Chapter 1; Part one: Infiltration of the South
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Guards went back and forth like worker ants, guarding each and every corner, armed with heavyweight weapons and guns, prepared for the worst. Some don’t let their guard down, some don’t even blink, while some… well…
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“Have you heard of the latest juicy gossip?”
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…Engage in idle chatter.
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“Huh? There hasn’t been any interesting news Inside since The Head went hiding, besides, we’re all stuck here underground. What gossip is there?” The other guard told his fellow, leaning against a wall while the other chewed on peanuts.
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“Widen your imaginations a little! Y’know That one on night duty Arli? ” The gossip victim widened his eyes.
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“Oooh! What happened? Didn’t he get married to that girl maid?” the perpetrator smirked then leaned in, “I heard his wife went outside-” he leaned in much closer, almost no more than an inch from the victim's ear, almost spitting peanut bits onto his cheeks.
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“I heard… She met up with a man at night and never came back… and when the inspection team came in the morning, they saw her naked mangled body!” The victim fell back.
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“T-that’s nonsense!” he shouted, waving his gun around.
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“It’s true! Y’know what else I heard? The Devil of the West has come to collect our souls! So I’m telling you, the South’s no good, run away while-”
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BANG!
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The officer in charge shot the soldier in the head. There was still smoke rising out the mouth of the pistol.
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“Any more cowards in here?” The officer in charge said. The surrounding guards scurried away like rats at the arrival of the master’s cat. “No? I thought so.” he turned to the gossip victim, “You. Come with me.” the scared guard hesitantly stood up from where he staggered and hurriedly tailed behind the officer.
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The officer stopped in front of a heavily locked iron vault door. He presented himself to the guards at the entrance then they opened the door for him. The gossip victim stopped in his tracks while the officer unhurriedly went inside, “what are you staring for? Hurry up and come inside.” the officer said. “Y-yes” the soldier replied, stepping into the vault door.
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Inside was a room with red furnishings. Red walls, tables, chairs, candles, almost everything. They liked to call this, “The Red Room.” It was the heartbeat of the South’s Head hideout where all the elders lodge. It was a well-protected room. The room wasn’t that big, in fact, it doesn’t even look like a room. It only looked like a mini warehouse, so crammed and stuffy. The officer bowed slightly to the elders sitting around a circular table in their own chairs. It looks like they were in the middle of planning an attack. “Ah, Bel… Is there news from the outside? Oh!” the man in the middle gasped as he looked at the scared soldier, “What’s his deal?”
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“Ah, him? I’ve found a spy for us.”
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“Him? Are you sure?” the one from the farthest left asked.
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The soldier started shivering, “A-a spy? M-me? Why me?!?!” he staggered backwards then fell to his feet. The elders started nodding their heads. “Mm… Yes, send him. Guards.” The one at the centre flicked his finger towards the soldier. “I-I-...W-why me…” The soldier kept stuttering as he was dragged away by the guards to prepare him for battle.
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The five elders (from the left) are The Viscount-he is the South’s battle major, Elise-she is in charge of the strategic plans, John Elwin-the South’s Head, Nico-he manages the South’s armoury, defences, and money, Nario Stalle-he supervises and devices the plan to smuggle in medicine, bombs, arms, and people from the South to the North. These five elders altogether were called The Head.
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The officer watched as they took the poor man away then presented himself once more in front of the leader. “President, there was news that the West has completely taken control of our dispensary, they request information-”
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“Oh? That doesn’t sound like the West.” Elise interrupted while adjusting her glasses. The officer cleared his throat then continued, “Indeed. It appears it wasn’t exactly ‘the West’ but a gang within the West. They wish to know of our plans on how we will take the West down-”
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“Ha! How foolish. Why do they think we would give our plans that easily?” Elise interrupted again, scoffing. The officer’s facial muscles twitched, “Ahem. As I was saying… They demand that we partner to take the West down altogether or else-”
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Elise slammed the table and shouted, “Or else what?” The officer’s expression darkened, “Or else they will wipe out what remains of the South.”
