#naturally this is why i brought up grave encounters yesterday

[marypickfords]

Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum (Jung Bum-shik, 2018)

[fandom-meanderer]

give us your saddest and angstiest headcanons for claude seeing his s/o die on the battlefield! how would he react as it's happening, and what would he do afterward? how long would he mourn and would he try anything to get them back? i don't mind either pre time-skip or post time-skip! make us cry!

Saddest, angstiest, headcanons coming up, my dear.

~

It all happened so fast.

Unlike the other Deer, you and Claude stayed together. You followed him through thick and thin, and you supported his case no matter the stakes. You were always there for him, almost like you were conjoined at the hip. His partner in crime, his moonlight rendezvous, his back up, you were everything rolled into one. You even both shared the same opinion on this blasted war and you both worked together to try and find a peaceful end to it all. It all centered around all three of the original House leaders surviving, you both understood that, and it all relied on whether or not they were open to diplomatic relations. Claude, naturally, was always open to discuss peace with his previous classmates, the issue was with Dimitri and Edelgard, you both agreed. Regardless, to say you weren’t his most trusted confidant would be complete blasphemy. You were perfect to him, he was perfect to you, and that’s all that mattered.

It felt just like yesterday when the two of you reunited with the whole class, you and Leonie were smiling, talking about battles you have encountered, you and Raphael were keeping spirits up despite the detrimental war, you and Ignatz would paint portraits together of whatever random cat that strolled into the buildings, you and Lysithea read books on magic, you and Hilda were polishing weapons together, you and Marianne were tending to the horses, hell, even you and Lorenz were cracking jokes, and... And you and him were together. Then you were laughing amongst them like you used to, next you were training with that perfect smile on your face, gods, you were always able to find his weakness, weren’t you?

Right?

As long as you believed in each other, you would both get through this together, right?

...

Right?

So why?

Why did it have to be you?

And why did it have to be protecting him?

No, not Claude, you didn’t go down for him. You went down for Dimitri.

Dimitri of all people! The Feral King! The Boar Prince! Gods, there are so many more names for him Claude couldn’t even count them all. But still, there was that little voice in that pure heart of yours that always told you that the Dimitri both he and she were both friends with was still in there, and in fact he never left. But, by the Goddess above, how Claude wanted to rip that demon king’s head off and present it to Faerghus.

Oh gods... he sounds just like Dimitri now.

Is this what he felt?

Is this why he went insane?

He gets it now.

He finally understands, he understood it all when he realized that it only took five seconds. Five, that’s all the so called “merciful” Goddess gave you. In those five seconds, you were still able to turn to him, give him that damned smile he loved you for, then fall to the ground, with your blood staining the earth under you, that damned sword still impaled in you. And your own sword at that.

And, in a single heartbeat, he threw that accursed bow to the side and picked up your sword, he killed your assailant beyond question and charged into the frontlines himself, leaving no living being in his wake.

He was right about to kill Dimitri when he felt someone pulling him back. Raphael was the one who caught up first, Leonie came next, then the Professor. But in truth, it took all the Golden Deers to pry him out of that state, they realized that the only thing that would keep them alive is if they retreated from this bloody, bloody battle.

Claude’s throat was burning, his eyes stung, and his hands were bloodied and bruised. He was heaving, panting, and screaming all the same. This isn’t like him, he knows, usually he keeps his head cool, but that happened. That really happened. You were gone, and you were gone for good. And you died for such a stupid reason in such a stupid way, of all the ways to die it had to be like that. You had to hurt him like that. But you did it for a reason, you’d never just throw your life away. He knew that. He knew that. But he also knew that you would be slapping him senseless right now. So where were you?

“Something! Please, anyone do anything,” Claude plead. Marianne stood over your body, casting her healing spell, but she knew as well as anyone that there was nothing they could do. You were gone. And that was it.

There’s no turning back the clocks.

Byleth tried that, they tried everything to bring you back, but no matter the outcome, you always died. This was the best one. You got to say goodbye to Claude, after all. In all the other ones you either died alone or at the hands of Dimitri. And for some reason, Byleth understood more than anything why that wasn’t the best option.

Back at the monastery, things weren’t the same at all. Everything just seemed gloomier. All the flowers in the greenhouse withered, for one, you were always in charge of that, and no one could bring themselves to go into the building you loved so dear. The food in the dining halls just seemed more bland, for another, you weren’t there to experiment or blow up the entire darn kitchen. The whole area was just... dead.

Everyone missed you so much, too, not just Claude. Leonie lost one of her closest friends, Lysithea lost the closest thing she had ever had to an older sister, Raphael lost his optimist buddy, Ignatz lost his biggest fan, Hilda lost her best friend, Marianne lost her outlet, and Lorenz lost his means of getting through to Claude. But Claude? Claude lost everything when he watched you die.

Knowing this, Claude tried everything, and I mean everything, to bring you back.

He couldn’t do this without you.

He needed his confidant, his best friend, his lover. He needed you.

Claude wasn’t against any necromancy spells at this time. He wasn’t against sitting by your grave, slowly digging you out because “Dear Goddess! She can’t breathe in there, what if she isn’t dead?” It was a pitiful sight, really. Sometimes in strategy meetings he would habitually turn to his right side and ask what you think, and the first couple of times he did that was just so painful to watch, and the next few times were downright worrying because then Claude resorted to talking to himself as if you really were there.

All the deer kept their distance, they were all afraid of what Claude might do. What if he did end up like Dimitri? What if he really did dig your body up your grave? What if... what if he really brought you back? But it wasn’t you?

The Professor finally had to step in, remind Claude that he had an army to lead, and a war to stop. After all, isn’t that what you died for?

‘Isn’t that what you died for?’ Those words rang in Claude’s head endlessly.

