sleeping Beauty and her prince live happily ever after" Cliff concludes the story, "OK, kids. It's time for you to go to bed"
"Wait, can I ask you one thing?" Micah displays an enormous curiosity on his eyes. And Cliff surely doesn't refuse.
"Sure"
"Why do every princess story like Cinderella, Snow White, and The Sleeping Beauty you just read always got 'live happily ever after' as their ending?" An innocent yet thoughtful question from a ten year old, not bad.
"Hm, I guess because it suits you children" Cliff answers with a very good reason, "If the ending was like….and they rule the world for eternity or zombie causes an outbreak, I think you would get a nightmare, wouldn't you?"
"That's reasonable" Michaels tells his brother, "Well, we got to sleep now. Night, Cliff!"
"Night, kids" So, Cliff exits the room to find Misses Bricks outside.
"Thanks for reading the kids yet another story" The mayor's wife genuinely thanks the red haired man.
"Never mind, it's always a pleasure"
"Really? Is that also the reason why you read with a genuine passion?"
"No, it's…" Cliff directly recalls a memory, "A childhood friend of mine…she used to read me bedtime stories when I was a little kid because we usually slept together. And she read it with such a genuine passion. I only followed her"
"Ow, you got a girlfriend back there in your hometown?" Misses Bricks asks with a surprised tone, "She must be such a great lady"
"Right, mam. She was such a good person" Cliff answers with a smile, but he obviously underlined something on his answer. And Misses Bricks got what he meant by 'was'.
"My apologies" The lady quickly apologize for her doing, "I wasn't aware of my unknowing"
"No need for one, mam" Cliff then excuses himself, "Now, if I may excuse myself I shall get back to the inn"
"Yes, thanks for the kids"
"You're welcome"
The trench coated man heads back to the inn and enters through the café. "Hey, Cliff" The mayor greets him from one of the tables. Although the inn opens 24/7, the café closed at 11 o'clock. So, the owner usually spends some time for himself (sometimes with his wife) in the café.
"Mayor?" Cliff approaches him and sits on the table, "You're still awake? Alvin is attending in the receptionist table you know"
"I knew that. I just want to spend some time for myself" The mayor offers him a wine, "Here, take a sip"
"Thanks for the offer, but I'm straightedge" Cliff explains his refusal in a polite manner.
"Oh, alright. That's a good way of living" The mayor kindly understands, "I'm glad you are a good man. You didn't do anything unnecessary with either your companions or the town folks here"
"Anything unnecessary?"
"You know; consummate a personal need physically in my place which would affect my children psychologically" The mayor refers to what we know as having an intercourse.
"Oh, that…" Cliff smirks, getting his point, "No worries, sir. I believe not in pre-marital intercourse"
"Hahaha! Is that why Marilyn keeps getting impatient with you?"
"Huh? What does this have to do with Marilyn?"
"Well, not having an intercourse to make sure if you're with the right woman, or in her case the right man, must be difficult, no?"
"Oh, you mistook us" Cliff quickly disputes the guess, "Marilyn isn't my girlfriend. We're just best friends, that's all"
"Are you being serious? Marilyn isn't your girlfriend?" There's a deep disbelieve inside the mayor's voice, "I'm sorry, you two were so close and got along well. I thought you were a couple"
"I'm flattered, but we're not a couple" Cliff deals with the problem like an adult, "She is already taken"
"You mean…she's married?"
"No, I mean she's deeply in love with another man who saved her life before" Cliff recalls some old story, "Do you notice that Marilyn always carries a sheathed sword on her belt?"
"Yes"
"That sword was given to her by the man she loves. That's why she treasures it so much. And her love is also the reason why she became a drifter in the first place. She wants to find the love of her life whom she got separated with after an unfortunate peril. A touching love story, eh?"
"The love of her life? How old is Marilyn?"
"She's 18"
"And you?"
"I'm 21" Cliff reveals his age.
"Well, she is in a good age for falling in love. How 'bout you, Cliff? You got some lover back there in your place?" The mayor continues the late night conversation, "Twenty one seems to be a good age for setting up future life, right?"
"Yes, but I'm single" Cliff chuckles, "I'm not thinking about love or such right now. I prefer to consider that choice of life when I'm a bit older"
"Well, an advice from your elder, don't take too long finding your love. Your life will worth more if you have someone you hold dear beside you"
"Advice taken, mayor. But, I strongly believe there is one important thing before love"
"What is it?"
"A dream, sir. Something that keeps you alive" Cliff tells the mayor with a deep voice. There is something inside that voice of his. Something feels like a goal, a desire, a hope. There is no lie on what he just said.
"Yes, that's true. Dream is also something important for your life" The mayor, although not fully understand what Cliff is trying to imply, tries to keeps the conversation alive, "When I was at your age, my dream was to live happily for the rest of my life in my own café with my family"
"So, it seems that you already accomplished your dream" Cliff puts an honest smile on his face, which the mayor replies.
"I guess so. All I have to do is to protect the dream I currently living"
"I see…" Cliff looks to the window after the mayor replied, long enough to make the mayor notice something.
"What's wrong, Cliff?" The mayor looks concerned, "What's outside?"
"No...it was just me" the red haired man gets up from his chair and excuses himself, "Well, good night, sir. Have a nice dream"
"Hehe, you too"
Meanwhile, inside the girls' room…
"That lousy stupid Cliff! How dare he put sleeping over accompanying me? What kind of friend is he?" Marilyn protests loudly above her bed so Sophia who is brushing her hair could hear it, "He is the lowest of the low!"
"C'mon, sister. You knew Cliff loves sleeping more than anything" The dark haired woman tries to cheer her up, "Heck, I bet he loves sleeping more than finding a girl to spend his life with"
"Meh, I bet his girlfriend would have drowsy eyes and sleeps like a drunken bull!" The silver haired girl lets Sophia know more of what she thinks about Cliff's possible girlfriend, "The only girl suits him is sleeping beauty! Maybe after sleeping their way to their marriage they will sleep till the end of days!"
"Hey, no need to go that far. That's cruel, Marilyn"
"Really, Sophia? Aren't you sure Cliff isn't too sleepy to even find a woman?" Marilyn rebuts Alvin's saying. She is really rude when she's angry, "I personally began to think he is too sleepy to snuggle with one!"
"Oh, I'm sure he isn't" Sophia backs away, "Love isn't something small. Love won't be defeated by exhaustion alone"
"How would you know that? It's not like you have fell in love before!"
"But you have" Sophia hits a bulls eye, silencing Marilyn for a second, "You should know that feeling better than anyone else here, right?"
"Yes, but…" Marilyn stammers when she tries to argue, showing that Sophia is indeed right, "Unlike me, Cliff is…"
But Marilyn is soon interrupted by a red figure entering the girls' room without permission, "Girls? Are you still awake?"
"Jesus Christ! Cliff!" Marilyn couldn't contain the shock on her face, "Couldn't you at least knock the door? What if we were changing?"
"Lucky me, you weren't" Cliff disputes the possibility as quick as possible.
"Come in, Cliff. What can we do for you?" Sophia welcomes Cliff rather pleasantly.
"Actually…" Cliff nervously rubs the back of his head when he looks at Marilyn, "I'm here to…apologize about what happened earlier today, Marilyn"
"Today? What happened today? I can't remember", Poor Cliff; Marilyn acts like she doesn't know. Well, if she acts like she does know, that would feel like losing right? And Marilyn hates losing, especially to men,
"Come on, Marilyn! You know which one I was referring to!"
"Tough luck, Cliff. I don't think we're on the same page" Marilyn continues to act up. Sophia giggles seeing the two best friends arguing. And just like Alvin, she chooses to entertain herself seeing them quietly.
"So, she wants me to confess what I did out loud? A good way of hinting things, Marilyn!"Cliff figures out what the silver haired girl truly wants rather quickly. Well, he isn't her best friend for nothing, you know.
"I don't hear you saying anything" Marilyn pushes Cliff some more. She is grinning evilly.
"OK…I apologize for saying I choose to sleep instead of accompanying you running an errand" Cliff deals with it like a man, "There, happy now? Is my apology accepted?"
"Apology…is not accepted" Apparently, Marilyn wants something else. And her grin just got eviler, "Until you make up for your mistake, that is"
"Good God almighty! You still want me to go with you?" Cliff gets her point faster than anyone could, "So, I can't sleep all day long after all?"
"You can't" The braided girl delivers her final blow, "And wasn't it you who said you would accompany me tomorrow, and then the day after tomorrow. And then the day after the day after tomorrow"
"Me…and my big mouth" Cliff acknowledges his pitiful defeat, "When?"
"Eleven o'clock in the morning" Marilyn displays a victorious proud smile on her face, "Good night, Cliff"
"Good night…the both of you" The red eyed man retires from the girls room to have some sleep. Marilyn looks at Sophia still with her victorious smile.
"You were too cruel on him" Sophia chuckles, "But a good way of sealing your victory"
"Girls power!" Marilyn responds, "Cliff deserved it for refusing me in the first place"
"But he ended up asking for your forgiveness, didn't he?"
"Well, that's the funniest point! He's always that fun to toy with!" Marilyn starts dwindling all over her bed, "People said, keep your friends close but keep your enemies closer. But for me, it goes like this: keep my enemies close, keep my friend closer, and keep my best friend the closest!"
"Well…if you say so…" Sophia sighs before hitting her bed. But one thought cannot leave her mind, "It's a miracle Cliff managed to keep up with her all this time. I wonder why?"
By the way, Cliff gets a nightmare that night. About what? Take a wild guess (^^).
The next morning, the four drifters are going to run for a certain errand. The mayor asked them to go to the plantation and get as much berries as they can when he and his wife take care of the café. And now, they are on their way to the plantation.
"It's a lovely morning, isn't it?" Marilyn asks with a bit of happy tone to her comrades. Alvin and Sophia nod, but Cliff doesn't. His eyes are drowsy and he looks as sleepy as ever.
"What's wrong, Cliff? Still haven't got enough sleep last night?" Marilyn lightly mocks her best friend.
"And guess whose fault it was" Cliff indistinctly replies.
"It wasn't mine, was it? Because if it was and I forgot, I'm so sorry!" Sophia chimes into the conversation, but three stares from her three friends tell her she's got nothing to do with this at all…and pretty much shut her up.
"It wasn't mine, was it?" Marilyn continues the talk.
"Partly…it wasn't" The sleepy man answers sleepily.
"So partly, it was hers?" Alvin helps cliff clears his point.
"You can say so" The red haired man simply replies.
'Oh-ho, blaming me for some nightmare aren't we?" The silver haired girl sounds annoyed, "That is really mature, Cliff"
Cliff looks surprised learning Marilyn knows about his nightmare, "What? How do you know I was having a nightmare?"
