|  Author | Topic: Homecoming (Read 131 times) |
Hector Drayven
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Duty, Honor and Asimov
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Posts: 5
Location: Edim'Aze Fort
|  | Homecoming
« Thread Started on Aug 28, 2007, 6:56pm » | |
How cold can it get in a hot place? As cold as thousand bodies strewn amidst blood.
Commander Hector Drayven walked silently amidst the corpses, searching the faces. Where the hell was he? He was supposed to be here, amidst the dead and rotting!
The night was rather warm and the stars stayed on like burning embers, refusing to twinkle. Silent spectators to a morbid spectacle.
Hector had read many books and seen many movies extolling the glories of war. And he could only laugh. There were no brave warriors on the field - just men and women trying to stay alive or be killed. There was no such thing as courage. It was merely an act. A mask to hide the fear.
Commander? He is over there! The voice broke his reverie and he acknowledged with just a nod. He knew who the under-lieutenant was talking about. The whole camp knew what their commander was searching for.
Hector tredged through the slush and the blood and reached a point where two other soldiers were standing, looking at him expectantly. Hector looked at what was at their feet.
The legs were ripped clean and the arms was twisted in a curious way. And the face was heavily bruised and burnt. The eyes were open and staring at Hector. Challenging him one last time. Hector smiled morosely.
Lord Siegmund Kaiser. The Supreme High Commander of the Kaisers. Lying in a puddle of muck and blood.
We think a shell must have caught him as he tried to escape from that burning tank, Sir.
Hector's shoulders finally sagged and a truthful smile crept along his tired face. It was over. It was finally over. The Kaisers were demolished and their leader was killed! The Karparthions had emerged victorious once again over the Kaisers - and this time, for good!
Let's pack up! We're going home. he said, turning back and heading to his tent. He was going home.
OOC: Technically, this does not happen at Edim'Aze Fort, but it seems a waste that I have to write just this one post in the Outskirts. So, there you go.
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Lord Dante
The Kaisers
Sayidi
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| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #1 on Aug 29, 2007, 8:57pm » | |
A song floats above the rough, muddy roads that led out of the forest. On the road walks a peasant, herding along three, sickly looking beasts. His two sons are with him, the youngest sitting on one of the cows. It is from this boy that we hear the soft, plaintive song.
From behind them, another sound echoes in the air. It is the slight hum of a vehicle - a hovering passenger transport. It is painted with the purple colors that is the standard of Asimovian royalty.
The transport is followed by a mountain cohort of heavily-armed guards.
The young boy dares to glance up at the passing intruders. His eyes burn with hatred.
Inside the transport, a mist momentarily obscures a man's face. It is the mist that characterizes frozen breath. The stifling heat that was the trademark climate of the outskirts had inspired the passengers to call for increased airconditioning. As a result, the transport's interior simulated the winter.
A suitable atmosphere for the man who rode inside.
He is the Lord Dante, one of the two sons of Kalius the Second, the current Emperor of Asimov.
We find the Lord Dante swathed in contemplation, his two index fingers forming a triangle that touched his nose tip. He lay on a couch, his legs crossed and rested on the armrest. Near his elbow stood a table on which the Prince's meal lay untouched. Across the table, the couch's identical twin also stood. This one was also adorned with an occupant, albeit one that was better on the eyes than than its brother's royal inhabitant.
"I think he's dying." declared the lord after what had apparently been a long, deadly silence.
The woman that lay on the couch across from him turned her head to the lord. "He's old. Old people are dying people."
"I think he's really dying this time."
Another silence. It is filled with the mist from their breaths.
"He will naturally choose me over Dylan. The fool is obviously not fit to succeed him, regardless of the fact that he's the firstborn."
She arched her eyebrow. "You seem very confident of that."
"But of course. What has my brother done to prove himself? Bed every breathing woman in the empire? Possibly siring a hundred illegitimate children as a result?"
The woman laughed. "And what, pray tell, have you been doing to prove yourself better than your brother? Haven't you bedded your share of women yourself?"
"Ah but I, unlike my brother, have taste. You are proof of that." He turned his head towards her, a sly smile growing on his face.
"How charming." snorted she, as she raised a glass of wine to her lips.
The fingers returned to their post on the tip of the prince's nose. "He will choose me, yes. And the first thing I will do as Emperor will be to hold a week-long celebration in memory of His Majesty."
"So, in effect, you'll be celebrating your father's death? What a dutiful son you are..."
But her words weren't heeded, as the prince had already resumed his contemplative state. Nobody could penetrate his concentration when he was in this mood.
She sighed and leaned back against the couch, holding her wine glass which, apparently would serve as her companion for the rest of the trip.
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So the great affair is over but whoever would have guessed
it would leave us all so vacant and so deeply unimpressed
It's like our visit to the moon or to that other star
I guess you go for nothing if you really want to go that far. |
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Hector Drayven
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Commander
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Duty, Honor and Asimov
Joined: Aug 2007
Gender: Male
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Location: Edim'Aze Fort
| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #2 on Aug 30, 2007, 4:54pm » | |
Edim'Aze Fort - named after the famous Byran Edim'Aze - the first of the Karparthions.
