Featuring special guest appearances of Bianca by Sal-apple over on tumblr, Grazhdanskaya also nicknamed Dan for short also known as "That damn maverick" by Versace-will-never-be-the-same over on tumblr, and Leela Warner by Fanimaniac4ever101 on ff net
The best part about his powers in Edd's opinion is without a doubt the ability to fly. He loved soaring through the skies, diving through clouds and free fall only to take flight at the last second, and fly low enough over the ocean to skim his hand over the water. Edd could almost forget there was a war currently going on. Floating high up in the air and staring down upon the world there was nothing to give away the terror and calamity the Earth had suffered for the last five years. That's another thing Edd enjoyed about the sky. It could never belong to the Red Army. It is and always will be neutral territory that belongs to every citizen of the world. There was no discrimination to be seen up here.
Shaking his head and breathing through the gas mask Edd returned to his duties of scanning the area for any more Red Army planes.
When Ford alerted them of an incoming air raid coming from the East, Eduardo and Edd set off at once to intercept the raid before they could reach British soil. As a precaution, they ordered every citizen to evacuate their homes and take shelter while they dealt with the airborne threat.
Edd and Eduardo obliterated the enemy jets with ease; plowing right through them with their super strength and blasting bombs with their energy blasts.
At first, Edd had been reluctant to attack, unlike his counterpart who showed no shred of mercy against the enemy as he destroyed the entire raid with his nuclear powers.
"Don't worry!" Eduardo flew beside him. "These planes are drone piloted. We are not actually killing anyone."
That affirmation greatly reassured Edd and he let his powers loose without remorse on the enemy jets, reminding himself that these jets were threatening his home and it is his job as second in command of the Green Rebellion to make sure all his people were safe and sound.
By the time Edd and Eduardo finished scanning the skies for any remaining enemies; dusk was starting to set in as the clouds gained an orange-purple gradient.
"We should head back to camp now." Eduardo said, floating beside him. "We must send word out to the British citizens that the coast is clear to come out now."
"Do we really have to?" Edd wondered, doing somersaults in the air. It felt so liberating to fly way up high, away from the heavy responsibilities of being leader of a whole rebellion. He wanted to enjoy his freedom while it lasted. "C'mon. Since when was the last time we took a break from work to just chill together?"
Eduardo crossed his arms over his chest, considering the idea at length.
"Let's fly together for a while." Edd suggested, gazing at his leader upside down. "I'll even race you back to camp!"
Eduardo laughed despite himself. Maybe taking some time off to fly and hang around his second in command is just what he needs to clear his head. "Try and keep up, loser."
He soared ahead of Edd. As he closed in on him he darted through a cloud and disappeared. Edd veered to the side, overtaking Eduardo as he emerged from the other side of the cloud; white fluffy specks clinging on to his form.
Now Edd was in front; doing all sorts of backflips, somersaults, and pirouettes in the air, for the first time in forever he found himself the happiest he's ever been.
Eduardo and Edd didn't talk at all during their evening flight. They didn't discuss their next plans for the Red Army, or how their rebellion was improving, or questioned whether the other Nations were close to pledging allegiance to them. They just flew, occasionally teased each other, and flew some more, until the sun had completely disappeared over the horizon for the moon to take its rightful place in the sky.
Together they streaked off through the clouds, letting the last remains of the late-evening sun wash over them, and soared freely toward the camp. Through his mask Edd inhaled the distant smell of snow.
At last the camp came into view up ahead and Edd and Eduardo made their descent; merely floating as they gently touched down in the edge of the woods just outside camp Littlepine.
"That was fun." Eduardo yawned. "Although I have a feeling we're going to be powered out in the morning."
"It was worth it." Edd said, glad that for a few brief moments the conflict with the Red Army had been pushed to the back of his mind.
He followed Eduardo into the central clearing of the camp. Edd was glad to find their base of operations busy and fully operational after the threat of the air raid, but he couldn't help but sense there was something a bit… off.
First of; none of the rebels or their friends came to greet them when Eduardo and he arrived. Secondly; as Edd looked up he realized there was a whole circle of rebels gathered around the main cabin, expressions ranging from puzzled to curious to worried. Mark, Laurel, Ford, Hilarson, and Hellucard were all there, along with several other rebels, and as Edd and Eduardo approached they began to eye them warily.
"Eduardo, is it my imagination? Or does everyone look… concerned about something?" Edd expressed his worries to his friend and leader.
"I don't think you're imagining it…" Eduardo trailed off and marched ahead of him to take over. "Hey what's going on? Why are all of you standing around like a bunch of terrified chickens?"