"I understand you just as much as you understand me" Marilyn proudly explains, "Our friendship isn't one sided, Cliff"
And Marilyn's words remind Sophia of something, "Come to think of it, she did mention something about keeping her best friend the closest. But I forgot almost the whole thing she said"
"So, what was your dream look like?" Marilyn digs the problem deeper, "A scary looking old witch boiled you in a pot?"
"Almost right" The red eyed man frowns, "Why don't you take a wild guess?"
"About what?"
"About whom the old witch was"
"Wasn't me, was it?" The braided haired girl doesn't really seem to care whether it was her or not, "Cause if it was, I'll take it as a compliment"
"Why's that?"
"Cause you think deeply of me that I even got inside your dream" Marilyn glances at Cliff and grins, "You couldn't just let me go, could you?"
Needless to say, it's another flawless victory for Marilyn. Before Cliff got anything to say, the silver haired girl activates her accelerator and dashes off to the plantation.
"Your head is screwed up, Cliff" Alvin tells his companion as they resume their journey, "If you want to dream something about a girl, then you should have dreamt something nice. Not something disturbing"
"Something nice? Like what?" Cliff pretends not knowing what the green haired man was trying to imply.
"Something that would please yourself, bro" Alvin puts a deeper implication this time, "Something like…having fun"
"With a girl?'
"With a girl"
"Good, guess I'll try it next time" Cliff smiles and starts imagining things, "I guess…my dream of having fun would be…I'll be having a dream of gardening together with a beautiful maiden"
"Gardening?"
"Gardening"
"Is that all you can think to please yourself? Gardening?"
"Yes, why?"
"No wonder you're a 21 year old virgin" Alvin mocks the red haired man.
"I don't want to hear that from a 24 year old virgin" Cliff mocks back.
"Hey, I'm a 24 year old virgin because I'm committed to someone! Unlike you!" Alvin clearly took offense on the earlier statement.
"I'm committed to someone also" The trench coated man casts his eyes to the plantation and enjoys the scenery around him as the talk continues.
"Someone?" Sophia joins the conversation, "So, basically you got a girlfriend?"
"No"
"So, who is this someone?"
"Myself" Cliff stunts both Sophia and Alvin just with one word, "I'm committed to myself"
"You're…gay?" Sophia doesn't get the idea at all. And this results on her getting two stares from Alvin and Cliff.
"He isn't gay" Alvin explains to the dark haired girl, "Maybe he's…asexual"
"No, I'm not asexual either" Cliff disputes the 'accusation' rather quickly, "I'm not into romance for now, that's all"
Alvin and Sophia stop replying afterward, but only until Cliff is far enough from them so that he wouldn't be able to hear their dialogue.
"Sophia, can we come into conclusion that Cliff is narcissist?"
"Why's that?"
"Cause he is committed to himself"
"How do you know, Alvin?"
"He just said it!"
"He did? When?"
"Great, you forgot what he said just like that?"
"Huh? Do I forget anything?"
"Aw, heck! Forget it" Knowing Sophia forgets again, Alvin chooses to end the dialogue so his headache doesn't get much worse.
By the time they arrive at the plantation, Marilyn has been collecting almost half of the ordered berries. Her three friends take initiative to quickly assist her. In less than half an hour, their work is done. And with two baskets on each person, they are heading back to the village.
"Wow, can't wait till our pocket is full of our payment tomorrow" Marilyn expresses her thought to Cliff who walks near her, "Don't you agree with me, Cliff?"
"What if I don't?"
"Well, you can assure of one thing….another chop is waiting for you"
"Then…I agree with you"
"Is your agreement sincere?"
"It is" Cliff assures Marilyn, "I'm an honest man, remember?"
"No, you're a sleepy man" Marilyn throws another joke, "Can't you see that in your eyes?"
"No, I guess I'm too sleepy for it" Cliff replies dryly, "Either way, I'll miss this village once we're done here"
"Ow, come on. You can't get too emotionally attached like that" His companion produces a genuine comment, "We're drifters, we don't stay in certain places like that"
"What if we do?"
"Then we would be stayers"
"Is stayers even a word?"
"No, that's why there's no such thing as staying in one place too long for a drifter" Marilyn further tells the sleep red haired man, "Besides, we got something to do out there, right?"
His eyes cast lit of wonder in a second. He realized she was right; they have something to do out there in Filgaia. Not just something trivial, but something really important for both themselves and maybe others too.
"So, was I right?" Marilyn asks with confidence.
"You're right, just like always" The red haired man replies with an honest smile, but his smile vanish right when they heard a gunshot from the village.
The four drifters rush themselves to the village and find a dozen WU soldiers and an armored car walking out from the village the moment they arrive on the scene. A group of villagers are standing nearby the entrance of the Surf Village. Panic is written all over their faces.
The four drifters look at each other, guessing this won't be pleasant news for all of them. Approaching the village rapidly, the four see Misses Bricks is crying on her husband's shoulder. And besides the mayor, a dead body of one of the villagers lies motionless. The mayor looks at the drifters before looking at his villagers and tells them to take care of the body.
"Great, WU soldiers coming here is just what we need…" Marilyn escapes a sarcastic comment after she realized this is indeed an unpleasant news for them.
Leaving his three comrades behind, Cliff quickly approaches the mayor and sympathetically asks, "What happened, Mayor?"
The mayor calms his wife down before telling Cliff what happened…
Earlier this morning when the four drifters were busy at the plantation…
"Boss?" A young man, one of the villagers, called Mayor Bricks who was filling another customer's glass, "A group of soldiers want to see you. They are waiting outside"
"What soldiers, Jim?" The mayor asked his wife to replace him and drew near the customer named Jim.
"World Union soldiers" Jim clarified, "They said they want to meet whoever's in charge here"
"So, they came after all" Mayor Bricks accompanied by Jim behind him exited the inn and headed to the village's entrance where a group of soldiers and an armored cars waiting. The one who seemed to be a leader was a middle aged Caucasian man, short brown haired with dimple cheek. The villagers are surrounding them in amazement. This was the first time WU visited them after five long years.
"Welcome, gentlemen. I'm Bricks, the mayor of Surf village" Mayor Bricks introduced himself to the soldiers.
"Second Lieutenant Wade, I'm in charge of these guys" The commander of the soldiers also introduced himself, "I received an information yesterday you requested an assistance for this village?"
"Right"
"What's the exact deal of the request, mayor?"
"I happened to spot the deserters from the squad of Peacemaker Gomez Delphic who deserted around a month ago" Mayor Bricks got straight to the point.
"How much you knew about them?" Second Lieutenant Wade took a chance to glance around the village.
"Not much, once I spotted them I contacted World Union using the nearest post office. Apparently, I had to contact them for almost a week before you finally arrived"
"A week, huh? So, since no one really came here before us that makes us the first to notice your request, right?"
"Yes"
"Good" Second Lieutenant Wade took another glance, "By the way, Mayor…isn't Surf Village famous for its plantation of healing berries?"
"Yes, the crops are great this year" Mayor answered with a proud smile for his village, "We've got a handful of youngsters here helping us"
"Yes, I spot lots of healthy young men and fine you women in just two glances" Hade chuckled, "Well, today's' your lucky day, Mayor. I got a big surprise for you and your village"
"What kind of surprise?" The mayor politely replies.
"This kind" Wade pulled out a gun and aimed it to the mayor's head before his soldiers did the same by pointing their guns at the villagers, much to the shock of everyone witnessing. Even Misses Bricks and everyone who were watching from the inn couldn't conceal their gasps
"What does this mean, Lieutenant Wade?" Mayor actually had figured out who they might be, but he still felt the need to ask.
"Anybody moves, dies" Wade threatened the villagers before turning his attention back to the mayor, "You informed us well, Mayor. I really appreciate your concern and I thank you for telling us what we need to know"
"Good Lord…" Mayor couldn't believe this. They are the deserters, not the real WU soldiers, "What do you want from this village?"
"It's simple, mayor. I'm a man, my soldiers are men, we want what every man wants" Wade smiled indignantly, "Catch me?"
"Listen, take as much money as you want, as much berry as you want, but don't hurt any of the villagers" Mayor sounded really scared thinking about the possible outcomes for his village and its people. These kinds of guys are doing evil deeds with no regret.
"How considerate, but what about the other thing, mayor?" Wade reminded his prey, "What about the girls? You got some fine girls down here"
"I'm sorry, but you can't take any of them" The mayor bravely stood for the females on his village, "Take the money and the berries, but leave the villagers alone"
"Oh, really? Do you know what I do to things I can't have?" Wade pretended to ask before aiming his gun at Jim, who has been standing behind the mayor all the time, and shooting him right on his head, killing him at once as his body fell to the ground, "I destroy them"
"Oh, my god! Jim!" The mayor and some villagers quickly rushed to Jim's side but found him alive no longer.
"This is my first and final warning, mayor" Wade licked his gun before randomly aimed it to the villagers, "Me and my men will be back in six hours. When we're here, I want to see all the berries your village produced, the money and jewelries your villagers own, and the pussies you've been keeping all this time lying right here on this very point. Otherwise, that little shithead on the ground will have you and the males of this village accompanying him fucking dead whores in hell while we're busy with your pussies. And don't try something funny like escaping; you got a rocky giant boulder behind your village and I got every path surrounding this village blocked by the rest of my men. We spot one shithead running; we'll blow the shithead's head off"
And then, Wade ordered his men to retreat with an eerie smile on his face…
Back to present time…
"That's what happened" Mayor Bricks chokes ending his story, "I really don't know how to deal with this matter"
Cliff can't say anything to calm him down or simply give him a reply. Rubbing his hair absentmindedly, he casts his red gaze to Marilyn and the other two. Marilyn, realizing the hopeful gaze, lets out an exasperated sigh before acting like a leader she should be, "My condolences. It's unfortunate that had to happen, but worrying things will get you nowhere. So please calm yourself down, Mayor. Let's properly take care of the body before you and the others discussing what should be done next"
Marilyn speaks a good suggestion, and since no one seemingly gets a better suggestion, everyone do just that. After temporarily take care of Jim, the men gather at the café to discuss the matter while the kids, youngsters, and their wives stay in their house so they can alarm the men if the deserters return.
"We're all gonna die, aren't we? They will kill all of us whether we fulfill their demand or not" One of the villagers expresses his fear.
"One thing for sure, I'm not going to let them rape my daughter or my wife and use them like a meat!" Another man speaks up, "At least we need to find a way to let our daughters and wives escape from the village"
"Hey, stop talking crap! What about our boys? You want to leave them just like that? You think I'm going to let them kill both my sons like that man did to Jim?"
"I'm not talking crap, moron! I only want to protect my family!"
"And so am I! You're not the only who got wife and kids down here!"
"So, what's your suggestion?"
Silence befalls everybody on the café after the last question. That's right, despite yelling and constant yelling, no one knows what to do at all.
"Oh, man…things are going crazy" Alvin murmurs to himself seeing the Surf Village town folks literally screwing themselves with all their yelling and shouting, "Screw World Union…"
"Marilyn, what are we going to do?" Sophia, who's been looking confused all the time, tries to enlighten herself of her thoughts, "Can't we do something about this?"
