Shrike's Heart (#4)

[idolpro]

The woman before you is beautiful—fair of features, with lovely golden skin and luxurious long black hair, petite. You have the immediate and distinct impression that she's just let go of your hand, and she steps back, and smiles.

It's not quite a happy smile.

"I'm sorry," she says. "There's just nothing I can do, as things are. But the way is there; it just needs to be lit."

You open your mouth—maybe to say something, or to express confusion—but you have to cough, and taste something metallic, spattering black blood onto the ground in front of you. Then you realize—blood seeps from opening wounds in your arms, your chest, your stomach, your face. It rims your eyes and trails from your nose and you feel like you're dissolving—

—and you fall through the ground like it's the surface of a lake, and go down, down, down.

> Wake Up

Comments

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[handpuppets]

Falling Blossoms Atop Ashes, ma'am; a lieutenant.

[ she squints at you a little, though. ]

What would you have us do?

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[worthathousand]

Thank you, lieutenant. You may call me Amakura, if you wish.

As for our task: it seems no one else has seen fit to ensure the remains of the fallen are put to rest. They were our foes, but all are owed such dignity, after all.

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[handpuppets]

Er—

[ the soldier seems faintly bewildered. ]

But that's...

[ she looks around for someone to countermand this, since it seems odd, but the person she's looking for seems to have vanished with one (1) Cardigan and a bottle of sake. ]

Won't that change the entire strategy, Ma'am?

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[worthathousand]

[ thanks babe. ]

...Will it? [ it's one of those questions that is halfway between a question and a test ]

If we don't want to keep spending resources on warring with this city, then we can show them the common dignity of respect for the dead.

[ she bends down to close a fallen soldier's eyes, righting their body from whatever heap it was collapsed in as she does so ]

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[handpuppets]

With all due respect, Ma'am, the war is, essentially, over.

[ a pause. ]

But, well—if that's your orders, I can pass it on.

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[worthathousand]

This war, perhaps. You know as well as I that there will be others.

So yes, please do so.

[ ...and she will do a bit more Dead Respecting do get that bread willpower ]

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[handpuppets]

[ "will there, though," say the soldier's eyes, but she doesn't protest.

and yeah you get that bread. +2 WILLPOWER. ]

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[worthathousand]

[ we can work on drilling some proper conduct into these soldiers later; who even raised these people—

(get it, it's necromancy jokes)

...but for now, she'll head towards the city. time to see if she can find Cardigan. ]

Re: THE BATTLEFIELD

[handpuppets]

[ what you find is an incredibly sick fight ]