[IC] Free Winds

[Cuco]

Hearing the man mention her by name, Nora managed to nod in affirmation before being distracted by the woman on the PA. She was told she could come aboard. That was good. Nora sure didn't fancy being left down there to the whimsy of whatever soldiers happened by. Then, after mentioning instructions on where to go, she told them to prepare all their money. Nora had a feeling their was an emphasis on the all. That was bad. She understood why, but she still didn't like it. Better than the alternative though, so she wasn't about to refuse. Still, it sure wasn't a pleasant experience. The woman's voice dripped with hostility as she spoke. If she was supposed to be in charge around here, that much was baffling to Nora. If she had to put up with an attitude like this all day, she would be in half a mind to consider slitting the woman's throat and dumping her off the side of the ship. She wasn't about to try anything stupid in a tenuous situation like this, but this woman must've rounded up a real pack of bootlickers and idiots to have a loyal crew.

When Nora arrived on deck, she had her money out and promptly tossed her shotgun down on the ground. They could take it for all she cared. The announcement that they weren't flight ready yet did concern her a little, and she would've liked to have had her gun on hand in case the Crucible got on board. But if these people wanted to fight them alone, they could go right ahead for all it mattered to Nora. Turning to the guy that had remembered her name from earlier, she said "You a stranger to liquor? I got some of the good stuff in my luggage. I'm sure gonna need it to put up with this lot. Want some when we're done here?"

[Jedly]

Remnants Pt. 1

”All forces are free to engage. Green light is given.”
One Year Earlier - Colony of Lemnos

Remnants Pt. 2

Five minutes before The Battle of the Fourth Ward

Varren jammed the magazine into his issued rifle and pulled back on the charging bolt, whilst peering out the open bay of the helicopter. He was barely able to think over the loud humming of the relic, a troop transport which was employed decades ago. Though, the heli was refurbished with an engine which ran off of aura reserves, making it environmentally clean. The Lemnos Police Department only had a few of them in their arsenal, since the island itself wasn’t that large in size, they were only deployed for high grade missions, where danger was at its highest. He stared at the rest of his squad, who were checking their gear and loading their weapons, prepared for a combat drop. ”How did it all go to shit so fast?” The young man thought to himself as his eyes strayed towards the Area of Operation. The formation of pave hawks was en route to the fourth ward of Miynura, which was under attack from multiple bombings, which were mostly followed through by the terrorist organization which murdered his father a few weeks ago. All Varren could feel for the organization was undying hatred and the unquenchable thirst to avenge the man. ”Alright, the terrorist group known as ‘Titan’s Hand’ has set off multiple bombs in the fourth ward, and is proceeding with their attack as we speak. The fighters have been confirmed to be utilizing low caliber arms, along with dumbfire APGs and other assorted launchers. The origin of their armnment has not been confirmed as of yet, but it is suspected that their weapons were supplied by external colonies. Our mission is to secure a LZ and extract as many civilians as possible. Ally colonies will be sending their own forces to assist in the next hour. Alright, get re-” The captain was cut off mid-sentence when an explosion went off inside of the formation, causing him to avert his eyes. A distressed voice came onto the comms,

”This is Phoenix 1-2! Our wings have been clipped, I repeat, our wings have been clipped! Our main rotor is out, we have no lights!” The pilot screamed through his microphone, Varren glanced to his side to capture the hawk’s status. The man’s analysis was an understatement, Yinyues stared with his mouth agape, taking in the scene before him. Half of the Phoenix 1-2’s rotor was completely blown off, the remaining portions of the blades were melted by a blueish residue. Varren lent away from the opened door, cuffing his hands over his lids as the heli broke into a barrel roll and plummeted to the earth, utterly left to gravity’s will. All he could hear was the hawk crashing into a building, followed by the sounds of crumbling rubble. Just in a span of a few seconds, roughly ten lives were already lost. The right side gunner of Varren’s helicopter traced the trail of energy left by the rocket, and sent a volley of rounds towards the area. This was Yinyues’ first operation as an officer of the LPD, a horrible way to start his career. Varren suddenly jumped out of surprisement when he suddenly felt a hand grab his shoulder, shaking him from his daze. ”Yinyues, get your head in the game! We are one klick out from the LZ.” His CO ordered him, then went off to check the other squad members. The young man nodded, grabbing onto his firearm tightly as the pave hawk decreased its altitude.