"No, let's wait till they're done blabbing among themselves" Marilyn calmly responds while observing the nervous silence, "We shall do something only if necessary"
"Necessary? That means we're not going to help them?" Cliff is the first to response the answer.
"We're not…unless they want us to" His fettered friend boldly tells him, "This isn't our problem to begin with. If they want us to help, then they must have a proper way to show their gratefulness of us helping them. By the way, you don't speak as the representative of this village, do you?"
And she gets Cliff's attention just right, "You want to make a benefit from this situation? You wouldn't help them wholeheartedly for their sake?"
"Why would we? We've got nothing to do with this" His silver haired friend dryly tells him with no caring at all in her tone, "Except if they can put a decent amount of money on the wager, that is"
"So, you do want to make money out of their problem" Cliff doesn't hide his distaste at all, "Are you on your right mind?"
"Hell yeah, I'm always on my right mind" Marilyn doesn't sound concerned at all answering, "Think about it, guys. Not only will we get our deserved payment from working here all month long, we can also save ourselves a good amount of money to make it day by day"
"Hey, this isn't about money! I'm not going to oppose having payment doing a request, but people's lives are at the stake here!" Cliff locks his eyes to hers so she can have a better sight of what he sees, "This isn't the right time to earn more money! Don't you feel sorry for them?"
Calm and composed, Marilyn coldly replies, "Even if I do feel sorry for them, which I don't, nothing would change now wouldn't it? And besides…if you decide to help them and they find out what you and Sophia truly capable of, we would get kicked out of here with our pockets still empty…and after wasting our time for a month here, I'm sure none of us would like that choice"
"But still…" Cliff tries to talk back again, but Marilyn cuts him off.
"But still we need money for living cause we got dangerous places in Filgaia to venture. It's not like we can stop for a month in every town we spot, no? And need I remind you we got a bigger fish to catch out there on the battlefield?" The silver haired girl starts touching an important matter, "Don't give me bull by saying you haven't been thinking about it, Cliff. If we're going to help them, they better show us gella. And I mean lots of gella. If they want it free of charge, I can only provide last rites for each of their bodies. That I can provide for free"
Marilyn was right…again. Cliff lets out a defeated sigh before turning his attention to Alvin and Sophia, "So, what do you two have to say?"
"It's not like I disagree with you, bro. But Marilyn's right, we need money to live and we got a bigger fish to catch out there indeed" Alvin speaks his thought, "So, I'm with her this time. If we got the chance, we better seize it before it's too late"
"I…second that" Sophia agrees, although she looks afraid she would anger Cliff even more, "I'm sorry, Cliff. But we're out of money mainly because both of us. So…although I don't like the way this thing goes, I really don't have any other choice either"
"See?" Marilyn embraces another victory, "So, what you gonna do now?"
Basically, she tells him to f**k off. Unless, until the villagers settled down their debate. Cliff understands this and silences his mouth, saying nothing anymore. Marilyn gives an understanding nod to the red haired man as they refocus on the villagers.
"Wait, aren't those kids drifters?" While pointing to the group, one of the villagers just realized much like what Marilyn wishes, "They can help us, right?"
"Hey…that's right" One of the villagers points out to the four drifters, "The four of you…you're all drifters, right? You guys must have some kind of combat abilities, right? You can help us out from this mess!"
And then the other villagers follow,
"Yeah, right! You collected the healing berries seeds fighting monsters, right?"
"You can take the soldiers on too!"
"Yeah, please save us!"
"You're our only hope!"
"Do it, kids!"
"Save us!"
"You can do it, right?"
"Don't let them kill us!"
"You must save this village!"
Marilyn was right again. She knew the villagers would eventually realize their status as drifters and their capability in combat, as they have been helping them with the healing berries seeds for nearly all months long. And of course, just like another implication she gave to Cliff, this is her chance to make more money for the group's benefit.
However, Misses Bricks quickly disputes the villagers, "People, what's wrong with you? They are only four; those soldiers got dozens of them! Maybe even more! Are you trying to tell them to go kill themselves?"
"But, we've got no one else to count on! If we go out there and fight them they would shoot us dead!" Another villager argues.
"So, it's okay for these kids to get shot down? Have you had no shame?" Misses Bricks talks back and stunts the villagers, "Don't force them to help us out of our mess! It's up to them whether they want to take it or not!"
"Why wouldn't they take it? Aren't they part of this village too?"
"Yeah! They've been living here for almost a month; they are part of this village!"
"Don't you get it at all? Have you lost what little mind you have, people?" Misses Bricks doesn't even fear the number of the villagers shouting at her when she speaks what's inside her mind, "There are thirty of those soldiers! And maybe even more wherever they wait! How do you expect four to go toe to toe against dozens?"
The last reasoning shuts the villagers for some seconds. Marilyn, however, calmly steps in to the troubled villagers and catches all their attention. "Thanks for your concern, Misses Bricks. But believe me; they are nothing against me and my three companions" Marilyn gives a winning glance to her three friends waiting behind her. Although Cliff doesn't look happy with this, the fettered girl advances, "We're all for helping you. But of course…with the right prize, that is"
"You want…money?" Mayor quickly deciphers her true intention.
"Precisely, mayor" Marilyn visages a generous (really generous) smile, "It's only logical, isn't it? You're not hoping for a group of drifters going out there, put their lives on the stake for your sake, and not giving something in return, are you?"
"…my villagers' lives worth more than any gella" The mayor then asks her, "How much?"
"150,000 gella" The silver haired girl finally names the prize. It's big number of money I tell you. And she doesn't seem like wanting lower prize, "Deal or no deal?"
The mayor briefly looks at his villagers who give him their nods as the sign of agreeing the high prize. "Deal" The mayor tells the young girl, "But you have to guarantee our safety, and I mean every one of us"
"Consider it done" Marilyn shows a thumb up to her comrades despite Cliff still feeling unhappy.
The deal has been wagered, and now it's time for the work to be done, "I'll need your help for some preparation"
"What kind of preparation?"
"The preparation to wipe those losers out of this village while preventing as much damage as possible to this village" Marilyn voices her plan, "Your family and villagers worth more than your buildings, right?"
"…right"
"Good, then we need to empty the wine storage under the stairs" Marilyn starts telling the plan as everybody listens, "It's a really large storage, and we only got sixty or seventy villagers here. If we can empty the storage, all of you can hide in there safely from the upcoming battle. So, I will need your help to empty the storage from the wines. And I will also need you to turn off every light in this village and block the power supply for the time being. And from now on unless I say otherwise, don't go outside. We need to empty the street"
"I can understand the storage part, but what about the lights?" The mayor asks with a really deep concern.
"It's to make our part of the deal easier"
"And the street?"
"To keep all of you alive"
"…"
"Any other question?"
The mayor glances at his villagers to find no one seemingly got any other question.
"Good, let's empty the storage then" Marilyn also calls for her other three friends, "You guys too, we need a quick work here. Sophia, I need you to go to the giant boulders surrounding the back of the village to clear your path"
"Roger that!" The dark haired girl cheerfully answers before hurrying herself to her room on the second floor of the inn to kick some ass.
"Um, what did you tell her to do?" Misses Bricks, approaching from behind, asks the leader of the group.
"I asked her to wipe the soldiers observing us from the boulders" Marilyn quickly responses, "So, that no one will hinder her doing her job later tonight"
"How do you know there are soldiers above there?"
"Simple, mam" It's Alvin who answers, "They got the guts to come here, that means they knew the current condition of Surf Village. How did they figure that out? They must have been observing this place for quite some time. And we don't think there's a better place than the giant boulder on the back of the village for completing that purpose without anyone knowing by all means. This is also to prevent them from reporting to their friends about our activity here"
"You kids…you're not just usual drifters, are you?" The mayor joins the conversation with a disbelieve look on his eyes, "You confidently asked Sophia to take care of trained soldiers. You planned the whole plan in seconds. You're so calm regardless the current situation where we have five dozens soldiers waiting for us out there. Really, who…are you people?"
"We are The Four Garrison, mayor" Cliff tells the mayor by putting a deep voice on his answer, directly implying to the mayor that they aren't joking with that name or their answer.
"So, if you may excuse us we'll help the others empty the storage. And after Sophia done with the guys above we can start doing the lights" Marilyn and the other two excuse themselves before helping the villagers to do the deed, leaving the mayor and his wife in quietness.
"James, why are you silent? Do you know what The Four Garrison is?" Misses Bricks slowly asks her husband, seeing him in lost words.
"The Four Garrison…" The mayor stammers, "That name is a very well known name among the drifters and the war field"
"What do you mean?"
"I've heard that among those who oppose both World Union and The Society, for having an ongoing war without caring about Filgaia, there's a group of drifters made up of four. A small number they might be, but they are capable enough to be a constant threat to both sides on their journey travelling Filgaia. Words in the street said both World Union and The Society put prizes for their head"
"Those four kids? They're both World Union and The Society's enemies?" Now Misses Bricks knew why her husband was in lost words. A group of unbelievable drifters have been staying on their place for almost a month without them knowing it.
Meanwhile, Sophia is taking a good look on her targets from her room. There's a large boulder covering almost half of the back side of Surf Village, with the Berry Cave lies below the boulder. Respectively, on top of the boulder, six men wait to watch the village in case they do anything suspicious.
"The total of six men" Sophia mumbles after observing her targets with her scope, "This should be quick"
"Are you going to kill them all?" Michael, waiting with his brother Micah behind Sophia, escapes a deep question for kids.
"Kill? No, no. That's a harsh word" Sophia gently caresses Michael's hair to ensure him, "I'm going to retire them, that's all"
"What does retire mean?" Micah, the younger of the twin, innocently asks like a kid would do.
"That means, I'm going to render them paralyzed for a certain period of time by a small amount of force" Her purple stare casts itself to the targets, "Now, if you please…I need you to leave this room, okay?"
"Why?"
"I don't want you kids to see a violent act, nor will I let you" Sophia wholeheartedly replies. The kids look at each other before obediently do as they were told. After the kids leave the scene, Sophia exhales to calm herself down, "I will only retire them, kids…but for eternity"
There is one other reason why she asked the kids to leave. Because she cannot let them know she's an ARMs Wielder. That would ruin the whole plan on saving this place.
In a blink of an eye, Sophia draws out her weapon as an ARMs appear; model Stoner Rifle-25 Semi-Automatic Sniper Rifle, or Silvia as she names it. The ARMs is completed with a sound suppressor. Sophia picks up a bipod from her bag in the bed and puts it on her Silvia before placing it on the window frame so she can have better positioning on doing her job.
The six men on the boulder don't notice her at all; they are too busy chatting with each other without knowing all their heads are on queue. Calmly aiming to the first target, Marilyn takes a soundless shot thanks to the sound compressor. And in less than 2 seconds, the bullet hits the soldier's head and kills him. The other five surprised and quickly take guard but it's too damn late. Sophia retires another one after the second bulls eye to the head before taking down the third man.
