Post by Evelyn Amtrum on Jul 26, 2018 20:02:33 GMT -8
It was the stillness that kept her up. Normally, Evelyn could sleep through quite a bit, including her sister’s snoring, but tonight, it was missing. There was no sound coming from the next room, not even a muffled sound of even breathing. No sound of her parent’s voices down the hall, no shared secrets and dreams whispered in the dark. Nothing but her shadow and her memories kept her company.
She looked around the room, pushing back the comforter as she let her bare feet touch the cool stone floor, palms digging into the mattress as she leaned forward. Her gaze looked down, but saw nothing. She could feel her spine tingling already and knew it was unlikely she’d get any sleep.
They were gone. The earth-shattering, soul swallowing truth. Her fingers curled into tight claws, biting into the flesh of her hand through the folds of her sheet where it pulled away. The young Amtrum’s heart twisted and pounded in her chest as it ached. It hurt to breathe, to think. Nothing was the same. Her mother and twin were dead, and they weren’t coming back. The protection she and Arianna had had failed somehow, even in the safety of her father’s qi-built home.
She could see it still, as clearly as if it were still happening. Her mother’s aura shifting at the fact there was an intruder and threat, how it didn’t matter when she crumpled to the ground. Her sister, fighting and falling in a single blow. That horror of knowing she would be next if she couldn’t stop the man somehow. Uncle Loki, the reason she lived, taking the hit for her and, from what she knew, dying for it. The failed teleportation taking her….wherever that was. A holding grounds in an alternate dimension. It was nuts.
She stood, slipping into comfortable clothing as she slid on a pair of slippers, trying not to look where Ari would be fi she were still alive. Two years dead didn’t matter; she did it anyway despite her best intent not to. She turned her face away, closing her eyes for a moment as she tried to darw herself together, to compose herself the way her mother would. She’d always admired her mother for that, tried to emulate it, especially after she saw how it worked on others.
But she wasn’t Bastille; she didn’t have the unshakable mask her mother presented to the world, the defense and will, or the attitude.
She missed the laughter that should have been in the kitchen at supper, passing through the house like a sleepwalker as she stopped just in front of the door that would lead out to the front lawn, staring at the handle, watching with a distant look as her hand reached out ot open it, feeling like it was almost someone else’s hand instead. It opened silently, allowed her to pass through. No doom waited for her on the other side. No mystery attacker, no one wanting to ask questions and see if she was okay. Just the silence.
Again the knot tightened in her chest, her breathing coming in short, rapid gasps as she stood and stared out at the land, taking in the spot where her family had fallen, the land long since free of the visual stain of her family’s blood – but the visual reminder only. Evelyn leaned against the door frame, taking in her home, glad they were only staying briefly. She was already more than happy to leave this place behind.
She pushed herself upright and ensured the door was how it had been, heading towards the training area her father sat up, which conveniently would give her target practice. She drew out her energy, the construct taking the form of gauntlets as she shifted, unleashing her might against it. Blow after blow, not enough to destroy it, but enough to wear her out as she continually used her attacks, launching blades from the sky to reign down upon the one who wore her enemy’s face.
It might have been hours for all she knew; by the time she was done, Evelyn was shaking from the strain and coated in sweat besides. Her breathing came in ragged gasps, sides and arms burning as the tightness in her chest tried to uncoil. She flopped to the ground, resting her elbows on her knees, heedless of the unladylike position as she ran her fingers through her hair and gripped it until her temples throbbed and burned.
It wasn’t enough. She was no better, no stronger than she had been that day. How could she beat him if she was already worn out? Daddy wouldn’t be able to save her; War was ready to ride out, and she couldn’t cling ot him like a lost child if he wasn’t.
She lost track of how much time passed, focusing on each breath, forcing it into her body, holding it before letting it go out slowly. Forcing herself to look at the truth that would always be there, whether she liked it or not. This was her home, always would be, and yet now the illusion of safety was shattered, the protection she had worn broken. It was home, but it was also...tainted.
The bastard that killed her family had taken that, too. She wanted to scream, to let the rafters rattle with her rage as she beat the man’s face into a pulp so bloody it was unrecognizable.
She wanted to make him pay.
She headed back inside, forcing limbs that felt like rubber to move despite their protest from pushing herself as far as she had after recently coming back into a physical body. Past the kitchen, past the rooms where she had so many memories until she stopped in front of a door that lead not to her own room, but her sister’s. Her twin’s. Evelyn hesitated, for a second, then entered anyway, stepping to take in how much the room changed as she shut the door behind her. It didn’t matter if it was kept the same or transformed into something else for Uncle Sean to use; to her, it was still Arianna’s room.
’Was. A sob managed to force itself past the knot in her throat as she sank to the floor, limbs giving way to the grief that wracked her body now that she’d let the single sound slip out. Her hands covered her mouth as she squeezed her eyes shut, shoulders and body shaking as she leaned against the door. It felt like she was missing a part of herself, like she was missing a limb. Here, there was no hiding what it was. No hiding what was gone, what she had tried to separate herself from, to make her own identity than being identical to the person she was closest to. She thought she could remember their voices clearly, but at the same time, the memories seemed faded, reaching out through a curtain of lost time and finding they didn’t seem quite as clear, wondering if she was wrong.
She pressed her forehead against her knees as she cried, letting herself do so until she was spent and unable to fight it any further. Until she felt like a dried out shell, and ihe pain of her sitting position sent tingles of pain and numbness up her spine and down her legs. She didn’t get up or move. Not yet. She just forced herself to breathe. To think.
She’d find him. Somehow. And when she did…
It didn’t matter who or where he was. He would learn there was more than one Amtrum to look over his shoulder for.
