The Ward's Guard

@Chasmgoat

The colonel cursed under his breath as he watched, he knew that something had to be done, but it was smarter to wait for backup. Still . . . The colonel's body moved by its own accord, all the while Tulcam felt a rushing in his ears as anger overcame him. Only two thoughts pierced through the building rage, one was a memory of a woman's smile, so kind, loving, and endearing as she watched Tulcam. His other thought was his failure; constant and powerful, but not as powerful as his rage. His rage at failing her, he saw it all over again as he watched Trace, and even though his mind told him, screamed at him that he should wait, his heart knew what he needed to, no, what he had to do. He wouldn't fail, not again. The colonel burst from his hiding spot, firing his sidearm at Vespyr in rapid succession as it was closer. The muzzle flash reflected off of the armor plating that covered him from his shoulders down to his wrists, with his fingers partially covered by armor plating in select places, as if to protect his hands when he grips something, or backhands someone. The armor starting to glow, getting brighting with every shot.

The colonel nearly cursed, but he held his tongue in order to not reveal himself. He tried to reposition himself in order to get a clear shot at Trace, but that didn't work. He made the quick decision to stay hidden for the moment, until he a better shot presented itself. If that didn't work, then he might have to take drastic measures.

The colonel made his way around a large tree, keeping Trace in his sights. He deliberated what to do for a brief moment before aiming his sidearm at Trace's head, lining up the shot.

Mustachio did a facepalm. Everything was doing it's best to go the absolute worst way possible for these guys. Good thing he wasn't involved, in fact, he could probably get back home in time to finish his invention of the day before she arrived.

The colonel made his way around the far side of the enemy's location, sidearm ready as he moved to flank their position. As he heard the barrel ensue, he quickened his pace, hoping that he wasn't too late. He hated leaving Maddy behind to go on alone, but the advantage of a flanking assault couldn't be ignored. He heard movement coming towards him, and he lowered himself to hide before checking who it was. Upon seeing that it was Trace, he nearly took the shot, until he saw Cadenza. He hesitated before removing his hand from the trigger. He had to follow her, he had to wait, and the wait would probably kill him.

The colonel nudged Jay, "you mind telling me what your companion can do with that aspect?" @Negative_Null

Kuno swept back into a stance that portrayed power and authority; he stood tall and imposing, not hiding his dull grey eyes as he regarded the guardsman as they waited for the mayor of the town. It was a long moment before the mayor came, and when he did he was in no apparent rush. He was on the shorter side, with brown hair. His most prominent feature was his eyes, they seemed to burn hot red with an inferno that seemed ready to start blazing at a moment's notice. He regarded Kuno warily, waiting for him to speak first, his thoughts portraying a resolve in his own strength. There was an uneasy silence as both Kuno and the mayor regarded each other; Kuno remaining serene, and the mayor watching Kuno with suspicion. Kuno smiled at the mayor, "I see that you're doing well thus far Ewald." At the mention of his name, Ewald glared at Kuno. He was disturbed by the fact that Kuno had not used the title. "Yes, my position as mayor has been very good for my town. It was only a matter of time before the last guy tripped over himself, the least he could have done was leave as little of a mess as possible." Kuno ignored Ewald's tone. "My push was necessary, otherwise humanity would have lost all of you. Fortunately, you seem to be as competent as I thought you would be. It's also fortunate that the timing played out well, isn't it Ewald?" Ewald glared again at the lack of a title. He was suspicious of Kuno, as he claimed to know so much, but was willing to share so little. If he was pulling him along, then he would regret it. However, if Kuno was right . . . "So, what do you need now. You wouldn't come if you didn't need something." Kuno seemed almost amused, "it's not what I need, and it never has been. I've promised you the ability to save your precious town, and I've delivered, haven't I? Now, the threat that comes for us doesn't just plot to destroy your singular town, they want more. The amal want to kill us all." Something inside of Ewald flared when Kuno said the dreaded word. Ewald didn't like that word. No, Ewald didn't hate the word, he hated them, the amal. It seemed that his very mind seethed with hatred when he considered them. His postured shrank down slightly as he had to take a few brief seconds to calm himself down upon hearing that word. "I understand that . . . they are a threat to us all, but there's nothing I can do for anyone who's not in my town." "Yes you can, through me." Ewald almost sneered at this comment. "So you helped me save my town, that doesn't make you the savior of all humanity. You're one man, with an unattainable dream. How can my one town save everyone on this Crystel?" Even though Ewald obviously meant it as a rhetorical question, Kuno stepped forward to answer, radiating confidence. "Tomorrow, a legion of my best will come to aid you in your defense. They are over 300 strong, and they will stand in your defense until you can get your own garrison modernized." Ewald's anger faded away to be replaced with confusion. "300? Modernized? Wha- Where is this coming from?" Kuno's smile turned endearing, "my world is so, so much bigger than you know. As I told you when we first me, humanity on the whole is in danger, and I represent the force that wishes to save us all. I am not alone in this, I might've been once, but no longer. There are already so many who wish to see the sun dawn on a safe world, an orderly world, and they are all willing to unite together to see it." Ewald was apprehensive as he considered what Kuno said, "No, there's no way that you cou-" "With all that you've seen me do, do you doubt me." Ewald was struck with fear as several traumatizing images came to mind, only a few were of Kuno, the rest were Ewald doing things, horrible things. He saw himself standing in front of the crowd as they egged him on. He remembered with a clarity how he not only stood there as he watched his friends be killed, that would have been more bearable. He remembered ordering their deaths on a whim, he could still see the look in their eyes, a look of betrayal as he had them killed. He then remembered Kuno, standing far off behind the crowd, watching it all with a satisfied smile on his face, as if he were watching a plan of his coming to fruition. Ewald began to tremble as he remembered the pain in his friends' eyes as he had them killed for . . . for . . . Kuno's smile faded as he watched Ewald, taking a step towards him and placing a hand on his shoulder. Even with his dull grey eyes, it seemed that Kuno knew what Ewald was thinking. "Ask yourself, why did you do it? Why was it necessary?" Ewald thought on those words as they pierced him. Why did he do it? Why did he betray his friends and have them killed? Why did he stand there as he did it, feeling so accomplished? Why, Ewald, why? It was because of them. The anger that was forgotten rekindled at the thought of them, burning brighter and hotter as he thought about them more. They forced him to do it; it was because of them that he had to take command, that he had to force a few of his friends to suffer. Kuno's smile returned. "Sometimes a few must suffer, even be cast off in order to strengthen the whole. Metal must first be cleansed of its impurities before it can be fashioned into its strongest form. If we want to withstand the coming fire, we must be pure in our devotion, and bonded together to avoid being shattered. It is the sacrifice that we must make in order to defeat the amal." Ewald's resolve strengthen as Kuno spoke, but not resolve in himself, it seemed to be shifting to Kuno. Then, at the mention of the name 'amal,' Ewald's anger and passion flared once more against them. He didn't take as long in regaining his composure this time before speaking, "what can I do? How can I make it worth it?" Kuno's smile was kind, while his mind was confident. "I have big plans for this town, but first we must make many changes. As of now, we have a shortage in production of weapons for the upcoming fight. If humanity is to survive, we will need to fight. As soon as my forces secure this town from our enemy, I'll have the details sent to you. Then we can discuss more plans, incredible plans. Soon, all of humanity will have a beacon to gather round for defense and unity, but we must first take the small steps." Ewald's mind strayed, reminiscing those horrible moments for a brief moment before locking them away, thinking instead about saving humanity's future by helping Kuno. "I can't help if you don't tell me how." Kuno smiled, he knew that he had Ewald. "All in good time my little mayor. It's a matter of security more than anything; just think of what the enemy would learn if they came before my forces arrived. I must move on, my work can not wait mayor Ewald. When my forces arrive, they'll bring with them a means to contact me and my other friends. In all of humanity, there must be order, and we'll find a place for you where you can be the most help to us all in that order." Ewald nodded, not completely satisfied, understanding that this would be all that he would get for now. "If that's all, then I must return to my duties." Kuno nodded towards the mayor as if to dismiss him. "That is all." He then turned and walked off into the town, not bothering to see if Fie and Catorphia were following.