The other three get down and quickly search their attacker from above, but they find nothing. No one is on the street, and no one is on the rooftop aiming at them either. So, where is their attacker? She's not invisible is she?
"Where the hell is the shooter?" One of the soldiers asks, "No one is on the street!"
This is why Marilyn ordered no one should wander outside. So that the soldier won't have any chance to take advantage of the disorderly walking villagers as their hostage or just a mere shooting target.
"Maybe the shooter isn't on the street" Another soldier answers, "We need to tell Second Lieutenant"
"Where's the radio?"
"Over there" The other soldiers point out to beside one of the dead soldiers' body. It would be a risky move considering they need to move from their current spot.
"Relax, we're safe enough to make a move by crawling" One of the soldiers slowly crawls toward the radio, but after a sudden bullet makes a hole on his head soundlessly, his two friends riot.
"What the hell? He got shot!"
"Where is the shooter? There is no one in the street or the rooftops!"
"Wait…maybe…the shooter isn't on the street or rooftop?"
"How is that possible, huh? You mean the shooter can just randomly shoot out of nowhere and hit us?"
She can, that's the use of Lock On technique. Lock On is a normal skill among ARMs Wielder, but in some cases there's a difference. And Sophia's case is one of it. It's the ability of Emission; she can control the bullet she shot after casting a Lock On. That's why although she shoots from somewhere far and fairly unseen place, she still hit the nail right.
To finish her part of the job, Marilyn shoots twice.
The soldiers cannot believe their eyes, because after debating mindlessly, the witness two bullets speeding at them. And clear enough, that's the last thing they ever saw.
"I'm done" Sophia withdraws her Silvia and packs her bag, preparing to go to the now safe boulder.
And then with hours to go before the deserters return, the villagers help the drifters for the preparation Marilyn mentioned before.
Five hours later…
The night is still young when a group of men riding an armored vehicle, ASLAV to be precise, are seen approaching the darkened village. Apparently, no contacts have been made from the watchers above the boulders. Taking a pre-emptive cause, Wade ordered a group of his men to enter the village to find out if there is something suspicious inside while he and the other wait not far from it.
"Hey, what happened with that village? It's all dark and no lights can be seen" The soldier who is observing from the top of ASLAV withdraws his head, entering back inside, "Did they run away?"
"No way, there's only one way for them to get out of that stinky village. They got a giant boulder behind them and our men have been surrounding them!" Another soldier answered, "If that is the case, then we should go inside and check it out. Isn't that why Second Lieutenant Wade sent us here in the first place?"
The group moves inside the village and gets a clearer sight, that the village is as dark as the night itself. No single light is being turned on, the street is empty, and no one makes any kind of sounds. The Surf Village has turned into a haunted village.
"Creepy…where is everybody?" The guy who observed the village earlier asks, but none of his friends knows the answer. But then, he spots a glimpse of a red figure around 15 meters from the ASLAV, "Hey, what's that? Is that a person?"
"Huh, where?" One soldier from inside the car observes the point his friend is pointing, "Hey…yeah! That looks like a person, alright. What's he doing there? Someone get there and ask him where the hell the villagers are!"
There are 9 soldiers inside the car; three are driving ASLAV so that leaves the rest 6 to do the job. Since he's the nearest to their only way out, the guy who's been observing from atop the car climbs down and slowly approaches the red figure.
"Hey, you! Where is everybody?" The soldier starts pointing the gun at the red visage, who turns out to be Cliff. The red haired man stares at the soldier with a cold eerie stare which gives the soldier a shiver, "Hey, don't shit with me! Where are the villagers, moron?"
Still not giving any answer, Cliff stretches his right arm to in front of the soldier and opens his hand so the soldier can see his palm. "Hey, are you toying with me you dumbass?" The soldier insults Cliff again, "Where the hell are those shitty villagers?"
"For someone who is about to die" Much to the soldier's surprise, a dark colored handgun like firearm suddenly appears out of nowhere on Cliff's hand following a glimpse of light, pointing right at his head, "You talked way too much"
A silence breaking sound echoes to the sky as the soldier flung away before violently hit the armored car, shocking his comrades inside it. But what surprises them the most is the fact that that guy is headless. Blood splattered all over the scene. Cliff just blew that guy's head away into pieces. Needless to say, the car erupts,
"Shoot! This is crazy! What did that guy do?"
"He just shot him!"
"Shot? What kind of a handgun would blow your head away!"
"Hey, hey! That guy is coming here! Someone move this damn thing and shoot him!"
One of the remaining soldiers noticed that Cliff is walking towards them. There is no fear on his eyes despite facing a giant steel armored car. A soldier quickly comes out to atop the car to use the M240C machine gun planted on the car. He aims toward Cliff and prepares to shoot him…only to see him nowhere in sight.
"Hey, where did that guy go?" The soldier asks his bewildered friends.
"I dunno! He vanished!"
"You fool! Didn't anyone watch him at all? How could he vanish into nothingness just like that?"
"Hey, don't blame us! Why didn't you put your damn eyes on him?"
Before the soldiers can continue their stupidly unnecessary arguments, another thrilling sound ricochets in the air. The next thing the rest of the soldiers know is the headless body of their friend who's been aiming the gun above limps slowly to inside the car, much to their horror.
"Shit! We're dealing with a monster!"
"Retreat! Retreat! Get the walkie talkie and tell Second Lieutenant!"
Unfortunately for them, among the riot they caused by their own, they heard a bump on the top of the car. Someone is there, above them.
"Hey, did you hear that sound?"
"Is he up there?" The soldiers preparing their guns in case something comes up. Although it's rather foolish, cause there's no way their frivolous machine guns would be able to directly go through the armored car, both inside or outside, let alone hitting Cliff like that.
"What are we going to do now?"
"Well, I definitely don't want to put my head out and get hit by whatever gun he uses"
"So, we're going to wait here just like that all night long?"
They don't need to. Cliff shoots from atop the car, pierces right through the steel armored car, and perfectly hits one soldier's head, blowing it off as its inside scatters everywhere on the car before any of the soldiers can do anything.
"Huwaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Bigger panic arises inside the ASLAV, and the red eyed man seizes the chance perfectly. Cliff kicks down the top manhole of the car and enters his arm while aiming mindlessly, knowing wherever he shoots he will still hit one of those idiots.
The trench coated man kills another one and forces the driver to start driving the armored car recklessly, hoping the guy shooting at them would somehow fall and they can escape. But Cliff is steadily gluing himself to the car from above. No sign of him deteriorates at all as he blows another head into pieces. The soldiers inside the ASLAV are too scared to do something. This is because they are all coward to begin with. They're afraid of battle, that's why they became deserters in the first place. And in anyone's logic, they would needlessly riot if they see a man blowing their heads off despite having an armored car to shelter them. And with four of them died, five more remains.
This is the basic tactic of fighting an armored vehicle: keep your enemies close, keep your gun closer. They may be big, they may be bad, but they're nothing if you're close. Their cannon would be useless, their rifles would be useless, and the people inside them are just the same as a sitting duck….if you have a weapon that could easily penetrate steeled armor, that is.
Cliff blows the fifth head tonight before slowly makes his way inside and let the remaining four soldiers get a good look on their assaulter. "Shoot him!" Two soldiers take aim and unload their bullets on him, hitting him countless times in the process.
"Take this! Take this!" They shoot Cliff mindlessly without even caring whether the bullets really affect him or not. Smokes, ricocheting sounds, and ejected bullets fly all over the inside of the car. The two soldiers shoot until they ran out of ammo…and run out of any sane idea. Because after receiving hundred of bullets directly in a very close range, their single adversary is still standing.
Blood oozing on several points of his body, indicating he's wounded and injured after all. But that's all about it. He didn't die, he didn't even fall down. He's still standing like nothing just happened. His face hints no single pain at all. His stare is as cold as ever, leaving both soldiers and the two drivers behind them motionless. Their hearts beat quickly and violently, so that they palpitate against their ribs. Their superficial muscles shiver, their breathing is hurried, and their mouth becomes dry. What they see right now is no man.
Cliff aims his gun to one of the soldiers head before blowing it off, and shoots another one before he even got the chance to enlighten his curiosity, leaving the two defenseless drivers all alone in their fear.
"What…are you?" One of them gasps as Cliff silently walks to them, ignoring their feelings completely, "Are you one of The Ars Goetia? There's no way you're human! What are you?"
Cliff coldly replies with a bullet to the other driver's head before aiming his gun to the asking driver. "Hm? I run out of ammo?"Cliff reacts after pulling the trigger and nothing comes out, "Oh, I forgot. It's eight bullets already"
The red haired man withdraws his ARMs before casting his sight on the remaining driver.
"An ARMs wielder…you're a demon…so, you're not human after all…" The driver says in fear seeing the ARMs wielder. Cliff chokes his neck and slowly lifts him to the air so he can have a better look on the driver.
"How many of your guys are left?" The red eyed man strengthens the grip on the driver's neck, "Answer me"
"It's…fifty…left!" The driver got a hard time answering with all the choke and grip, "I'm…telling you…the truth!"
"One other thing, do you have any other armored fighting vehicle?"
"It's two…tanks! That's…all I know, I…swear!"
"Who asked you to swear?" Cliff tosses the driver away to the back of the car before grabbing his collar and violently slamming him to the wall, breaking his back. The hard steeled wall proves too hard for the driver's back to handle. And the driver's cries prove that. The merciless red haired man finishes him off by giving a straight punch to the driver's face, maiming his face.
After Cliff drops the driver, he notices a walkie talkie, lying on the floor covered by blood, is still on.
"Hey! Someone answer me! What's happening in there?" Wade's voice can be heard from the talkie. One of the soldiers must have turned it on but never got the proper chance to use it without his head (no pun intended). The only reply Wade got is a cracking sound after Cliff stomps the talkie.
The ARMs wielder climbs out of the ASLAV while Alvin and Marilyn showing up to the scene. "Wonderful" Marilyn genuinely praises Cliff's work, "Merciless just like always. As expected from Cliff Margester"
"Big deal, there is two more to go. And they got fifty more men" Giving a short answer to the girl, Cliff reloads his empty ARMs. Model MGC-M93R-AP, more widely known as Auto-9, nine millimeter Semi Automatic Anti Tank Rifle. Its official name is D-39 SAATR; however Cliff prefers to refer his ARMs as Dreadnaught, a legendary spear which is said to be able to penetrate anything it pierces. Dreadnaught is light just like it is extraordinarily powerful. Designed specially to penetrate many layers of armored vehicles, the explanation on why it blows steels and heads present itself.
"Two more? They got two tanks more?" Alvin asks.