_________________________________________________
Word Count: 1,276
Name: Your Event
Requirements: Approved Character
Job: An event has happened to your character alone. What happened? Write a story about some big event that just happened to your character. This event can be done once a month.
Bonus: Receive an injury that lasts 3 threads.
Payout: +3 exp, +$250
She looked around the room, pushing back the comforter as she let her bare feet touch the cool stone floor, palms digging into the mattress as she leaned forward. Her gaze looked down, but saw nothing. She could feel her spine tingling already and knew it was unlikely she’d get any sleep.
They were gone. The earth-shattering, soul swallowing truth. Her fingers curled into tight claws, biting into the flesh of her hand through the folds of her sheet where it pulled away. The young Amtrum’s heart twisted and pounded in her chest as it ached. It hurt to breathe, to think. Nothing was the same. Her mother and twin were dead, and they weren’t coming back. The protection she and Arianna had had failed somehow, even in the safety of her father’s qi-built home.
She could see it still, as clearly as if it were still happening. Her mother’s aura shifting at the fact there was an intruder and threat, how it didn’t matter when she crumpled to the ground. Her sister, fighting and falling in a single blow. That horror of knowing she would be next if she couldn’t stop the man somehow. Uncle Loki, the reason she lived, taking the hit for her and, from what she knew, dying for it. The failed teleportation taking her….wherever that was. A holding grounds in an alternate dimension. It was nuts.
She stood, slipping into comfortable clothing as she slid on a pair of slippers, trying not to look where Ari would be fi she were still alive. Two years dead didn’t matter; she did it anyway despite her best intent not to. She turned her face away, closing her eyes for a moment as she tried to darw herself together, to compose herself the way her mother would. She’d always admired her mother for that, tried to emulate it, especially after she saw how it worked on others.
But she wasn’t Bastille; she didn’t have the unshakable mask her mother presented to the world, the defense and will, or the attitude.
She missed the laughter that should have been in the kitchen at supper, passing through the house like a sleepwalker as she stopped just in front of the door that would lead out to the front lawn, staring at the handle, watching with a distant look as her hand reached out ot open it, feeling like it was almost someone else’s hand instead. It opened silently, allowed her to pass through. No doom waited for her on the other side. No mystery attacker, no one wanting to ask questions and see if she was okay. Just the silence.
Again the knot tightened in her chest, her breathing coming in short, rapid gasps as she stood and stared out at the land, taking in the spot where her family had fallen, the land long since free of the visual stain of her family’s blood – but the visual reminder only. Evelyn leaned against the door frame, taking in her home, glad they were only staying briefly. She was already more than happy to leave this place behind.
She pushed herself upright and ensured the door was how it had been, heading towards the training area her father sat up, which conveniently would give her target practice. She drew out her energy, the construct taking the form of gauntlets as she shifted, unleashing her might against it. Blow after blow, not enough to destroy it, but enough to wear her out as she continually used her attacks, launching blades from the sky to reign down upon the one who wore her enemy’s face.
It might have been hours for all she knew; by the time she was done, Evelyn was shaking from the strain and coated in sweat besides. Her breathing came in ragged gasps, sides and arms burning as the tightness in her chest tried to uncoil. She flopped to the ground, resting her elbows on her knees, heedless of the unladylike position as she ran her fingers through her hair and gripped it until her temples throbbed and burned.
It wasn’t enough. She was no better, no stronger than she had been that day. How could she beat him if she was already worn out? Daddy wouldn’t be able to save her; War was ready to ride out, and she couldn’t cling ot him like a lost child if he wasn’t.
She lost track of how much time passed, focusing on each breath, forcing it into her body, holding it before letting it go out slowly. Forcing herself to look at the truth that would always be there, whether she liked it or not. This was her home, always would be, and yet now the illusion of safety was shattered, the protection she had worn broken. It was home, but it was also...tainted.
The bastard that killed her family had taken that, too. She wanted to scream, to let the rafters rattle with her rage as she beat the man’s face into a pulp so bloody it was unrecognizable.
She wanted to make him pay.
She headed back inside, forcing limbs that felt like rubber to move despite their protest from pushing herself as far as she had after recently coming back into a physical body. Past the kitchen, past the rooms where she had so many memories until she stopped in front of a door that lead not to her own room, but her sister’s. Her twin’s. Evelyn hesitated, for a second, then entered anyway, stepping to take in how much the room changed as she shut the door behind her. It didn’t matter if it was kept the same or transformed into something else for Uncle Sean to use; to her, it was still Arianna’s room.
’Was. A sob managed to force itself past the knot in her throat as she sank to the floor, limbs giving way to the grief that wracked her body now that she’d let the single sound slip out. Her hands covered her mouth as she squeezed her eyes shut, shoulders and body shaking as she leaned against the door. It felt like she was missing a part of herself, like she was missing a limb. Here, there was no hiding what it was. No hiding what was gone, what she had tried to separate herself from, to make her own identity than being identical to the person she was closest to. She thought she could remember their voices clearly, but at the same time, the memories seemed faded, reaching out through a curtain of lost time and finding they didn’t seem quite as clear, wondering if she was wrong.
She pressed her forehead against her knees as she cried, letting herself do so until she was spent and unable to fight it any further. Until she felt like a dried out shell, and ihe pain of her sitting position sent tingles of pain and numbness up her spine and down her legs. She didn’t get up or move. Not yet. She just forced herself to breathe. To think.
She’d find him. Somehow. And when she did…
It didn’t matter who or where he was. He would learn there was more than one Amtrum to look over his shoulder for.
_________________________________________________
Word Count: 1,276
Name: Your Event
Requirements: Approved Character
Job: An event has happened to your character alone. What happened? Write a story about some big event that just happened to your character. This event can be done once a month.
Bonus: Receive an injury that lasts 3 threads.
Payout: +3 exp, +$250