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There was silence in the room. The Leader took off his hat and rubbed his face forcibly. He didn’t remove his hands from his face then his shoulders started quivering. The Viscount looked at Elise, confused. He mouthed, ‘he cryin’?’ Elise shrugged then continued moving around the little blocks on the table that signified medicinal trucks. “Ahahaha…” The leader whispered. “Ahahaha… hahaha… AHAHAHAHAHA!” He started laughing boisterously. His fellow elders followed suit except for The Viscount who did not find anything funny. The leader pounded his fists on the table twice before calming himself and speaking, “Them? Attack us? Who do they think they are? A nameless gang! Ahahaha! Worthless dogs, empty words!”
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The officer flinched at the four last words that were spoken by the leader. “They can never infiltrate the South! No one knows of our hideout, and if they did, they’d be obliterated before they reach this place, besides, this vault door is known to withstand even the strongest bombs!” The officer bowed himself before saying, “We can never underestimate anyone,” he turned around then walked to the door, “besides,” he said without stopping, “they’re already here.”
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The Leader wore a confused expression. Then Nico, who was paranoid the moment the officer entered the room, shouted to the guards, “Close the vault door! Lock it from inside and out!” He then stood up and took the heavy furniture to block the vault door. The leader stopped Nico from doing anything more and said, “Oh, please! They can’t enter any way they try so don’t be so paranoid, Mr Nico. Come, come, we need to figure out our next move-”
The leader was still in the middle of coaxing the dishevelled elder when the ground shook. “AAHH!! Ah, ah, AH!!!” Nico backed a few steps away from the door with each “Ah” until he bumped into Elise.”Woah, calm down, old man.” Elise said, pushing Nico away. “What the hell was that anyway-”
“Shh.” the leader approached the wall to inspect it. “The walls… are crying?” The Viscount said. Elise rolled her eyes and mumbled, “Oh my God, are you that stupid… hah–”
The leader turned around after inspecting the walls, his face was dark. “Elise. Body Barrier. Now.”
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When the elders heard this, their faces darkened. Elise nodded. She approached the remaining soldiers inside the room with them. She stopped in front of one then brutally tore apart his right arm. The soldier did not react for having his arm torn was nothing. The soldiers were already dead in the first place. “Tch,” Elise dropped the arm, “Have them tear themselves apart, Viscount. My job sucks.” The Viscount only cast a glance at the reanimated soldiers then they started tearing themselves apart. Elise cut her wrist. She whispered a few words, her eyes rolled up, turning white as she chants a spell.
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The bodies organized themselves and made a big-enough flesh cage for the elders to be in. The cage was made out of bones, ligaments, and the muscles of the reanimated soldiers. “We’ll be safe as long as a dead person doesn’t enter the barrier.” Elise said then dropped to the ground, exhausted. Her Defense Method allows her to make a wall, a cage, or an entire room depending on how much bodies there were, out of dead bodies and the barrier can’t be broken into unless a person without breath or a ‘thing’ without breath manages to break in, and, as far as the South knew, only The Viscount has the power to control and reanimate the dead. The wall was like a fish net with holes as large as a child’s fist. “Ptui! Smells so bad! Agh! I hate my Method so much!” Elise whimpered like a child. The Leader was quiet all the time. He wore a serious expression. “Nario, tell everyone to guard the vault no matter what.” Nario nodded. He closed his eyes for a while then opened them again. This time, he wore a completely different expression. “Three days.” he said.
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“What?”
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“Someone intercepted my thoughts and they said, ‘three days”
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—2 days later—
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“We’re gonna die, we’re gonna die… We’re all gonna die.” Nico said, curled up into a ball.
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—3 days later—
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“It’s here!” No sound was heard until it was…
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—4 days later—
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“Aha!” The leader shouted, standing up from the ground abruptly. “It was a hoax!” Elise sighed then dismantled the rotting bodies, “Thank God–”
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Krrrk!
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“Oh God, what was that?” Elise scurried behind The Viscount, “Did anyone hear that? No? No one?”
