awakenerd | Aurora - Rean Heart

[...I mean, that's not new.]

[Just the amount of time, but violence and change and the wrongness of people is so very common-]

[He opens his eyes and he sees the disaster. His heart is still racing, panic still thrumming through his veins-]

[But people are in danger and this is a town, these are civilians and he's moving, running, ready to help who he can.]

There's a woman holding a child, huddling in a corner, terror in her eyes, pleading.

"Don't hurt us, please--"

There's soldiers coming. And you can probably save the woman and child but chances are the soldiers will see you.

[I will do the hula in front of the soldiers if that was necessary, and he isn't even sure if these soldiers could keep up with him in a fight.]

[Especially with a mother and child, WHY NOT ALL MY TRAUMA.]

Ma'am, we need to move now. Come with me, I can get you to safety.

[Though he will still go for the route that seems most likely to avoid soldiers because he wants THEM out of line of sight.]

She's uncertain but she follows you. You can dodge soldiers for a while but eventually, in the unfamiliar streets, you find yourself cornered, the woman and kid cowering behind you, soldiers in front advancing.

Four soldiers. Two people you're defending. They're raising their weapons, demanding you surrender.

[If he was alone, he'd fight. He's taken on worse than four, though he is taking a mental stock of what he has.]

[Are his gun, knives, and pendant still present?]

Well, that higly depends on you guys. [There is a cold, authorative edge to his tone, staying between the soldiers and the pair behind him.] If they go free out of this mess, I'll come quietly. If they don't, still pretty good odds I'll kill all four of you anyway. [Even without weapons.]

Edited 2020-02-08 16:55 (UTC)

You have all your stuff!

The soldiers are pretty young, but aren't most grunts? War eats the teenagers and young adults, after all.

One of them looks hesitant.

"All of you need to come with us."

Are they bad? They probably are just regular people following orders but who knows if those orders or the people giving them will let you or the two behind you live.

[They are young.]

[So were the New Republic soldiers and he killed them too.]

...considering the extent of damage to the town? I don't trust what's going to happen to them. Slavery, prisoners, execution, all thise are pretty likely when armed soldiers attack civilians.

Attacking civilians for orders doesn't make it right. You're making a choice, they aren't. So now you're making mine. Walk away or you're not going to walk anywhere.

They kind of look at each other but they have the guns and also their orders and you're just... Some guy?

"I said come along."

One of them is more aggressive, or it might be bravado.

[He sighs.] Stay behind the light, ma'am.

[And throwing up a barrier in front of the mother and child as he pulls out a knife, throwing it to bury it in mister bravado's knee as he rushes forward, ducking low to get ready to dodge a shot. Super soldier enhanced speed is your friend.]

Edited 2020-02-08 18:09 (UTC)

Honestly you're twenty times more than a match for these kids. How do you deal with them?

[Well, if he's that much better, he'll focus more on disarming them of guns and then kneecapping them with one of the guns. If they don't become a serious threat, he sees no need to kill them.]

[But he's gonna make sure they remember this and hopefully rethink their life choices.]

They scream a lot in pain but you disarm them without fatalities.

From behind you a deep and pleasant man's voice says:

"How interesting."

[DON'T LIKE BEHIND.]

[Retrieveing his knife from the knee and turning quickly, already focusing in the back of his mind to switch the pendant's power. What's the status of woman and child?]

They're... gone.

Standing behind you is a man.

"To be perfectly honest... I expected you to kill those men."

They were kids. And not enough of a threat for their dumbass decisions.

Where's the woman and kid?

He shrugs.

"Where are those men you subdued?"

They're gone. The blood remains though. On the ground and on your knife. The distant sounds of fighting have gone quiet. It's just you and this man in the silence and smell of smoke.

....

[Its like showing up at Iota's place all over again.]

Goddamn magic bullshit.

His chuckle is deep and warm.

"That is a way of putting it. But you have made choices, and even if, in a fashion, those you saved and those you spared were not, strictly, real, your choices have real effects."

....am I in a trial? Did I get summoned to a trial in my sleep?

"And if you were?"

It affects my actions? If those soldiers had been older, more experienced, more of a threat, I probably would have killed them. Because they're way past getting a benefit of a doubt on just being stupid and more of a threat.

Different circumstances, different actions.

Edited 2020-02-08 19:58 (UTC)

"You are a soldier. Killing is part of the job. I doubt any would find fault with that.

Yet you wished to spare those that you could."

I became a soldier to protect people. That's the difference between a soldier and a killer.

I didn't need to kill them to protect. There's a good chance they got into an army without thinking it through or not having a choice.

Now? They'll think twice and it'll be a long time before they're redraftable. If they're really malicious, same thing, just for different personal goals.

The man just smiles as he listens.

"Indeed. Killing to protect is something of an oxymoron. But one all soldiers must come to grips with.

But I doubt we need tell each other what we both know. What will you do now?"

Edited 2020-02-08 22:29 (UTC)

Depends entirely on what you're protecting. Its a pretty effective tool if you have specific people you're protecting.

You never answered if this was a trial.

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