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Chapter 22: Lack of Self
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2022-01-08 07:01:09Crossing over the threshold the shadows dispersed at Cazer’s feet. Fleeing to whence they came, only Chiri was left. Still writhing against the remnants of her lingering nightmare, Cazer could see the beads of sweat on her brow as he knelt next to her.
Attempting to release Chiri from her daze, he placed a hand on her shoulder. However, startled by the sudden sensation of his touch, she jolted from her sleep. Slapping Cazer across his face in an act of defense, he felt the hot sting of a cut on his cheek. Unfazed, he looped an arm around her back calmly. Pulling her into him tightly, he secured Chiri’s arms at her sides to mitigate the risk of another injury to either of them.
It was then that Cazer noticed with some fascination, the subtle gleam of a tear sliding down the curve of her face in the dim light. Captivated, he followed its course, watching as it quivered on her sharp chin. Shaking as though in trepidation, it teetered there for a moment, before
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Still slung over his shoulder. Chiri cursed between pained grunts, “Cazer, you rotten son of a bitch, put me down!”Ignoring her complaints, he kicked open the doors to the Director’s quarters forcefully to reveal a surprised Amelia. “What- “she suppressed a shriek upon their sudden and unconventional entry. Although Chiri could not see Amelia from her ungraceful perch atop Cazer’s shoulder. Chiri could easily imagine her expression as she began to take in the situation. She could sense the change from bewilderment to disgust the moment Amelia identified her.Composing herself, the swift modification in her voice as she addressed Cazer notable, it became sweeter than sugar. “Director, you’re injured!” she cried. “How dare someone hurt you.”“It’s just a scratch.” He replied dismissively, progressing further into the room.Putting the pieces together, she began “That
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Allen poked at the yolk of his fried egg absentmindedly. Watching the yellow liquid slowly pour out, he hardly heard Morose and Tristan as they exchanged notes on an upcoming assignment.It had been over a week since they reported the issue with the Mare to Captain Armistice. Other than a gruff confirmation from the Captain that the spirit had been eliminated shortly after, they had heard little else. It made sense that they should be kept in the dark. Since, their status as trainees allowed them little authority on matters. However, Allen was beginning to feel troubled by the secretive nature of The Alliance. Not only in this matter, but always in regard to his inquiries as well. Other than common pests such as murland moles, jungi beetles, and the odd willow-wisp on the farm, he had relatively few encounters with magic until coming to the Alliance headquarters. Still finding its rules and complex internal affairs foreign, Allen heaved a sigh of exhaustion just
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The crowd parting readily as the Banshee approached. They closed the gap behind her, drawing nearer to the anticipated nucleus of the action. Fueled by their excitement several trainees pushed forward, vying for spots with better visibility of the match. Even Morose, who was sandwiched between Tristan and himself, stood on her toes to see over the few heads in front of them. Indiscreet whispers spread, as the Witch halted at the center. Giving the onlookers a bored once over she announced loudly “You brats will be lucky if I’m the scariest thing you ever face in your lifetime. Whoever is stupid or brave enough to step forward, do so now.”It was not long before a few Hunters responded to her challenge. Provoking a cheer from the crowd as they entered the dirt of the arena. Sauntering in with overt bravado, were eight built men, whom Allen identified as being part of the Third Division. Having witnessed only briefly what the Witch was capable of
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Since that night with the Mare, things had taken an unexpected turn for Chiri. She had never expected to find herself tussling with trainees, merely a week later.The conclusion a meeting of the Alliance Council. It was due to her involvement and Lance’s loose lips that its members sought to come together so urgently. Confined to the Director’s quarters throughout the proceedings; Lance Armistice had apparently sung like a canary in front of a full panel of directors and administrators about the incident. However, there was one unexpected twist to his story, and that was his proposal to employ Chiri as an instructor.Presenting a strong argument for how her various talents could better be put to use for more academic purposes, the motion had been met with surprising consensus by Gate representatives. Not excluding her own husband, whom to her displeasure, sided in favor of the suggestion. Stating simply to Chiri, after she was informed of the decision, that