After the fact, Claude was definitely different. He tried to keep up his original facade, but the rest of the deers knew so much better. They knew Claude, as much as they could at least, and they knew that he wasn’t handling this well. Once the Professor had gotten through with the Alliance leader, the rest of the deer rushed to help him through anything. Claude would joke that they were “babying” him, but really, what else could they do? After the rampage at Gronder Field, Claude realized what brought Dimitri down.

He couldn’t do that. He couldn’t be like that. There’s no way Dimitri was human anymore, but you died for that man. You died because you knew that deep down there was a solution to this war. And Claude couldn’t just put that to waste. But at the same time...

How could he do this without you?

Claude mourned for a long time. Even after the war, he was still mourning. Not even a statue in Almyra was enough to honor you, nothing ever would be. It was because of you, after all, that the war ended without anymore needless deaths. Your sacrifice brought Dimitri to his senses, after all. You were right all along, Dimitri was key in winning this war. And not a day went by where Dimitri felt never ending regret for what happened that day, and as much as Claude smiled through it, he never got over it either.

But for your sake, he’d pull his shit together and live up to the standard you died for. For your sake, he’ll pretend that he’s the same as ever, the schemer, the leader, the king. For your sake, he’ll stay on good terms with Dimitri, no matter how hard it was to look at him. For your sake, he’ll just be Claude.

~

Whoa that was longer than I thought, and a lot more out of character too. I was curious what would happen if Claude just snapped, you know? This kind of emerges from the whole flipped au but not really, I just wanted to focus on how he felt from then, idk, I think this ended up quite well in my opinion.

[artxyra]

Haunted Affection | Part 1

Shotguns and roses, make a deadly potion. Heartbreak explosions, in reckless motion. Teddy bears and "I'm sorry" letters. Don't seem to make things better. Don't bury me alive. Sweet talk and lullaby. 

Avril Lavigne, “I Fell in Love with the Devil” 

It was a cloudy day when all of Paris realize that something was wrong. There were no akuma attacks, only thunderous showers of rain. Everyone was on edge, not knowing why this was occurring. As this was going on, no one saw the single figure taking a stroll in the graveyard.

The sky darkens.

The lone figure, dressed in black, strolls over to an alter where thorns of roses surround it leading up to the circle iron pendant of two guns crossed. The figure pulls down the hood. It was a teen, no more than sixteen years of age, her hair flows into ringlets onto her shoulders showcasing it once shiny blue.  Closing her eyes, she unclasps the cape. No longer did the woman stood in black, but now a blood-red trumpet gown with a long train that surrounds the ground beneath her.

When her eyes open once more, another figure appears. A male dressed in a black suit with sleeked blonde hair. He gets behinds her and takes the teen into his arms. She gasps in delight losing herself to the man’s touch.

The sun breaks through the clouds and shines directly onto the couple.  

A few months prior:

The class hasn’t been the same since Lila Rossi came back from her supposed trip to Achu. Marinette shivers, clenching on her jacket as if it was her life support, and tries to pay attention to the lesson. She could feel her essence leaving her body with each day that passes. Everything around drains the poor teen and being friendless only made it worse.

It was when the class has concluded for the day when the light came back to Marinette. Whenever she felt drained she would find herself in the graveyard walking around on the dirt pavement with grace. This became her everyday occurrence. No one is ever at the graveyard when she arrives, and the gentle sound of nature’s guides her through the emotions.

“Well, this isn’t a sight that you see every day.” A voice brought her back to reality. She turns to see a male, around her age (maybe a little older) with blonde hair staring at her. It was then that Marinette fell. Darkness consumes her as the light fights against it. Everything felt light, like there was no gravity holding her back.

That night, Marinette was unsure what happened when she was in the graveyard, but the one thing that she did knew was that she had woken up in her bed. She even asked her parents how she got home, and their answer farther confused her: “You were already in bed when we got home from a delivery.”

Marinette wanted—no she needed to know what happened yesterday. She made it her mission to go back to the graveyard right after school.

The minutes leading to the final bell was strikingly hard for the bluenette and on top of that, her peers were getting on her nerves. She could tell that Adrien wanted to talk to her, but she just wasn’t ready. Why would she be, no communication for weeks and now he wants to talk.

The second the bell rang, Marinette found herself back on the familiar dirt pavement. The wind and animals stilled as if the graveyard was frozen in time. Her Ladybug instincts kicked in, leaving her on edge as she paces along the paths.

“Well isn’t this a nice surprise.” It was the same voice. Marinette turns and comes face to face with the one that made her mind go wild.

“Who are you?” She mustered up to the courage to say. The male lets out a short dark chuckle and gestures to the stone bench to the side. Marinette against her better judgment confides in his wishes.

“I’m no one important.” He answers, he kept his distance on the bench, “Why is a lone girl like yourself alone in a graveyard?”

She was mentally drained; he was paying attention to her, and who was she to deny his attempts at conversation? The two fell into an endless exchange of words. With each moment, Marinette could feel her mood brighten, but it all comes crashing down.

Screams fill the streets of Paris. Marinette looks back to the male and saw that she was once again alone. Her heart breaks a little as she still doesn’t know the male’s name, but her duties as Ladybug triumphs any attempts to find the male.

A few days later:

Marinette couldn’t deny her entrance towards the mysterious blonde male; unfortunately, another blonde male was captive by her unusual lack of interest in the class.

“Mari! Can we talk?” Adrien was desperate and Marinette could hear it in his voice.

She stops and turns to the blonde model, “You need anything?”

Adrien breathes a sigh of relief; she acknowledges him for the first time in a month. However, what he doesn’t know that one slips up and she’ll be gone.

