A NISA Story - Red Iron: 5/13 Tuesday

[TheForeignGamer]

Melissa followed Roxanne, wondering where the rebels could be. She was being extra careful not to step on dead bodies or skeletons, since she was supposed to show everyone else she was strong. Truth was, she had never seen a dead body before, let alone their skeletal remains. Her hand was slightly trembling, but she eventually learned to deal with it. The more walking they did, the more impatient Melissa got.
"Roxanne, how long is this going to take? All this walking is making me anxious. Please tell me we are almost there. This is starting to get a little scary... B-But I am fine!" she sighed, moving on.

"Melissa, how the hell should I know?" she retorted. "I've never been down here in my life. But judging from the smell, we should be about in the center of the room. Not much longer before the scary stuff disappears."

Glenn just kept on trudging forward, not a care evident on his exterior, "so, if we caused all that commotion before jumping in here," Glenn stopped for a moment, "won't that mean they'll follow after us?"

"I don't think so," Roxanne replied. "When I jumped in, there weren't any visible guards. We slipped in before reinforcements arrived, so if they're searching for us, it's not here."

The room was quiet, aside from their echoing steps. Too quiet. It uneased her. Surely they would have encountered an obstacle. The rebels would not make this easy on them. As much as they want recruits, they just as much do not want unwanted interlopers to wander into their quarters. It uneased Roxanne. Then suddenly, she heard a faint snap, and the whooshing of something. It took her only a moment to realize there were two logs heading towards each other, designed to crush anything that stands in their way.

"Glenn, watch out!" Roxanne exclaimed.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Sophie carefully considered her decision, as we as the amount of luck that she had to have a choice in the first place, and she decided that her situation was too bad here. She couldn't worry overly much about Annalisa. If Annalisa was captured, then Sophie would just have to rescue her after she was free.

Sophie then tentatively addressed Bartholomew.
"A-Annalisa probably got lost in the city... s-so, I should go get her as quickly as I can... before she gets m-mugged or worse..."

"Then you will head out immediately," he said. Bartholomew motioned for Sophie to leave the room. "Grab your things. I will be watching your every move. But first..."

He stood up and pulled out the Trigger, using 60% of its maximum power, twice the normal amount. He held it for five seconds, as per usual.

"Just a reminder of who's in charge, my dear Sophie," he said after he let go. "Remember - I will be watching. Any irregular movements and I will personally ensure your return and carry out the appropriate punishment."

He left the room and made his way back to the comm tower, grabbing his medication that would keep him awake.

Spoiler:

I'm sorry if I'm jumping the gun a bit too much, Jericho. Like when I press the button and then say dialogue after the punishment has been dealt. It just doesn't make much sense to me to wait for you to say something and then reply with merely a sentence.

[JerichoDeath]

"Then you will head out immediately," he said. Bartholomew motioned for Sophie to leave the room. "Grab your things. I will be watching your every move. But first..."

He stood up and pulled out the Trigger, using 60% of its maximum power, twice the normal amount. He held it for five seconds, as per usual.

"Just a reminder of who's in charge, my dear Sophie," he said after he let go. "Remember - I will be watching. Any irregular movements and I will personally ensure your return and carry out the appropriate punishment."

He left the room and made his way back to the comm tower, grabbing his medication that would keep him awake.

Spoiler:

I'm sorry if I'm jumping the gun a bit too much, Jericho. Like when I press the button and then say dialogue after the punishment has been dealt. It just doesn't make much sense to me to wait for you to say something and then reply with merely a sentence.

"Yes, Master. I-"
Sophie had been keeping her eyes downcast. So, she didn't notice that he had taken out the trigger until just a moment before it was pressed. She only had time to gasp before she was squirming on the floor. The was, amazingly, far worse than before. Even though she wanted to beg Master to stop, all she could do was loose a bloodcurdling scream of agony that sounded like a mix of 'please' and 'master'. Sophie had nearly lost her hold on reality for a moment before the pain stopped, and she lay there in the fetal position, twitching while she tried to stop her sobs.
Sophie tried to talk, but she was only able to emit some nonsense sounds from her mouth before Master left.

Get up.

No no no no....

Get up and do what the Master says, you stupid slave girl.

It hurt. I can't think about anything...

Get up! Or do you get off on being punished!?

After a short conversation with herself, Sophie forced her nearly paralyzed limbs to move, and she grabbed what few things she had, (after all, what does a slave-girl need possessions for) and Sophie left her room. She started going down stairs to reach the ground floor.

