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RICO

Rico flopped down in the motel bed, letting out a long groan. After a brief respite, he found his way to the bathroom, enjoying a nice bath before returning to his room, dressed down to his black undershirt and neon green pants. Zipping off the lower half, they became shorts, Rico leaving them in the pile with the rest of his clothes. Pulling out his belongings, he scattered them across the bed: 5000 beri and a mixed bag of hard candy. Slouching into a chair, he counted off his fingers, before crying, “Where am I gonna get money without whacking anyone!?” With a long sigh, he gathered up his belongings before hopping onto the bed, struggling to drift to sleep with a tense look on his face the whole night.
“...Can you run that by me one more time?

Rico’s face was sullen as the motel clerk explained, “Well buddy it’s not s’hard. See, ye don’t got a membership card, right?”

“No.”

“We asked ye when ye rented your room if ya wanted one: that shoulda been when ye signed yer contract.”

“Sounds fair. It was pretty pricey, so I didn’t get one.”

“And on the contract it says if ye don’t have a membership card it costs ye the same price ye paid for the night when ya check out.”

“Where!?” Rico scanned the contract, not seeing a thing. The clerk pulled it over to the wall, pulling a handle. With a series of clicks, a dozen magnifying glasses in gradually decreasing sizes popped out. “Whoa, cool!” The clerk placed the contract under the magnifying glasses, motioning for Rico to look. The young man did so, reading in very fine print.

Upon evacuation of any rented room, the customer must pay an amount equivalent to the original fee. Failure to pay this fee will invite legal action for deferment on obligated charges. Fee will only be waived with a membership card.

“...Not cool.” Rico pressed the sides of his face in with his hands, growling, “How was I supposed to know all that!?”

“It was right there on the contract lad!” Rico continued to press against his face, anger boiling, before he suddenly blurted, “I’m calling the Sootstriders!”

The clerk paled, suddenly gasping, “Whoa, hey now laddy, yer right, it ain’t exacaly fair now, is it! Tell ye what.” Moving the contract, he motioned for Rico to read it again.

Dissatisfied customers will be refunded with a Bill. After the refund has been received, the Bill will be returned. A customer who has been Billed voids any further legal action against this establishment.

“...The heck’s that mean?”

“We’ll Bill ye a refund! Just wait at Phoenix Place.”

“Oh, why didn’t you just say so? You mean Palace?”

“No.”

Relenting, Rico would spend his next hour waiting at one of Phoenix Beach’s plaza areas, a firebird statue in a fountain regurgitating water, the ironic sight catching Rico’s attention, until a call roused him. He turned to see a man with a pudgy tummy, his shirt not quite covering his midriff. He wore a red homburg hat and a black vest, his face emblazoned with a blonde mustache. “You Rico?”

“Boy am I!” the pirate said with a grin. The man let out a laugh, raising his hand for a high five, which Rico returned.

“Haha! You’ve been Billed.” Rico’s eyelids lowered, confusion apparent. “My name’s Bill.” Realization started to dawn, Rico’s face growing darker. Bill snapped his fingers, pointing both at Rico as he smiled, “Catch you later, buckaroo.” Rico was on the cusp of tears as Bill turned, heading off.

Rico followed.

Sensing the pirate on his heels, Bill gradually rose his pace. So did Rico. Shooting his head behind him, Rico was getting faster. Bill panicked, breaking into a run, but there was no escape. The two started to pull heads as they peeled through the walkways of Phoenix Beach. Rico hopped into the air just as Bill let out a cry of fright. Rico’s two legs dropkicked into him, Bill being knocked onto his front while Rico fell to his side.

Rico shouted to the crowd, Never room at the Shady Dealing Lodge!”

Bill scrambled up and away, crying, “You knew what service you were getting! There was no false advertising whatsoever! None whatsoeverrrr!” His voice trailed off as he left Rico, the folk going about returning to their day.

“This place sucks.”
Gonna keep it quick this week!

Rico/Anna/Morgan and Valery/Sol are still trapped in collaboration. @Daxam did start Luna's current arc and will hopefully post again around the 12th. I'd love to post for Coriander around the 13th but we'll just have to see what happens. @LostDestiny and @Yankee have kept in touch about posting with Maxwell and Suiten. @Restalaan is probably being bullied by work, so I haven't heard from him in a minute. I'm on the edge of my seat for more posts, so keep going at your own pace all!
CATHERINE CORIANDER

Hair poofy and pink, Mrs. Poppy ran a finger across her face, tracing lines down the wrinkles carved from her worried expression. “This is the second time in just a few days one of you has gotten hurt, what is Coriander doing?”

Sprained finger wrapped in a splint, Verbena pouted, “It’s not like it’s her fault!”

Poppy sighed, “I know, it’s Peppermint. Just be careful for a change. The problem will sort itself out eventually.” Verbena’s brow furrowed over his beady eyes, but he hopped off the stool and headed out without a word of thanks. Stepping outside Mrs. Poppy’s clinic, he found Sorrel waiting for him, Cassia and Rue assembled as well. Verbena avoided meeting their eyes, the boy typically using his weight to push the others around, but now they’d seen his weakness.

“Mrs. Poppy doesn’t get it at all!” Verbena finally blurted out, kicking at a stone as he broke the silence. “Peppermint’s not a problem…”

Sorrel mumbled, “Huh? You make fun of her all the time.”

“Yeah? I make fun of you guys too, don’t I?” Verbena snapped.

“‘Cept me,” Rue giggled.

“I can smack you though,” Sorrel jabbed. Verbena frowned.

“You’re too mean to her!” Cassia cried, his volume a bit louder than needed. As the others leaned away, he added, “If you can’t be nicer I’m not gonna hang out with you anymore.” The kids were quiet, thinking it through.

Rue stopped walking, crouching to the ground. “I still think she’s a goody two shoes, but she’s kinda like my big sister.”

Sorrel mumbled, “It would be pretty lame if she stopped hanging with us, since she’s the only one of us who’s both big and nice. But she’s still a little scary: that floorboard almost hit me.”

Verbena started a course, insisting, “I’m gonna go apologize.”

Sorrel shivered, “I didn’t know you could do that!”

“Shut up! It’s not like I meant to make her that mad!” Verbena wailed. “I don’t really think she’s a monster! I thought she would laugh the other day! She’s one of us, right!?” The kids were stunned to see Verbena with tears at the edge of his eyes. “She never does anything bad! She’s never hurt any of us before. I didn’t want to make her sad: I wanted her to laugh. I’m the bad one! But she’s never bad so she probably thinks she’s bad right now. So I gotta apologize!” The other three frowned, Verbena’s words ringing true.