“We haven’t talked in a while and I wondering if you wanted to hang out?” He offers.

Marinette eyes trail him up and down to find an alternative motive for this random question. “I don’t know, Adrien, I have a lot on my plate. Maybe another time?” A few months ago, Marinette would have jumped at any moment to hang out with the model, but now she doesn’t know.

“Perhaps tomorrow, we can get ice cream at Andre’s?” It was clear that Adrien really wanted to hang out with the teen.

As much as Marinette wanted to say no, she knew that he would subtly push her until she said yes. Adrien beams and struts away like he won a prize. Marinette rolls her eyes and hums a little tune as she heads over to the graveyard.

Taking a stroll around, Marinette looks for the mysterious sleek blonde male that she had grown close to. It didn’t take long for their next encounter.

The blonde smirk at the woman in front of him. “Hello again, Marinette.”

Her heart skips a beat as a shiver runs down her spine, “Hello.”

The blonde takes the bluenette’s hands and pulls her closer to him. Marinette allows herself to be flatter by the male, and she could care less about what others would say.

“You never told me your name?” In fact, she doesn’t remember ever giving the man her own name, but it was the least of her worries. The male is taken back, never once has he been asked his name.

“Félix.” It was short and his name couldn’t help but draw the bluenette farther into his grasp.

Marinette curtsy at Félix’s name and the two went into a deep conversation.

After his photo shoot, Gorilla ended up driving past the graveyard. Adrien enviously looks out the window and sighs. It was moments like this that made him feel free, even when it was in an enclosed place. A familiar sight catches his eyes.

“Stop the car!” The car screeches, Adrien looks at the familiar figure to get a better look.

It was Marinette with someone.

What was his princess doing hanging out with this person--in a graveyard no less?

Adrien’s grip tightens on the door handle, clenching his teeth, he could feel Plagg nudging him from his hiding spot. Don’t do anything stupid. The car moves and Adrien glares at the view.

Marinette didn’t want to end her time with Félix, but it was getting late, and she knew her parents would worry. That and she had patrol tonight as Ladybug.

“Until our next encounter.” A blush forms across her cheeks as Félix disappears from her view as she walks away.

The next day:

Marinette was dreading hanging out with Adrien that afternoon, but a little voice within her was excited to spend some one-on-one with the model.

It was time.

Mariette and Adrien walk down the halls avoiding the stares that their classmates were giving them. Adrien was floating in bliss while Marinette felt like digging herself a grave to hide in.

“Can you believe her; she is taking Adrien from me.” Lila scoffs looking for attention.

This wasn’t what Marinette had imagined. Her emotions were stilled as they ate their ice cream, flavors that were different from the last time she was with him. Thankfully there little get together (or date in Adrien’s case) was coming to an end.

“We should do this again.” To him, he was winning.

“Maybe.” She murmurs and walks past the elated model leaving him in a daze of concern.

With each attempt to woe the bluenette, Adrien knew he was at war. At first, he didn’t mind, but when he found out that his modeling competitor, Félix Culpa, was the person that Marinette has been hanging out with. It’s not like he transformed into Chat Noir to spy on the couple when he spotted the couple last week. It made him determine to win the girl’s heart away from the devil.

Part 2

[casualcatte]

RP Journal 8/24 and 8/25/2020

08/24/2020

The Bounty Call Elite Hunt was today and I was /severely/ disappointed in my own performance. Everyone else that came along with us was splendid, but for my own part -- Gods, I think my parents are turning over in their graves in shame. I’ve lived and breathed the Hunt since I could walk, yet I couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn today if my life depended on it. It was likely the fault of the aetheric blast I took immediately after I drew first blood on the beast, so I really shouldn’t be so hard on myself. Nan’to Vaadrage told me as much when we returned to Headquarters.

(Courtesy cut for length -- and for you to get your tissues!)

Regardless of my poor performance, we managed to take down the Elite Hunt with only a modicum of trouble. For a short while, it seemed like no one could get a blow to land on the beast until I landed that attack. After that, the others seemed to rally and fight all the harder -- while I mostly stayed behind a rock and tried not to puke my guts out like Zanshin Kutabare.

It was curious to see Loksia Grimheart with a bow, considering that when we’d gone hunting for coral she’d opted for a sword and shield. A woman of many talents, that. The others, Azazel Hasegawa and Ryza Eclipse I’d never before met, but they both did well between their various magicks. Still, I was glad to finally see the beast go down.

I stayed long enough to have a celebratory drink with everyone, then I stumbled off home. I wasn’t badly injured, but aetheric bullshit always messes with me. Gods, to say nothing of the two aetheryte trips. I know I’m trying to learn Astromancy and all, but some days I really, really hate aetherical magic.

I’m not sure how, but I managed to make it home, get cleaned up and changed out of my hunting leathers before falling face-first in my couch. Lorrendor, I knew, had gone back to Ul’dah, but I had no idea where that dragoon, Edgard Beaumont had gone. All I knew was that I was exhausted and had to rest.

The remainder of the night, I’m told, was passed in a fevered haze as the after-effects of the aether poisoning got to me. I don’t know what I said or what I did, but I have a feeling that I was a lot of trouble for Ardi.  Between you and I, journal, I was touched that he stayed right next to me, sitting on the floor beside the sofa, watching over me all night. 

Wilbur, a porxie familiar that was gifted to me by Rae-Hann, apparently put in an appearance when I started to have nightmares. He siphoned away the excess aether and that seemed to help me a fair bit. I’m sure that it was just a fever-dream, but I recall waking at one point with Edgard’s arms around me as he held me close, telling me that everything was going to be okay, that I was safe at home in my cabin. My face was wet from tears and I felt like I’d been screaming. The nightmares Wilbur took away must have been severe. I don’t remember much else except for a pink book that Ardi kept hiding.  Why would he need to hide a book?

