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With eyes on the future; (Wide Open!)
Topic Started: Jul 9 2008, 05:18 PM (561 Views)
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Everything at this point was much like the final touches to a statue, little imperfections of the building that Brian felt could be done just a little better. Leaning over the balcony of the third floor, he looked down the long path around the mountain. He’d extended his offer of support to students who had wanted to stand, but in truth Center would remain a place for everyone. He wouldn’t close its doors simply because someone chooses to follow the path of true humanity, or decided that they only want refuge from the rest of the world.

As of yet he only had empty rooms, a lot of potential lay waiting in them. Yet Center would likely keep all that hidden until the right people came along to bring it out. Maybe Center would turn out to be the height of training facilities, he’d seen a lot of equipment in domino and at AHS that could increase the potential of Meta’s far beyond their imagination. Responsibility would have to go hand in hand with that, students and alumni that would teach each other how to manage those powers for the right reasons.

Perhaps it would be a meeting center; he could certainly fit more tables down on the second floor balcony. There was always room for improvement on this outside façade of a building. Brian knew he could make the appearance of the building look much like anything he wanted since Center had taken a life of its own though his powers. Though the roots were no longer apart of his body, Brian could feel them touching at his hands that were pressed on the balcony stone. Center’s reach was as far and wide as the mountain it seemed. Though he’d never tell anyone this, the path to that stone was well covered now.

Still, maybe Center would be a shelter in troubled times, AHS had quite a few of those. He could see to it that the shield on the mountain is reinforced for whatever came their way. Protect the insides of Center deep in the mountain that he had mined out. He couldn’t exactly make beds and provide all the comforts right away, but he had the engineers from domino set up the essentials to his specifications, with how it was set, dragoon mountain could provide for all they needed for quite some time.

Still, that was thinking too far ahead, right now. Center was just an empty building, with a great deal of room for expansion. He couldn’t let the troubles of the world reach anyone here; it would be a safe place, a place where he wouldn’t have to put up statues to remember those lost. He hoped that there would never be a need to make anything like the massive memorial at AHS. The memorial, a place where he could remember the daily occurrence of names being added to the already too long list.
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Yuki
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Keiko, may this all be in your memory. I couldn't bring your change.
[ *  * ]
"I don't buy this bullshit either."

Brian wasn't alone on the balcony. Whether he heard the other man's -nah... only boys here still- jump to the balcony, heard him stride up the solitary dirt path on Dragoon Mountain didn't matter. Though, the boy was silent at his best, aided now by subtle flight to his movements. He knew Brian's vision though. He was probably spotted as soon as he got back to Japan. The last time he'd returned, Brian'd found him that way, dripping with foul energy.

He sighed, chuckled, continuing his statement, "I figured I'd find you here. Heard a rumor you were raising an army up here. Figured to find you, this completely inconspicuous building would be a good place to."

-three hours earlier-

It was the same old same old. Or rather, the new same old, same old. Since the New Eden, or whatever the fuck they were called, took over, his treatment was vaguely reminiscent of the school yard at age eight. 'Oh hey! Let's stare and throw rocks at the weird looking dude!' Just now, the stares were looks of fear. And the rocks? They were big words: regulation, embargo, procedure, internment, precaution... reaction. There was no chance in hell he was getting on a plane under these conditions. His body would set off the metal detectors a mile away. The only way that wouldn't stop him was to catch a flight from Zealot turf. Yeah; fuck that.

It was by providence alone there were programs in place for relocating foreign True Race before the hammer came down. He hated that term. Even if it did apply to a Meta, it was lost on his brand of monster. The plane was barely half full, almost all monsters. After all, who else would fly non-stop to Japan right now. But landing in Tokyo? The fear here was the same. Air was tense. A flight full of abominations, who was going to let them walk by calmly? You could tell other passengers were sizing them up, guessing which of them were the most deadly, some even knowing better than to guess by size alone. A little middle-school girl of their True Humanity could possess an ability as potent splitting atoms at will for all they knew. The older gentlemen that had sat a couple rows in front of Yuki could be merely the guise of some greater being, a Kitsune or Vampire. Who knew? Appearances were completely moot.

