Its Not so Cold...

[chase]

Chase held his sword out in front of him with his right hand, crouched ever so slightly and showing his thin side to the guards. Three of them were now dead on the floor, but there were still three more, not including the Supreme Lady herself, who Chase figured would be an able swordsman in her own right.

He watched ever so briefly out of the corner of his eye as Poker used two swords in his technique, and he was intrigued by it, bending down quickly and fluidly bringing a naval longsword out of the dead soldier’s scabbard, holding it in his left hand, poised as he rose again.

Horus sat on the doorframe behind him, his wings stretched out, quivering in anticipation. The falcon could have made skull-crushing speeds in a dive, but he was confined, and his effectiveness was debatable.

Now it was Chase, Horus, Poker and Archer against three guards and the Supreme Lady. Chase felt confident. ”Yield mi’lady,” he said to her, his eyes studying her face and composure. ”Or we’ll make you…”

[Nau'ren]

(( so sorry, I won't be the one to ditch threads, I hope. I guess I've pulled through things and can try to RP again. Sorry if it's the worst RPing you've ever seen but I don't know what to expect from meh right now [my mind has been updated with new vocab words ]))

Nau'ren brewed up a smile as she saw the two before her. "Thank you for your concern about a lady, but I'm fine, truly I am."

Without faltering, Nau'ren grabbed for her sword, the slicing sound of it being drawn rang through her ears. The fire in the fire-place flicked with prevalent light, springing to life around the room. All shadows stormed and danced around the room as they hailed the reign of the light. This element of light seemed to hold a secret or a reminder. Through Nau'ren's brown eyes, fire portends, stretching through to the future. The fire spoke of this fire and it was obvious it would be an illustirous battle, if a fight between six people can be called a battle.

However, fighting isn't the only battle that takes place in a quarell with weapons, but a battle, a war, erupts through one. Is it this battle that tears so many people apart? The battle that occurs in the heart, the unseen strengths that are ubducted by the presence of fear, can open a wound internally. It was this fight that truly allowed the sword to penetrate flesh, allowing fears to conquer and images strike to the mind. Images of the past...

The internal battle. It's the mind that speaks against actions, the pain that surges through veins as decisions are made. Is it this complicated string of ideas that cause falter in thoughts, freezing the body's movement? If the second mind, the one that talks, cannot be conquered by the real mind, then minds will studder and fall into breakdown. Thoughts shadder in these quick decisions and aren't quick enough to realize they don't have time to listen to all the different sides to a mind. The secondary thoughts may be right in many cases, but if the brain can't handle quick decisions, then it may be too late.

Is the mind just a joke that plays tricks? Do all these thoughts really exist? No.. for it's all one strong mind, the dominant part of a human. The mind is all one, creating illusions that can bring up ideas without the whole body catching on. Yes, tricks are sucked into the thoughts and images destroy confidence as thoughts of the future take place. But Nau'ren has conquered the confusion, stepped through the growth of the mind and entered a new realm. It was all in the brain. All actions were produced there and always will be. So it's not over all physical appearance that destroys the existance of another. It's the mind's doing.

The sword was cold to the touch. The fire was now a farce to Nau'ren's thoughts, reflecting back the thrown away thoughts. Her brown eyes judiciously approached the other's, inching up to their colorful spheres that showed their thoughts as well. Nau'ren hid her thoughts with a screen of confidence as the sword was finally overt to all in the room.

The guard's shifting feet were audible as they prepared for the battle. Did they even think about the internal battle? Or have their fears of the two in the shadows brushed through their minds, leaving their faces pallid? Nau'ren did not know, for her targets stood in front of her and that was her only concern.

Her smile faded, washing away with the light that kissed her cheeks. The reason of these two pirates' presence was an unknown factor in Nau'ren's mind. Was it revenge they seeked or the simple love for death? The facts behind it all passed Nau'ren without looking back. She was focused on one thing and one thing only; their death.