And the most brutal.
What met the eyes of the denizens of Asimov were not always what they seemed to imply. None of the citizens knew that there was a terror chamber deep beneath the catcombs of the fort, destined to curdle the bloods of even the hardest man.
But Hector was too wearied to think about the hidden interrogation rooms that night. The battle was won and Siegmund was dead. And Hector would live to fight another day. Live to die.
There was racous laughter from the ranks in the fort. Any other day, Hector would have told them off. But not today. They deserved the wine and the girls. And the boys. This was a day for jubiliation. For everyone.
His bottle of scotch was waiting for him on his table. He quickly gulped a shot before settling down, his feet on the table. A day of celebration and Hector was going to stay at the office, drinking till he passed out.
*BEEP*
He quickly jerked up, his third round of scotch almost spilling on the floor. The hologram flickered to life and Meran's face filled the air.
Congratulations on the victory, Commander. He didn't smile. Emotions were extinct when it came to Meran. I have some news.
The Emperor? Meran was the Chief of Guards at the Imperial Palace. When he had news, it was always about the Emperor. But Hector had been dreading this 'news'.
Yes, Commander. He has gone into coma. The Chief Viguratess is not too hopeful. She is giving the Emperor two days. Max.
Hector remained silent, digesting the news. The Emperor was really dying. And the worse thing was, he was leaving behind two sons who hated each others' guts.
Keep me posted on this Meran. I am sending three more guys over there. And....if anything happens, I want to be the first to know.
Meran acknowledged and signed off. Hector took another swig directly from the bottle and cocked his head to a side, listening to some song about defeating death and caressing bar maids.
This was going to be a major event in Asimov - a historic one. But will it pit brother against brother? Tradition and custom made sure that the firstborn got the support. But who had the emperor intended to be given the throne? Will he ever revive enough to name a successor? If not, will there be a war? Did Dante have enough men under him to try and seize the throne that would otherwise go to Dylan?
But if the Emperor died, the Karparthions will have to support Dylan. That meant that Dante wouldn't stand a chance. So many questions and decisions.
All through this, he never once let his mind wander to a dying man in a lonely palace. A man to whom Hector had been a better son than his own. Emperor Kalius the Second - his mentor, his surrogate father. Not once did his mind go there.
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Elliot Vaslov
Karparthions
First Lieutenant
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Uh-uh. Pffft.
Joined: Mar 2007
Gender: Female 
Posts: 70
| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #3 on Sept 1, 2007, 9:58pm » | |
Lieutenant Vaslov's high-heeled boots clacked forcefully on the corridor leading to the Commander's office. Each clack increased in intensity, the loudest one being the one that landed right in front of the Commander's door.
Without knocking, she barged in, causing the door to disgracefully bang against the wall behind it. Her silhouette stood against the light that entered the doorway.
Usually, there was a protocol for entering the Karparthion Commander's office. One would have to knock on the door three times and bark "So and So requesting permission to enter, SIR!"
Lieutenant Vaslov did not ask for permission to enter.
She stormed straight to the Commander's desk.
You better cook up a tasty pot of bullshit to explain why I wasn't included on the mission against the Kaisers, Commander. She hissed. Oh yes, she would love to hear Drayven's explanation. They had been planning this operation for a year and a half. They meaning She and Him.
He just had to time it on her vacation. On her bloody well-earned, long-awaited vacation. She had been led to believe that Operation: Defeat the Kaisers (So I lack the ability to come up with an official sounding name for it. Too bad.) was scheduled to commence long after she had gone back to active duty. But noooo. Drayven just had to push through without her.
Oh the blood was just boiling in Lieutenant Vaslov's veins.
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Hector Drayven
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Commander
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Duty, Honor and Asimov
Joined: Aug 2007
Gender: Male
Posts: 5
Location: Edim'Aze Fort
| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #4 on Sept 2, 2007, 6:17pm » | |
Had Hector been a lesser man, he would have been smouldered on the spot from that look that Vaslov was directing at him. One can be excused for thinking that she was the superior.
He did not let the groan come out of his lips. He had known this was going to happen. She and him and had planned the operation right from the beginning - she had heped fill all the holes and tie the loose ends. And he had gone on without her. And Vaslov had ego enough to make ten grown men curl up and cry for their mommies.
Vaslov! Need I remind you that I am your superior? You were on a vacation. A battle cannot be planned keeping in mind your holiday arrangements. An appropriate time occured and I took the chance. I do not need to explain myself to anybody.
What a sick load of bullshit!
Hector knew he was being a complete jerk. But showing authority was the only way out of this mess. He would much rather not tell her why he hadn't included her in the campaign. He would much rather not find about it himself.