Had Yuki any kind of patience left, he would've pitied the security that walked them now through the customs. But, after so many hours of this tension, feeling as scared as they are, that some human zealot was gonna bomb the plane, or launch an old SAEMH anti-Meta field over them. It was maddening for everyone on both parties. To that conclusion, it was with grim smugness that he realized they'd be far to terrified to break out the white gloves. That thought made him chuckle, louder than he'd anticipated, startling the guard that escorted closest to him. He even pulled his gun, some undiscernible semi-automatic pistol. "Don't bother," Yuki smirked, continuing, "One bullet won't be enough. And trust me, that's all you'd get."

Vaguely manic, the albino-haired boy bellowed an uncharacteristically loud laughter as he put his bags on the X-ray belt.

"Sir, please proceed through the metal detectors."

His laugh only deepened, the alarm sounding as he walked through. He simply looked at the shocked guard, opened his mouth and gently rapped on the top of his own head. The metallic ring was hard to mistake. Yuki chuckled, more softly this time, and grabbed his bag out of the other end of the machine. He walked out the door unchallenged from there. They were as scared of him as Meta-Humans were of this whole situation. It was a long walk, Yuki not using any of his abilities to speed things up. It wasn't worth drawing any more attention to himself.

Campus... was campus. AHS was always such a bittersweet mix of chaos and nonchalant. It took only moments of walking one of the more excited hallways to pick up on the latest rumors. The schooled is being supported by the zealots. Go figure. Crazy loudmouth got wrapped up in steel by one of them. Again, not the worst things could've gone, by the sounds of it. Two crazy students went into a portal with the zealot representative. Lost causes. And a crazy red guy leading a rebel army? Well, that had to be Brian. And until he could find the rest of his family: Angel, Mel, Chrono... That would have to do. They'd know Yuki well enough to know he'd be opposing them. Mel and Angel he knew wouldn't trust the Empire. And Chrono? While he might side with them, at least he'd know not expect Yuki too. He shuddered at the thought.

Up on Dragoon Mountain, Yuki found what he was looking for. A friendly face, and one that shared his cause to boot. Army or not, Yuki was not siding with any religion. Ever. Meta, or otherwise. This was as good a place as any to start.

"So what's really going on?" he inquired of Brian politely, that same scared face staring at Brian from behind the eye patch, "you can't believe what you hear in the halls."
Edited by Yuki, Jul 15 2008, 05:51 PM.
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As Brian turned back from the balcony he noticed movement on the pathway to Center. He knew he’d only told a few people about this place, yet after his speeches the day before it wasn’t like the school to just leave him be. He turned back to face the approaching form from the balcony, Brian focused down the expanse between them, the face was familiar but at the distance too fuzzy to make out. Then there was a burst of energy, his feet left the ground and he was on the balcony with him. Brian’s body moved on reaction as Yuki landed next to him, stepping back, putting up his guard as his eyes cautiously checked for any hostile movements. Yet as Yuki rose Brian’s guard fell, his voice joined with his rising body and Brian smiled somewhat for the rumors of AHS.

“And I also want to kill the minaminnows, destroy the school, and eat the flesh of virgin schoolgirls. I don’t think that particular gossip center is a reliable source Yuki.”

Yuki asked of course reiterating how unreliable listening to the schools rumors were. Brian took the time to visibly look around them; Center was what he had going on. It was obvious that Yuki didn’t quite understand the significance yet of what Brian intended to do here. Sure this place could be the base for all of those students who wanted to rebel against AHS sponsored by True humanity. The truth was this building was for the Metas period. He’d help them find the best ways to use Center.

“I’m not starting an army, I have no intention of putting the school at unnecessary risk after they already made their decision. No matter how damming it may be for some, because this place was built in mind for that some. The students who don’t want to be True Humanities kept pet, or who want to come here and simply meet and hang out. This is Dragoon Haven Center, it’s going to be a Meta Event Center. I’m not sure how the construction is going to go from here, but it’s going to grow based on what people need.”

Brian looked around the mountainside, it didn’t look like anyone else was coming at least for now. So Brian started walking back into the third floor, a single stone table with an office chair sat behind it.

“This is going to be the administration floor, right now it’s just me, I’m thinking eventually some other groups or companies with goals that are similar to mine will join center. So this is where we can meet and discuss Center’s future. I know it sounds big, but I can hope.”
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Yuki
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Keiko, may this all be in your memory. I couldn't bring your change.
[ *  * ]
It took a moment for Yuki to chuckle at Brian's remark. The name... Minaminnow... Teo. That frail man that saved his life countless times in just a single day. Last the boy had heard, Teo was dying, but that was before this empire mess happened. The name awoke a painful memory. That night on the rooftops with Trinis; he was supposed to help. It was sad. Yuki was no empath, not like Teo, but empathy in the less... Meta... sense of the word always came natural to him. To see other pain and want to help, to reach out and comfort one who was suffering, he was always like that, even with the constant bitterness and self-pity he often succumbed too. It was sad that stoicism was ever something he had to force, sad that it'd go on long enough for him to become natural at it.