I slept.  And this time I didn’t dream.

8/25/2020

When next I awoke, I sent Edgard off to get some fresh air and to stretch his muscles.  As I mentioned, he’d sat on the floor all night watching over me as I slept. No doubt that man was achy and in need of some activity.  While he was gone, I gingerly made my way to the bath and gave myself the promised soak I’d meant to have when I got home, but skipped in deference to sleep.  Once more dressed and ready to face the world, I settled back into my comforter nest on the sofa that Edgard had made me and read one of the books he’d left to keep me entertained, along with a cup of tea and some medicine to help with the nausea.

It was thus that I was found by Lorrendor Hauland when he came to visit. I was surprised to see him come all the way from Ul’dah, given that our last encounter had been… unsettling to say the least. I can’t really tell you what happened between then and now, but this Lorrendor was a different man entirely.

Have I not said before that every encounter with this man feels like it’s with a different person?  Today was no different.  This was a Lorrendor who was stiff and austere, emotionless save for the one point he laughed when I proclaimed him an automaton. He fetched me tea, he was exceedingly polite and complimentary. I told him at one point I half expected to hear him replying with “Yes, Mistress” and “Whatever you wish, Mistress” to everything I said ere long.

He kept saying that he was “Lorrendor as he should have been instead of the Lorrendor he became.”  So this was another version, another mask, as he tried to tamp down his love for me and simply be my friend. Sometimes it makes me wonder if the man has ever lived an honest life and if anyone knows who he truly is?  The many Lorrendors I know may be nothing at all like the Lorrendor that Loksia knows or anyone else among his friends.  There’s really no telling and there’s really no comparing notes.  I don’t know the man.  I’m not sure I ever will.  He doesn’t trust me enough to be himself around me and I don’t trust him enough /because/ he chooses to hide.

Still, I owe it to him to bring him with me into Dusk Vigil when I go. We’d tracked the Saurotaun to the ruin and think that it may be a lair for it, so that alone is worth investigating. He suggested I bring along people I trust.  Naturally, Edgard as my hunting partner, and Rae-Hann as my closest friend, and after some debate, Lorrendor.  He’d brought me this information to begin with, the least I could let him do was see it through to the end with me.

Somewhere during this conversation, Ardi returned from his walk. When I queried why he’d been gone so long, he said he’d gotten “distracted” then he tried to hide the same pink book he’d had yesterday behind his back. I tried to get it from him a number of times, even tried to get Lorrendor to fetch it when Ardi threw it across the room, alas.  Neither of us could foil that wily dragoon when he’s of a mind he has a secret to keep. 

With Edgard present, we discussed the plan for Dusk Vigil again and the dragoon recommended we make it a scouting mission in case the monstrosity was at home. If we saw it, we would retreat and come back with a more tactical plan. Part of me rankled at being made to wait, especially if it was /right there/ but I knew better than to argue. Certainly not with /both/ he and Lorrendor there.  

Eventually, Ardi and I settled into our usual banter with Lorrendor chastizing us both as children -- though this time we /were/ being pretty childish -- but all of us laughed and had some fun, I think.  Lorrendor needed to catch the last flight from Ishgard to Ul’dah, so he took his leave. 

Which left just Edgard and I.  Again, I tried to get the secret of the pink book out of him, but he refused to tell.  He made me another cup of tea and we talked, as we often do.  I pointed out to him that he seemed much more relaxed that he had when he first arrived in Kugane after his fight with Edmond. He seemed more at peace with himself, that whatever chains holding him down had broken and now he had a chance to soar -- but had no idea how to use his wings.

He told me that I’d helped him a great deal, that he’s actually excited when he wakes up in the morning. And in this excitement he gave me a linkpearl, so that we could talk even when we’re apart. It’s a silly, common thing that everyone uses, but it felt meaningful coming from him. Naturally, I had to tease him about it, though, saying that he just wanted to whisper sweet nothings into my ear whenever he wanted. 

He inferred then that Something Happened last night in my fevered delirium.  He refused to tell me though, saying that something so /intimate/ was meant to be kept a secret. It worried me.  Had I said or done something inappropriate?  I think I would know, physically, if I’d slept with him and I didn’t really feel that was the case. Idiot, of course he’d delight in worrying me like that.

Still, when I demurred that I didn’t do much of anything for him, he said that I was one of few people who took him seriously, outside of his brother.  I listen to him and he feels like he can talk to me about anything. That I could be trusted with his problems. It was heartwarming to be so trusted and I reassured him that I would always be there for him as long as he wanted.

It was then that his mood shifted somewhat and he told me that he was finally ready to go to Valentina’s graveside, to finally find the closure with her that his heart and his soul both needed. He asked me again if I would still go with him.  And my answer was of course, I’d promised him that I would. For the first time since I’d know him, I saw fear ripple through Edgard.  Fear, uncertainty, and a vulnerability that made my heart ache for him. 

I sat next to him, leaning into his side, just to give him a real, living presence to comfort him in such a troubled moment.  I reassured him that he wasn’t alone.  He would never be, so long as I drew breath.  When next he looked at me, his eyes captured and held me within their blue crystalline depths. It was in those depths that I could see … longing. Like a moth to a flame I was drawn to it, enchanted by it -- for a moment, I reached out to that flame…

Before I came to my godsdamned senses!  I made my excuses to leave, claiming I needed sleep in my own bed and I left the room. Ardi seemed bewildered and confused, it made my heart ache.  I couldn’t believe I’d gotten that close to going against my own expectations. I can’t.  I can’t do to him what Tristane did to me. I don’t want to hurt him. I was angry and disappointed in myself for not minding my /own/ boundaries. 