Spoiler:

OOC:
It's fine. She wasn't in any condition to speak when he first let go of the trigger.

[vampko]

Melissa followed Roxanne, wondering where the rebels could be. She was being extra careful not to step on dead bodies or skeletons, since she was supposed to show everyone else she was strong. Truth was, she had never seen a dead body before, let alone their skeletal remains. Her hand was slightly trembling, but she eventually learned to deal with it. The more walking they did, the more impatient Melissa got.
"Roxanne, how long is this going to take? All this walking is making me anxious. Please tell me we are almost there. This is starting to get a little scary... B-But I am fine!" she sighed, moving on.

"Melissa, how the hell should I know?" she retorted. "I've never been down here in my life. But judging from the smell, we should be about in the center of the room. Not much longer before the scary stuff disappears."

Glenn just kept on trudging forward, not a care evident on his exterior, "so, if we caused all that commotion before jumping in here," Glenn stopped for a moment, "won't that mean they'll follow after us?"

"I don't think so," Roxanne replied. "When I jumped in, there weren't any visible guards. We slipped in before reinforcements arrived, so if they're searching for us, it's not here."

The room was quiet, aside from their echoing steps. Too quiet. It uneased her. Surely they would have encountered an obstacle. The rebels would not make this easy on them. As much as they want recruits, they just as much do not want unwanted interlopers to wander into their quarters. It uneased Roxanne. Then suddenly, she heard a faint snap, and the whooshing of something. It took her only a moment to realize there were two logs heading towards each other, designed to crush anything that stands in their way.

"Glenn, watch out!" Roxanne exclaimed.

"Woah!" Glenn took heed of the warning as he went into overclock mode and quickly did a twist somersault out of the way of the logs, but jumping straight into a wall, "oof!" he bounced back and ended up hitting one of the logs with his head, splintering it.

[TheForeignGamer]

"Ugh," Roxanne groaned at seeing Glenn's klutziness. She shook her head. "Whatever. Let's go check on him."

She walked on over to Glenn and examined him. "You're fine. Get up," she said, lifting him by his arm and pulling him to his feet. "Alright, it's not too much longer now."

Suddenly, she heard footsteps unlike their own. Roxanne reacted naturally and pulled out her pistols, dropping the assault rifles she was carrying. She aimed them where she heard the sound's origin. A ragged figure approached them.

"Congratulations," the man said. "You passed our little test. Not many folks around here can avoid those logs in time. Those folks belong here."

"Just who the hell are you?" Roxanne said angrily, still pointing her pistols at the man.

"I'm one of the rebels," he replied indifferently. "Welcome to our base."

End of Chapter One.

[TheForeignGamer]

Start of Chapter Two.

Roxanne faltered for a bit, but did not let her guard down. "The rebels, you say?" she asked. "Prove it."

The man rolled up his left sleeve to reveal a tattoo which had a strange insignia on it. It had crossing red swords with a black ribbon tied around them, TIR engraved in white ink on it.

"The Iron Resistance," the man explained. "We're few in number, but we exist. No why don't you put down those guns and introduce yourselves? My name is Gordon Walker."

Roxanne reluctantly holstered her guns. "Roxanne Carter. I'll let the others introduce themselves."

----------------------------------

Bartholomew sat in the comm room, watching Sophie's movement.

"Let's see where she's going, eh?" he said.

[Rydux]

Rudy smiled, as he walked passed the group, and leaned against the wall, watching, as he waited for the other two to introduce themselves.

[JerichoDeath]

Sophie left the Palace grounds in the middle of the night. In truth, she did know the district where Annalisa was likely to be, but she also needed to contact her informant in a neighboring district. With Master's warning fresh in her mind, Sophie decided to make her route look like she was searching for Annalisa, rather than reveal she knew where the girl was headed already.

So, Sophie began to head towards the location of her informant while stopping to 'search' each district along the way by walking around the back alleys for a while. Sophie used her cloak every now and then if she felt like she was in danger of being surrounded by the regular muggers, but for the most part, she knew the city like the back of her hand... at least, she thought she did. She had endured so much mental and physical trauma as a captive that her memory of some of the backstreets had faded.

[TheForeignGamer]

Sophie left the Palace grounds in the middle of the night. In truth, she did know the district where Annalisa was likely to be, but she also needed to contact her informant in a neighboring district. With Master's warning fresh in her mind, Sophie decided to make her route look like she was searching for Annalisa, rather than reveal she knew where the girl was headed already.