"You guys haven't heard?"
"Heard what?" Eduardo frowned, hands on his hips. "Last I checked, there aren't many announcements diplayed in the sky. So out with it!"
Hilarson unceremoniously shoved Mark to the front of the crowd, offering him to explain the situation.
Hesitating, Mark glanced up at his best friend. "The Red Army… has cut off all of the UK's supply of cola."
The devastating news made Edd stiffen, dread pooling in his stomach. No more cola? His favorite beverage was his primary source of comfort these days, and to lose that as well as his friends it's just... too much.
"Even… diet?" Eduardo rasped, hardly believing his ears.
Mark nodded solemnly.
Everyone slowly backed away from their leaders as they gaged their reaction to the… frankly, not-so-terrible news given the current circumstances of the war and all, but they were all well aware of their leaders' passion for that particular beverage and they braced themselves for the inevitable outburst.
"WHAT?!" Eduardo and Edd bellowed in outrage. A massive green mushroom cloud erupted from where they stood.
"Red Leader just transmitted a broadcast while you guys were away." Ford continued once the dust from the blast had settled. "He said that he is going to outlaw cola all over the globe, and forbid all trading with the UK, unless the Green Leader agrees to meet with him at a time and place of our choosing."
"That rat BASTARD!" Eduardo and Edd paced restlessly around each other, fuming at the thought of being attacked so personally. Almost too personally, if you were to ask Edd.
He stopped and considered Ford's words. Why would the Red Leader want to meet with them? Outlawing cola is certainly a very strange way to go about getting their attention. But it worked, didn't it?
"Did the bastard mention the reason behind this sudden meeting?" Eduardo demanded, uncharacteristically ruffled by the news.
Ford shook his head. "He just mentioned he'd like to talk things out privately with the Green Leader face to face."
Hope grew in Edd's chest. Talk things out? Outlawing cola in exchange for an opportunity to try to make peace?
Could it be-?
His thoughts abruptly cut off by Eduardo's bark of laughter. "It's a trick! Obviously he wants us to leave the security of our land, unguarded, and walk right into his clutches!" He growled. "If Red thinks he can get us to obey his demands by simply taking away our cola then he has another thing coming."
"So we're not complying with Red's demands?" Hilarson questioned.
"Fat chance! We're not falling for this trap." Eduardo raised his voice so that all the other rebels could hear him. "The Red Army are our enemies, there is nothing more to it. While they conquer every nation, tear families apart, and chase innocent civilians out of their rightful homes there will never be peace between our groups. We are taking them down, one way or another and that's all there is to it. Does anyone here object to our goals?"
Murmurs of approval rippled through the rebels.
"Good. Now enough chit chat and get back to work, you lot!" Eduardo ordered, and then turned to address a dark skinned woman with brown hair tied up in a ponytail standing amidst the other rebels in the crowd. The tips of her hair were a lighter shade. "Bianca, round up the other scavengers for another supply run in the city and bring back what you can."
Bianca stepped forward nodding; wearing a white shirt, a sea foam green hoodie tied around her waist, jeans, green sneakers, and an eyepatch over her left eye. "Roger that!" She saluted eagerly and moved away to gather the other scavengers to her. "Hey, has anyone seen Dan?"
"He's probably taking a nap in the back of one of the vans. Where else?" Answered Diwi.
"That damned maverick." Bianca breathed, shaking her head slightly.
"Hilarson, are our bite sized trainees ready for some combat training?" Eduardo questioned the Sergeant.
Hilarson chuckled. "Locked and loaded and ready to go at your command." He nodded at the group of underage rebels at the edge of the crowd, bickering and wrestling loudly with one another and barely paying attention to the reunion.
The Rebellion was reluctant to take in children in their midsts at first but Eduardo had been adamant to welcome them, claiming they were as much victims to the Red Army's ploys as any of them and they have the right to fight to save their home no matter what age they are. Plus; where else would they go? Leaving them wandering the streets on their own was equally as cruel. At least in the Rebellion they will be looked after. They will be safe, fed, and have a warm place to sleep at night until they end the war and find their families.
Edd didn't like that they were basically using child soldiers, but Eduardo promised to only teach them self-defence techniques and that they will be nowhere near the actual fighting.
"Good. Green Leader and I will take them training. Right, sir?" Eduardo motioned to Edd, breaking him out of his thoughts and reminding him he should've been the one issuing orders right now. "The rest of you can adjourn to the main cabin for a hot meal. This meeting is dismissed."
As the rebels split away and moved on, Edd followed Eduardo as they made their way toward the younger rebels.