As I sat in my room, rebuking myself for my behavior.  I heard him talking to himself on the other side of the wall.  What I heard, what he said, made my heart hurt all the more. Part of me wanted to go to him, to reassure him, but I knew it was better for us both to remain silent. The Hunt must always be first in my heart.  Until it is done, I can’t… I won’t put anyone in the position to love me only for me to die.  I knew that pain once and I swore I would never inflict it on anyone else.

What do I do now?  How do I act?  I never meant for things to get this far. Somewhere, somehow… what wasn’t serious became serious.  If I deny his feelings like I did Lorrendor, will he do the same thing?  Turn into some emotionless marionette, just going through the song and dance of friendship?  I don’t know that I could take that.  Ardi is a source of joy to me and a good partner. I don’t… I don’t want to have to be without him.

Why does making the right choice have to be so goddamned hard?

[anchoredtether]

Title: Cruel Awakening

Author: AnchoredTether

Rating: M [graphic depictions of violence, dark/disturbing themes]

Series: Avatar: The Elements of Chaos

Chapter: 3/?

Summary:  Nearly 200 years has passed since Avatar Aang saved the world, and although he restored peace among the nations it did not stay for long. After Aang’s death, the new Avatar born into the water tribe was quickly killed while in the avatar state.

Since the Avatar cycle was broken, the world fell apart. The nations became filled with hatred and nature itself perished. Because the Avatar died when from the water tribe, representing the season of winter, the world has been stuck in seasonal dissonance where winter lasts nearly the whole year.

With the imbalance of the four seasons and the four nations, devastation constantly lies upon the horizon. Zavital and Yasu, two young air and firebenders, are slaves of project Kanora, a military of benders trained to control the chaos of the world. Zavital encounters the spirit of Avatar Aang who claims to know a way to restore the Avatar cycle. Through his help, Zavital and Yasu strive to bring back the Avatar so the world may once more be restored to full balance.

][ -- music -- ][

The camp was overturn with a restless urgency. As the siren continued to wail out its alarm, prisoners and guards alike ran to their posts, orders shouting above the chaos. Yasu ran ahead, leading Zavital towards his regiment.

"Kiet, what's going on?" Yasu asked a fellow firebender as they reached the group of soon-to-be twenty-one year olds. Zavital noticed Keeshi among the group and couldn't help the burning sensation in her chest.

"Attack on Republic City." The firebender named Kiet said. "Sounds like there's multiple organizations this time." His bright amber eyes turned to look at Zavital. "Hey. Welcome to our regiment. I'm Kiet."

"Zavital. Pleasure." There wasn't time for formalities as they were shoved onto a train car and given further instructions from an officer as they sped away on the rails.

"Intel says there's attacks from Ziran's followers, the Anaki, and Bluebloods. Ziran's followers and the Anaki have been known to work together before, but why the Bluebloods have joined is uncertain." The officer announced. "You are to treat each affiliation in the same manner - use force, but take prisoners, not corpses. We will break out into three teams. There needs to be at least one waterbender for every firebender in each team. Waterbenders! Your job is to make sure Bluebloods don't kill your firebender teammates." He assigned five people as leaders to form themselves a team. An earthbender girl quickly snatched up Zavital and Kiet to be on her team, as well as a male waterbender and earthbender.

"Zavital!" The male earthbender greeted her with a grin. "You really kicked my butt yesterday."

She blinked a few times rapidly. "Umm… thanks? You're welcome? I don't know what to say to that."

"I'm excited to see how you do out in the field." The leader earthbender girl said.

"I actually have no idea what to expect." She found herself looking for Yasu, wondering how he would hold up fighting against the organization that killed his parents. He was easy to find with his height, and her stomach churned when she saw how pale he looked, his icy hues staring off into the distance as if he were in a trance. She brought herself back to the task at hand, looking at the leader earthbender. "I know we're supposed to avoid killing anyone. But is there a limit to what we can and cannot bend?"

The girl smiled, her green eyes mysterious. "No. What you would normally be disqualified for at camp, you can use on the field. You can only use extreme measures if the situation calls for it, however."

"Right." Zavital gave a nod. It had been ages since she was able to fight without holding back, and even though she was itching to get out there and wreak some havoc, a part of her was also hesitant. She clutched her hands into fists to keep them from trembling. She regretted the question as soon as it left her mouth, but she couldn't stop herself. "How many people usually die during these kind of attacks?"

"Nervous, airbender?" The waterbender finally spoke.

"Curious." She countered.

"It all depends." Kiet said. "We're pretty good at keeping the casualties to zero on both sides, but this time it's a massive attack. There's already Kanoran regiments out battling the three organizations. We're the backup."

Kanoran soldiers needing backup? Zavital had never heard of such a thing. As Kiet said, it was three organizations working together this time, and the Bluebloods were infamous for their skill in bloodbending… she had no idea what kind of chaos would rage on the battlefield, and the uncertainty set her nerves on fire.

She had grave expectations on the ride to Republic City, but nothing could prepare her for the mayhem within its walls. The train was nearing its stop in the heart of the city but they were expected. She turned her head just in time to see the erecting walls of ice and heard a chorus of shouts before the train completely crashed and derailed.

Zavital awoke with a ringing in her ears, her vision blurry. Everything felt heavy, her movements slow. As her senses came to, she realized she was flung several feet away from the remains of the train. The area was covered in ice and blood, dead and unconscious bodies scattered all over in a haunting stillness. She was bleeding in several places from scrapes and abrasions and she could feel her old wound along her jaw had broken open again beneath the bandages. She slowly stood up just in time to fend off a Blueblood who sent daggers of ice in her direction.