“I didn’t say anything wrong but I still wanna help cheer her up,” Rue insisted, mouth hidden behind her clutched teddy bear. Sorrel and Cassia nodded along, and in no time, they were on the path to Peppermint’s house. Reaching the door, Verbena stopped, noticing the doorknob was loose, barely hanging in the door. Raising his hand, he moved to knock, but there was a footstep from behind him, one much larger than that of any of his friends. He turned about.

“You her friends?” asked Ryu Burnet, his long hair and trench-coat flowing in the wind.

“AHHHHHHHH,” the kids shouted in unison. Burnet flinched at the noise, but he couldn’t particularly blame them after his attitude yesterday.

“Calm down, I’m here for the-hey!” Burnet cried out as the kids started to scatter, fear supplanting rationality. Reflexively, Burnet reached out, grabbing Cassia by his arm. “Would you all be quiet!” he snarled. Against all reason and logic, this produced the opposite effect Burnet had intended, Cassia bursting into tears, sobbing loudly. “H-hey! Come on now. Ah shit.”

Burnet looked up at the door as it creaked open. The two of them both stopping dead, Peppermint’s hard gaze having a particular aura to it. The girl wore a hoodie, a white cloth stained with red was wrapped on her hand as tightly as she could manage. Peppermint growled, “Let him go.”

“Hmm?” Burnet replied, not seeing the issue. Peppermint huffed, door getting blown open as she backed up, disappointing into the darkness of her house. There was a rushed patter of footsteps, and Burnet was glad he reflexively let go of Cassia’s hand. Peppermint shot out of the doorway like a missile, her pale green shock of hair making fast friends with Burnet’s ribcage. Momentum transferred, sending him hurtling across the dirt road and into a fence on the opposite side, where he plowed through the wood like it was made of toothpicks, crashing into a thick tree, wood splintering.

“Unnnnnnn,” Burnet groaned, vision swimming. He’d heard she was strong, but not in his wildest imagination did he think it was something like this. His vision came into focus as he noticed Peppermint charging at him. Rolling out of the way, her fist smacked into the tree, splinters gushing out of the back like flour from a ruptured sack. Burnet didn’t think the blood could rush out of his face so fast. “Holy hell.”

“No-” Peppermint began, turning her gaze on him, leg going up, “SWEARING!” Burnet pulled himself back a bit, her stamping foot going right between his legs, the quake shaking him to his core. Sweat was coming, and fast. The man of a hundred battles felt his rusted survival instincts creaking into place. A fear gripped him, the realization coming that if he didn’t do something fast, this girl could kill him. Pulling his leg back, he pressed it against Peppermint’s torso before pushing off, hurtling her back. The girl stumbled, losing her balance and planting into the dirt, giving Burnet time to stand, against the will of his sore joints and creaky bones.

“Are you done?” Burnet coughed. But Peppermint pushed herself up, nostrils flaring as the steam of anger billowed out. Burnet felt his heart shrink under the girl’s anger. With a roar, she charged at him, and Burnet, in all his wisdom, could only think to turn tail and run like fucking hell.

Streaking through the buildings in the midday, they drew a number of heads. It was an unusual sight: Burnet wasn’t out and about often, let alone running for his life, and Peppermint was a little green hellion on his heels. He was wise enough not to turn back and lose speed, but he could sense that she was still gaining on him. While from the outside, the old man running from Peppermint sure looked funny, he’d seen visions of a nine year old harbinger of death, and wasn’t in much a position to take it lightly.

How long has she been this strong? The whole time? Burnet realized, the spats of life flashing before his eyes taking him to his numerous rampages as a child, a young Burnet not even just breaking things on accident, but because he could. Peppermint could break anything on this island, but from what Burnet heard, she barely had. The dread in his heart started to wane. The potentials this girl was capable of, yet straying from, all because she wanted to be a Marine? You’re not a good fit for the Marines at all! he realized. He thought back to his first mission with the 16th Patrol Division, where they tore through a lawless land taking things as they pleased, the villagers helpless to resist for fear of true retaliation. Burnet’s heart burned to stop them, but they were his own comrades, one’s he’d been laughing and training alongside just the day before. He burned to act, but instead repressed himself.

And it didn’t stop there, it never had. He’d kept his men in line too, claiming it was for their safety. But just because he could hold himself back forever doesn’t mean everyone could stay that way. Truuni had chose to act rather than be held back. But here, Peppermint had been holding back her whole life, and she couldn’t manage that forever. Her dam was finally breaking, and god knew what she was going to take out before the flood subsided. Coriander was right: she did need help, and Burnet was the only one who could give it to her. A life of being told ‘no’, of telling himself ‘no’, of telling others ‘no’… To that, he decided to say ‘no’, planting his foot in the dirt. Whipping his quarterstaff off his back, he turned about, giving it a good, underhanded swing. “Sorry kid,” he grunted as the wood met Peppermint’s torso. Following through, Peppermint was launched skyward, onlookers gasping out. Verbena and the kids pointed in the sky as Peppermint flew. Cicely wiped sweat from his bald head as he watched, fearing the possibility of having to make good om his words about rebuilding the leveled town for Peppermint’s sake. A distance away, Coriander saw the airborne girl and let out a cry, eyes bulging out, feet going into motion as she sped over.

Peppermint landed with a crash, bouncing into a set of barrels left by the dockside, smashing through them. Sitting up, she looked around, all eyes on her. Lifting a hand, brushing away a piece of wood that stuck to it, fear and guilt crossed her face. Burnet saw her beginning to retreat into herself yet again, the release small and fleeting. Her world was one made of paper, so easy to tear, yet she navigated it so carefully. But the stress of that was something Burnet couldn’t imagine. Peppermint was an amazing talent, and the more he watched her in action, the more he felt his heart well up with something he thought was long gone: burgeoning hope. Peppermint was too good for the Marines, but she had goodness, and she had power. Burnet lacked both, and couldn’t make the change he’d never even considered. Truuni had all the goodness, but despite her skill she was just one above average solider. Peppermint didn’t have to be strong enough to move the world, she just had to be strong enough to protect what she cared about, and in a lot of ways, she already was.

But she couldn’t protect herself, and her heart. Not alone.

Quarterstaff jabbing against the ground, Burnet shouted, “On your feet, soldier!” Peppermint gawked, scrambling to a standing position. Putting his front leg forward, quarterstaff aimed at her, he said, “Battle position!” Peppermint squeaked, raising her fists awkwardly.