It took only a second of strolling through the brief memory, before the walls went up. He forced a seamless hint of laughter. He always did appreciate sarcasm.

Following Brian's explanation, he reacted appropriately. Nodding once in a while, or simple words of agreement here and there when he paused. That sounded like something Yuki could easily go along with. Not violent. Just a refuge for those out casts, those who couldn't resist their defiant streak. It was a refuge for those like him. Following Brian inside, he went over his previous encounters with the red student in his head. He had a lot of words describe the persona: empathetic, just, strong... "Visionary" was one he didn't realize until now, visionary and defiant.

However, Yuki was brimming with questions at this point, some more pressing than many. What was to happen when this place came to notice? Whether by the True Humanity's tyrannical eye or the Japanese, or rather, World government when the Empire's promises weren't kept. As large as this building is, how was it to house as many students as were likely to come? Word on campus is that those liking the "True Humans" were a minority. While we were on that topic, Yuki was also starved for information on this Sabian and his new world order. What exactly where they rebelling against? Well, other than the obvious war mongering, Jesus-wielding zealots with a taste for tyranny and expansion.

"Brian," he began, starting his inquisition, "short of an anti-Meta arms company having similar goals, how're we going to protect those some when these 'True Humans' decide they want to collect on what ever fine print they decide to cook up? Unfortunately, Ryu seems to have signed us up for this mess as a whole."

He paused for a moment, debating how to further his point.
"If Lupis is half as strong as I've heard... he didn't stand a chance. Against one of them. Their nation numbers many," Yuki continued, his voice solemn, "I don't want to be a part of this if it'll only end in more students massacred."
Edited by Yuki, Jul 17 2008, 09:47 AM.
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The settled emptiness crept in, right now the only thing holding this place up was hope. Brian had a great deal of it now, enough to build this place and dare to think that he could support its infancy. For this building was like a child, yet to take on an identity, and no matter how many different ways he thought of that concept it was only more true as he moved among the halls. Brian was standing next to the staircase down to the second floor when Yuki turned the tour on Brian.

Yuki was precise, and clear cut in what he specifically wanted to know, it seemed to be the question that everyone asked him when they saw all the hope he had poured into this place. The question of hope surviving the reality of the world was something Brian wouldn’t bow his head before like he had in the auditorium; the school was the responsibility of those who ran it. Not a graduate student who had harmed the school as much as he had donated his time and efforts to help it. Here was where he was going to hold out and protect his interests to his last breath, but of course Yuki didn’t believe that was enough to hold back two armies and that was true.

Brian’s eyes betrayed the amount of anger that he had for the simple fact that was before him. His Center could very well become a target of either sides advances either out from AHS or into AHS. Which put him on a sort of borderland of strife and danger, they had to worry about both sides coming at them, but one thing he was thankful for was at least they wouldn’t come at the same time. Lupis had fallen, and it was likely, that if they outright fought Center would be a tombstone for those that fought with the power of either army.

“The idea isn’t to fight, I don’t want children throwing down their lives for a pointless battle. Follow me…”

Brian walked down to the second floor, and as he descended the polished stone staircase he gestured along the wall, where on a solid walkway there were a group of doors leading into the mountain. Large enough for students to pour into if necessary, the stone around the entrances looked more than the typical stone, the stone form he’d learned been key in making this wall section.

“The mountain is a shelter, I’ve reinforced these facing areas with my power, that purple energy I have. The stone will disrupt magic, and it’s far more durable than regular stone. It can withstand some hefty attacks, and in the event of an emergency, the ends of the pathways in the mountains can be busted though to various places on the front of the mountain. That’s my plan, against these mighty armies and a full assault. Lives are more important than a property I could single handedly rebuild.”

However Brian’s gestured hand curled into a fist as he looked back at Yuki.