"Alright, scallywags, look alive! We're going to do some combat training now so save you energy for the battlefield." Eduardo raised his voice full of authority as he towered over the underage rebels who immediately composed themselves at the sight of their leader. Doing a quick headcount, Eduardo rounded up the youngsters before stiffening. "We're missing one! Where is…?"
"Sorry! I'm here!"
A preteen with tanned skin, dark brown hair tied up in a neat braid, and wearing a sea-green t-shirt with a stamp of a hybrid unicorn fox on it and purple pants with rainbow lines down the sides came rushing out of the Medical cabin to join the training group, accompanied by her faithful canine companion.
The girl drifted to a halt in front of her leaders. "I am not too late for training, am I?"
"You're just in the nick of time, actually." Edd told her kindly, internally hoping his distorted voice wouldn't give her the opposite effect.
"Honestly, Leela, I know your main interest in this rebellion is to train to be a healer but you need to be able to defend yourself. What if the Red Army invades us by surprise?" Eduardo scolded. "That means showing up for training the moment your leader summons you."
"I know. I'm sorry, sir." Leela looked down at her feet, idly petting Nina, her white Havanese dog, for comfort.
"Don't be so hard on her." Edd jumped to the young girl's defense. "She is here now, isn't she? She didn't miss anything, and we should commend her efforts of studying healing which is just as crucial as any given skill in a war."
Eduardo dipped his head in acknowledgement. "Yes, of course. And we are honored and grateful to Leela and all the other medics in our midst for their skill. But healing alone won't defeat the enemy." He murmured impatiently. "Let's get started now, shall we?"
Without another word, he led the group toward the snowy clearing up the slope as Edd brought up the rear.
"Now pay close attention, kids." Eduardo commanded as they arrived in the training area, beckoning the youngsters closer. "We are going to teach you a few essential self-defense techniques."
"Boring! We learned that last time." One of the older kids, a brat named Collin, complained.
He has bronze skin, brown eyes, rectangle glasses, a heart-shaped face, and dark ginger hair and wears a blue shirt with a gray coat that's way too big on him and jeans. He is a rather annoying member to deal with, always picks on the younger members, and never lets anyone forget he is older than he actually looks.
"When are you going to teach us something useful?" Collin continued.
Edd silenced the brat with one glare behind his gas mask while Eduardo went on as though the interruption never happened.
"Stand back and watch us carefully." He ordered, his eyes shining with exhilaration. "We will show you how to fight."
Edd narrowed his eyes and faced his friend as they paced circles around one another.
Eduardo advanced suddenly.
Bracing himself, Edd met him halfway and grabbed a punch Eduardo threw with one hand, and with his free one he grabbed Eduardo's elbow and heaved him up; twisting him on his back before throwing his entire body onto the ground and pinning him down.
Breath burst from Eduardo. Clearly he'd been expecting to be the one to come out on top in this little demonstration duel.
"Now, kids, did you see how I handled and easily disarmed the enemy?" Edd addressed the youngsters watching them mesmerized. "He tried to rush me and I calmly used his own weight against him."
"But… how do you expect us to do something like that when we're up against soldiers twice our size?" Leela asked. "Can we really topple them down that easily?"
"The important thing is using the element of surprise." Said Eduardo, climbing to his feet. "The Red Army will take one look at you in the battlefield and see you as easy targets. They will underestimate you and you must use that to your advantage. The key here is to block their blows and topple them down to disarm them. Do that and you're gold."
"Now let's see you guys try it." Edd ordered. "In pairs, the oldest with the youngest."
"And remember, this is just practice." Eduardo added. "I don't want to see any of you getting carried away by the exercise and accidentally hurt your partner, do I make myself clear?"
Edd and Eduardo stood side by side to watch the young rebels spar with each other; occasionally chiming in to advise the youngsters on their stance or their moves. To Edd's delight, the younger kids were picking up the hang of fighting much faster. Due to their small size they were more agile, and Edd guessed their enthusiasm to learn was also a big contributing factor.
He made sure to keep a close careful eye on the kids as they trained to make sure none of them got hurt, but he was amused when Collin was pinned flat on his face in the dirt by Leela after he goaded her so much into it.
When the practice was over, he let Eduardo take the older kids to learn one or two more self-defense maneuvers, while he worked with the younger rebels to teach them some advanced techniques.
Midnight came and went. Edd's belly was rumbling, but none of the kids suggested stopping to eat, though he noticed one or two of them nearly falling asleep on their feet.
"That's enough for today." Edd brought the training session officially to a close. "We're done here. You should all go eat something and get some well-earned rest."