“I am Commodore Ryu Burnet, and this sparring match isn’t over. Your enemies aren’t going to give up because of a couple broken barrels. No matter what breaks, you have to keep going until it’s over!” The words came easily, moreso than they ever had, Burnet's own dam finally breaking, even though their weight he still felt on his back. For a moment, he felt as though Truuni’s eyes might be watching him, the eyes of a girl who could only go forward. Burnet didn’t turn back: he couldn’t face her, not yet. Instead, he let that push him forward, the man finally moving into motion after 12 years. “If you want to protect what you care about, you give it your all! Understood!?”

Peppermint gave a nod, still hesitant. The itching Burnet felt on his face, wind biting through the trails of his tears, was more than enough explanation as to why she was holding back, but if she kept that up, she was going to be in a world of hurt. Quarterstaff flashing, he knocked Peppermint about without remorse. He didn’t need to feel bad: she broke it in two within 5 minutes, and he was taking his own licks. Even with two separate halves he was still able to knock her about, but her anger had melted, exchanged with a grin. Bouncing back from being launched, she laughed like she’d been playing with a bubble wand. And honestly, as Burnet fought with all he had to keep Peppermint from crushing him, the pitched conflict had somehow become fun in its thrill. He remembered that look Truuni had given her when she defended her men from his aimless blow.

She was smiling. During their spars, their debates, their leisurely moments. He’d tried to compartmentalize it as a quirk of hers. Who’d find hanging out with an old geezer like him enjoyable? But as he came to enjoy seeing this raw talent blossom, getting more agile as the fight went on, his time with Truuni kept resurfacing. He’d acted like a father to her, but even that was something he held back on. He couldn’t apologize to her, he couldn’t make it up to her, but there was one thing he could do.

As the sun started to set, the town full of onlookers, gashes in the dirt roads and splintered trees strewn about, Burnet and Peppermint lay on the ground, bruised and exhausted. “Hey girl…” Burnet panted.

“Y-yeah?” Peppermint returned in kind.

“You still wanna become a Marine?”

“Yeah!”

“I wanted to be a Marine because of my dad. He died as one when I was little. He didn’t even get to officer rank or anything, so I think I wanted to join to, like...not surpass him or anything, but more...make sure his death wasn’t in vain. He never accomplished much, but if he could inspire me to be a great Marine...”

You couldn’t inspire me to be a great Marine, Truuni. No one ever could. But god dammit girl I’ll make it up to you by making the greatest Marine in the fucking world.

“Well, you got yourself a mentor kid. I’ll make you the best dang Marine there ever was.”

Peppermint’s eyes widened, her face shifting to shock, then breaking into tears, her arms going to cover her face. Burnet’s hand found her shoulder, the smile on his face hurting his cheek muscles for its rarity. “Me too kid, me too.”
Saturday, hey~

Hope you guys are doing well! Haven’t heard from @yankee or @pkken in a minute, hope they’re good! As mentioned there’s some collaboration going on with the Sunstrider crew, and I know @Hillan will be going on summer break soon so hopefully we’ll get moving there soon! @LostDestiny is a shade overdue for Maxwell, as is @Restalaan for Haku. I would love to post for Coriander this weekend, provided it isn’t a double post. Lastly I’m looking forward to the start of Luna’s next arc from @Daxam on the 6th!

Two announcements: firstly, there is some planned website updates, so I took the advice of another player to backup the RP. I’ve created some links on webarchive/waybackmachine and left them in a message on discord. I hope that we will never need them, but if the worst happens, all the players are already on discord so we can keep in touch there.

Secondly, also at player suggestion, I’ve opened up a non-canon IC chat channel on the discord, in hopes that players can use it to interact with their characters who otherwise won’t be able to meet IC for a long time. I hope to see some fun interactions (just don’t get so caught up in it you forget to post IC :p ).
RICO

“Oh god please, I’ll pay you back, honest, just spare me!”

Rico looked down on the begging man, his hair long and clothes ratty. His cheeks were puffed out slightly, his look vacant. In his hand was a simple flintlock pistol. Turning over his shoulder to the two Solar Triad thugs who’d roped him into this.

“Just finish him off and you’ll get paid,” insisted Hong.

“I’m gonna be honest fellas, I did not sign up for this.”

Jingyi balked. “What!? That’s not what you said before! Just hurry it up and off him so we can be neatly removed from culpability.”

Rico’s eyes wandered, perhaps drifting back to what he said before.

“Have I whacked a guy before? You betcha. No one in the West can whack like me. I’m the whackiest freakin’ whackjob you ever met. I whack out the wazoo. My whacking is cracked, jack. Talking smack wearing black BAM, I whack. Whacked so hard I broke my back, once. From the rack with a crack, I’ve got a knack for whack.”

“...I kinda want to hit him,” Jingyi grumbled.

“I wanna see how far he can go with this,” Hong said.

“Please help I don’t know how to stop.”


“I think I misunderstood you guys, must be a local thing,” Rico suggested.

Hong took the gun back. “Well, we’ll salvage this somehow.” Twirling it about, he pointed it at Rico and fired. But Rico didn’t fall, his face reforming with a fizz of sparks, his eyes narrowed in anger. “What the sho-” Rico grabbed him by the face, bending a knee and bringing him down, smashing him into the stone alleyway ground effortlessly. Cracks formed about, Jingyi and the debtor letting out cries of shock.

“That was really rude you know!” Rico growled. Stomping towards Jingyi, he demanded, “What the heck is even going on here!?”

Jingyi tried to retreat, only managing to back into the wall. “H-Humex over there is late on his debt repayment!”

Rico paused. “I have debts to pay too, how the heck can we pay if we’re dead?”

Jingyi became indignant. “Hey, if we go soft on you guys it’s over for our rep! That’s worth more than the rest of the debt, so-”

He stopped when Rico glared. Trying to slip away, he failed, Rico grabbing him by the scruff of his shirt. Using his other hand to flip the man around, Rico brought him down, slamming him into the ground with another cracking of stone. “That’s stupid! You’re stupid!” He grumbled. Turning to Humex, he noted, “And if I think your plan is dumb then you’ve got another thing coming!”

Humex stared, before mumbling, “It’s n-not that stupid, really. The Solar Triad are feared around here for a good reason, and you just knocked out-why are you going through their pockets?”

Rico stuck out his lips as he pulled some beri out of Hong and Jingyi’s wallets. “I whacked some guys, just not the one they wanted. Besides I need to get to Shuffle Island somehow.” Pulling together about 10,000 beri, he muttered, “How much is a ship? Like a ride? To a place I wanna go?”

Humex thought for a moment before answering, “Er, depends on where you want to go. Shuffle Island...maybe 50,000? A bit more?”