”This is Phoenix 1-3, no eyes on any survivors from 1-2. Splitting off to LZ Foxtrot.” The pilot notified Command of their change of course, sticking to the plan as the helicopter began to bleat its speed. Both door gunners were watching the ground, trying to spot any infantry awaiting them. ”We are landing at LZ Foxtrot now, all forces, free to hop out.” Phoenix 1-3 hovered a foot over the rooftop of the building, ”Go go go! The captain barked at the men, standing on the edges of the helicopter. Two squads consisting of four officers each deployed from the open bay. The combat armor weighed Varren down, along with the heavy helmet and restricting knee-guards. Overall, the young man was far out of his comfort zone, completely unprepared for the situation. As soon as he set foot on the roof, a comrade shouted ”Duck!”. Thanks to the extra weight of the protective gear, Varren fell flat to the concrete as a round flew over his head, deflecting off of the helicopter’s plating. The door gunner quickly acquired his target and sprayed into the adjacent building, Yinyues covered his ears from the deafening crackles of the expended rounds. The two squads took the chance to crawl towards the roof access door, and pushed down the building towards the street level. He found it challenging to calm himself in such a situation, adrenaline pumping through his veins as they ran through the hallway. ”This is Phoenix 1-3, we are spooling off from the LZ. We will remain in the AO and will continue with runs on marked enemy foot mobiles.” Varren’s commanding officer acknowledged the notification as they ran through the building, finally reaching the bottom floor.

The resistance surrounding the complex was exterminated by Phoenix 1-3, giving the two squads the chance to break off and search for survivors on their pre-assigned routes. Gunfire was constantly echoing in the distance; thankfully it wasn’t directed towards Varren’s squad. Almost as frequent as the firing of bullets, was the organization’s demolition work, causing building to collapse and take out whole blocks. After thirty minutes of searching, the fireteam managed to locate a dozen survivors, and were proceeding to the extraction point. The squad moved up in a diamond formation, creeping through the streets with the civilians in tow. Each member was on high alert, as the group had to take multiple detours to reach their destination. Varren’s CO grabbed his radio and whispered into it, ”This is Sierra 1. My squad is en route to the extraction point. Phoenix 1-3, are you nearby?” It turns out the helicopter was about 1 klick, providing close-air support for an insertion team from an ally colony on the southern side of the ward. “Alright, we’re almost there, just remain calm everybody.” One of his squadmates reassured the civilians, trying to calm them down as they walked down the road. A majority of them were shivering out of fear and shock, finding comfort in eachother’s presence. The squad members were completely silent, diverting all of their attention to their assigned angle, keeping an eye out for any hostiles.

It all happened in slow-motion through Varren’s eyes. The sound of the first shot being fired, followed by the deaths of two of his comrades. They were both lit up from multiple angles, as they were too late to react. The CO and Varren leaped behind cover, the former individual being closest to the enemy. The young man stood in front of the civilians behind a the confines of the of a collapsed building, whilst his squadmate took cover behind the only substance between him and the hostiles; a pair of small wooden crates. ”Varren, get down! APG!” The man called out from behind the boxes, until a round bursted through the crate, burrowing into his back. The man must have died instantly, as his body went limp the second Yinyues’ ears picked up the thumping of the bullet penetrating the wood. Though, the young man had no time to mourn for the loss of his squad, as he remembered his CO’s callout before he passed on. “Everybody, get down!” Varren screamed as the rocket propelled by aura of a cyanic hue flew past him, the heat and propulsion of the projectile caused him to lose his balance. The rocket came into contact with a surface, exploding behind him. It took him a bit to wipe away the grime and soot which covered his goggles, then quickly got to his feet. The young man felt his whole body tense on the spot, unable to comprehend the sight before him.