“That is the last resort however, I’m not going to bend knee to these tyrants and power mad men. I will never do that again, I am going to find a way to become like I was again… better than I was. I’ll protect this place with every fiber of my being and make these giants reconsider the worthless bugs they thought of us.”
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Yuki
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Keiko, may this all be in your memory. I couldn't bring your change.
[ *  * ]
Doubtful. In a word, that was Yuki: callous, pessimistic, a realist. In any war -and this war started long before the nation of True Humanity- innocence is first casualty. And Yuki honestly didn't know if he was shocked or relieved to hear these ideals come from Brian. Since their uprising on the West coast of the U.S., it'd be a lie to say he hadn't been thinking that day would come, when Yuki would find himself fighting against these so-called brothers. But not here. Not on this campus, where less seasoned students would suffer for the arrogance of the world.

In reality, the cyborg didn't have a choice. This place, the ideal it was built for, mirrored his: refuged and protection for other outcasts, individuals. But could it really stand up to such powerful Metas? Despite the power he knew resided in Brian, that once radiated off to the point of dissolving his flesh, Yuki knew it wouldn't be enough.

"At least if it comes down to it, this place'll hold up better than Byakko did," Yuki laughed out, unsure if he was being sarcastic or bitter.

It was safe to say, that at this point, his mind was made up. He'd stay on 'til what ever end came to this place, even if that meant holding out under siege. There was no denying that he was built for combat, to be a weapon before a person. Maybe this was finally a way he could atone for that. 'Twas almost too fitting.

"Well, you can count me in," he declared, following his previous outburst, "What better way for a band of misfits and rebels to go down?"

Someone once said that change was the only constant in the world. Nothing is scarier than watching that inevitable storm, shift in balance, as comes bleak on the horizon to swallow one's home. That's how Yuki felt, the one home he ever had was threatened. He'd defend it's students until the end. Every one left that he cared about was here. At least as far as he knew. He could only hope that Angel would choose here over New York, as the Empire expands East. At least here she'd be safe until they were done.

"Well then, Brian, what needs to be done to make this work?" he asked. It wouldn't be much of a stretch to call him anxious to see this place come to life. "What needs to be done next to get the ball rolling?"
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Walking forward on the tour Brian was able to appreciate a little more the small favors he’d received with this place. Being secluded he was able to create this fortress to the best of his ability, and that meant discovering a new ability as he went. He was thankful that the contractors from domino were able to anticipate his needs on independent sources of water, heat, and energy. He’d made this place independent of Tokyo and independent of AHS. Using as many Meta human tricks he could to keep things absolutely independent.

Yuki "At least if it comes down to it, this place'll hold up better than Byakko did,"

Brian stopped the tour there, the hollow tone Yuki carried wasn’t helping, he seemed to be walking on the thought that this place would one day soon be attacked or destroyed. Brian knew, for all intents and purposes True Humanity and Japan would be wrapped up in each other, if they received anything it would be half hearted attempts. The type of invasions and attacks that Yuki and he were more than used to. Brian turned to look at Yuki, let him see what Brian meant with his eyes rather than the back of his head.

Yuki "What better way for a band of misfits and rebels to go down?"

Grim determination set in as Brian wanted to smack Yuki across the face for what he said. He was talking like they had already lost, when Brian had brought Center to live to give the students hope. He closed his eyes taking his sight off of Yuki, it was painful to think that he was a likely example of how many of these students felt, outcast, and alone. Brian’s eyes lit up and opened when Yuki asked what needed to be done. It was obvious what needed to be done, right now give them hope that they could last.

“What needs to be done is to shake the idea that we’ve lost. This place exists to put hope on the table that not everyone needs to become a True Human practitioner. I’m going back to the school today to do just that, remind the students now planning on fighting that they need to take things slower, that AHS is still open and that fighting should be the last thing on our minds. What needs to happen is we need to prepare, build up our strength in ourselves.”

Brian moved over to the balcony overlooking the first floor and looked down into the wide open empty hall. This hall was large enough to fit nearly a thousand students easily and the large staircases leading directly to the doorways into the mountain. He’d prepared but there was far more that could be done.