"I'm sorry boys," her voice spoke like shattering ice, "but this room wasn' made to have this many people in it." Her smile flicked back on as if it had a switch. It was true, this room didn't supply what the name for it hinted, 'room'. It was just another hole in just another building. This wasn't her true office but she found herself in it a lot, more and more frequently. Hopefully this won't be the last time her lungs bretah this room's air.

Nau'ren loosened her shoulders, letting them sag. She quietly grunted as the weapon was raised past her elbow joint, the hilt remaining lower than her shoulder. Light streaked through the steel, traveling up to the tip, the tip that was thirsty for spilt blood. But it wasn't what nau'ren wanted, blood, she was curious to hear why they were here and what makes them think their actions can compare with hers.

The sword rushed through the air, a torpedo. It's eye was staring at the one that had spoken last and so was Nau'ren's. The guard's were heard again, doing what they must to make the Supreme Lady proud.

[if that was unclear, her sword is aiming for Chase and she is attcking xD

oh and.. HOLY MOLY GUACAMOLE THIS POST IS HUGE! 0.0]

[Poker]

Poker stood, with both his swords now retrieved, watching the Naval guards prepare to fight. Poker didn't know if Chase would simply stand and watch them ready themselves or not, but Poker held his honour in high regard, and he would not attack an opponent that was not even prepared for the fight, not now that there was no element of surprise left. Now it was just one of the battles that Poker had been in countless times, even in his few years.

Poker watched the Supreme Lady as the light danced across her face. Always moving. Ever shifting. She was beautiful, but her beauty was a veil of danger. The fire emphasised her beauty, and her danger. The reds and the oranges lit her face afire and deepened the shadows of her cheekbones and her eyes, where her brown eyes shone yellow in the firelight. He looked at her, though his face may have looked impassive, deep inside he was drawn to her through curiousity. She seemed so centred. So at peace with herself despite her situation. He would have been glad to fight her then, to learn more about her.

But she was now lunching at Chase, and Poker was not a part of that battle. Perhaps he would join into it later, but now there were Guards to defeat, and two were approaching him. Poker's cutlasses whirled around him in the small room, screaming as they split even the air that dare oppose them. They did not stop. Not for the air or the flesh of their enemies. Not until blood stained the floor, and the blades and Poker's soul.

[ooc: How do you write a post to keep up with something like the last one? O.O]

[chase]

ooc: Yeah… that post was mind-blowingly well-written, and incredibly insightful. You have now earnt my respect for that last one

Chase raised his own blade and met it with the Supreme Lady’s steel. The two grey metals slid together almost fluidly and they sliced along each other’s length, each blade coming to rest on the guard of the other. Chase pushed his blade up over her head to keep her sword up and he swung the naval soldier’s weapon in his other hand to her throat, pushing the tip into her flesh.

With a few spare fingers on his main sword hand he tried to grip her wrist and make sure she didn’t bring her sword back down on top of him, but the grip was loose. Chase hoped that she knew it took less time to push steel through a throat than to smash it through a skull.

”Well then, we should dispose of a few men… shouldn’t we?” Chase’s eyes were mere inches from hers, and they were truly beautiful, but incredibly deep. He could have drowned in that moment. The look he got, he could almost feel it. And feeling anything was a rare occurrence for him.

Horus on the other hand was in full flight, clawing at one of the soldier’s eyes, screeching unsettlingly loud into his ears and stabbing down with his beak. ”Accept it or not, but we’re not here to kill you mi’lady. Drop the sword.”

[Nau'ren]

((ooc- thanks guys ))

The fire tore through her with burning hands. It lied to her face, only being a part of the present. They were only predictions it reflected, and not facts. Would this truly be an illustrious battle or will there be no battle at all?

The hapless Supreme Lady rose her eyes to look into the one she had attacked. Was she missing something? Could she only trust what is tangible, excluding all emotions and thoughts? All palpable thoughts were crunched, unnoticed in her mind. Her eyes released tension and became glassy, exploding her thoughts into the air.

Unprecedented emotions pumped through Nau'ren. Her eyes no longer told a story of bravery and victory, but of true peace. They were now distant as she was sucked into the quick timing. She back-tracked to all events leading up to this moment. No correct thoughts triumphed through her mind.