The rocket spared Varren’s life, but instead took those of the civilians. “This is… Sierra 3, need assistance.” He was able to muster before running over to where the civilians were huddled up. In their place were the vaporized remains of bodies, though the one who was the farthest back was still alive. He instantly rushed to the woman, whose leg was blown off in the explosion. “Listen, miss, everything is going to be alright. I just need to quickly close up the wound.” The young man tried to say reassuringly, bullets ricocheted off the wall providing them cover. Bravo squad, along with Phoenix 1-3, responded over the comms and informed him that they were almost at the block. The woman was taking short gasps, trying to intake as much oxygen as possible. Varren dug into his kitbag and took out some gauze, tying it around her leg with his hands, which were uncontrollably shaking. The woman was attempting to make out some words, “Please don’t talk miss, save your breath.” She rolled over to her side, revealing the more grave wound. A shard from the APG had impaled her in the back, judging by the amount which was showing through the skin, it had been burrowed deeply into her lung. Varren already realized the woman was a lost cause, relenting himself to only holding her hands as she drew her last breath. With it, she managed to let the words ”Thank you…” roll off of her tongue. He grimaced and picked up his firearm, his eyes void of emotion.

Remnants Pt. 3 - Varren rounded the corner…

…aiming down the optics of his rifle, opening fire on the distracted troops. Along with the help of the other squad and the air support, the group which ambushed Sierra squad was eliminated. Phoenix 1-3 landed on a nearby rooftop and evacuated the survivors Bravo squad was able to find, along with Varren. He took his seat next to some of the civilians, staring blankly out the window at the raging battle. The young man slipped off his helmet and let out a sigh, unable to rationally describe his mentality. He stared down at his glovers, caked in the dry blood of the woman he failed to treat. ”This is command. Officer Varren, you will be given two hours of R&R, then you will be redeployed with Ken’s team.” The succinct voice told him over the comms, the young man stifled a cry and managed to drag the radio to his mouth, “Copy that, sir.”

Present Day

It was exactly the same as before, the puzzle pieces were falling into place. Yet again, Varren had those he had to protect, he disliked having such a burden forced upon him again. Glancing down at his hands, he realized they were shaking slightly, out of the others’ sight. The young man heard a faint ”Over there…”, and turned around to confirm the owner of his voice. For a moment, instead of the trio in a line behind him, his eyes set upon his squad, still in their combat armor. His jaw loosely hung open, though as soon as he blinked, the three civilians were behind him again. Varren quickly shut his mouth and nodded to the newcomer, a native rift hunter, who seemed to be a year older than him. “Yeah. You’re welcome.” He said in a quiet voice, remembering his mission given by Weston. “I won’t let it happen again.” Yinyues said aloud, with the look of determination in his eyes, “Alright, let’s keep going. Thanks for the route.” As he stood up, Varren’s fingers remained on the trigger, ready to use the rifle at any time.

Thanks to the young girl’s guidance, the route they took had absolutely no obstacles in their wake. This gave him the time to gather his thoughts and analyze them, ”I’m sure they’re all scared shitless of me. Damn it, I’ve put them through a horrible experience.” The civilians which Varren failed to say must have felt the same way as the trio, until their lives were brought to an unfair end. He breathed in deeply and opened his mouth, mentally preparing the words before they left his tongue. “Look, I’ll make amends once we arrive at the ship, I am truly sorry for putting all of you through such a traumatizing scenario. I’m taking all of these precautions, in hopes that it won’t happen again. In case you were wondering, my name is Varren Yinyues. Eighteen. Newest Cargo Guard of the Free Wind. You can tell me your names once we’re all safe.” The long-awaited introduction was finally given by the young man as they continued to run through the forest, nearly at the ship.