“Sweet!” Rico cheered, pocketing the cash. “Anyway, you should probably run, they’re gonna be mad when they wake up. We both gotta find a way to earn some money. Any ideas?”

Humex balked, “If I knew I wouldn’t be in this situation. You have bigger things to worry about though! You don’t want to be on the Triad’s bad side. What’s your name, anyway?”

“Meh, I’ll figure it out, they don’t seem so tough. Anyway, I’m Rico. Can I crash at your place?”

This guy is going to get himself killed, so Helios no! Humex thought with a wince. “Er, there are some good places to stay right in Phoenix Beach if you have the cash.”

Rico pouted. “I need the money though, dang, this is gonna be hard.”

“Tell me about it. Anyway, thanks for the help pal, but we better get before the Sootstriders come.” Humex skedaddled, leaving Rico behind. The young man looked to the two bodies, wondering aloud, “I don’t know how ash is gonna help but see you later bro!”

As the two parted ways, Humex felt his heart pounding. He had a ray of light, finally. It wouldn’t be enough to remove his debt, but he had something that could be worth a lot in the right circumstance: information. This Rico kid, with a weird power and crazy strength, who the Triad could be gunning for within the day...he just needed to offer the right words at the right time for the right price.
CATHERINE CORIANDER

Marine Base E-50, Conch Archipelago, East Blue – 16 Years Ago
Heels clacking together, hand raised into a salute, a pair of pink eyes under a Marine cap gave a firm gaze. “Ensign Truuni Culveri, reporting for duty, sir!”

Scratching at his salt and pepper goatee, Commodore Ryu Burnet [13th East Blue Marine Patrol Division Commanding Officer] mumbled, “You’re gonna have to change out of that basic Marine gear. You’re an officer now, we’re going to need to be able to spot you easily in the thick of it.” Arms crossing over his black and blue button up, he admitted, “I figured a sailor of your sorts would jump at the chance to wear whatever the hell you want.”

Truuni gave a smile, “Sir! The outdated sexual harassment is amusing, but not appreciated.” There were a few fragments of laughter, bolting out at the sudden bluntness of Burnet’s new second in command.

“Well, that’s one thing about you that isn’t green,” Burnet admitted, noting her turquoise hair tied into a ponytail. Turning to the staffing officer overseeing the personnel change, Burnet demanded, “Get me a guy Ensign, I can’t hit this one.”

The round faced man balked. “Sir, you shouldn’t be smacking around anyone.”

Whipping out a pair of tonfas, Truuni grinned, “Don’t worry about me, I can take it!” There was a flash of brown, and the clattering of wood on wood. The air rushed with impact, ground crunching under the weight of the blow. Bruises started to form on Truuni’s forearms where her tonfa’s had struck her body, blocking Commodore Ryu’s quarterstaff.

The staffing officer pointed a finger, searching for the words to note the harsh treatment, but Burnet was more concerned with something else. “Novice. Roll with the punches, you’ll take less damage.”

Truuni’s eye bore into him, a look he could never forget. “Sir: my men are right behind me.” Burnet glanced to see a handful of soldiers having jumped back out of the way, though when Burnet’s quarterstaff struck out, they would never have scattered fast enough.

Burnet’s expression didn’t change. Running a hand through his thinning hair, he slipped the quarterstaff back into the loops of his justice coat. “That was a test: you passed.” Turning his gaze on the rest of his new men, he demanded, “Anyone else want to introduce themselves!?” The snapped to salute, their silence speaking so many words. Starting to turn off, Burnet said, “Be careful girl, you’ll be done in by that eagerness of yours.”

“Not if I can help it, sir.” Truuni countered with a coy smile.
The tone of next few years had been well set by that initial meeting. Burnet had his strength and his wisdom, but Truuni wasn’t afraid to challenge him, even if it mostly tried his patience. It was hard to say if either was learning much of anything from the other, for their contrast only made them dig their heels in deeper, but that exact fact made them a talking point of the local Marines, the pair of interest for their almost universal dissonance. It was joked about that if they ever agreed on anything, snow cones were being served in hell, the dessert ironically being one thing they both admitted to enjoying (the syrup topping flavors was another matter entirely).

It was two years into their assignment on the patrol ship that Truuni came to Burnet’s office, slamming an inventory sheet down on his desk, following it with her Marine cap, the hat taken off her head for the indoors and plopped onto the table. “They’re definitely swiping rations! These numbers aren’t adding up!”

Stuffing the rest of his granola bar into his mouth, Burnet grumbled, “You don’t need to be doing inventory more than once a month, unless we’re making a supply run.” Truuni’s mouth hung open, eyebrows narrowed in anger and disbelief as she pointed at his wrapper. “Calm down, Marines don’t ration out granola bars, there are mine.”

“Oh, right.”

“How many times have you done inventory this month?”

“Never mind that! Rules are rules for a reason aren’t they? I swear, half the guys are getting rounder by the week! If this keeps up we’ll be rolling them into battle!”

Burnet held his chin in contemplation. “If we set up the hammocks, do you think we could use it and launch them like a giant slingshot?”

“...Sorry, this is serious, I shouldn’t have joked like that. But sir! We’ve got an audit coming up too!”

Burnet leaned back in his chair, shrugging, “Yeah, missing supplies ain’t great, but they aren’t going to care about a number that could have come about through a rounding error, or just scrapped out because of mold or pest damages. Some late night snacking isn’t going to raise any eyebrows. And it’s not too costly at the end of the day, if the Government couldn’t pay for it with their Heavenly Tributes rolling in then the world has bigger problems.”

“But what about the integrity! Overlook one victimless crime here and they’ll be looking to see what they could get away with next!”

Burnet waved his hand, “Slippery slope. You’re welcome to try and catch them in the act, you know. Or work them harder, let them burn off that extra weight. Honestly, that’s the way I’d rather deal with it. Let ‘em know it’s wrong without actually making waves about it. You get those pencil pushers riled up and everyone is going to have problems. Fuckers love assigning corrective action.”

Truuni’s face fell, the girl losing steam, her hand scrunching up her Marine cap. “What’s the point of Marines if not to uphold rules for peace and order?”

Burnet let out a low sigh, leaning in. “Peace and order is good and all, but there’s plenty of evils in the world that happen with all the rules going exactly as intended. I’m not stopping you if you want to take this further up the chain, but you better think long and hard about what the consequences will be. Hear me?”