Her eyes flicked down to the floor, blinking would miss the quick glance. She shifted her position so both legs took the same amount of weight, standing perfectly straight. Was she being negligent? Ignoring and stumbling over all the obvious facts? Nau'ren was making too much of this situation, or was she? She has been close to the bridge of death but this seemed closer, almost all the way crossed. But the pirates words drifted through her ears; "we're no here to kill you mi'lady".

She sucked in all the emotions that almost spilled out of her. She could not crack in fron tof everyone, she was a leader. She released the pressure her sword put on his and her lips opened up once more, releasing the clogged words, "Then why are you hear? Tell me!" Her eyes flashed as panic struck like lightning. Her appearence might've looked convincing, staying calm, but not now. Her beutiful features still remained but looked haggard, as if she hadn't slept for days. "..Please..." she whispered, allowing her eyes to dodge his, drifting to the floor again. She was through, a pleade had broken through her lips as panic had gotten the best of her. But her hand still clutched her sword. She was surprised herself that she hadn't let it drop yet. She must look like a psycho on drugs right now, falling into a break down. But her heart was still beating with waves of hope, energy still flowing through her. She hasn't given up through her life and still hasn't. She wasn't just throwing away everything, but her thoughts had gotten to her. All unlocked locks had been tied back up inside her mind. She had almost opened all doors of her mind but threw them away. The doors were now barred up as she was stubborn to take the keys back.

The storm subsided. Coolness was brought down upon her and she was now aware he had a hol of her wrist. When had he securely taken hold of her? Was she truly done or was there a way out of this...

[Poker]

Poker, standing behind the Supreme Lady and Chase, felt light brush against his skin. He closed his eyes for a moment, then heard Archer barking. Poker ran to the window, eyes wide open to look out across the horizon.

"Chase!" Poker called, urgency running through his voice as he turned to look at his companion with wild eyes. "Dawn has broken! There are ships of the horizon." Poker looked across the water again, there were the black sails of the pirates, white junk ships of the Ice Warriors . . . and the golden sails of the Southerners. Poker was willing to bet anything that a fight here would be Khalora's fault. Why was he always around to screw up something Poker had planned. Poker narrowed his eyes before whirling back around to face Chase. Their shadows had gone, there was no hiding from the sun. They needed to leave.

"Chase," Poker pleaded, "kill her and we can go." If Poker had known te Supreme Lady more, he would have felt far more compassionate towards her. Even when he said the words, it felt odd, he had killed before, in battle, but never condemned someone. But she was sub-human, she was from the Navy, like how Khalora was below the pirates . . . right? Poker found the Supreme Lady's eyes, but quickly diverted his, letting his words ring through the office.

[chase]

Chase still held the blade to her throat, but the Supreme Lady held onto her sword with a stubborn defiance which could have been stupidity or bravery… or both.

”We are here for justice. For the pirates. As it is, you’ve signed the warrant for many pirate deaths, just by being in Supreme here.” Chase twisted his body so that he now had a better grip on her wrist, and twisting it, instilling some pain into her bones. He herded her towards the window and leant her out of it, back first. Slowly but surely, he pushed harder on his sword, driving her slowly further out into the nothingness.

”The Navy seem to pride themselves on swimming, even a Supreme. But can they fly?” He never took his eyes off of hers, and now that he found himself locked in her stare, there was something… something on the edge of perception, brushing his fingertips, just out of reach… something was trying to stay his hand, trying to break through. As he stared into her eyes, he knew emotion in a form he had never known was building somewhere in his mind… but he was afraid of it. He didn’t want to feel it, not here.

So he swallowed it, buried it, and put on his game face. ”Lets find out.” He put his hand on the pommel, and half a heartbeat before he pushed, … ”…Please…”

And that was it, Chase found himself with all the power in the world in his hands. The power to take a life in cold-blood, right here, right now, the power to take it all away for her…. and he couldn’t do it.