Back at the Ship

Tyler sulked as he walked through the hallways of the ship, holding onto his stomach which was still sore from the sickening food. “James and Dan are still sick, but I can’t find Varren…” He was fully aware that they crash landed on Krukow, as per the notification sent out by Summer to all crew members. “Maybe he went out to help out Weston.” As the man stopped at the open bay, he stood idle as civilians walked onboard. As they pass him, they were unable to see his face from behind the helmet. which was standard for all cargo guards except for Varren. Tyler’s headache was only made worse by the shrill scowling of summer, ”Varren, where the hell is Weston?’ He peaked out from behind the door and saw his co-worker approaching the ship, with four natives following him. “Poor kid, put through so much damn work.”

Varren took in a deep breath as he made his way into the opening. Lugging around such a large firearm, along with a backpack full of magazines, was extremely tiring. “Jeeze, this thing is heavy, no wonder it took those soldiers so long to raise their firearms.” Within the span of thirty minutes, the young man was able to eliminate four Crucibellian soldiers. His attention was drawn to the shouts of his boss, asking where her first-mate was. “Good morning, Ms. Summer! We split off once we made it to the outskirts of town, though last time I saw him, he was in the city center tearing the Crucible a new one. I feel sorry for that annexation unit, which seem to be high-tailing it out of here.” He said, pointing to the interceptor as it gained altitude. He saw two more of his fellow comrades waiting for him, making a slight waving motion with his hand, “Sup, Headphone Actor.” Varren called up to the deck of the ship, only able to see the glint of the sniper’s scope from his angle. [b]”Oi, Varren, where have you been? You should have told me not to eat that damn meal!” His fellow guard complained, Yinyues had to suppress himself from laughing, “Sorry, Tyler, but at the time I was busy. Anyways, do you mind showing this mechanic the engines?” He said, turning around to face the group. “Welcome aboard the Free Wind.”

[ruronihs]

It was a quiet walk through the woods after Varren had introduced himself, but Isaac could tell that his companions were having a hard time keeping themselves together; even Varren seemed to be bothered by something as he lead them to the ship. It was a bit comforting to have one of the Rift Hunters join up with them, but he was still a young one and Isaac was sure how much experience he had in situations like these... not that the mechanic had any such experience himself. Still, as the oldest member of the group, Isaac couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible for keeping the others calm, especially Emery who now seemed terrified of Varren as well as the Crucible soldiers.

Finally they arrived at the airship, the Free Wind. Despite his nerves, Isaac couldn't help but take a moment to admire the vessel. How much power could it put out? How were the consoles wired to the propulsion systems? The ship did seem a bit on the old say, but that was OK; the older stuff was built to last anyway, providing you took care of it. He was pulled out of his reverie, though, by the voice of a surly woman, presumably the captain of the ship. He understood that the presence of the Crucible didn't exactly bring out the best of people and if she was willing to let them escape on her ship she couldn't be all bad, but he still doubted that this was going to be a pleasant ride. However, the biggest shock came when Varren asked the guards to show him the engines...

"Wait, the engines? As in to fix the engines?" Isaac replied in disbelief. "You mean you guys have been flying around without a mechanic on board, or at least anybody who knows basic repairs? A ship this size needs at least two mechanics on board at all times to keep her in good shape. And... crap! I really hope you guys have some basic tools on board..." He shook his head. "Anyway, I'll have to work with what we've got." Before he proceeded to the ship, though, he looked back at his fellow villagers. "You guys hang in there, alright? And no matter what happens, let's stick together. Once I get this ship off the ground, we can figure out what to do from there." Then he proceeded to walk aboard the Free Wind and waited for the guards to escort him.

[Chezka]

Two thousand three-hundred sixteen steps later and they had at last arrived at the location of the airship. To her relief, they didn't encounter any guards as she originally feared, and all members of the group—which had grown by one since then—had arrived in one piece. The painfully silent trip there allowed her to gather her thoughts and collect herself, but even then she found she was still a little frazzled. She couldn't help but wish her sister was beside her to put her at ease, but then thinking about her sister never ended well, and so it only added to her distress. It also didn't help to conjure up memories that usually calmed her down, because then she would be reminded of Krukow's current state. Long story short, just about everything she thought to do exhausted her mentally and emotionally, and it was only when she started focusing on counting their steps that she felt the least bit composed. She stopped at two thousand three-hundred sixteen steps, when they were within ten feet of the massive airship.