She flung the ice away with a gust of wind, but quickly realized that some of them would harm other Kanoran soldiers still lying on the ground. Her quick reflexes bent the wind to will the ice daggers away from her comrades, but in her distraction she found her hands suddenly stopped. With a gasp of horror as she saw the ice daggers wound several soldiers, some of them screaming as they woke to consciousness, Zavital realized she was being controlled.

A wild snicker of amusement sounded over her shoulder as she trained her golden hues upon the waterbender. "I've never bloodbended an airbender before! I'm curious as to what I can make you do."

Kiet was up on his feet and running towards the Blueblood, sending waves of fire his way. The Blueblood simply bloodbended Zavital to fight for him and she saw the hesitation cross Kiet's face. As he tried to weave around her to attack their enemy, Zavital kept blocking his attacks and sending furious strikes of wind towards her ally. It wasn't as if she had never been bloodbended before - Keeshi had done that just yesterday - but this was different. Instead of simply feeling forced to do something, as if some invisible hand were pulling her to move a certain way, Zavital felt like she was no longer herself, that her body was not her own and she was merely a spectral watcher of the events happening before her. She wondered if that was just a manifestation of greater bloodbending skill. It made her sick to her stomach.

She was powerless. No matter how hard she fought, she couldn't break from the bloodbender's will. At the rate she was being controlled, she was going to severely harm her teammates. A gasp left her lips as her arm lifted, her hand twisted into a very specific bending move. The air around Kiet dissipated, leaving him gasping for breath as she sucked his lifeforce from his very lungs.

Zavital's eyes widened in horror as she saw him fall to his knees and ultimately collapse upon the ground. A sickening crash and scream sounded behind her and instantly she could feel her blood flowing hotly through her veins as her control returned. She whipped her head around to find the earthbender leader of her group had slammed a wall of rock into the Blueblood, pinning him against a building which now displayed an artwork of crimson. Before she could be sickened by the image of death, she ran toward Kiet and fell on her knees to check his vitals.

"He's alive…" She whispered in a sigh of relief, carefully bending the air to gently fill his lungs. "He's alive!" She called over to her leader, but when no response came she turned around to see the girl lying on the ground. A scarlet ribbon cut across her throat, pooling about her lifeless face. Zavital's heart pounded in fear. She wanted to scream at the top of her lungs and run from this nightmare of a battlefield, but she was frozen in place with an unconscious firebender at her knees and a stealth assassin nearby.

Her leader was dead. She didn't know her commanding officer. She was just recently thrown into her regiment without any proper transfer. She didn't know anyone's names aside from the unconscious Kiet, and Yasu. She grabbed Kiet by the arms, stood up, and started pulling him towards an alleyway and leaned him up against the wall. She ran back out into the open, her fingers twitching in fear and uncertainty. She could bend air against the three other elements, but how was she supposed to bend against an assassin's blade? As she stayed alert of her surroundings, she realized how quiet it was. Dead or unconscious bodies littered the battlefield, the metallic stench of blood mixed with the crisp cool air. The longer she stood in the silence, the greater her apprehension grew. The killer has to be nearby. They wouldn't just kill her and leave. The assassin was playing tricks with her, as was her fear.

"YASU!" She screamed his name into the air, hoping with her entire being that he wasn't dead. She couldn't fight an aggressor and protect Kiet all on her own, especially if more than one enemy showed up.

Before her voice could finish echoing, she felt a shift in the air around her. Whirling around to meet her fate, she was caught off guard with the slice of a knife against her arm before she could even see her enemy's face. As fast as they came, they were gone, and Zavital had no idea if it was a man or a woman, a bender or non-bender. She wished she could harness the earthbending skill of seismic sense to detect the assassin's location, but not even her heightened airbending abilities could detect someone so stealthy.

Summoning her concentrated needles of air, she was able to strike one towards her enemy just before his blade reached her. Precision, but no accuracy. The miniscule tornado tore through the assassin's shoulder, rending flesh and ribbons of blood through the air in grotesque arcs, her remaining needles dissipating into gusts of wind. Hot blood splattered all over her as shock coursed through her body, the adrenaline causing her to barely register the dagger penetrating between her ribs. Only did she understand with widened honey eyes as the blade was removed with a scream, rearing back like a snake ready to strike the fatal blow.

The snake never killed its prey.

Blood splattered her once more, a familiar pair of blue eyes meeting her horrified gaze. The firebender retreated his fiery hand from the cavity of the assassin's chest, allowing the corpse to fall. Zavital stared at the gaping hole, the loosely hanging arm, the scattered sinew, the mess of blood. Her breaths came in quick and heavy, her world spinning out of control as she grasped her open wound and trembled. Warm hands grasped the sides of her face and forced her to look up instead of whipping her head around in a panic. All her frenzied mind could think of was whether his hands were warm from the fire that encased them moments ago, or from the beating heart of the assassin he just rent in two.

"Zavital. Breathe." Yasu's words cut fierce, clearing the fog in her mind. "Focus. You can't lose consciousness. We need to find a safe house so we can heal your wounds before you lose too much blood, do you understand? Can you be strong for just a little longer?"

Her breaths came in faster, her hands trembled at the hot cascade of her wound, her head shaking against Yasu's hands since she couldn't find the voice to reply 'no.' His expression was unreadable, as if his face were chiseled from stone. After a moment of thought, he simply gave a brief nod and replied, "Okay."

The last thing Zavital could remember before her vision blacked out was being scooped up into the firebender's arms.

[newsnigeria]

Check out New Post published on Ọmọ Oòduà

New Post has been published on http://ooduarere.com/news-from-nigeria/world-news/venezuelan-vicepresident-delcy/

Venezuelan Vicepresident Delcy Rodriguez – Press conference Feb 21 2019

TRANSCRIPT:

0.01 At this time last minute information is coming out and we’ll go to Av Urbaneta, the See of the Executive Vicepresidency of the Republic. Marbelys Fernández will tell us all the details of what’s happening there. Marbe, go ahead, good afternoon.