So, Sophie began to head towards the location of her informant while stopping to 'search' each district along the way by walking around the back alleys for a while. Sophie used her cloak every now and then if she felt like she was in danger of being surrounded by the regular muggers, but for the most part, she knew the city like the back of her hand... at least, she thought she did. She had endured so much mental and physical trauma as a captive that her memory of some of the backstreets had faded.

Bartholomew watched carefully, sipping his coffee while doing so. She didn't seem to be doing anything suspicious quite yet. But of course, he can never let go of the doubtful feeling he harbored. As he analyzed her situation and her history with the rebels, he decided that anything was possible. This erratic pattern of movements could very well be a front in an attempt to confuse him. He would continue watching, regardless. He was in control, after all.

[vampko]

Glenn tossed his sword in the air, "My name? Glenn Harbeck," the sword came spiraling down and he caught it by the hilt, "the man who will single-handedly take down the emperor!" He twirled the sword in his hand and then struck a pose, his sword sticking in the ground, and making a victory sign.

[TheForeignGamer]

Glenn tossed his sword in the air, "My name? Glenn Harbeck," the sword came spiraling down and he caught it by the hilt, "the man who will single-handedly take down the emperor!" He twirled the sword in his hand and then struck a pose, his sword sticking in the ground, and making a victory sign.

Gordon chuckled at the boy.

"I certainly appreciate your enthusiasm, Glenn," he said.

But if you thought coming here meant a grand army, a clusterfuck of awesome weapons, and lots of food and comfort, you've got another thing coming, he added to himself.

"Get used to it, Walker," Roxanne added sarcastically. "He's like this with everyone he meets. You probably should have brought your whole party with you."

"That's Sargeant Walker, Carter," he replied. "We have ranks here, and you've yet to earn yours. But the sentiment is noted. And what about you three?" He was talking about Rudy, Melissa, and the quiet man who hasn't said a word yet.

"Bastard," she said under her breath when Gordon looked away.

[PringlesXD]

Melissa kept a straight face as she adressed to the Sergeant. She had a lot on her mind.
"I am Melissa. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Sergeant Walker. Before we discuss things further, I would like to know... is that tattoo obligatory for every member of the army?" she asked.

[JerichoDeath]

For some reason, Sophie became more and more paranoid about Master watching her as went along. It got bad enough that she even ended up walking up to a dead end before she realized it. That was when she realized that at some point during her captivity, she actually started thinking more about Master than anything else in particular. Even now, when he was nowhere to be seen, he dominated Sophie easily with the simple promise: "I'll be watching". She tried everything she could think of to make it look like she was searching for Annalisa. She would stop for short periods just inside houses, as if talking with someone inside. She would stand by vendors, even asking them if they had seen a girl with Annalisa's appearance.
-but nothing that Sophie did ever seemed to help with her paranoia.

Eventually, she figured it out. She was nervous because she had no idea what Master was doing. Because she was away from her 'room' (cell) at the palace, Sophie had developed some kind of 'nervous' disorder. She wouldn't be able to calm down completely until she was kneeling at Master's feet again.

What the hell did I just-?

That's right, you know that you are property, and you love it. You can't stand to be free anymore.

No, no. You're wrong. I'm a rebel fighter. I'll tear B-B-B... I'll tear his Empire apart! I hate them!

Maybe. Maybe you can tear down the Empire, kill all his guards, throw his family in prison, and burn his flag... but you can't do any of that to him. Not anymore. Cause he owns your ass. You can't even think his name, much less say it. Cause you aren't worthy to call him anything but Master.

Shut up shut up shut up shutup shutupshutup!

Sure, go ahead and do what you need to, but in the end, you'll be at his feet with a leash around your neck.

AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!


Sophie clutched her head, trying to ward off this latest bout of schizophrenic self-loathing. Even if what it was saying was true, and B-B-... Master had really broken her without her knowledge, then it must have been only a partial break. Sophie was sure that she would be able to do something now that she was outside of the palace...

... and hopefully, this informant would have the information that she wanted... no, needed for her freedom, even if that freedom would be incomplete.

Sophie turned a corner, finally entering the district where her informant was, but she didn't go straight there. She continued her erratic 'searching'.

[TheForeignGamer]

Melissa kept a straight face as she adressed to the Sergeant. She had a lot on her mind.
"I am Melissa. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Sergeant Walker. Before we discuss things further, I would like to know... is that tattoo obligatory for every member of the army?" she asked.

"Nice to meet you, Melissa," he replied smiling. "And to answer your question, no, the tattoo is not required. I wear it by my own choice. However, your uniform will always bear the seal. But you'll wear that only once we actually stand a chance against Ferrum's forces and go into direct combat. For now, you can wear whatever you please."