Truuni shut her eyes, scooping up her cap and inventory sheet. “Loud and clear,” she said, turning off without as much as a salute. Burnet didn’t question it at the time, but she hadn’t been one to shed decorum before regardless of how she felt, not that he’d have brought it up anyway. For the first time, Truuni started to relax a bit, shedding her standard infantry uniform for more casual clothes. Burnet was glad to see her chill a bit, and their men took notice, growing a bit friendlier with her (though Burnet’s brow grew tired of shooting glares at those with burgeoning ulterior motives). Even so, he felt a certain sadness, as a bit of the honest childishness in her heart had been put to rest, seemingly for good.
Slamming an empty beer mug down, Truuni suppressed a belch, instead snarling, “What’re they thinkin’ with Cholkin, huh? Like he can just schmooze on in from the Grand Line like the Seiryu position was fer him, when Rear-Admiral Honswore knows the East like the back of his hand! Just promote ‘im!”

Burnet chortled, “You can’t say a man deserves a double promotion because he actually replies to your fan mail.”

“It’s not fan mail it’s legi’mate suggestions to help the Navy run better!” Truuni scowled.

Burnet let a rare smile slip as he took another draught of beer. Truuni pulled her hoodie on a bit tighter, before mumbling, “Commodore, do you remember why you became a Marine?”

Burnet raised an eyebrow at the reference to rank, before insisting, “I’m old but I ain’t that old. I was kind of a small time thug in a big time city, and I knew it wasn’t going to leave me with much of a future, so I wanted to go somewhere where my strength could take me farther. It also cleaned up my act. All that stuff about justice...honestly I got sick of it before boot camp was over. Filled my head with so many ideas you’d have thought I was killed and replaced with the fellow you’re talking to, all the times I went on about being a good Marine instead of...”

“You’re a plenty good Marine,” Truuni finished with a pout. Burnet rolled his eyes. She didn’t catch that, but she did catch his expectant gaze. Taking another sip, she began, “I wanted to be a Marine because of my dad. He died as one when I was little. He didn’t even get to officer rank or anything, so I think I wanted to join to, like...not surpass him or anything, but more...make sure his death wasn’t in vain. He never accomplished much, but if he could inspire me to be a great Marine, then that’d make up for it, right? Then the Devil struck, and I figured I couldn’t wait any longer, so I lied about my age and enlisted at officer’s academy.”

Burnet stared into space for a moment, before saying, “You what?” Truuni swirled the drink in her hand, Burnet realizing, “You only just now hit legal drinking age, didn’t you?” Truuni giggled. “You little hypocrite. Hyposhite even.”

Truuni giggled, slumping down onto the counter. “If I’d ‘a known being a Marine in the East felt more like community service sometimes, I mighta pushed to be assigned to the Grand Line...but don’t let that worry you, I’m glad to be here!”

Burnet conceded, “Yeah, peace is best. Don’t ever think otherwise.”

“Yeah...” Truuni mumbled, lowering her head. It was only the two of them here in their ship’s mess hall, and as Burnet allowed her to drift to sleep, it felt like it was only the two of them in the whole world. He would never admit that paternal inkling in his chest, not even to himself. To him, peace was the result of protecting what you cared about. In his days of watching his fellows in arms, men he’d broken bread and shed blood with, either fight and die heroes or become no better than pirates in lawless lands, he made a judgment call, choosing to protect them over the random innocent. He felt like it was his way of retaining his humanity, and sitting here, thinking of Truuni, now a Lieutenant Junior Grade, his silence had protected that humanity of his. Now he just had to protect her, and the rest of his men, as best as he could.
“What do you mean leave it be!?” Truuni slammed her fist on Burnet’s desk, the wood cracking in half.

Burnet didn’t flinch. “That place is like a fortress and we don’t have the manpower!”

“We do! There are dozens, maybe even hundreds of people there willing to fight for their own freedom!”

“What’s the point of endangering the people we’re supposed to protect!?”

“WHAT’S THE POINT OF LETTING THEM SUFFER WHEN WE HAVE THE POWER TO DO SOMETHING!?” Truuni roared, Burnet taking a step back, caught off guard by his junior. Her hand gripping the wood, she muttered, “This isn’t about food being pilfered, this is human lives being traded like goods. We can’t just let this go! We’re Marines! If someone’s in need, and we can help them, shouldn’t we help them?”

“If we threw ourselves into every little conflict, there’d be no Marines! At the end of the day, we’re outnumbered out there! We go through the proper procedures: report to the 55th and wait for instruction.”

“How long is that going to take!?” Truuni howled.

“We’ll just have to find out, won’t we?” Burnet snorted, turning to his Den Den Mushi. He felt Truuni’s eyes burn on his back before she stormed out. Burnet shook his head, finger freezing over the dial. He knew about this place before they even got close. They were profitable enough to bribe all the patrol ships nearby, but a storm had forced them into the area. Burnet wasn’t into looking for bribes, so he was going to keep his nose clean and pretend nothing was wrong, but Truuni didn’t know how the world worked, that even if they dislodged the slavers and rescued countless innocent people, the power vacuum would just be filled by another group and nothing would change. And on top of that, the other patrol ships would have it out for the 13th. They’d been pretty fortunate up until now, but Burnet wanted to protect that luck, in spite of the number.
Hope is a terrible thing. The slightest bit of vagueness offered a hope just as slight. Seeing a small rowboat bobbing in the ocean in the path of their vessel, a wooden box jammed with spears and blades poked through the wood resting atop it, Burnet felt dread. In the wake of Truuni’s disappearance following her requests to the other men of the 13th to come with her to the slaver base, an offer not one man took, he feared the worst, but even now he couldn’t just accept how human sized that box was.

He had hope. And until that box was brought on board and cracked open, he’d been able to keep it. Seeing Truuni, he came to despair as that last bit of hope was gone. Burnet was proud to be strong, proud to be a rock his men could rely on. How could he be that rock when he was on his hands and knees, justice coat having slipped from his shoulders, the man unable to hear his own angered wails for the ringing in his own ears? But how could he regain that composure when he saw the frozen expression of his shipmate of 6 years? Saw her wrists bruised by the tonfas she swung to her last, the other wounds on her body well beyond the weapons stuck in her body as an intimidation threat?