"If this were a typical op, we'd be able to fly a drone in to scout out the area. But we don't have any drones with us, and I really don't want to give away our element of surprise. So I will ask again, anyone good at stealth here? I just need you to get in and find out the layout of where she's at, along with how many are with her."

"Then we need to know what we're walking into, especially if we want to get the drop on her. Any of you particularly good at stealth?"

@DramaQueen

The colonel did not take the joke. He spoke at Cadenza with a stern and even tone, "to limit how many people end up dead."

The colonel drew his sidearm, keeping it ready. "If we're all ready, a quick strike is our best shot with Trace. If we get her while she's distracted, then this will be over soon. Before we do anything, we'll need reconnaissance on the area; I don't want to be going in blind." @xinoehp512 @Negative_Null @Condensation, and @Vapor

"I think I know the feeling. Just stay with me and be ready for anything."

Mustachio arrived as soon as the storm ended and saw the mess of people who were all gathered at the cemetery, not to mention the army of zombies that were rising. He got off of his scooter while keeping his helmet on, speaking under his breath. "Now that's no fair, bodies are not that easy to reanimate. I mean, the shear amount of power required to simply move one corpse is enough to drain my . . ." Mustachio's sentence trailed off when he saw Alein. "This isn't good, nope, not good at all." Mustachio turned around to return to his scooter, knocking it over with an incredibly loud clatter in his haste. He winced, waiting to see if anyone heard him.

"Getting split up is the least of my worries," the colonel spoke as he accepted the earpiece. "Duster Jay, I hope you realize that if we can't take 'Trace' alive for your cure, I'm willing to end her. She's already done too much for me to allow her to get away scot-free, that's not even talking about what she's capable of doing if she does get away." The colonel turned to Maddy, "you set?" @Matrim's Dice

"Hold one moment," the colonel reviewed his device. "Reports have Trace and those that are with her going that way." The colonel pointed off to his left, "We should start there."

"I'll look around for this 'Kade' guy anyways, but I'm not liking that she's getting help. Means that they've got resources on the islands."

"'Kade?' I haven't heard of him yet. There was that criminal, Kane, who we caught and held prisoner at the same time as Trace, it wasn't clear if they were working together."

Mustachio could hear the lightning from across town, and he suspected that everyone else could too by how they were panicking. He just hoped that those idiots at the Foundation would be able to take care of whoever that villain was before it got too bothersome, he had a schedule to keep after all. Then again, maybe they could help him. Mustachio considered it for a brief second, and then decided that it would be best if he just saw who was doing all of this. He mounted his scooter and drove off towards the lightning.