After he introduced himself, the mysterious man was no longer that, but a Varren Yinyues instead. Knowing his name hadn't helped ease her apprehension toward him, though. It only added a twinge of guilt, because she knew full well that the eighteen-year-old had acted only to protect them. She couldn't imagine what would have happened without him there, but she knew they could very well be worse off. The least she could be is grateful, and here she was, afraid to even look him in the eyes. Emery shook her head in disappointment and forced herself to muster even a little bit of courage. Showing her gratitude... that much she should be able to do. So after Varren had welcomed them to the Free Winds, Emery hid behind Aubrey and Isaac and called out a quick thanks to their savior.

Isaac would enter his Mr. Fixit mode as soon as Varren mentioned something about the engine, and although she didn't want him to leave Aubrey and her (and Jarvan, she noted belatedly) alone, she couldn't bring herself to stop him. Of course she couldn't, not when she could see the excitement gleaming in his eyes. This was the reason she wanted to show him the airship in the first place. At the very least, one of them could find a silver lining in all this chaos. Emery nodded as Isaac instructed them to stick together, taking it to heart. She yanked Aubrey's arm and clung onto it as she warily scanned the so called Free Winds, taking note of its crew. There were armed guards aboard, and a couple of passengers she thought looked familiar, although she only gave them a passing glance. The woman who had yelled at Varren from the deck was intimidating, and it didn't take a lot to figure out she was the captain of the ship. It seemed Varren had no qualms letting them aboard, but the choice was ultimately left to captain, wasn't it?

Emery turned to Aubrey. "What do we do now? Do you think they'll just let us board for free?"

[Mr Nim]

Not looking at Benjamin as they kept on running, she managed to just barely spot the ship from the distance. She then heard the boy's question and gave Toroto a quick glance "He isn't just a lizard. He is a chameleon. And I could ask you the same thing about that little mechanical butterfly of yours." Nanako said, not wanting to give Toroto's name away just yet. After a couple more moments of running, she noticed a small group arriving at the edge of the ship, and appeared to wait there. She knew it would most likely take them a few more minutes till they reach the ship, so she watched them carefully.

After another moment of running passed by, she looked at Benny "You are smaller, and probably have a lot more energy than me. Try and see if you can reach that group thats next to the ship before they get on board. If you can get on board the ship, you should be safe. I'm afriad I'll probably be holding you back at my speed. Understand, Benjamin?" Nanako said, hoping he will agree and be capable of reaching the ship with more speed.

[StarInaBox]

"Ooh, a chameleon!" Benny was examining the green lizard on Nanako's shoulders a little more now, shifting his focus from running to it. Once Nanako asked about Archibald, Benny started to describe what he was enthusiastically. "Yeah, that's Archibald! This guy who traveled in here gave it to me~. He's just like a normal butterfly, but he lives forever!" Suddenly, it was much harder to talk and run at the same time, so Benny decided to stop right there. Mabe he could introduce the two later.

After a few moments of just running, Nanako began to talk again. She said that Benny should run ahead and see if they could board the ship. Benny nodded and did so, speeding up and passing Nanako. A minute later, he had reached the ship, stopping behind the group. He reached forward and tugged on the sleeve of a white jacket, not knowing who it was he bothered until he looked up to see. The person Benny chose to approach had short blonde hair, and looked to be around Nanako's age. "Uhm... Excuse me mister?" Benny called up to the new boy. "Are you getting on this ship? A friend and I need a hiding place and this place looked like a good one~."