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“I think you’ve made your point, Banshee.” A voice rang from beside the arena. Light and clear across the sizable distance between them, it was a sound not heard often by Chiri but one she recalled well. Turning to regard the speaker with annoyance. She did nothing to fix her placid expression as she regarded the Director of the Day Gate. Accompanied by her loyal guard dog, Vance Stroud, they stood at the perimeter of the arena with matching looks of disgust. The Director of the Day Gate, Annaliese Marchette was a beloved figure within the Alliance. An ethereal beauty of long flowing blonde hair and unmarred porcelain skin, she embodied the kind of righteousness and decorum they liked to boast of most. Possessing both strength and wit, she always seemed to place herself in direct opposition to Chiri whenever possible since her promotion. Therefore, it was unsurprising that she should feel compelled to stick her nose into this situation needlessly as well. Clicking he
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Since the day he was born, Horus Crouse was compared to his elder sister. He had never thought ill of her because of it. In fact, he took pride in the well-deserved praises she received from others. Seeking every opportunity to boast of his sister, Horus would even go so far as to bring up her name amongst his friends and during social gatherings when allowed the chance.Needless to say, Horus had been close to his sister growing up, but this had not always been true. When he was very young, Horus remembered Chiri Crouse to have an existence similar to that of a phantom in their own home. He remembered her attending a family meal routinely, once a week. Where, she would eat in silence. Speaking only to politely answer their parents questioned her about the progress of her lessons. Sometimes, even this occasion was missed. However, their parents did not remark on her absence nor did they display any discernible sentiments towards Chiri in his presence.Days could pass w
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Chiri stood, leaning against one of the plain blank walls in the infirmary. Only serving the purpose of healing minor ailments, each bay within the clinic was equipped with a cot and a little cabinet of medical supplies. Concealed from view by simple white sheets, they did nothing to diminish the hushed conversations of the medics, or the groans of pain from the trainees she had injured.Looking at the person in the cot pensively. Brow creased as she took in the sight of the burns she had inflicted. Leaning her head back until it met the cold wall with a soft thud, she reflected on their fight. Chiri did not mind if it had further cemented her as a villain within his mind, as long as it served in its purpose to teach her brother a lesson. Best that he understood the implications of using their family powers now, Chiri would cut down a hundred more trainees if it could spare him even an ounce of the pain and devastation it had caused her. For her it was a lesson hard learned,
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The office filled with the serenity of the subtle white noise of each person’s solitary or otherwise mundane activities. It was the frustrated sigh which stood out amongst them as Chiri stared at the black and white squares of the board in front of her. The mild amusement that her opponent as he derived some enjoyment at her expense, evident by the sly smirk on his face. Chiri finally plucked her bishop from the board, her brow furrowing as she placed the piece in the last movement available to her, she slouched back onto the soft leather couch in resignation.Aware of her defeat without him having to state it, Cazer still smiled as he declared smugly, “Check mate.” Sulking as she sustained another loss, Chiri crossed her arms in front of her chest as she muttered back at him sourly, “I hate this game.” The smirk of confidence he possessed from beating her repeatedly at chess that morning, unrelenting as he continued to stare back at her. The expression would have irked her more had s
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The smell, like death and decay condensed. It seemed to cling to the walls of the tunnels and hang in the air as repugnant as one might find a corpse which still swayed in its noose. The heinousness of the scent, only becoming more egregious as they continued further into the catacombs beneath the bustling streets of Ineset, Allen found that each breath he drew provoked a repulsed churning in his stomach.A rat, made fat by feasting on the bones of the deceased and the other hapless creatures that might live within them, brushing past his foot. Allen released a mild gasp, before recoiling back against the wall of the tunnel in disgust. Already traversing the morbid labyrinth for at least an hour now, he began to hope for any sign of the rogue mages’ hideout to be uncovered soon. Whilst acknowledging that their unlit corridors and seclusion were perfect for those who did not want to be found, Allen could not fathom how it was inhabited by any member of the living for long.Their route,
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The small wooden frame of the bed moaning as someone shifted on its lumpy twin mattress, the noise prompted Chiri’s eyelids to flutter open slowly. Awoken from her deep sleep, she rolled onto her back to observe the person who sat on the edge of the bed they had shared. Her long hair tangled beneath her, she watched his broad back silently as he pulled on the few articles of the uniform that had been scattered about the floor during the night. Her gaze, apparently felt by him after a while, Allen Pierce turned. Greeting Chiri with an affectionate smile as she blinked the sleep away from her eyes, the skin around his blue gray irises crinkled from the extent of the contentment within this moment. The springs of the mattress displaced again as he leaned towards Chiri, Allen cupped her cheek tenderly in his hand to say gently, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.” His thumb caressing her cheekbone lightly as he spoke, Chiri smiled back at him tiredly from the pillow. Her hand, rising