----------------------------
"What could she be possibly doing?" Bartholomew said aloud. "Most likely just buying her time. Well, time is not on her side."

He placed his hand up to his ear and spoke into his earpiece. Though it was late, most of his servants were still awake, tending to the palace.

"V23A, bring me another cup of coffee and send Harkett up here. Now."

Within moments, both parties arrived. V23A placed his coffee on the table and left without a word. Harkett stood in the doorway, awaiting instructions.

"Sit down," Bartholomew said. He does. He spoke to Harkett, not removing his gaze from the tracking device that displayed Sophie's location within the capital city. "You're an expert on human psychology, aren't you?" He nods. "Then I would like you to answer a question for me. If a person has been drugged, tortured, and kept in incarceration for an extended period of time, and then suddenly allowed to leave with a threat looming over their head, what kind of mental state would they typically be in?"

Harkett seemed to be thinking. After a short moment, he said, "Delusional, perhaps. Paranoid. Scared. Maybe all three. If they had been kept alone for a while with no to little company, perhaps a bit schizophrenic. It's hard to tell. Either way, it's generally not a wise choice to make without someone accompanying the person. Es--" He cut himself off before he let slip Sophie's name.

"Thank you, Harkett," he said. "That is all. You are dismissed." Harkett almost left the room before Bartholomew stopped him. "Harkett, turn around." He does. Bartholomew pulled out one of his concealed weapons, a pistol, and aimed it at him. Harkett blanched but kept eye-contact. "This conversation never happened." Harkett nodded violently, beads of sweat dotting his temples.

"Yes sir," he said. He left the room.

"Now then, my dear Sophie... back to you."

[JerichoDeath]

Sophie wandered the streets of the district, jumping a shadows, hiding from passerby, and hoping that her informant was close. Sophie spent so much time worrying about Master that she almost didn't notice when she came across the meeting place.

"Oi oi. Girlie with the folded armor. You look different from before... have you lost weight?"

Even though Sophie had lost weight in captivity, she recognized the voice of her informant.
"Walk with me."

Sophie was surprised that her voice came out steady and sure. It was like she was watching the conversation from the outside. Sophie continued wandering with the tiny informant man in tow. She could hardly believe this four and a half foot guy was older than her.
The two of them exchanged keywords. Sophie was lucky that he remembered her outdated keyword, and he updated her on a new set. Then, she got down to business. As she walked, Sophie looked sideways at a holographic screen that he showed. Sophie memorized the data, compartmentalizing the information away. Sophie had always been good at doing that... but that might also have made her susceptible to the way that she was going insane.

... and that scared her more: The fact that she could stop and look at herself, deciding that she was going insane from what had been done to her, and there was the fact that she had no idea how to stop it.
Maybe she could beg Master for her sanity back...

Sophie barely noticed when the Informant left; She was on autopilot. Walking randomly through the streets, Sophie found herself in the district where Annalisa was probably at.

[TheForeignGamer]

Suddenly, Gordon's hand shot up to his ear. His face quickly turned into a scowl.

"Dammit," he cursed. "Alright, forget the rest of the introductions. We've got to go."

He ushered them all inside by force, ignoring all attempts at retaliation, for he was a very strong man. Once they were all inside the base, he yelled into his earpiece. "Shut the doors! NOW!"

Suddenly, the walls began to shift which concealed the entrance to the rebel base entirely. No sign of a door at all.

"One of our scouts reported that guards were coming down into the well to inspect it for signs of you all," he explained. "They don't know we're here, and we'd prefer to keep it that away. Well, follow me, then. I'll show you around."

Roxanne just nodded and followed Gordon, fighting back resentful words towards him for pushing her.

---------------------------------------------

"Now we're getting somewhere," Bartholomew said. He connected the communication console to the nearby surveillance cameras that were hidden all across the city. Next to Sophie was a short man the likes of which he had never seen before. He entered all the facial recognition databases that he had and searched for this man. He cursed under his breath when none of them turned up any matches. Looking back at the pair, he noticed it was Sophie talking this time and the man walked slightly behind her.

He contacted one of the nearby guards. "This is Bartholomew. Apprehend the short man near the girl with the folded armor. Do it silently and do not alert her. Bring him to me."

The small guard squad did just that. By the time Sophie looked behind her, he was already in Bartholomew's company. He talked to her to alleviate her confusion. "Your "friend" is in my hands now. Remember, I am ever-watchful. Ever-listening."