"Yep, waiting like two sitting ducks out there" The red eyed man points out to the outer area of the village, "That Wade guy will probably send his foot soldiers here caused the ruckus inside ASLAV was heard by him. I'll keep the tanks away from this village. So, the stupid soldiers are all yours"
"Great demo of intelligence" Displaying a little smile of satisfaction, Marilyn pats Cliff's back, "You're eager to do this after all, huh? I did think you're still on dismay about what happened this afternoon"
"No, I don't dislike your doing or your saying because they are true. No one can argue with that" Cliff returns the smile, "It's just I never get used to our different way of thinking and approaching things no matter how I try"
"The beauty of life" The silver haired girl unsheathes her Iskander Bey, still with her smile, "Come back in one piece, 'kay?"
"Against a couple of small fries? I'm hurt" Cliff jokes before sets sail to the outer area of Surf Village, "Alvin, keep your eye on her, got me? Make sure she doesn't hurt you or herself"
"Well, actually she wouldn't hurt me or herself cause she's eager to only hurt you. But, leave that request to me" Alvin grins while putting a pair of fingerless black gloves, preparing himself to meet and greet the soldiers, "So, we go hide to surprise the soldiers now?"
"Just as planned, Alvin. Sophia is ready on her position too. She will signal us by shooting Silvia once to the air. It's not going to be a difficult job defeating a bunch of cowards in darkness" With the preparation completed, the two goes hiding inside the darkness of the village.
Their prediction turns out to be true. Wade stays in his tank and orders another tank to accompany him in the outer area while the entire foot soldiers go inside the village to deal with the assaulters. As their legs reach the entrance of the village, the soldiers find the motionless ASLAV. The armored car stinks of blood, proving the earlier report of the attack was true after all.
The soldiers proceed with care. Whoever it is waiting for them inside the dark must be very potent combatants. They lost their troops guarding the boulder and now they lost after sending an armored car. The fifty soldiers split into group of several soldiers and spread throughout the silent village quietly. No sounds, no lights, no noises…to them, Surf Village is no different from a graveyard. The moon, calmly observing them from its throne in the space, is the only source of light for the soldiers. But the soldiers are soon blinded in even darker surrounding when the clouds move and cover the moonlight, stopping it to shine the village with its light.
And then, a silence breaking sound echoes as a gunshot is heard out of nowhere. Next thing the soldiers know, all the lights in the village suddenly turn on. It flashes perfectly blinded them temporarily
"My eyes!"
"What was that gunshot?"
"This is a trap!"
And the last guy's right, this is a perfect trap. No matter how strong a group is, when they split and lower their number they are more vulnerable for an ambush. Turning the lights off was one thing, turning it back on in the right time is another thing. The soldiers have been split and blinded; they're a group of sitting turkeys now.
Pops out from behind one of the alleys inside the village, Alvin hammers a soldier right to his face with a long fist and retires him. There are six other soldiers on his eyesight, all blinded. The green haired man moves closer to one of them before giving his blind target a roundhouse kick to his stomach and a finishing kick to the face. Alvin leaps backward and maims another soldier with a perfectly executed Butterfly Kick, leaving four soldiers left. Alvin then steps in to a soldier's reach and give him a double hook, leaving three. The martial arts expert soon realizes the other three are starting to regain their eyesight, and this wouldn't be good for him. Quickly moving into one side, Alvin accumulates the power on his right leg to swipe all three in one single strike. As the soldiers are about to regain their composure, Alvin bents his right leg and spins, unleashing a powerful Crescent Kick to one of the soldiers' head and sending him flying to his other two friends, knocking all three of them off in one blow.
Marilyn, appearing from above one of the blinded soldiers near the entrance with her sword ready, strikes his head with an Oberhau, a stroke delivered from above the attacker, and kills the soldier right away. With her accelerator already activated, the braided girl closes her distance with a group of dozen blind soldiers, attempting to take them out before they regain their eyesight. Striking from below her target, the swordswoman performs an Unterhau to his neck and quickly retire one other soldier on her back by stabbing him right in the eye before the second soldier even touch the ground. Closing her distance with the remaining ten, Marilyn slashes another soldier on his neck and then proceeds to calmly slash another one behind in the stomach. Their blood blossoming in the air the moment Marilyn invisibly moves and deals three soldiers at once with her Guillotine. Three heads falling to the dirty ground indicates there's five more to go. Marilyn jumps backward and strikes another one with Unterhau again, leaving four more to go. The swordswoman stabs her ninth victim in the stomach and quickly steps toward the remaining three. Good for them, they finally regain their eyesight. But bad for them, Marilyn was quick enough to execute the second Guillotine before the three soldiers even realized what happened. As their body falls down one by one, Marilyn takes her time to cleanse her sword while admiring her well done job. A glimpse of satisfaction rues her eyes.
Alvin dealt seven and Marilyn owned thirteen, so that means thirty more to go. But now, the soldiers have regained their eyesight completely. The original plan is to reduce their number as much as possible. Fifty isn't a small number to deal to begin with. With thirty more to go, their job should be easier. The only concern of this plan is the villagers; that's why Marilyn told them to hide in the basement so there won't be any unnecessary casualties. And then, the two resume their battle.
Alvin rushes to a group of soldiers spotting him with his guard ready. They shoot him using the rifles they got on their hands to stop him but the green eyed man jumps and successfully avoids all the bullets. Advancing into a spin in the air, Alvin executes an insanely powerful Butterfly Kick right to the ground and breaks it, rendering all the soldiers shocked and immobile in one single strike. The Jackhammer, that's how he called the move. The dusky skinned man seizes this opportunity to gives one soldier a taste of his uppercut continued by a straight to his stomach before he falls down. One soldier regains his balance and fires at Alvin; however, the leather jacketed man quickly gets down before giving the soldier a low reverse roundhouse kick. Successfully dispatching the man of the only support for his balance, Alvin carries on with a middle reverse roundhouse kick and then finishes him by a high reverse roundhouse kick, sending him crashing to three men behind him and knocking all of them out. Another soldier attempts to shoot him from behind, fortunately Alvin was quick enough to notice and kicks the gun to the air, leaving the soldier weaponless before connecting a Jump Spin Hook Kick to his face. The rampant fighter welcomes another horde of soldiers from his front by performing a Flying Back Kick before the soldiers got any chance to shoot and successfully knocking one of them down. Alvin quickly disarms another one with an elbow attack to the ground and spinning afterwards, positioning himself so his right arm got enough space to execute a superman punch. Bringing his rear leg forward to feign a kick, Alvin then snaps the leg back while throwing a cross spinning punch directly to the soldier's face, resulting on him flying backwards and taking his two other friends with him. A usual superman much doesn't require a spin on the arm, but Alvin does so because it enhances the power he conduits with the punch. He calls this one Screwdriver. Well, at least that technique lived up to the name by screwing the soldiers. Anhur, that's how Alvin is recognized back there in his hometown in Baskar colony. The name derived from a war deity known as Slayer of The Enemies. Living up to his nickname, he slays anyone standing on his path.
Marilyn enters the stage by calmly slashing one soldier in the face in a surprise attack from his side, and quickly spots three other soldiers with him. Sneaking rapidly from below, the silver haired swordswoman slashes a soldier's hand to disarm him and proceeds to quickly slice his neck. Her accelerator proved superior even to the reactions of the trained soldiers once again when she stabs the remaining two consecutively in less than six seconds, so far she is unscathed. Four other soldiers arrived and fires to her at once, but their bullets hit only her trail of after image. Their lining position is useless when they face an enemy with a formidable speed, they should have known that. But being a group of cowards fleeing from a battle the deserters can't think that far, really. Her dark gaze watches in calmness as she stabs another man in the stomach before proceeding to slash another one behind him. She finishes the remaining two by a quick attack using the same combination of stab and slash. With only ten soldiers remain; she decides to end them by herself so no more time would be wasted. And it's not hard to find them, because they are running toward her who's been causing ruckus in the place she battled just now. They stop the moment they see what's left behind the swordswoman, gallons of blood covering the streets, dead bodies lying everywhere leaving one maiden standing alone. Her piercing stare, her eerie yet somewhat satisfied smile, and her sword is dripping blood little by little, the best proof of what she just did to the other soldiers. The scene, the massacre, belittles the courage they had in them in just a mere second. Their bigger number, their firearms, suddenly means nothing at all. In just a glance, Marilyn knows they fear her. Her smile just got eerier as she prepares another stance. And when she steps into her opponents advances in a blink of an eye, with her right foot forward and her left feet sliding while never lifting off the ground her sword dances nimbly, driven by the movement of the whole body, she shows them death.
Spider lily, a beautiful flower said to grow in hell guiding the dead into the next reincarnation. When their flowers bloom, their leaves would have fallen; when their leaves grow, the flowers would have wilted. This habit gave rise to various legends. Some other legends have it that when you see someone that you may never meet again, these flowers, also called red spider lilies, would bloom along the path. Spider Lily, flower of the afterlife. Spider Lily, that's how Marilyn Westerfield is recognized.
Be slowly lifted up, thou long black arm,
Great Gun towering towards Heaven, about to curse;
Sway steep against them, and for years rehearse
Huge imprecations like a blasting charm.
Reach at that Arrogance which needs thy harm,
And beat it down before its sins grow worse.
Spend our resentment, cannon - yea, disburse
Our gold in shapes of flame, our breaths in storm.
The Crimson, a fearsome telltale hour on the battlefield where World Union and The Society, or Filgaia to that matters, putting their lives on the stake for something called belief. Among the rage of wars, among the blood they spilt, a mtyh, an urban legend, arose and pieced the heart of everyone stepping into the field of war. A legend about a red visage, covered by blood, leaving trails of red on the path he battled his enemies. He walks into the war with taking no sides fighting for what he believes, his mere presence will intimidate his adversaries standing, his merciless stare will belittle their courage, and then, his fearless weapon will turn them into pieces. And then, he will leave the trail he battled with his enemies blood. A red merciless figure, The Crimson.
"Damn! What the hell are those morons doing inside the village? Why aren't they reporting anything at all?" Wade bemoans the fact that none of his deserters give a report about the current condition inside the village. Well, if only he knows what have become of his deserters he would be busy deserting from here (no pun intended).
Wade and the remaining cowards he has with him are armed with two armored vehicles. Wade and 3 other deserters are riding a super-heavy tank called Obyekt 279. The special-purpose tank was intended to fight on cross-country terrain that was inaccessible to conventional tanks and act as a vehicle to break through enemy defensive positions. This tank was a unique version boasting increased cross-country capability. The tank featured four-track running gear mounted on two longitudinal rectangular hollow beams, used as fuel tanks. The tank hull (with 269 mm armor) was covered by a thin, elliptical shield protecting it against HEAT shaped-charge ammunition and preventing it from overturning due to the shock wave of a nuclear explosion. It comprised large cast irregular shape structures of variable thickness and slope. The all-cast front part of the hull was rounded in shape with thin armor panels against HEAT projectiles, which ran around the edges of the front and sides of the hull. The sides of the hull were also cast and had similar protective armor panels. The all-cast turret (front armour thickness 305 mm) was rounded, with anti-HEAT protective panels mounted at a seventy degree angle. The turret ring was also heavily protected. The tank was fitted with a 130 mm rifled M-65 and a co-axial 14.5 mm KPVT heavy machine gun, stabilized in two planes by a "Groza" stabilizer. The gun was provided with a semi-automatic loading system. Firing control system comprised optical/radar rangefinder, auto-guidance system and L2 night-sight with IR searchlight. The tank suspension was hydro-pneumatic with complex hydro transformer and three-speed planetary gearbox. The track adjuster was worm-type.