His anger an inferno he felt might immolate everything, the 13th stormed the island, but their foes were already gone, the base abandoned. The Marines they’d bribed would look on the 13th just like Burnet had feared. Truuni’s solo effort was all for nothing. Or so Burnet was prepared to claim, until their search of the island turned up a number of folks in rags, dozens coming out of the woodwork. “You’re finally here! She said reinforcements were on the way!” Burnet felt his face tighten, unable to believe that Truuni legitimately believed they would come for her. “She never gave up, we owe her everything. We didn’t even know her name.” “Thank you, thank you!” came so many grateful words as Burnet’s men got everyone to safety. He’d rather they’d have thrown rocks: it’d have hurt less. He wouldn’t be able to listen to the commencement he got for dislodging the slavers, his promotion to Rear-Admiral being considered as Truuni got the standard posthumous double promotion to Lieutenant Commander. He wouldn’t accept it, resigning his position to eventually drift to Melody Island, a quiet place he could live out the rest of his days in peace. He’d tried to live as a good Marine, but even by his abysmally low standards, he was a bad Marine, one who couldn’t even protect what little he’d sought to keep safe.

Reaching for another bottle, all the ones that came to Burnet’s hands were empty. Slumping back into his seat, hand pressed against his face, eyes watering even as he tried to hold them shut, one last comment striking him from 12 years ago, words Truuni gave to alleviate the fears of the people she was trying to rescue when the claimed reinforcements never came.

“Don’t worry, they’re coming! My Commodore isn’t a bad guy, he won’t leave you!” He fought his tears as easily as a leaf could fight the wind. “Stupid fucking girl.”

“You won’t help even one of us who needs you right now? Forget being a good Marine, what about being a good person?” Burnet shook his head, “Damn the lot of you.”

Glancing over his shoulder at the quarterstaff leaning by the door, he knew he didn’t want to be in this dark room, but he didn’t want to go outside either. He didn’t want to do anything, he didn’t even really know what he wanted to do. Then the thought came, and he felt his breath start to steady. Wiping his face, he took to the sink, washing himself up. Changing out of his shirt, he picked the cleanest one he could off the ground, before heading for the door, pushing it open against the wind.

He still didn’t know what to do, but he knew what he wanted, and that was to stop feeling like this. So if he didn’t know, then he’d just ask himself ‘what would Truuni do?’ And even though she hadn’t been on this world in over a decade, he knew goddamn well what she would do.
I've got a three day weekend so I hope y'all have a good one too!

Loving the activity. @Hillan, @LostDestiny, and I are all on Sunstrider with Annabelle and Rico so posts are going to need to be coordinated, meaning we won't need to focus on due dates and stuff (provided everyone posts as they need to). @Yankee we're still waiting on but it is what it is. Tomorrow there's posts due for @pkken, @Daxam, and me with Coriander (though there's also some collab stuff going so if someone's waiting on someone else, be sure to pass me the message!). @Restalaan is due for the 29th, then me and Destiny with Max are due the 30th.

Anyway, as for the topic, I've said I've been enjoying the posts, so I'll put my money where my mouth is. Over the last week or so I've been rereading the IC character by character, and I'd like to share some of my thoughts.

@Yankee: It’s in major part because Suiten has the fewest posts of any PC (that old to the game, at least), but Suiten is for sure the character I want to see more of. The current adventure out in the deep sea is pretty unique relative to the RP, which is so focused on towns or developed cities (in that we’ve yet to have any adventures on untamed islands like Little Garden or Skypiea’s Upper Yard). And Suiten herself is an utter delight. She’s a character with so many conflicting ‘halves’: genuinely knowledgeable about sciences and engineering (piezoluminescence didn’t even sound real to me until I looked it up lol) but also kind of a freakin’ dummy. Cute and alluring in her nobility, but also a fucking dope when it come to social aspects and yes she will just flop around the beach like a grounded fish to move around in her fancy clothes. And of course, half human half fish (physically). What you have is super fun and I’d love to see more.

@Daxam: I’m really digging the way the Luna’s past has been handled. Not just in the relative vagueness of details and gradual drip of information that adds to intrigue, but in how it’s been affecting her character. She has her ghosts and burdens in trauma, it drives her in her goal to find Sol, and in the completed arc it also works to help her heal as Marcus guides her briefly, offering lessons as a figure from her past to help her in her future. I’m also interested in how she has her dichotomy in battle: the part of her that enjoys fighting, and the part of her that doesn’t. Brawler and assassin, a day and night of sorts. The prologue did a great job at establishing Luna and building up the Nychthemeron Empire, and I’m looking forward to the continuing story, plus the much anticipated inclusion of Sol.

@LostDestiny: Maybe it’s because of your familiarity with One Piece primarily being on the early portions, maybe it's just your personal writing style, or even a bit of both, but Annabelle honestly feels quite different from the cast, in very good ways. Where the rest of the RP has a large amount of action and drama (even on the rather peaceful Melody Island with Coriander), when you string up the events in Annabelle’s story thus far, not much has ‘happened’: it’s been rather toned down and methodical in a way that only works in its benefit. Annabelle comes across to me as a character who’s stuck dealing with her pain and trauma on her own, her posts very much focused on her state of mind and feelings. I really like and appreciate what Annabelle brings to the table for the RP! Maxwell is also a cool concept, and we’ve already worked together with him behind the scenes of Pol Stictid, but I’ll give some more meaningful comments on him when we have a bit more time with him.

@Hillan: One thing you’ve absolutely nailed with Sunstrider is atmosphere. While Morgan and the large cast is interesting in itself, the general gritty, rough and tumble feel of the island is honestly great. I’m not sure if I’d call it a noir vibe, but all the crime, justice, and politics definitely make it really stand out. And yet, it’s not alien to One Piece as you keep that seriousness in check with the utter ridiculousness of how the physically legal debates work, something right at home in an RP based on a series where ideals are matters of life and death, and as an interesting point of contrast against the seat of justice (Enies Lobby) in canon where law was a formality in a kangaroo court upheld by those with power to give the illusion of law and order. Apparently I needed more Sunstrider enough that I went to take it with my own hands with Rico. I expect every character in the West will likely visit, since it’s such a varied and interesting locale!

@Restalaan: It’s pretty interesting what even different formatting can achieve. Rather than larger paragraphs like the rest of the RP, the posts with Haku are all in shorter lines with maybe one or two sentences each, which is an interesting fit to the methodical and systematic no nonsense ways of the men of the Kirin. The focus on stealth and investigation is also an interesting choice for the first arc, and quite unique! It does leave me hungry for more Haku/Cadog interaction, but even the ones they got have enough details for me to understand how they are now and see angles that might be touched on in the future.

@pkken: Only a couple posts thus far, but they’re solid! Fun descriptions, friendly familial banter between those of the dojo, and an attention grabbing story connection to another PC right off the bat! Sorry I don’t have a lot to say, but Valery’s journey is only beginning, and it’s one I’ll be having my eye on!