And now, if you don't mind, I suggest you get to know your next set of duties. The emperor is dying and I have promised Lieutenant Meran that I will send more people to assist. I want you to head to the Imperial Palace soon, and be stationed there till you receive further instructions.
He waited for the explosion that would follow. He had not only put her down but also was sending her off to a lousy mission.
A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. And she was going to bite his head off for that!
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Elliot Vaslov
Karparthions
First Lieutenant
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Uh-uh. Pffft.
Joined: Mar 2007
Gender: Female
Posts: 70
| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #5 on Sept 7, 2007, 10:23pm » | |
What a crock of Zarigueya dung.
Elliot had remained towering above the karparthion commander as he started his pathetic explanation. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest as she tapped her booted foot noisily against the floor.
So he was playing the commander card. Pfft. She slammed herself down on the chair in front of him and brought her boots up upon his desk. Need I remind you, Commander, that were it not for the weak decision-making of one Xanthios Ashcroft, you and I would be in each other's places right now.
She had been the favored candidate for the position. Boorish Xanthios Ashcroft and his chauvinistic streak. His had been the deciding vote. And the vote had been for Drayven.
Upon his orders, Miss Vaslov's pretty pointed little chin dropped down. You want me to babysit the bloody emperor? That is a job for a private, not for me. What are you getting at, Drayven? She ommited saying his title on purpose. Her eyes burned with fury at the man who had beaten her to the top Karparthion spot on the mere fact that he had a... manhood.
Hector Drayven was such a prick.
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Hector Drayven
Administrator
Commander
member is offline
Duty, Honor and Asimov
Joined: Aug 2007
Gender: Male
Posts: 5
Location: Edim'Aze Fort
| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #6 on Sept 9, 2007, 12:21pm » | |
There it was! The very reason why he hadn't included her in the campaign. Or rather, the beginning of the reason.
Xanthios Ashcroft and his staff appointments!
Hector had been the logical choice. It was all very nice to talk about feminism and everything, but both Hector and Xanthios had known the men would never ever fight under her. They knew how the soldier's minds worked. Here, when a rank was denoted by how many penises a man has - there would be no way estrogen can fuel the war machine.
And then, of late, Hector had also heard rumors of Vaslov's ways. He admired her courage - some called it attitude, others called it something else that they would never mouth - but the rumors were numerous. And Vaslov had done nothing to assuage them. She had done nothing to prove to him that she was not plotting against him.
We shall leave the retired Commander Ashcroft out of this discussion, shall we? What I am getting at, Vaslov, is that you better start acting like a soldier that you are and not like a sulking little girl! Had I been in your place and you in mine - as you hypothize - I would do no less and you know it!
The fuse within Hector was burning very fastly now. First the battle and now this! He sometimes wished she had been privy to his and Ashcroft's discussions before the latter's retirement. He had supported her becoming the Commander. But Ashcroft had had a convincing arguement. Finally, it had been a question of choice - Asimov or Fairness? Fairness went down with a fight and he had been chosen.
And I do not want you to babysit the emperor. He - he is dying. The Viguratess has given him two more days. After that, I expect some hostility between Princes Dylan and Dante. If the emperor recovers enough to name a successor, there might still be tension. I want you to watch, Vaslov. If the emperor dies....if he dies, I want you to extend your security to Lord Dylan. I hardly think this is a sissy assignment!
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Elliot Vaslov
Karparthions
First Lieutenant
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Uh-uh. Pffft.
Joined: Mar 2007
Gender: Female
Posts: 70
| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #7 on Sept 19, 2007, 9:11pm » | |
I hardly think that is an assignment for a sulking little girl as you say, Commander. Elliot's pouty lips were curved just enough to bare her teeth. A vein protruded in her forehead, the blood in her veins had gone past the boiling point and it was threatening to erupt from her head.
Since you are such the poster boy of Karparthion, why don't you go and extend our services to the heir? She didn't add the fact that she didn't believe Dylan was the man to back. The man was a fool who thought with his penis.
And have a penis rule Asimov? They already had one heading its military.
Besides, Elliot didn't make much of a representative. She was a woman of action, not of politics. Which is why she had said nothing to quell rumors, whatever they may be, about her. Words were merely that: words. If she spoke up to defend herself, would that make people believe her? Hardly.
People believed what they wanted to believe.
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Hector Drayven
Administrator
Commander
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Duty, Honor and Asimov
Joined: Aug 2007
Gender: Male
Posts: 5
Location: Edim'Aze Fort
| | Re: Homecoming
« Reply #8 on Sept 22, 2007, 3:10pm » | |
ENOUGH! thundered Hector, standing up and looking down on her.
Things had gone far enough already. She must either start acting her part as a true soldier, or she must be ready to face the consequences. There was no point in letting her go on like this. In the army, it was all about hierarchy. If she could not follow orders, then she was not fit to be in the regime.
First Lieutenant Elliot Vaslov! Can you or can you not follow the orders of your commander?
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