The other five soldiers are riding M103 heavy tank. The turret of the M103 was larger than that of the M48 or the M60 to make room for the huge 120 mm gun and the two loaders assigned to it, in addition to the gunner and the commander. The driver sat in the hull. The gun was capable of elevation from +15 to -8 degrees. Tracks, rollers and suspension elements were the same, with some modification to take into account the greater weight. The engine and transmission were never modified enough to give the extra power needed for the greater weight of the M103, and as a result, the tank was relatively underpowered and the drive systems were fragile.
As a group of deserters, they got some badass tanks with them over here. No wonder they can roam around freely, never having a potent threat for them with such huge devices. But that candle wouldn't hold out long.
"Hey, who's that?" One of the soldiers inside M103 notices Cliff slowly walking towards them.
"Is that one of the villagers?"
"No way! Look at him; he's covered in…blood?"
"Silence! All of you!" Wade shuts the deserters up with one order. His eyes are full of fear and thoughts, "That red figure…could it be…?"
"Is something wrong, sir?"
Suddenly, something crosses Wade's mind and demands him to react quickly if he wants to stay alive, "M103! Shoot that guy before he reaches us! Now!"
"Yes, sir!" M103 aims their M58 cannon right to the direction of Cliff and fires it without asking any other question.
Regardless, the speeding giant bullet ignites no fear for the red eyed man. Cliff quickly draws his Dreadnaught and shoots the bullet in mid-air, blowing it up and shocking his opponents.
"What the hell? He destroyed the cannon's bullet?"
"Are you joking me?"
"It can't be…" Wade mutters in disbelieve, catching the attention of his underlings.
"Do you know him, sir?" However, he gets no answer because the tide turns to their side very quickly. Closing the distance between him and M103, Cliff shoots the driver through the armored layer and blows his head off, and just like before, scaring the other four crews inside M103.
"Shoot him using your machine gun!" Wade shouts to take control of the situation. The crews inside M103 quickly do as they were told before Cliff really approach them. They aim the machine gun placed on their tank and fires at will, successfully hit Cliff. But much like their predecessor, it's no use at all. The bullets did hit him and slow his movement, but he still walks quietly amidst the firing. The determination on his eyes isn't to be taken lightly. The crew who is firing starts to watch in horror when Cliff aims Dreadnaught at him. The scene lets Wade and other deserters speechless in both fear and confusion. This guy's no normal human. After another piercing sound from Dreadnaught, the crew doesn't see anything anymore.
"How on earth…is he a demon? The machine gun didn't he affect him at all!"
"Didn't you see the weapon on his hand? It's an ARMs! He's an ARMs wielder; of course he's a demon!"
"What do we do now?"
"Run him over! Run him over!" In panic, Wade orders his underlings in M103 to run Cliff over. Cannon can't stop him, bullets can't stop him, their only bet is using their tank itself. The crews in M103 take full speed and charges toward Cliff. The red haired man shoots the driver in another single shot but the other driver remains, giving him the chance to finally hit Cliff using the tank's body. However, much to their dismay, Cliff manages not to get stuck within the wheels and grabs the hull front of the tank right in front of the driver. The driver begins to panic when Cliff slowly, out of his current situation, aims his merciless Dreadnaught to his face. Another piercing sound and blowing head is more than enough to driver Wade crazy, "That's it! Shoot M103 with our cannon!"
"But, sir!" The crews cannot believe what they just said, "There's still our friends inside M103!"
"Do you want that guy to come here and blow your damn head off like he did to them or not?" Wade grabs the crew's collar and yells on his face, "If you want your head intact, than fire the cannon!"
Not wanting to get their heads blown off, the crews quickly take position and aim the M-65 rifled cannon to M103.
"Hey, hey! What are you doing? What are you doing? We're still here!" The last two remaining crews inside M103 cannot contain their fear of death, but it's an unlikely situation for them both inside and outside. Inside, they'll get blown off to pieces by Obyekt. Outside, they will get blown off by Cliff. But their time runs out when Obyekt fires it cannon and explodes M103 into pieces, leaving nothing but a pillar of fire and its smokes covering the already darkened sky. The metal pieces of M103 are scattered everywhere.
"We did it…we did it…" The crews lets out an exasperate sigh, and so does Wade.
"Did it kill him, sir?"
"If that didn't, I don't know what would" Wade places both his hands to cover his face. That was really a shocking experience back there.
"You seemed to recognize the red haired man, sir?" Now, the crew feels it's about damn time Wade explains.
"It's a telltale hour on the battlefield I heard around four years ago at World Union" Wade tells him what he knew, "A red eyed, red haired man, purposely covering himself in his enemies blood leaving nothing but single trail of red blood on the path he battled. He is known as The Crimson"
"Was that guy The Crimson?"
"Perhaps, I don't know for sure. The Crimson is said to be unstoppable. But seeing him blown away by the explosion, I guess he isn't The Crimson" Wade shouldn't have celebrate too early, because just seconds after he said that, one of his crews informs him something he wouldn't like.
"Sir…I hope my eyes are deceiving me, but I think…" The crew stammers in disbelieve, "That red haired man…he is…heading towards us…"
"What?" Wade and the other crews hurried themselves to watch the really unpleasant news for themselves.
From inside the pillar of fire, a grim visage can be seen slowly walking out. Their jaws slowly dropped seeing Cliff walks out from the fire pillar, alive but not well. He is seen bleeding on the head and there are several burns on his body, but that's it. He doesn't show any expression of being hurt, nor he does flinching at all. His clothes are still intact, implying maybe his clothes are all fire proof. But that's not what concerns them the most right now.
"Could it be…" Wade murmurs in despair. All his attempts to stop Cliff are futile, "He is really The Crimson?"
Cliff pats his trench coat to check the item he brought with him inside it is still there, and it still is, "Good"
"Sir, shouldn't we run away?" The crews begin to panic (again), "He will kill us all!"
"No, wait…" Wade thinks properly at the moment, "Since it was him who came here in the first place, there's no guarantee he won't chase us if we run away, we can't move fast using Obyekt. But, our Obyekt is covered with a hard layered armor, no? Maybe, his gun wouldn't be able to penetrate through our armor. And look at him, he's bleeding and injured. So, that means we can inflict damage upon him. As long as we can manage to keep the distance between our drivers and him, maybe we still got a chance"
"Right…what's your order, sir?"
"Turn Obyekt around so it is our wheel facing him, not us. And turn the turret ring of our cannon so we can shoot him without facing him directly. Now, move! Move!" Wade orders his crews as the battle for their lives begin, "I'll personally slow him down using our mahcine gun!"
"But, sir! He might blow your head off!"
"Not if I keep it down enough!" Wade goes to control the machine gun placed on Obyekt and then the super-heavy tank moves. The crew aims the cannon at Cliff and fires. The red eyed man easily dodges the bullet, letting it hits and explodes the remains of M103, and fires back, but his Dreadnaught proves unable to penetrate the hard layered armor of Obyekt.
"It works! His ARMs cannot penetrate our tank!" The crews give an early celebration. Wade's guess is partly true. The second lieutenant shoots Cliff using the machine gun, trying to slow him as much as possible. Cliff welcomes the bullets as it doesn't have any kind of effect on him or whatsoever, instead, he takes this chance to shoot Wade. However, he missed his target because Wade keeps his head down like he stated earlier.
"It works! Second Lieutenant's plan really works!" The crews are grateful for the upper hand they gained. The crew proceeds to shoot their cannon again, but Cliff evades is for the second time. However, this is all a trap. Wade seizes his chance to shoot Cliff on his head, particularly his eyes, and temporarily disturbs his vision. This gave the crews an opportunity to quickly reload the cannon and fires at once, hitting Cliff perfectly and blasting him off the battlefield. The red eyed man flung away for at least fifty feet before landing on the hard ground, harshly.
"We did it! We really did it!" The crews go bananas seeing their opponent blasted away from their sight. Wade is in the middle, because he's still afraid if Cliff rises again. He keeps his eyes open when his crews are busy celebrating their lives, but after some moment, Cliff doesn't show up again, so he concludes that Cliff's dead.
"It's over…we won" Wade sighs in gratefulness for real this time.
"It's all thanks to your plan, sir"
"Yeah, now we can head on to the vill…oh, damn it…" Wade's eyes widened in disbelieve, telling his crews without even using any words that maybe this battle is far from over, "I cannot believe this! He's still alive?"
"What?" all his crews get their attention back outside and see it for themselves; Cliff is walking towards them! His body is injured and covered in blood more than before, but he is still walking nonetheless. He isn't limping at all, nor did he lose any limbs. This guy is a monster.
"This cannot be happening!"
"That guy is a real demon!"
"Reload! Reload! Shoot him with the cannon again before he reaches us! Now!" Wade takes the call out of desperation. His crews quickly do as they were told, but no one noticing Cliff has been aiming his Dreadnaught right to their cannon's barrel. The monster among men quietly casts The Lock On into both his eyes and ARMs, attempting to finish Obyekt once and for all.
Right after the crew reloaded the cannon, Cliff fires a single shot right at the cannon's hole. Before any of the crews or Wade himself got the chance to prevent what's about to happen, the 9mm bullet of Dreadnaught penetrates the Armour-Piercing Discarding Sabot roundof Obyekt 279. The next thing happens in the outer area of Surf Village in the cold night of Filgaia is a really big explosion; waking up all the wild animals around the area and shocking even the villagers who have been hiding inside the basement. For a moment, the black night sky was outshined by the flare of the explosion. The rising smoke from the fire burial of Obyekt 279 and its crew tells Cliff's three companions inside Surf Village, especially Marilyn, the winner of their battle tonight.
"Well done, Cliff" Marilyn secretly praises her sleepy friend.
After the fires and smoke ease up, Cliff quietly observes the remains of the super-heavy tank. Obyekt armor was layered and hard to be penetrated, but with an explosion from the inside, 350mm armor was a piece of cake. Well, if you cannot destroy them from the outside, why don't you try from inside, right?
The red eyed man finds pieces of dead bodies of what must be the three crews, but he didn't find Wade anywhere.
"Ukh! Huaaaaaaaah!" Cliff heard a scream from his behind, and finds Wade, now losing both his legs and having burns all over his body, screaming in pain. Wade must have realized what Cliff was about to do and cowardly tried to run without telling his crews, maybe trying to live up his status as a deserter. Too bad the explosion got him fairly, "Shit! This cannot be happening! Aaaaaaaaaah!"