All in all I’m really digging the game. I threw around the word ‘unique’, but I really do mean it. The cast is highly varied and I certainly think everyone’s individual strengths as writers are being realized. I think typical RPs, which focus on reactive posting, also force writing styles that tend to be reactive, so believe the perceived uniqueness is definitely in part a result of this style of RP (standing out to me more here because I’m so focused on the other players, where in the games that inspired this one, there were way too many characters for me to follow >_> ). Thank you guys for taking part, and here’s to more adventures! I also invite you guys to comment on the other’s posts if you’ve been reading along~ Even just a quick comment can mean a lot, I think.
RICO

Phoenix Beach, Sunstrider Kingdom, West Blue
“Later dudes! Thanks for the lift! Sorry about the ship!” Waving his hand, Rico hopped off the gangplank, onto the docks.

One of the crewmen of the merchant vessel furrowed his brow. “...What he’d do to the ship? Hey, get back here!” But Rico was already lost to the crowds. The midday was rather warm even in this month of May, and Phoenix Beach was a hotbed of tourism. All sorts mulled about: lads and ladies in swimsuits enjoying the sun and breeze, casino hoppers juggling coins between their fingers, families enjoying the lunchtime. Rico was wide eyed, glancing about at the colorful folk and loud signs. “Whoa, is there a festival going on?” Rico lit up.

Shuffling around like gremlin, he happened across a push cart, scent of fried chicken burning at his nose. “Get it before it runs away! Spicy Firebird Popcorn Chicken! Try the Three-nix flavor: three times the spice! It’ll make you rise from the ashes!”

“Aw yeah buddy, give me some pops!” Rico drooled as the clean shave man handed over a carton, toothpick stuck in for prime snaking. Rico popped some into his mouth, smoke coming from his nostrils. “Aw yeah I was starving. I can feel it burning my soul!”

“That’ll be 500 beri.”

Rico swallowed the bite in shock. Wheezing out in pain, he gasped, “Wait, it costs money? There wasn’t even any corn!”

The cartpusher was affronted. “Of course it costs money you little imp!”

Eyes and nose running from the spice, Rico coughed, “I don’t have any money!”

“Burned a hole in your pocket, huh? Don’t give me that you-” Rico took another bite of food, “Don’t eat it if you can’t pay for it!”

“It’sh good tho,” Rico said as he chewed. Swallowing, he admitted, “I got allowance like, a whole month ago I think, but I ran out. I bought this coat! It’s really cool. Well actually it’s really warm right now and I should take it off but I don’t have anywhere to put it. Oh, I got it!” Sticking the toothpick into his mouth, he handed over a few pieces of hard candy. “We’re even!”

The man turned up his nose. “Helios no! Do you even know what money is for?” Rico’s eyes wandered, his mind as empty as his wallet. “Money can exchanged for goods and services.”

One of Rico’s eyes twitched while the other spun out of place. “Oh shit I don’t know of any of either of those things or how they applies to this exact situation.”

“You want that, right?” he pointed at Rico’s chicken. Rico nodded. “That’s a good. Now exchange money for the good.”

“Ooooooh, why didn’t you just say so? It is really good, you’re right, but I’m broke, bloke.”

“I’m calling the Sootstriders.”

“Is ‘soot’ another word for money? Because that’d be a big help, thanks.” Rico took another bite of chicken as he smiled, satisfied.

The man was no older than thirty, but as he leaned over his cart to Rico, the years crashed down on him. “Look, kid, please, I’m begging you here, just pay me.”

“I dunno how? Where can I get some money?”

“Find some goods or services and exchange them for money! In other words, get a job.”

“Ooooh, I dunno if I can do that, but I’ll try!” With a wave, Rico headed off.

“No! Give back the- oh you little shot.”

A short ways away, there was a call for Rico. "Hey, kid!" called one of two men.

Rico stopped, swallowing his next bite. "You lookin' for work?"

“Am I!? Yessir!"

"Got a question...you ever whacked a guy before?"
CATHERINE CORIANDER

Door cracking open, eye gazing out, Ryu Burnet came face to face with a resolute Catherine Coriander, the young nun standing with her back straight and eyes firm. “You look like you mean business.”

“May I come in?” Despite the politeness of her words, her tone carried a curt shortness with it. The door came closed, and after the rattling of a chain, the door came wide open again, Coriander stepping inside, letting her eyes adjust. It was the middle of the day, but there wasn’t a lot of light in the room, most of it coming from the windows, blinds only partly opened. There was a stuffiness, the scent of dust heavy in the air. As Coriander walked to the living room, she had to dodge around old newspapers among other refuse: the occasional beer bottle, food wrapping, messy dish left to mold. There was enough room to walk, paths carved in the floor by trudging feet, but she could feel her mother channeling through her, intuitively wanting to clean up the mess.

Taking a coat and resting it over the back of an armchair, she took a seat, cloud of dust coming from the cushion. Burnet opened the blinds of a window nearby, light shining on the specks of dust in the air before he took a seat with a low groan. Perhaps Coriander hadn’t been paying much attention, but he didn’t seem to have changed out of what he’d been wearing yesterday. Though Coriander wasn’t here to judge him for that.

“I want you to help Peppermint.”

Burnet didn’t even blink. “The strong girl, right? What about her?”

“I just think she needs help and guidance. She’s been living alone for a year and-”

“I ain’t adopting her.”

“I wasn’t gonna ask that! Let me finish.” Coriander caught the slight roll of his eyes, but put that aside. “She’s...a really good girl, okay? I want her to make mistakes so she can learn from them, but her mistakes can be...really bad. I know she doesn’t want to hurt anyone, but even that is getting to her. She’s kind of trapped, I think. She’s different, and she keeps being made aware of it. I don’t want her to feel like she’s alone, but if we just pretend she’s not different, we’re ignoring who she really is. I just...don’t really know how to make her feel accepted. We all love her, but…”

Burnet was silent as Coriander trailed off. With a grunt, he muttered, “She’s not my responsibility.”

Coriander glared, back straightening in her indignance. “I-, you...”

“Why do you even think I can help her? And if it’s the reason I’m thinking you’re thinking, then you can leave.”

Coriander was struck silent, mind racing as she tried to find another path through the conversation. “You’ve sailed a lot. Have you ever met or heard of anyone like Peppermint?”

Burnet pondered for a moment, before admitting, “Yeah, there was one guy. Treated like a monster by everyone except his mother from birth. After she died he went on a bit of a rampage and ended up in jail. There was a big gang war at some point, a bunch of the prisoners dying, even a bunch of the guards. That guy was the only one left standing at the end of it all, drenched in blood.”

Coriander swallowed. “What happened to him?”