"These are dark times, but together we shall show the Red Army just how capable we are." Eduardo said, raising his voice to inspire the kids and keep them motivated. "Keep working hard and you will never be beaten. Let us train until no one can outfight us!"
"Yeah!" Cheered the young rebels.
Excitement rushed through Eduardo like wildfire, his thoughts spiraling as he towered over the brave rebels. "Those Red Army scum won't stand a chance against us." He smirked.
Edd gulped, eyeing his friend warily. "Well done, all of you. We'll meet back here in the morning for more training." He said. "Boy, I'm worn out!" He added privately to Eduardo as they watched young rebels scamper away to the main lodge.
"Me too." Eduardo agreed. "But they are all good kids at heart. I enjoyed training them. We're lucky to have them on our side when the time comes."
Edd didn't have the heart to mention how kids this young should've never been this involved in a war in the first place, but deep down he knew the rebellion needed the numbers and fresh young blood to have so much as a chance against the Red Army. Still, Edd couldn't help but feel slightly disgusted with himself for encouraging kids how to fight.
There's nothing wrong teaching them how to defend themselves. He told himself. It's better to be ready than be helpless when the time comes. What if the Red Army were to invade us when we least suspect? These children wouldn't stand a chance agaisnt them!
A heavy hand clamped down on his shoulders reassuringly, jerking him out of his thoughts. "You did good today, Edd."
"Thanks. So did you." Edd muttered, and then hesitated. "About the Red Army… don't you think we should at least consider heeding the Red Leader's request? Just to find out what this is about? Aren't you curious?"
Eduardo frowned. "Of course not! I know a trap when I see one. Obviously Red feels threatened by our unexplainable show of power and he wants to lure us out of our safe zone."
"But maybe this is our chance to end this conflict peacefully. No more lives need to be lost if the war just ends with a simple conversation."
"No, Edd. My decision is final. We are not going to comply with Red's demands; not now, not ever. If he wants to meet us face to face we will do so on the battlefield when he finally grows a pair and leaves the cozy safety of his lair."
Eduardo's stubborn need for revenge annoyed Edd and he wanted to keep arguing, but thought better of it and resigned. "Fine." He bowed his head.
"Good." Eduardo clasped his shoulder heartily as he whisked by. "Get some rest. We need to be fully recharged as soon as possible."
Even though Edd was worn out by the day's events he couldn't bring himself to go to his quarters and sleep.
Flying with Eduardo had been great, and the training session with the kids, although morbid, had left him feeling rather playful. But now… thinking about the Red Army's offer and Eduardo's insistence to go to war with them had left him shaken up.
The Red Leader isn't the type to make offers out of the blue. There's no way this is a talk of surrendering. Neither side had gotten to that point yet! Cutting off the enemy's trading supplies with the rest of the world isn't an uncommon strategy, but why the sole focus on outlawing cola?
Could Tord have figured out my identity? There's no way. How would he know- MATT!
Edd shivered, and not from the cold.
Did Matt tell him? Did Tord torture him for information? No, Tord wouldn't hurt him… would he?
Terrible images of his only remaining best friend shackled in a tiny, awful dungeon, crying out desperately for help as Tord watched with sadistic glee fluttered around in Edd's head and he had to squeeze his eyes shut in order to make it stop.
Tord might have betrayed them and punched Matt in the face, but he wouldn't stoop as low as torture their innocent friend for valuable info. Matt knows nothing! He never harmed anyone and he is no threat to Tord or the Red Army. He has no reason to do any of that to Matt.
Tord, please… if you truly have Matt in your clutches take good care of him for me.
He already lost Tom… he can't bear the thought of permanently losing Matt as well.
Concentrate! Until I know otherwise, Matt is safe and sound. Edd thought fiercely. Focus! Why would Tord want to talk to the Green Leader?
No.
Why would Tord want to talk to me?
His message had clearly been directed at him, given the cola angle, so this is personal for both him and Tord. Is this his way of asking him to talk without letting the whole world in on it? If so, this is the chance Edd's been waiting for ever since he helped Eduardo form the rebellion. But how can he relay a message back to the Red Leader without Eduardo knowing?
I can't do this alone. Edd shook his head.
Even if he somehow arranges a private meeting with Tord behind Eduardo's back it wouldn't be wise. Not that Tord would go out of his way to rattle him up just to trap him or harm him, maybe, but this conflict involves everyone. The rest of the rebellion has the right to know and be involved if they so desire. This is their chance to stop the war without conflict!
But how can I garner their support with Eduardo around?
It can't be helped. Edd will have to find a way to get rid of Eduardo long enough until he explains his plan to the others and relay a message back to the Red Army with his response.