"Well, well…" Cliff twirls his Dreadnaught as he slowly approaches the leader of the deserter, "You were too afraid to lose your life on the battlefield so you ran away. And now, you can't run anymore. How cruel, destiny has been toying with you, huh?"
"You bastard! You're a demon!" Wade curses the trench coated man, "You are The Crimson, right? You're that famous Crimson, right?"
"Oh? You knew my nickname? Cool…I'm popular, huh?"
"Don't shit with me, demon! Aren't you a drifter? What have you been doing in a cesspool village like this?"
"I'm one of the mayor's employees" Cliff honestly replies, "And I happen to know a bit about Jim…you know, the so called shithead you killed today. He was a good diligent man working on the berries plantation. His fiancée will give birth to a baby boy in a month. Thanks to you, the boy will never see his father for the rest of his life. So, what do you say? Shall I add some counterweight?"
"What the heck are you talking about?"
"You know what I'm talking about" Smiling, Cliff points his Dreadnaught to Wade's head, "Right, loser?"
"Go ahead! Go ahead, demon! Shoot me like an ARMs wielder will do! Just like your kind did in Ipswich Square!" Wade curses again, perhaps for one last time, "Your kind only know how to bring pain and suffering to Filgaia! It was because people like you war will never stop! It was because ARMs wielders like you people are afraid of living! Shoot me! Come on, shoot me! Shoot me like a demon would do!"
It's true; Filgaia has never been a friendly place for ARMs wielders in a long ass time. Cliff, and Sophia of course, is no exception. Because the power he got, he's been cursed, loathed, hated by the people of Filgaia, even when he was trying to do the right thing. But years of experience as a fighter and three years experience of being a drifter has steeled his heart, at least in what appears on the surface; because his heart never truly accepts the undeserved hate, no matter what.
"Empty barrel always makes the most noise" Cliff ignores what Wade said and finalizes as he pulls the trigger, "You're history"
KHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!
The piercing sound of Dreadnaught concludes the battle for tonight. Death, once again, embraced the adversary of The Crimson.
It is a telltale hour passed down between the whispers of wind on the battlefield.
They heard the man is clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished.
And his stature; cloaked in red blood he walks through the earth and tremble the land with his gaze. Those who defy him feel his wrath, clawed by his anger, and finally destroyed by his fearless spear. By him, The Crimson.
Yet, for men's sakes whom thy vast malison
Must wither innocent of enmity,
Be not withdrawn, dark arm, they spoilure done,
Safe to the bosom of our prosperity.
But when thy spell be cast complete and whole,
May God curse thee, and cut thee from our soul.
Cliff quietly returns to the Surf Village, where his companions and the villagers have been waiting for him. "Hey, it's him!" Sophia tells everyone present, "Cliff's back!"
"Good job, bro!" Alvin gives him a high five, "But, you're screwed"
"Not as bad as it looks, honest" Cliff welcomes the embrace from both Michael and Micah, "Glad you're okay, kids"
"Wow, you really fought three tanks? How did you do that?" Kids, cannot hide what they feel and never can.
"A secret" The red eyed man smiles, "No need for you to know"
"Come on! Tell us!"
"Ask your father"
"How would he know?"
"That's why you should ask your father, to find out whether he knows or not"
"Ow, Cliff!"
Marilyn watches the red haired man (and the kids) in silence. Why does he like kids that much? Wanting to have two or three, maybe?
"Marilyn" Misses Bricks calls her from her behind, "You and your friends really saved the village. You kids are amazing, thank you"
"Don't mention it, mam" The swordswoman displays a casual smile, "We only did our part of the deal"
"Oh, right…the deal…" Misses Bricks cannot understand why Marilyn said that. Is money that important for her? Not that she dislikes the deal, but much like Cliff, Misses Bricks doesn't get why Marilyn implies this is all about money, not about genuine help or something else like that.
"Then, I guess tomorrow is where we do the part of our deal" Mayor chimes in, "Nonetheless, thank you. All four of you"
But Marilyn doesn't have a chance to respond, because suddenly one deserter pops out from the rooftop near the point where the villagers gathered with a rifle on his hand, "Die! All of you!"
That's right; the group only defeated 59 deserters. There were 60 of them, so this one must have been hiding somewhere this whole time. The deserter aims his gun right to the villagers below and prepares to pull the trigger. Neither Marilyn or Alvin, or any of the villagers to that matter, was quick enough to react because he is too far away from them.
However, the next thing everyone hears isn't a sound of the rifle firing, but a silence breaking voice from the ground. A merciless bullet pierces the deserter right on his stomach and blows his torso away, splattering his blood all over the street.
Dreadnaught's barrel is still smoking. Cliff quickly reacted and took the deserter down. And by doing so, costing himself and probably his friends effort on helping Surf Village, at least on the eyes of the villagers. His eyes are filled with worry over what's going to happen, because he can guess what's going to befall him…loathing and cursing. This is the irony of Filgaia. If you're an ARMs wielder, no matter what you do, you're wrong, you're a demon, and you must be condemned.
All eyes on Cliff, watching at him in disbelieve. Their helper, all this time, has been nothing but a killer demon…an ARMs wielder. And then, the villagers erupt,
"He's…he's a demon!"
"Oh, my god! Cliff is a demon!"
"He's been hiding inside our village the whole month!'
"Go away, demon! Go away!"
"His three friends too! Go away!"
"Get out of here!'
"Get out of this village!"
"What are you planning to do?"
"Are you going to kill us all after killing the deserters?"
"Get the hell out of here!"
"People, people! Calm down! He helped us, remember?" Mayor, acting like a civilized person should be, tries to calm the situation down. But, it doesn't work too well.
"Why are you on his side, mayor? He's a demon!"
"He's not! He could have killed us from month ago if he wanted to and if he's really a demon!" Misses Bricks joins in, "He helped us! Calm down, people!"
"Why are you two on his side? Are you on your right mind?"
"They have to get their asses out of here!"
Seeing how things are going uncontrollably, Cliff decides to withdraw ARMs and prepares to walk away; knowing nothing good will comes out if he stays here. But a sudden interruption stops him.
"Silence! All of you, silence!" Marilyn angrily yells, loud enough to shut everyone's up, and unsheathes her Iskander Bey, "One more word about him being a demon, I'll make sure that's the last thing all of you will ever say!"
"I will make sure of what she said too" Alvin looks at Sophia, hinting for her not trying to do anything reckless or the situation will be hotter than it already is, as he joins Marilyn, "One more insult to a man who just saved all your lives and battled your enemies, I'll give you a taste of your own medicine"
"Marilyn, Al…you don't have to go that far" Cliff, despite being in pain, tries to calm his two drifter friends.
"Don't tell me what to do, Cliff! It's their fault not yours!" Marilyn shouts back and silences the trench coated man, "This is why I hate helping without rewards, cause I know when things like this comes up people will go insane!"
"Marilyn, please…don't provoke them any further…" Now, Mayor attempts to persuade the swordswoman, "Lower your sword…there's no need for more blood tonight…"
Before things get worse, Cliff voices, "It's OK, everyone…really. It's alright…I'll go, like you wish"
"Cliff, what are you doing? Wait!" Marilyn grabs his hand and stops him from walking away, "Why are you doing this? You're just going to walk away just like that? When you didn't even do anything to defend yourself?"
"I defended more than enough tonight…" Cliff gently grabs Marilyn's hand and slowly takes if off from his, "I entrust you to take our cut. If they don't want me here, fine…I'll just go away. I don't want to see you; Alvin, Sophia, or anyone here gets hurt because of my presence"
"But…"
"It's alright, I can live with it" Cliff says before he walks away, "In fact, I've been living with it my whole life"
No one says anything anymore afterward, the villagers, the drifters, no one. The rest of that night goes in silence when the drifters pack their things up. They know, tomorrow they have to go whether they want it or not.
Just like what Marilyn said yesterday, truth hurts.
The next morning…
Cliff is sitting lankily in a rock in outside the village while waiting for his three friends. Marilyn is dealing with the promised cut and their respective payment. She never stops staring at the villagers the whole time; hatred and disgust are written all over her face. None of the villagers dare to stare back at her for some reason. Alvin and Sophia are taking care of their mean of transportation. Apparently, the mayor who is kind enough and can act like a civilized person let them have one of his jeeps as a token of gratitude.
Cliff twirls his Dreadnaught to erase the boredom of waiting alone, but not for long. "Hey, kid" The mayor greets him from behind, catching his attention, "Nice gun you have in there"
"Thanks" Cliff chuckles, "So, what brought you here in the first place?"
"Well, at first I wanted to see how you 'doin, but it seems that your wounds are already healed in a night"
"Yeah, my luck" Cliff knows that isn't the only thing the mayor want to say, "What is it, sir? If you want to say anything regarding last night, no need. I didn't take any of their insult"
"But I did" the mayor puts a serious tone on his voice, "As the mayor of Surf Village, I thank you…for saving this whole village. And I also apologize for any inconveniences caused by my villagers"
"It's all cool" The red eyed man still collects his manners even at times like this, "when I heard you talking about your dream two days ago, I feel like I would be damned if I don't try anything to protect that dream"
"What? My dream?"
"Yeah. When you said about you wanting to own your own inn and stuff"
"Yes"
"Actually, after I heard that, I secretly decided to help you whenever you're in need of protecting your dream"
"Just because of that? You helped us just because of that?"
"It's something personal, sir" Cliff stares at the vast land of Filgaia for a moment before turning his attention back to the mayor, "I…unlike other people, I never had a dream for my whole life. I always kinda envy those who got a dream to live for. Even Marilyn, Al, and Sophia got their own dreams. Marilyn wants to meet her love again so she can live happily ever after, Al wants to see how strong he is in this world, and Sophia wants to write a book about her journey after travelling through the whole world. Me? I got no dreams or whatsoever; the closest thing I always like to do is gardening. I don't have a dream, and I don't if I will ever have one either. That's why I started to become a drifter in the first place, to find a dream which I can live for to its fullest. And never having a dream makes me realize just how precious a dream, something to hold, is. Thus, whenever I see people who had achieved their dream, I'll help them protecting it if I can"
The mayor has never thought that inside the cheerful, sleepy and easy-going Cliff lays an honest genuine wish. Simple, really. It's to find a dream, something to live for. But it's as essential as having a soul.
"Ow, that's my ride" Cliff points to the jeep, driven by Alvin. A 2006 dark colored Golden Eagle jeep. The girls are sitting on the backseat. Sophia seems happy (as usual) but Marilyn seems gloomy (as usual) despite receiving the hard earned money, "Guess I'll have to go"
"Take care" The mayor shakes hand with Cliff, "I'm sure you'll find your dream"
"Thanks, I know I will" The red haired man smiles before turning his back and heading to the jeep. However, he quickly notices three familiar figures stand from the entrance of the village waving their hands at him. It's Misses Bricks and the twins!