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The final weeks of summer saturated by a persistent drizzle, it left gray pools on the footpath. Branching out into different avenues between the headstones, Cazer did not pause to consider the names etched on each nor did he become weighed down by solemn reflection as he progressed past them determinedly. The patent leather of his shoes, marred by the dirt of the cemetery as he entered into the more ancient part of the Alliance burial grounds that was shaded by the gnarled branches of a few mature trees. Cazer proceeded past the mossy and worn graves until he came to the one he sought.A sandstone mausoleum to one of the Alliance’s founders, Regus Sieg. The foreboding bars, clamped shut over the structure’s hollow opening, were only made more grim by the effects that time had over its once pristine stones and columns. Weathered and darkened by centuries of dreary days, such as this, Cazer mounted the few steps that led up to its gates. Placing a hand onto its cold metal, there was a
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The room, silent, aside from someone tapping out an odd stunted interpretation of time with their fingers. Allen discovered himself in the company of an unusual assortment of friends and acquaintances he had never once expected to encounter. All there under the reasonable assumption of what joined them together, Tristan Hurst, Morose Akena, Horus Crouse, and Lance Armistice eyed each other awkwardly from their varying positions amidst the office. Unsure of whether to broach their purpose for being there or to feign normalcy by engaging in small talk as they awaited the final members of their group, Allen found that his foot too now drummed along to the peculiar rhythm set within the room. The anxious wiggling not ceasing, he contemplated the wisdom of joining these diverse characters together in their mission. Although operating seemingly well in their exasperating partnership, Cazer and Allen acknowledged that their plans to launch an more offensive strike on the Moon Gate mages wou
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The rank smell of decay and mildew immediately enveloping her, Chiri knew that she had rejoined the dark catacombs where the cohorts of the Moon Gate’s malicious hoard gathered. Hissing as her form solidified again in the tunnel, Chiri again grasped at her side. Unsteady, the weight of her body found some stability as her back slumped onto the damp wall beside her. Expecting to be met with some snide remark in regard to her injury instantly upon her arrival, Chiri was to discover instead that her entrance had hardly been noticed amidst the affairs that had preceded her. Voices heard in the large junction between the tunnels, Chiri turned her head lazily in their direction. Leaning wearily against the dark tunnel, her eyes pinched together mildly as she squinted at the figures in the opening. Most of them the usual suspects that collected around Ryker Crouse, there was one amongst them that was only vaguely familiar to her. The woman’s hair matted and clothes dirty and torn from the t
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Hurried steps and panicked voices arising from outside the Dawn Gate, the source of their alarm was indeterminate from what corner of the empty ward Chiri occupied. Disinterested by the distant sounds of their mingled unease faded into a buzz of unrest as she closed her eyes against the persistent pain which plagued her. Clutching the saturated fabric more closely to the gouge at her side, Chiri grimaced as blood oozed out from between her fingers and onto the pestine floor beneath her. The wound, not having cut deep enough to touch any vital arteries or organs. It only posed the immediate threat of blood loss as she remained a solitary entity amongst the empty cots of the infirmary. The injury’s presence, no less vexing in the least, this was to be the reward Chiri enjoyed from another one of Ryker’s misguided assignments. Reclining against the wall slowly, she hissed an embittered curse through gritted teeth, “Sodded slug suckers!” Fortunate enough to find that no one else should b
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“Those damn toothy bastards can burn in Hell for all of eternity!” Cazer roared, the doors slamming shut behind him in order to punctuate the vehemence of this outburst. They were then battered again as he landed a ferocious kick onto the barrier of the office. The eruption of his fury causing the solid doors to shake, Cazer barely regarded the man who sat observing the dramatic display from his position on the couch.Allen’s eyes following him warily as he stormed into the room, Cazer found the silent pressure of his judgemental stare of little consequence as he marched over to his desk. Breathing agitated and his hair disorderly, he jerked open a drawer on the bureau. Withdrawing a half-full decanter and wiping the rim of a glass on the desk that had previously been used for water, Cazer poured himself a sizable portion of the spirit. Not offering any to the Hunter, he waited for Cazer to down the drink before asking, “No luck, I take it?” In too foul a temper to accept the smugness