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The leader approached the door and then examined it. “It’s safe. No cracks.” But Nico, since the start has been noticing that there is a big crack in the wall surrounding the vault but the crack was not on the vault itself, and he has been pointing at the crack since day two, but everyone thought he was only being paranoid again. He finally decided to approach the crack and clearly point it out. “The- the vault can’t be broken, but the walls can!” just as he said that the cracks widened and spread out.
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“Everyone stand back!” The Leader examined the cracks and saw a crystal clear liquid seeping out of it.
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Out of mere curiosity, he licked it. “Hmm, that’s disgusting. Tastes like rot,” he said while continuing to lick the wall. Suddenly, Elise let out an ear-piercing scream as the cracks widen even more crystal clear liquid burst forth!
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“Ew! Ew! It smells like rotting bodies!” The cracks kept opening. Nico had hidden under the table. “Everyone hold your-” before the leader could finish his sentence, the wall surrounding the door fell down creating a square hole! Water rushed inside the room after being under so much pressure. The wall that was broken away was pushed by the surging waters and crushed Elise and The Viscount dead. The water slowly settled down, seeping under the cracks or going back to it’s master. It had a strange glow to it and anyone who could use a Method could tell that this wasn’t just any harmless liquid.
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Behind the wall, stood two figures; a man and a woman. The man being slightly taller than the woman. The woman had clear, round, golden eyes, porcelain skin, rose pink, thin lips, and long, wavy golden hair.
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The Leader rubbed his face and tried to recover. Upon glancing at the man standing behind the now-destroyed wall, his pupils shrunk, falling to the surprisingly dry ground once again.
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“Y-You!” His quivering finger pointed at the man.
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The man scoffed. “Leader,” he said, even bowing to ‘offer respects.’ His voice was different from before, clearer and calmer. Yes, this man was the officer in charge yet he had a different atmosphere surrounding him. He grabbed the black hair on his head and threw it off revealing wavy, golden hair underneath it. His black pupils disappeared after closing his eyes, and, when he opened them, his original golden eyes shined so bright.
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“How did you get inside- H- he can’t be dead, can’t he?” Nico’s voice quivered as he tried to speak up. It seemed that this ‘he’ he was talking about was the officer in charge.
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The man didn’t even bother to look his way, instead, he walked towards The Leader with slow, steady steps. He lifted his hands, his eyes bloodshot, and let his heavy hands fall on The Leader.
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Bam!
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The sound of his hand hitting The Leader was so loud that it echoed and bounced off the walls. He regained his composure easily then easily walked back to the woman’s side. The Leader was thrown across the room with his hit, throwing his body to a chair, and breaking it.
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“I’ve done my job. Do what you want with them, Mae.” The man turned around, his white coat fluttering behind him. He left the room and the lives of the elders to the woman.
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Mae’s eyes sparkled with fire, “Alright, little brother, you don’t need to tell me.” she whispered, her voice menacing and almost evil.
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Chapter one; Part two: Befriend the Enemy
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Beautiful, golden hair, glimmering under the sun. Frances strode across the Black Garden, The West Rebels’ courtyard, which is known for naturally growing black flowers, roses, and leaves, living up to its name. He stood out among all Nature's darkened children, making him seem like the bright sun amongst the vastness of the dark void. His hand rested on his sword’s hilt. The [insert sword name], infamous for its bright blade and jade-white sheath. It is rumoured to be a holy sword yet no one has caught sight of it. For those who have, they testify that the sword pulses with great light which has the power to blind one’s eyes. The rumours are not confirmed nor denied. Some people argue that maybe the light isn’t that powerful since, if it was, then the people who “testified” of its light should’ve been blind. But who’s to say they’re not blind? Another not confirmed nor denied rumour is that the blade only flashes every time it takes the life of a person. Perhaps the sword also takes the soul along with the breath. Perhaps the light signifies the soul. There are many claims about the sword but, again, all are neither confirmed nor denied.
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The Black Garden had a long winding path on which end was a white marble mausoleum. Frances stood in front of the tall, laced silver doors. Without knocking, the gigantic doors creaked open
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