Chase’s breathing went harder, longer, hoarser, and he didn’t know how long he had her there, on the precipice, until finally, he found his blade release its pressure on her throat, and then there was inch between the steel and flesh, and then a foot, and then it was by his side. The pirate loosened her wrist, and shook his head, ”You do it Poker… I…” he frowned, confused. ”I can’t.”

[Nau'ren]

Nau'ren's eyes glanced over to the younger pirate going by Poker. She glanced back to the one called Chase when Poker looked away. Nau'ren's eyebrows crunched together as she thought what was going on. Her glassy eyes sensed something in Chase's. But her vision was too blurry to understand what it was. Or was it her mind to weak to think about it?

Her back was curved over the window. She didn't want to move, in fear he woul think she was attacking him. So many thoughts burst through her bubble of silence. She wanted to tell them all how she felt but it would just be plain stupidy to do that. But was that what Nau'ren was; stupid? That's what she thought of herself as she spoke up again, in a low and cracky voice. "Why'd you lose curiosity in watching me fly, Chase?" She asked, more questioning herself than him.

Her eyes switched back over to Poker. He was at the window next to hers. Ships... They were approaching? nau'ren was so cuaght up in everything she didn't know what was going on anymore. Did she fail to see what characteristics a Supreme Lady needed?

Nau'ren lifted her head up and mouthed out words again. "Why are you here, gentlemen?" Her eyebrows were still wrinklied together as she held back the tears that felt as if they would explode any moment. She wasn't tearing up for a childish reason of a simple slice to the hand or a bruise to the knee; death almost grabbed her soul. She was on the rim of the bowl, about to fall into death's hands. Did these pirates really want to kill her? Was she missing something?

[Poker]

Archer barked again, an alarm must have been raised, there were Naval men appearing around the Fort. Poker chanced a moment to look back at Chase with a look somewhere between disbelief and anger. What was wrong with Chase? Had he fallen prey to the looks of the Supreme Lady? Had he truly betrayed the Pirates? Poker's eyebrows met above his nose as he face turned into a foul scowl. For all he cared Chase could stay here with the Supreme Lady, if that was where his allegiance's lie. He was standing at the window with the rope attached to it, and began steping towards the Supreme Lady with a sword held at the ready, prepared to do what Chase could not muster the courage to do, when the door to the office burst open, naval guards at the ready to defend their Lady.

Poker, in the seconds he had left turned to Chase and only said one word, a strong words with acid dripping from his tongue and lips. "Traitor."

With that, Poker spun around, his black ropes flying in the morning wind and leapt onto the rope, sliding down without care to burns and blisters. He landed heavily right next to Archer and hushed his excited dog.

Poker did not look back up at the tower, he didn't care to look back, instead he kept out of eyeshot of that balcony and began moving off as carefully and quickly as possible. He had to reach the Pirate ships.

[ooc: Exit]

[chase]

Chase completely diverted his attention from the Supreme Lady when Poker labelled him as a traitor. Traitor!? I was royal guard to Amory! Never once have I impeded in my duties to the Pirate army! Never!”

But then the guards burst in and the moment was gone. And Poker ran, leaving him alone in the tower, deserting him. Chase turned to the guards, ten of them, and more coming, there was no way he could win this battle. He would certainly die here if he fought…

… and he leapt at them, both swords in his hand, knowing this was the end. He took both swords across the first soldier, opening him from side to side, turning, and stabbing through into the second soldier as he turned. A blade crashed onto his vambrace, jarring his forearm, and almost making him drop the blade.

Everything was a whirl of steel and blood, and Chase was almost blind to the situation, he could hardly believe he was doing what he was doing, and his swords moved without a thought. He parried off two blows from either side, knocked a sword out of one hand, cut across one soldier and into another, jumped away from one sword, a spear thrust across his shoulder, he stabbed into a blue tunic, another sword cutting along his back, had to whirl both blades around him to stop three swords simultaneously coming at him, and still he could hardly follow it all.

