Free States of the Crescent

[Through the Living Hope]

3 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

 

"Damn. Maybe we should've been whispering."

From around Marewill, several people emerged from hiding places, behind houses and bushes, some climbing off of nearby roofs. A few of them had guns, but they were mostly holding knives and small weapons.

"Either you can come with us, or I'll send them after the kid."

She winced and glanced back at Lily, who was still running away. 

[The Stormfather He/Him]

On 2/26/2025 at 8:07 AM, Spark of Hope said:

She winced and glanced back at Lily, who was still running away. 

The people stepped towards her.

"Do you have any weapons on you?" One of them asked, glancing around nervously. "Where are the other tributes?"

One of them grabbed his shoulder from behind. "We already got the Dancer. You don't need to keep checking over your shoulder for him."

"My Da thought he had him when it was only Mark and the tributes against over fifty of them. I'm not letting him kill another of my family."

A few of the people around chuckled at him, though the one at his side nodded. They raised their voice to speak to the group. "Someone make sure that the kid has really left! Another person, stay here and watch for what the tributes do next. Radio back any info."

Two people quickly got to work.

"Someone else, go up ahead and find us a clear route back to base. I don't want to get spotted in the street."

One of them nodded and launched into the sky, clearly a coinshot.

The apparent leader of the group, or at least the one of them smart enough to give commands to the others, lifted a metal water bottle from a small pack on his back, feigning to take a drink.

He swung it hard at Marewill's head in an attempt to knock her unconscious.

[Through the Living Hope]

4 hours ago, The Stormfather said:

The people stepped towards her.

"Do you have any weapons on you?" One of them asked, glancing around nervously. "Where are the other tributes?"

One of them grabbed his shoulder from behind. "We already got the Dancer. You don't need to keep checking over your shoulder for him."

"My Da thought he had him when it was only Mark and the tributes against over fifty of them. I'm not letting him kill another of my family."

A few of the people around chuckled at him, though the one at his side nodded. They raised their voice to speak to the group. "Someone make sure that the kid has really left! Another person, stay here and watch for what the tributes do next. Radio back any info."

Two people quickly got to work.

"Someone else, go up ahead and find us a clear route back to base. I don't want to get spotted in the street."

One of them nodded and launched into the sky, clearly a coinshot.

The apparent leader of the group, or at least the one of them smart enough to give commands to the others, lifted a metal water bottle from a small pack on his back, feigning to take a drink.

He swung it hard at Marewill's head in an attempt to knock her unconscious.

“I don’t know where they are. And I haven’t touched any weapons since the arena.”

She used her steel mind to dodge. 

Edited March 3, 2025 by Spark of Hope

[The Stormfather He/Him]

15 hours ago, Spark of Hope said:

“I don’t know where they are. And I haven’t touched any weapons since the arena.”

She used her steel mind to dodge. 

"Wh-" He groaned. "Seriously?"

The rest of them closed in slowly, tightening a vaguely circle shaped area around Marewill.

[Through the Living Hope]

3 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

"Wh-" He groaned. "Seriously?"

The rest of them closed in slowly, tightening a vaguely circle shaped area around Marewill.

“Look, if you’re going to kidnap me, have some decency about it. Put a bag over my head or something.”

[The Stormfather He/Him]

Just now, Spark of Hope said:

“Look, if you’re going to kidnap me, have some decency about it. Put a bag over my head or something.”

"Anyone have a bag?"

"Yeah, one sec. Can someone take my lunch in their pack?" One of them lifted a few containers out of a bag.

The leader sighed heavily. "Alright. Put the bag over her head." He lifted a walkie-talkie from his belt. "Make sure there isn't anyone in this part of the forest. We're going to cut through the park."

There was a response that sounded affirmative, but the sound quality was so bad, it was hard to tell.

One of them plopped a brown sac on Mare's head.

They began poking her and speaking to get her to not crash into stuff as they started walking.

[Through the Living Hope]

1 minute ago, The Stormfather said:

"Anyone have a bag?"

"Yeah, one sec. Can someone take my lunch in their pack?" One of them lifted a few containers out of a bag.

The leader sighed heavily. "Alright. Put the bag over her head." He lifted a walkie-talkie from his belt. "Make sure there isn't anyone in this part of the forest. We're going to cut through the park."

There was a response that sounded affirmative, but the sound quality was so bad, it was hard to tell.

One of them plopped a brown sac on Mare's head.

They began poking her and speaking to get her to not crash into stuff as they started walking.

She was almost tempted to intentionally walk into something, but she didn’t. Quietly she asked, “Why are you doing this?”

[The Stormfather He/Him]

3 minutes ago, Spark of Hope said:

She was almost tempted to intentionally walk into something, but she didn’t. Quietly she asked, “Why are you doing this?”

"Vengeance."

Quote

I gotta go to school now...

 

 

[Through the Living Hope]

2 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

"Vengeance."

 

Quote

C ya l8r!

“For what? I’ve never met any of you.” 

[The Stormfather He/Him]

7 hours ago, Spark of Hope said:

“For what? I’ve never met any of you.” 

"It's not only you. It's all of your little group. You tributes just couldn't do what they were supposed to. They just had to make everything worse with a revolution."

 

[Through the Living Hope]

7 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

"It's not only you. It's all of your little group. You tributes just couldn't do what they were supposed to. They just had to make everything worse with a revolution."