Burnet was sullen. “He broke out of prison and started flying the pirate flag. He saw hell and claimed he was going to drag the rest of the world down to the same level. That crew was the Abyssal Call, and that man was Avalon Duskar.”

Coriander let out a sudden squeal at the invocation of the Devil himself, feet kicking at the ground before she jumped onto her seat like a cat, all fours on the cushion. “Huh? Buh?” Mind scrambling, she slipped back to a natural position, “Wait, that...that’s all the more reason to help Peppermint! Not that I think she would ever go that route, but...the future...she was born-”

“Still not my responsibility.”

Coriander felt her anger starting to bubble. “I bet you wouldn’t stop the Devil himself if you had the opportunity. He who lets the Devil walk freely is no better!” Burnet gave a shrug. “What is your responsibility then!?”

Burnet gave a slight sideways nod of his head, “If there’s trouble, I lead the milita until the Chowder Kingdom sends its men. Peppermint isn’t a part of that.”

“Yeah, she shouldn’t be fighting, but she’s going to become a Marine whether you like it or not, so the least you could do is help her use her strength in a better way.”

Burnet grimaced. “That’s a pretty big ‘least’.”

“It’s not like you’re doing anything here except making a mess of yourself.”

Burnet followed Coriander’s downward glance, seeing a food stain on his shirt. Brushing at it, his hand trembled and fell into a fist. “She’s better off throwing away that stupid dream! She’s better off without the Marines!”

“She’d be the best Marine!” Coriander retaliated.

Burnet shook his head. “Have you ever met a Marine in your life?”

Corinader’s mouth shot open, only to gape. “J-just you, but I read about them!”

Burnet closed his eyes for a moment, before beginning, “Yeah, exactly. You get the good version, the ideal, the story the World Government wants you to hear. Even when you hear about corruption it’s always in the context it it being quashed out. But that’s not the Marines I saw. Before the Devil, after, it didn’t change what authority and power can do to a man. At boot camp we were all always talking about protecting people, making the world a better place, all that. Some just wanted to money, sure, but there’s safer careers out there. But the reality isn’t so simple. I was a ‘good Marine’, I never did anything wrong. I never killed any innocents, I never pilfered goods for myself, I never stepped a toe out of line. I just did what I was told. And if you think that’s what makes a good Marine-”

“Good Marine? Isn’t that expected? That should be the baseline!” Coriander reeled herself in at Burnet’s firm gaze.

“Yeah, it should, but it’s not. We don’t talk about ‘lawless lands’ enough, not on the whole. Have you ever thought about it?”

Coriander’s brow furrowed. “They’re basically wastelands, right? No law, no rules, just anarchy and chaos...”

Burnet let out a laugh. There was no warmth to it, only cold condescension. “You literal child. If not for our tax to the Chowder Kingdom, Tune Town would be lawless land. People don’t live in caves or woods because they want to. They seek comfort and stability because it’s desirable. The East is full of lawless lands. If there’s no Marine base or Kingdom, the people there have less human rights than we do. I hear it’s particularly bad in the Devil’s Seas, but it’s not like it’s absent even here in the East. I’ve seen it. A lot of people take the peace of this ocean for granted, but there’s no rule or law stopping Marines from acting like pirates in some place has enough wealth or if the people there piss of the wrong guy. If there’s anarchy and chaos in a lawless land, it’s because it was brought there. Sometimes by pirates, sometimes by Marines acting no better than pirates. I saw it up close and personal, and I didn’t do a damn thing. I kept my fucking mouth shut. I let the Devil in the Marines walk freely.”

Coriander was stunned, struggling to believe it, but unable to deny Burnet, for his heart only spoke with truth. Managing to swallow, she stammered, “B-but couldn’t you have made a report? Isn’t there the Marine...Invest-”

“The Marine Inspectors? Yeah good luck getting a hold of those glue sniffers, there’s only a handful of them in each Blue and the one’s I met didn’t mind having their palms greased. Even if you do, the moment you’re outed as a snitch is the moment you put a target on your back. Corruption comes from the top down. It’s the authority figures who decide what rules and behaviors to enforce. That’s how it is as a soldier. You’re not trained to speak your mind, you’re trained to follow orders. Besides, it’s not like they were breaking any laws anyway. Is that the kind of ‘good girl’ you want Peppermint to be?” Coriander felt tears of frustration rimming her eyes, but she used all her power to keep them back. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. If she’s a good girl then she should neve-”

“You’re the worst!”

Burnet nearly bit his tongue. “What did you say?”

Coriander glared up at him. “You should step down from being militia captain immediately.”

Burnet was affronted. “Excuse me?” Hand on his arm rest, he sat up, leaning at her. “Damn religious types, all this crap about forgiving sin and-”

“It’s not that! It’s not what you’ve done, or didn’t do back then, it’s about what you’re not doing now! If the Marines are the problem then what about you!? You’re not a Marine anymore! Who’s stopping you!?”

Burnet scoffed. “What about me?”

“You haven’t changed at all! And this time there’s no excuse! You didn’t do anything before, and you’re not doing anything now! Who wants a militia captain like that? When trouble comes to down are you going to be sitting here and doing nothing too!?” Coriander stood, arms straight at her sides as she raged.

“Of course not! I live here! I’m going to protect my home!” Burnet growled back, standing himself.

“Protect!? What are you protecting!? You’ll help us when you get to fight, but you won’t help even one of us who needs you right now? Forget being a good Marine, what about being a good person? If someone’s in need, and we can help them, shouldn’t we help them?”

Burnet froze, eyes widening to the point that red bloodshot lines were visible at the edges. “Get out.” Coriander didn’t falter. In a huff, she turned off, maneuvering around the refuse and tearing out the door, which slammed shut from the wind. Moving to the kitchen, a number of dirty dishes scattered about, he grabbed a beer bottle, only to find it empty to the touch.

“We’re Marines! If someone’s in need, and we can help them, shouldn’t we help them?”

Leaning an arm on the countertop, he pressed his other hand against his forehead. “God dammit...”
Hey it's Saturday!

Very glad to continue hearing from @Restalaan and @Yankee in absence of their posts. @pkken I haven't heard from in a little over a week though. @Hillan will have a post up today hopefully. @Daxam should be starting Luna's next arc on the 24th, which is around when @LostDestiny should have the next Annabelle post, I hope (she's a bit overdue with Max, but it is what it is). I'll be writing a Coriander post this weekend to throw up once someone else has made a post, and if all goes well I'm due for Rico's next post on the 25th!

I'm super thankful for you guys for sticking to it. I've never had a group RP go this long without dropping a single player, and I would love for that to continue. Just be sure to keep in touch!
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