Steel cut half way through his upper arm and he dropped his left sword, spinning and cutting off the soldier’s head with his right. Another sword was thrust through his gut, and a third cut across his face. He tried to parry a blow but it knocked the sword out of his hands and the blade cut down his face, around his neck and onto his shoulder.

Chase was done, soldier’s lying dead or dying around him, and he watched Poker’s rope by the window through darkening eyes. And he finally broke down, every emotion he should ever had felt in his life smashed into him like a tidal wave, knocking the breath out of him. Now all he could feel was remorse, and regret. Regret that he had never told Poker how much he had respected him, how much he had loved him. He had never even told him he was his brother…

…And now it was too late. ”…time never waits for men…” Chase slid himself off the steel biting into him and threw himself backwards, into the window after Poker. Chase’s eyes were dark to the dawn as he felt the cold stone leave his feet, as he pushed backwards with his last strength, and how he welcomed the embrace of nothingness, falling, tumbling towards the ocean so far below… The last thing Chase ever felt was the pressure on his back as he connected, and the freezing water wash over him, holding him, taking him.

[Nau'ren]

((That was a lovely post, Alesssio. And that's not being sarcastic. It was very well-written and I almost cried typing up this post...))

A final flick of warmth faded into the coolness of the night as death's hands groped through the room. All shadows left, all souls dead, but Nau'ren remained. Brown eyes escaped the presence of dead bodies by flashing over to the window where Chase had fallen over. Her spheres of site, bringers of color, the ones that have touched so many people's hearts with such brightness, even though it's the color of mud, gazed at the window, dazed in emotions as a tear slipped down her face. This was the closest she had ever been to an enemy.. and she hadn't even met them before.

"Poker... Chase?" The guard's souls loomed around her, touching her with their presence. Chills escaped her grasp and shattered through her skin. Death was upon this room and there was no one to comfort her. She didn't glance back at the guards, for fear they would stare back with their empty colors, just another sphere with no use to their body anymore.

"Poker? Poker!!" She screeched, sprinting over to the window. Tears tumbled down her cheeks, watering the boards at her feet. "Oh god," Nau'ren said, the words slipping out of her lips as her fingers slipped off the window sill with stained blood upon her skin. Blood of Chase. She slowly backed away, trembling. Nau'ren had never felt so alone in her life.. It was an awaking call, echoing in her mind, the sound of death. She couldn't shake it off.

"Poker!" She screamed louder, wishing someone would hear her words... "Please! I mean no harm! I was never going to kill you!" She brought her voice down and whispered, "I don't want to be this kind of person... Don't let me.." She said, trying to convince herself she'll be okay. But her thoughts brought back a voice in her head repeating the pirates were friends... Like Lorian... Death passes by me, leaving me in torcher... No one to help me.. All alone..

Nau'ren was crying terribly now. She brought herself to going to the window again, hoping Poker would be there, his face looking so friendly. She bent over the window, wind greeting her face. What sort of world was she living in? A friendly wind dances around her, laughing at her face while she weeped with the souls?

"Poker, where are you.." she whispered to herself again. She didn't know she would take it this hard. Her mind wasn't ready and had no power to defend herself from the wickedness of death. Her sword was still gripped insanely in her hand. She threw it at the wall and screamed. "What am I doing to myself? I'm all alone... My friends have passed on and my friends pass from foe to ally as death tears us apart..." She slid down the wall, stone meeting her flesh with a cold touch as her shirt tangled with the stones. She hugged her knees to her chest and let her hair slide over her head, a curtain for emotions.

The cold stone diffused through her body, rippling with a low temperature. She shivered, looking up to the fireplace. It's glowing coals provided no more warmth for the room. It laughed at her face. It lied to her face. It did not tell a story of an illustrious battle that would forever be remembered in honor. The horrors of death ran through this new story, the new story that has been told for many years. The story of life. It runs on through this world and forever into eternity. The world is one story of death and rebirth. One chance to live and then what? Where does the soul run off to? For one moment Nau'ren heard nothing... No sound was audible and all senses escaped her nose, mouth, eyes, ears and skin. For one moment, Nau'ren felt a soul pass over her... watching forever more.