 

"Worse?" She seemed genuinely confused

[The Stormfather He/Him]

16 hours ago, Spark of Hope said:

"Worse?" She seemed genuinely confused

“Worse. Maybe it made some thing better, but people died during that rebellion. People who were never cared for, never given a proper funeral. They were thrown in the river. Everything is worse. You should know how bad it is to lose a father.”

[Through the Living Hope]

5 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

“Worse. Maybe it made some thing better, but people died during that rebellion. People who were never cared for, never given a proper funeral. They were thrown in the river. Everything is worse. You should know how bad it is to lose a father.”

“… I do.”

[The Stormfather He/Him]

1 hour ago, Spark of Hope said:

“… I do.”

“Then you know how you made it worse.” The group kept walking, and Marewill could hear some whispered instructions from the leader to the others.

[Through the Living Hope]

59 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

“Then you know how you made it worse.” The group kept walking, and Marewill could hear some whispered instructions from the leader to the others.

“My family was living on the streets. I did this for them. Yes, I know how it feels to lose my father. Yes, I know how it feels for him to not get a funeral. Heck, the Peacekeepers thought I was making everything up. But that's why this happened, so people don't have to go through that.”

Edited March 4, 2025 by Spark of Hope

[The Stormfather He/Him]

1 hour ago, Spark of Hope said:

“My family was living on the streets. I did this for them. Yes, I know how it feels to lose my father. Yes, I know how it feels for him to not get a funeral. Heck, the Peacekeepers thought I was making everything up. But that's why this happened, so people don't have to go through that.”

“So the way to stop death was to kill a bunch of people? The way to stop tragedy was homicide?”

[Through the Living Hope]

1 minute ago, The Stormfather said:

“So the way to stop death was to kill a bunch of people? The way to stop tragedy was homicide?”

"In the fight to leave the arena, I purposefully avoided killing anyone, and once we got to Moongaze I stopped fighting altogether."

[The Stormfather He/Him]

4 hours ago, Spark of Hope said:

"In the fight to leave the arena, I purposefully avoided killing anyone, and once we got to Moongaze I stopped fighting altogether."

"You shouldn't have been leaving the arena in the first place. Tributes are meant to die. That's why they exist. Why did you volunteer to go into the games if you weren't willing to accept that?"

[Through the Living Hope]

4 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

"You shouldn't have been leaving the arena in the first place. Tributes are meant to die. That's why they exist. Why did you volunteer to go into the games if you weren't willing to accept that?"

"I did, at first. But the arena changed me. I went in because it gave my family a chance to get off the streets if I won. But at first, I didn't see the other tributes as people, just obstacles getting between me and my family. And because of it, I made a big mistake. Tinker made me see that, and he helped me."

[The Stormfather He/Him]

1 minute ago, Spark of Hope said:

"I did, at first. But the arena changed me. I went in because it gave my family a chance to get off the streets if I won. But at first, I didn't see the other tributes as people, just obstacles getting between me and my family. And because of it, I made a big mistake. Tinker made me see that, and he helped me."

"Aw, you wanted to save your family? How cute. Turns out this isn't a children's story. Tributes die. Tributes are supposed to die. Your group killed dozens of Peacekeepers. Maybe this part wasn't you, but it was certainly the Edgedancer. It left a huge hole in the Peacekeeper system. Government workers were killed without guards. Crime infested streets were left without officers to keep watch over. Maybe we got rid of a few bad people, but at what cost? It cost the world a lot, because of what your group did."

A different voice spoke. "Calm down, Perr. We're not here to pick a fight."

[Through the Living Hope]

Just now, The Stormfather said:

"Aw, you wanted to save your family? How cute. Turns out this isn't a children's story. Tributes die. Tributes are supposed to die. Your group killed dozens of Peacekeepers. Maybe this part wasn't you, but it was certainly the Edgedancer. It left a huge hole in the Peacekeeper system. Government workers were killed without guards. Crime infested streets were left without officers to keep watch over. Maybe we got rid of a few bad people, but at what cost? It cost the world a lot, because of what your group did."

A different voice spoke. "Calm down, Perr. We're not here to pick a fight."

“… what was your life like, before?”

[The Stormfather He/Him]

1 minute ago, Spark of Hope said:

“… what was your life like, before?”

"I don't need to answer you, you-"

He was cut off. "Perr. Calm. Down. Follow the plan."

"Oh. Yeah." He turned Marewill in a different direction. She could tell that she wasn't walking on a street anymore, but grass and dirt.

[Through the Living Hope]

2 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

"I don't need to answer you, you-"

He was cut off. "Perr. Calm. Down. Follow the plan."

"Oh. Yeah." He turned Marewill in a different direction. She could tell that she wasn't walking on a street anymore, but grass and dirt.

Well, it was worth a shot.

She didn’t struggle, but her body language was annoyed. 

[The Stormfather He/Him]

7 minutes ago, Spark of Hope said:

Well, it was worth a shot.

She didn’t struggle, but her body language was annoyed. 

They walked for around twenty minutes, eventually getting back to streets. After that, there was the sound of a door opening. There was a long moment of precise walking instructions from the people to navigate Marewill through whatever building she had just walked up to.

[Through the Living Hope]

17 minutes ago, The Stormfather said:

They walked for around twenty minutes, eventually getting back to streets. After that, there was the sound of a door opening. There was a long moment of precise walking instructions from the people to navigate Marewill through whatever building she had just walked up to.

Oh, she was SO tempted to walk into something. But she didn’t.