0.03 Yes, that’s right, the Executive Vicepresident of the Republic at this time provides information of national interest that we share with you.

0.24 We wanted to share with the country important information of meetings that we have held this morning in the See of the Executive Vicepresidency of the Republic.

We had the meeting with Chancellor Jorge Reaza and the Vice-chancellor for latin America and held a meeting with the ambassador for Holland, who brought a diplomatic message from Holland related to the measures that President Maduro adopted yesterday on the islands of Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire.

We must remark that the diplomatic message and the meeting were given in the frame of absolute respect for the constitutional government of President Maduro and also in the public international law.

We also talked with the ambassador about the refineries that Venezuela has both on the island of Curaçao as well as in the island of Aruba and we have agreed on follow up conversations in the following days and review?? the resolution?? of this measure instituted by the constitutional president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro.

On the other hand, we have received the international contact group of the EU and the representative of Uruguay.

There, we were extensive on the frame and constitutional content of Venezuela. The articles that are the foundation of our institutional work, our rule of law, the rightful authorities of the country, only one president, well we made a full review to let the EU know, to clarify any unknowns that any EU country may have about our constitution.

Indeed we saw that they even mentioned former Venezuelan constitutions and not the current constitution.

So we provided absolute clarity and light on the fundamental articles of our constitution.

2.45 We equally dismantled what the farce, the show of the humanitarian aid for Venezuela means.

We also highlighted what the principles and purposes of the UN letter are. How humanitarian aid happens, in what instance it proceeds, the humanitarian aid. We gave very clear examples; I’d like to retake some data that the president gave yesterday to our country on what the social program of the local committees for supply and production mean where a box of food is delivered to 6 million families.

They are announcing a humanitarian aid, they have mounted a big show in Cúcuta on the border with Colombia only to justify a military intervention in Venezuela. And they have announced that they have 9 deposits loaded with 200 metric tons of food, medicaments, well they include combs, towels..

But we showed what one day of CLAP (Supply and Production Local Committee) means for Venezuela.

In one day we deliver through CLAP and popular organization 298,609 boxes, which corresponds to 4,479 metric tons per day; this supposes the mobilization of 149 GANDOLAS (lorries) per day.

Countered with the new lorries that they propose and have the big show mounted where already Venezuelan terrorists begin to arrive at Cúcuta and they have foreseen the arrival of U.S. extremists to stress this farce, this circus.

Well, we have done the contrast of what this humanitarian aid means, the big scandal on Venezuela, it barely amounts to a 6% of the CLAP that we deliver in one day.

But, I will continue, if we compare with the month of January 2019, last month, we delivered 19,256,878 CLAPs, which correspond to 138,853 metric tons and we add to that other social food programs as the program PAE??, then we’d have 182,701 metric tons in the month of January.

For this logistics, we require 6,090 lorries. The other ones, the poor 9 lorries that they are offering as humanitarian aid, this immoral and hypocrite coalition that pretends that they bring the solution for the Venezuelan people in 9 lorries. This represents the 0.14 % of what we deliver through the CLAP in one month.

But in the year 2018, to finish all this, these numbers which are very clear and overwhelming, 119,822,821 CLAP boxes were delivered; in metric tons: 1,797,343 against the 260 metric tons that they say is the great solution for Venezuela and that dictator Maduro won’t let enter the solution and the aid for the poor people of Venezuela; here in the CLAPs is the dignified response of the model of Bolivarian Socialism facing what is one of the worst criminal blockades against any country which is being committed against Venezuela doing it through illegal sanctions and the financial and commercial blockade.

7.02 For us, to guarantee this distribution, almost 60,000 lorries were utilized to make sure precisely that the food would reach the whole national territory.

60,000 lorries against the 9 that they have in Cúcuta to bring the great solution for the Venezuelan people. A huge farce, an enormous hoax against our country that seeks to ridicule what the mechanisms of humanitarian aid really are for those countries which have had natural catastrophes or have an internal armed conflict, and therefore the application of the right to humanitarian intervention with very precise characteristics in the framework of the UN, in a strict application of the law which must be neutral, impartial, that mustn’t have a political purpose like in this case where they seek to overthrow the constitutional government of President Nicolás Maduro.

8.12 A clear political objective which is the change of regime in Venezuela, that’s the only thing they seek, the government of President Donald Trump.

Now I’m going to ask for a video, which is one more evidence that the real aim of the US government is the Venezuelan oil. Venezuela is the country with the largest oil reserve in the planet, with one of the largest reserves of gas, an energy superpower that they pretend to asphyxiate and drown so they can keep our natural resources ad infinitum.

I’m going to ask the video of an ex-FBI director of the US where he says textually words of Donald Trump that one must make war with Venezuela who is right here in our backyard because the country has oil. The video please.

“The president says to the briefer that he wants to have war with Venezuela, and this is in 2017. “Yeah, the president’s remarks in the hall were along the lines: why we are not looking at Venezuela, why we are not at war with Venezuela, they have all the oil and they are right on our back door, so I can’t put myself in the president’s mind, I can’t say how clearly crystal how clearly his intent could crystallize, but these were comments that caused us deep concern.”

9.45 What does Donald Trump’s government really want? Venezuelan oil, told by an ex director of the US’ FBI.

They took the masks off, we have arrived at that hour when Venezuela is going to defend her legitimate right to her territory, her resources, to guarantee the Venezuelan people’s dignity, because they are in the mind set to take our oil away and attack our country with their own particular goals and here there is, we have to say it, an extremist right that allows itself to be used for Venezuela’s intervention and is currently on a coup d’etat to guarantee these perverse goals of interventionism on our motherland.