[j8cob]

Summer glared at Varren for a moment, before letting out an exasperated sigh. "Of course he would be letting the Crucible know we're here..." she muttered to herself, pinching the top of her nose as she closed her eyes. "Of course he would..." After another sigh, she removed her hand from her face and looked at the new group coming in. They were all young, and one appeared to be a Rift Hunter. Another, however, happened to be a mechanic. For a moment, Summer was elated and a grin formed on her face. But upon his criticism over maintaining the ship, her scowl returned.

"I have been keeping this ship running for nearly fifteen years!" Summer began to shout at Isaac as he was led to the engine room. "This baby is just a bit old and my magic touch didn't seem to work this morning! Don't you tell me how to run my ship!" With that fit of anger out of her system, she let out another sigh. Down below, just boarding the ship, Aubrey could hear the yelling above. He glanced at Emery for a moment. She was clearly frightened by the turn of events. And in all honesty, Aubrey was a bit scared too. For all he knew, this could be a pirate ship. The woman in charge didn't exactly sound friendly and the man that escorted them to the ship was not only armed but willing to kill.

"I don't know, Emery," he confessed. "If we aren't allowed on for free, I've got us covered. I have some money in my back pocket. But even then..." He began heading to the top deck, likely with Emery in tow. "I'm not getting a good feeling about this at all." Before the duo could even make it to the top deck, Aubrey felt someone else grab onto him. Looking down, there was suddenly a kid behind him, asking about a hiding place and getting on board. Due to the fact the captain was busy yelling at Isaac, she must've not noticed this boy approach. "Uh... Yeah, we're getting on the ship," Aubrey answered first. "But hurry up and get on. We won't have much time." With that out of the way, Aubrey led the others up the ramp and then the stairs to the top deck.

On the top deck, Summer was simply leaning against the side-rail, with her forehead pressed against the metal. Though somewhat comical in appearance, Aubrey already assumed she was boiling mad for some reason or another and was performing some odd ritual of calming herself down. He first looked at Emery, then at Benny, before scanning the rest of the deck. The ship was large and open, but he was surprised by the lack of activity. A ship this large, he would assume it had a massive crew. But so far as he could tell, there couldn't be more than six or seven crew members. "Uh... hi," Aubrey tried to introduce himself to the captain, but it seemed that the green-haired woman ignored him. "Thank you... for letting us on board." Summer glanced up at him now, before putting her head against the rail again. "Yeah, yeah. Weapons on the floor, no funny business." Once again, Aubrey was surprised by her reaction. "Money in hand, too."

His prediction was correct. They would be charged. These people had to be pirates, or criminals of some kind. Clearly they weren't heroes. Heroes wouldn't charge people for their safety. With a grimace, Aubrey reached into his pocket and pulled out the wad of cash. But he didn't say anything to the captain. He simply turned around to face Benny and Emery. "I can cover us, and Isaac too."

[Mr Nim]

As she kept moving towards the ship, Nanako saw the group head onto the ship and vanish from sight. Slightly happy that Benjamin managed to get on board too, she looked around, wondering if she will be capable of getting on board too, when suddenly Toroto raised one of its legs "There. That brown haired man is walking in the same direction as we are. Try and see if he could help us get on board as well." He said, and after looking to the side for a moment she managed to spot him.

Heading in his direction, Nanako moved to walk beside him "Hey there. Excuse me for asking this, but are you heading to the ship? And if you are, could you help me get on board it please? I can't let the Cruicble get me. I'm wanted by them for... Well..." She hesitated for a moment, but Toroto decided to let the man know "For rescuing me from them. I'm Toroto. I'm a Chameleon. You can help, yes?" He asked, and Nanako appeared to be somewhat annoyed for her talking pet to have decided to make a move that she was unsure about.

[Eklispe]

Jarvan looked around the ship as he came onto it. He was suprised by the small number of poeple that were running it, but then again it wasn't the same size as a Cruciable ship. He was glad that he brought his pouch of money, all of his savings from his rift hunting, with him since it seemed that there really was no such thing as a free meal. He wasn't really sure whether he should try to find a room or wait for instructions so, thinking better safe than sorry, Jarvan waited next to one of the railings for something to happen.