"Come again whenever you want! We'll welcome you!"
"We'll miss your bedtime story, Cliff!"
"See you again someday!"
Cliff smiles and waves his hand, "I'll come again! Nice to meet you all!"
And with that, he turns over his shoulder and takes his leave. How fortunate, some people still recognize him for what he deserves. Well, not every people are too blind to accept the truth, you know?
"So, where do we go?" Alvin asks his friends. Driving without knowing the destination is kinda awkward, true.
"I don't know, why don't we let Marilyn decide?" Sophia innocently looks at Marilyn.
"Sorry, but don't ask me" Marilyn answers out of boredom, "I'm still pissed off to what they did. Cannot think properly at the moment"
"I think I know where we should go" Cliff speaks up.
"You do?" Marilyn doesn't take it seriously, "Where? World Union's Headquarter?"
"That's not a bad idea, but I prefer…" Cliff picks up a PDA from his coat pocket, "Leyline Observatory in Little Rock"
"Why there?"
"Cause I found something interesting last night" Cliff shows what's inside the PDA, "I picked up this PDA from that Wade's guy pocket and found out that this contains the missions and information for several WU units. Guess what it says about Leyline Observatory in Little Rock a week ago?"
The PDA says: "Messenger of Darkness is spotted around the Leyline Observatory. All units in Little Rock standby until the next order is given"
"See? Something was definitely going on last week in Leyline" Cliff escapes a victorious smile, "And since the big cheese was there, shall we check it out?"
Marilyn looks at Sophia and Alvin before answering, sort of 'I will answer in your behalf' act, "Okay, let's go there"
"Fine, it's all settled then!" Cliff tells Alvin, "Driver, to Leyline off we go!"
"Aye-aye, captain" Alvin speeds the jeep through the road as The Four Garrison goes to their next destination.
Author's note
OK, I guess this my third official author note in this story.
First and foremost, I would like to thank you for reading this story. I really appreciate the time and energy, no matter how small it might be, to read this story.
Second, I'm sorry if the first chapters are kind of cheesy to your taste, hopefully I can do better next time.
Third, I'm not a native speaker but I'm trying to improve. So, if my grammar displeases you, I sincerely apologize.
Fourth, I'll take constructive and friendly criticism, I'll take advise about the story or characters, but I don't, I repeat, I don't take any damn critic or advice on how my characters are so different from the game when it comes to battle. Whoever reads my current project in Ragnarok Online section must have known that I'm not a textbook author when it comes to battle. In battle, it is I who decide how my characters battle, it is I who give the last call on how the battle goes, and it is I how my characters are going to fight. If u hate that fact and want to cuss me because of it, then by all means please get a life. Because of two reasons:
This is only a fanfiction, so chill the freak out.
If u take this story seriously in real life, u need to be committed to an asylum ASAP before u endanger mankind in a greater scale.
All in all, just like other authors, thank you for reading this story. Reviews will be greatly appreciated.
Down below is the character info and two other terminologies. It is strongly suggested for you to read it!
C u next chappy (^^)!
I. Character info
Cliff Margester
Age: 21
Birthplace/Birthdate: Frontier Town Halim / 5thAugust
H/W: 5'7 / 125 lbs
Occupation: Drifter (what else?)
Likes: Gardening, children, finding his dream, Marilyn (not in a romantic way), his two other teammates (definitely not in romantic way)
Dislikes: The Messenger of Darkness, The Society, Marilyn's chops (because it's specially directed to him)
Weapon: ARMs (Dreadnaught), a pair of giant shears, RKG-3 anti-tank grenade
Ability: Unrivaled marksmanship, enormous physical strength, extreme durability
Race: Human (or so it seems)
Nickname: The Crimson
Notes:
The main character of The Crimson; I based his characters of someone who, instead of the archetype saving this world from misery as his main goal blah blah blah, wants to find a dream for himself to live for in his journey. Well, he has a mission to accomplish nonetheless. I really like the concept of him being the 'victim of the leader' in his group because somehow it really suits him. Because of many unpleasant experiences of being an ARMs wielder, he has steeled himself from the insults although he never really forgot them. And his relationship with both his parents isn't so good at the moment because of some…problems. While he's an easy going, cheerful, and friendly in daily lives, he would turn into a merciless nearly unstoppable fighter when he engages combat. His specialization in battle is fighting heavy artilleries and armored vehicles. His enormous strength allows him to wield his dreaded anti-tank gun, Dreadnaught, easily without being affected by its recoil at all. His extreme durability lets him welcome any kind of attack without fearing major injuries or death, not that he's immortal, though. He and Marilyn are what we refer to as Soulmate. Although they aren't lovers, they have deep affinity with each other and treasure their friendship dearly. Maybe that's also the reason why Cliff can keep up with her (or maybe it's just because his extreme durability). The only downfall of Cliff is his sleepiness, which is also the main cause of his laziness and lankiness. As stated above, his main goal is to find a dream which he can lived for.
Marilyn Westerfield
Age: 18
Birthplace/Birthdate: Illsveil Prison / 26thApril
H/W: 5'4 / Secret
Occupation: Drifter, Assassin
Likes: Money, killing people (no kidding), the only man she loves dearly with her heart, Cliff (not in a romantic way), her two other teammates (a bit)
Dislikes: The Messenger of Darkness, World Union, Cliff (only when he's being lazy or sleepy…or both)
Weapon: Sword (Iskander Bey), accelerator
Ability: Excellent Swordsmanship, powerful chops (for Cliff only)
Race: Demon (believe it or not)
Nickname: Spider Lily
Notes:
The female lead of The Crimson. Surgical minded, serious, and cynical are the first three things entered my mind when I first created her character. She doesn't give a damn about injustice or evil, as long as the problem doesn't give her an opportunity to gain benefit for herself (and her group), it can go to hell (much like her act towards the people in Surf Village as depicted in chapter 2 and 3). Born in a horrible community of prisoners in Illsveil Prison controlled by World Union, she never had a chance to know her parents (and she doesn't really know if she has any). Living a hard live ever since her childhood, she learned an important thing: there's only one person you can count on in this life, and it's yourself. It's only after her savior, the man she loves so much, freed her from Illsveil Prison that she finally found compassion. She traveled with him for a couple years while being taught how to fight with a sword. Her treasured Iskander Bey is the weapon he proudly gave to her, and the only thing, other than her feeling, she keeps genuinely. Due to some unfortunate series of event, she got separated from him. That's why her main goal is to meet him again. Despite being the youngest of The Four Garrison, she usually acts as the leader of the group. Her excellent swordsmanship helps her surviving the harsh life in Filgaia. After getting separated from her love, she worked as an assassin randomly in order to revenge the hell of a life World Union put her into during her early life and to gain some information regarding her savior. But a certain event brought her to become the part of Four Garrison. She and Cliff are what we refer to as Soulmate. Although they aren't lovers, they have deep affinity with each other and treasure their friendship dearly. She won't let anyone insults him for being an ARMs wielder, and he won't let anyone insults her either. And other than herself and her savior, Cliff is the person she trusted the most. Among the four, Cliff is the only one who knows her true race.
Alvin Clarion
Age: 24
Birthplace/Birthdate: Baskar Colony / 14thOctober
H/W: 5'9 / 142 lbs
Occupation: Drifter, Baskar Priest
Likes: Fighting, meat, animals
Dislikes: Injustice
Weapon: None, he counts on his fists and legs to do the business
Ability: Excellent Martial Arts
Race: Human
Nickname: Anhur
Notes:
The oldest of the group, but whether he's the wisest or not is debatable. He hails from Baskar Colony. He became a drifter because his father, the chief of the colony, encouraged him to 'experience' living in this vast world so that he can become wiser and stronger both as a fighter and as a man, because he will eventually inherit the chief position and lead his colony. He is a great martial artists, and this fact alone easily make him a dangerous foe in melee combat. His mother is a caring lady, and his sister is bit bratty towards him (perhaps because she loves him). He has a beautiful fiancée waiting for him back there in his colony. And they are planning to get married after Alvin gets crowned as the new chief of Baskar Colony. His own personal dream is to surpass his father as a fighter. The last but definitely not the least, he is loyal to his group. And let's say, he's the one who plastered the group.
Sophia LeBlanc
Age: 22
Birthplace/Birthdate: Little Twister / 30thMarch
H/W: 5'6 / Secret
Occupation: Drifter, Mercenary
Likes: Cute things, flowers, her diary and journal
Dislikes: Evil
Weapon: ARMs (Silvia), P1907 sword bayonet
Ability: Near perfect sharp shooting, close quarter combat, emission magic
Race: Human
Nickname: The Sharpshooter
Notes:
The clumsiest person in the group…and also the kindest. Originally, she's a mercenary from a famous mercenary group "Blancruitzer" of Little Twister. Her father is the leader of the group (also an ARMs wielder), while her older brother acts as his right hand man (same, an ARMs wielder). Despite being good at heart, she's a bit childish and really forgetful. The latter trait makes both her father and brother worry about her future, especially on a certain term: marriage. Because they doubt they would ever find a man who can stand her, but that's not the problem right now. Cliff hired her to assist him on his journey, but she ended up being one of The four Garrison. Her sharp shooting ability is near excellence, making her a formidable long range fighter. I hope I can make her more as the comic relief of the story as The Crimson progresses. Her own personal goal is to make travel journal about her journey throughout the whole world.
II. Terminologies
Ipswich Square Massacre
Ever since the beginning of time, ARMs wielder is known to be child of perdition, or a demon for short. Despite secretly playing a big role on bringing peace after peace in Filgaia, the people of Filgaia never stop treating ARMs wielder as the cursed demon. This fact later changed when several ARMs wielders played a major part as members of Red Moon and saved Filgaia from Solomon and his Ars Goetia. Too bad this didn't last long. Sixteen years after The Great War is over (or six years prior to the story), an ARMs wielder opened fire in Ipswich Square, one of the most famous spots for Filgaia's residents to commemorate the downfall of Solomon in the rebuilding world, and massacred approximately 10,000 people all by himself in three days. Although the culprit remains unknown to most people to this day, the massacre unsealed Filgaia's hatred for ARMs wielders and triggered a revolution by World Union to eliminate all ARMs wielders in this world.
The Messenger of Darkness
A ruthless ARMs wielder said to bring calamity wherever he steps in. He was first spotted by few during Ipswich Square Massacre when he massacred 10,000 people in three days. Clad in black from head to toe, he travels all over Filgaia to spread his belief, that death is the only salvation for every living person. His ultimate goal is to see Filgaia destroy itself by any means, be it war, famine, disease, disaster, or if must…his direct actions. Ipswich Square Massacre was only the beginning of his plan to destroy Filgaia by making Filgaia's two strongest parties go against each other. Cliff, one of the only two survivors upon encountering him, claims him to be physically impenetrable by any means possible.