I wish to recall what the supposed humanitarian aid of US has meant in humankind. Each time that the US says we are going to bring humanitarian aid is for attacking, to start a war, to bring violence, death.

11.00 Please I want the video where ex-president Bush talks about Iraq’s humanitarian aid.

“We will bring to the Iraqi people food, and medicines and supplies and freedom.”

So, there it is, we’re going to bring food, medicines, supplies, and liberty. And what did they bring to Iraq? Destruction, creation of terrorist groups that caused well, terror, violence in all that region, that’s what they brought, one million dead. And after they beat their chests, some government presidents who had supported Iraq’s invasion, to say: We were wrong, there were no mass destruction weapons in Iraq. But there was a war there, over one million Iraqis died in that war.

11.58 So this show, this hoax, this circus that they are mounting with the agreement of another clown like Ivan Duque, what they seek is perversely, the intervention of our country to take our resources.

In this sense we manifested to this international contact group our concern for what is being assembled; they are seeking a grave provocation, a false positive as president Maduro has denounced in repeated opportunities. They seek a false positive that justifies the provocation and the intervention of Venezuela.

Fortunately, this Saturday 23, what will be on the border is the delivery of CLAP to the poor in Cúcuta, a journey of health for the attention of those hundreds of thousands who are denied of health in this country, because health is private, education is private, there is no attention nor programs directed to vulnerable sectors of our sister republic of Colombia.

We’ll also go with a concert, a concert for peace to tell Donal Trump: hands off Venezuela. A concert of love, encounter, fraternity and well, of much hope and much future for our country.

13.17 We also wish to inform just like the venezuelan chancellery has shared with the country through an official communiqué, that yesterday they made contact with Puerto Rican authorities, with the government of Dominican Republic to manifest our concern regarding the supposed arrival of US special forces to these countries with a view to a provocation against Venezuela.

It is to alert, we want to alert the international community of these perverse plans; we’re sure they won’t happen, they won’t occur, but we’re obligated to denounce it as such.

14.06 Well, an important announcement is that we have handed a list of medicines and food that Venezuela needs for the current year, complete. For the order Venezuela spends annually no less than 4,000 million dollars (4 billion in the US) even in the worst moments of the economic siege, the financial siege, as we informed the EU representatives, that liquid resources of Venezuela that were disposed for the payment of medicines and foods were frozen in banks in Europe.

Well, we have delivered a list for technico-humanitarian assistance through the UN that the EU can utilize and even in case that they may not be in this capacity because we know that the amounts are very high, Venezuela is even willing through financing mechanisms to pay for this technico-humanitarian assistance.

Venezuela has a historic cooperation with the UN international agencies, like the PNUD, the FAO, la UNICEF, la OMS (WHO), the OEPS.

In the last 4 years we have had cooperation with them through these agencies for an year amount of nearly 54 million dollars.

15.32 Well here is a mechanism. it’s a peace mechanism, it’s a mechanism respectful of international laws through the technico-humanitarian assistance that we could receive or finance through UN agencies.

Finally, we wanted to make a very grave denunciation; product of the plundering that Venezuela is being victim of in its enterprises in the US, a survey should be done to the world capitalist class, the investors, what do they think of this plundering of an international investor in US territory where the right to defense is denied to us, but something still worse: those fakes that go around with the humanitarian crisis discourse have denied the resources that PEDEVESA through the Simón Bolivar foundation and SIRGO?? destined and directed annually to meet oncological and renal patients’ cases, mainly children, they have refused the payment for them to continue to be looked after in hospitals, and already in different countries in the world these patients who were under PEDEVESA’s protection are being evicted; unfortunately we have one deceased in Brazil and we have grave cases of lung transplant, cancer and renal transplant that have been already warned that they should leave the hospitals’ medical centers. All this why? Because that government denies PEDEVESA a license to be able to destine those resources for payment of a social program, this one yes humanitarian, very human framed by what is the Bolivarian peace diplomacy.

Well, this way it remains in the open that what is being tried is a circus, a great show, as our president has pointed out, to use the local lackeys, to use local coup mongers, who doing violence to our constitution as we let know the EU international contact group and Uruguay, pretend to show themselves as the great solvers of Venezuela’s problems.

17.54 The great solution for Venezuela? Lift the criminal blockade against our country, financial, commercial, economic.

At least in the following hours let’s try to save these patients’ lives to whom the right to health and recovery is being denied. At least let’s try, let’s call up the conscience of a ruthless, inhumane government, that we know doesn’t even care for its population.

So we keep on working, the Bolivarian peace diplomacy, providing results, the constitutional president acting and defeating the coup d’etat in Venezuela, that from now we say to them: you have failed. Mr Donald Trump, you have failed in the coup d’etat in Venezuela and your puppet’s project is another political failure.

Thank you very much.

Reporter:

Part of the declarations of the executive Vice-president Delcy Rodríguez, who initially made reference to the diplomatic message that Venezuela received from Holland in which it recognizes the unrestricted respect to constitutional president Nicolás Maduro Moro; it also made reference to a meeting that she had with the European international contact delegation in which all that has happened in Venezuela was also dismantled and called it a show on the part of the north American government. All this they did in the framework of the Carta Magna. It’s based on the Bolivarian republic of Venezuela’s constitution.

She also remarked and evidenced through two videos how the real intentions of the north American government are to grab the venezuelan oil and made reference to the supposed humanitarian aid that she called a show of the 9 lorries that they pretend to enter in the Venezuelan people and made a comparison with one day of the attention that local supply and production committees give in which are used 149 lorries of food.

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