“We need to realize, that they’re strong. They’re strong like we’re strong because we’ve gone though similar things and what they have however is the willingness to put their cause ahead of themselves. They have purpose while the students of AHS have always reacted as individuals, we need to come together, and realize that to go forward we need to be prepared to put our all into defending an ideal for each other. We’re all going to have to change, from here on and become more than we were if we want to survive in the new world and that is how we start. If you want to be apart of this Center Yuki, really be apart of it, then you’ll need to see what must be changed in yourself and change it.”
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Yuki
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Keiko, may this all be in your memory. I couldn't bring your change.
[ *  * ]
Come to think of it, Brian had always had a way with words. From the day that they'd first met over the pile of charred wood and metal that remained of Yuki's dorm, to that night in Kabuki-Cho, when the fair-complected boy was wallowing in self-pity over his latest trip to the States. Every time they met, it was something of a marker for Yuki, a shift in his thought patterns. On the roof that night, after he'd returned to find Byakko demolished, he'd almost given up hope then, his pessimism remaining a dominant personality trait. Brian had proved that false the second Angel made it back. Months later in Tokyo, he would do the same, making the point that these modifications didn't alter who Yuki really was. Now that he thought about it, Melody still hasn't seen that arm of his; the thought wasn't followed by it's usual shudder.

But this time, it would seem that Brian aimed to be more direct. Yuki, at least after it being pointed out, understood what he meant about fighting. It was true. Japan's petty self-defense army wouldn't hold up long against the True-Humanity troops that were bound to swarm this place. And at the moment, the most official fine-print Yuki had heard mentioned was for this place to be a staging point for their Asian campaign once the States were conquered. If that was truly the worst of it, then there was no reason to hide. Not that any of that shook the uncanny feeling seeming to follow the thought of so many of New Eden's troops roaming the campus.

However, despite all of that, Brian was right on one thing. If this place was to be a symbol of hope, Yuki wouldn't have a place here. He wasn't one to be relied on and he wasn't one to be optimistic. Despite all he's seen, Yuki was still the one who would act first, and do his thinking on the way. Repressing the individual was something AHS had never been a good teacher for. Hell, for a good lesson in that, he'd probably have to go visit his parents again. They were always the sort for wanting him to fit in, something he'd never been good at. Not in the normal world. AHS was only a small improvement on that. He wasn't called out for it here, but he still stuck out like a sore thumb.

Stop acting like we've lost? That was a stretch. We were being forced to rely on the zealots who caused this mess to protect us. AHS might still be here, running, but it's bent over it's last legs and taking it from the True Humans. Hope is something sunk beyond the horizon in these dark times, and how were a handful of the students living up in the mountain to be a symbol for it? Perhaps Yuki was just being thick, but that sounded a bit on the desperate side. Maybe it was true, what they say about experience closing the mind.

Reaching into his pocket, Yuki pulled out a trinket he kept with him, a small piece of leather with a band of elastic connecting both ends. It was mostly a reminder anymore. Around campus, there was no reason to wear it, and Yuki really didn't plan on venturing anywhere else in the world at the moment. He remembered the days where he'd simply hide behind his mass of unnaturally white hair to hide his eye, and the scar going down from it. He would wear little goth bracelets to hide the now faded scars that lined his skin there. Hiding himself was a way of life back then. AHS slowly broke him of that habit, through its setting, through its symbols, through its people.

"You make a valid point, Brian," Yuki said, his face flushed from realization. Slowly, he took the patch, placing it back over his eye like Angel had suggested what seemed like a lifetime ago. "I know I can change... I just don't know if I can do it on my own. Never have before."

That empty, bitter shell he hid so much was exposed now. It would seem he would have to rely on AHS, now and again, to change it, to fill that shell. He would have to remember that slight glimmer of hope, three years ago now, he felt in Detroit Metro, boarding the plane to leave home for good, that hope he felt landing in Tokyo of what life would have in store for him here. That boy he saw in his head, only a glimmer of his smile genuine, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed seemed so foreign.

"Regardless, I'll come back when the time's right," he promised, his one eye showing betraying him with a silent apology, "Maybe I'll see you on campus later; I'll be the first to vouch for your cause."

With a humbled smile, he headed for the staircase, then out into the Mountain.
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As soon as he heard Yuki’s voice agree with him, Brian felt like he needed to take every word back and start over. His valid point hit a nerve that Brian knew better than to hit, yet now that it was out there stung as it was he couldn’t take it back. Brian winced as Yuki withdrew into himself, talking about changing himself like he never knew how to in the first place. Brian knew what that felt like and this time he couldn’t guide Yuki back onto the path because he was the one who set him off. No punch to the jaw this time would make things right, no self awakening shout could call him out of this mood.

Yuki needed to find his own answers, and yet still, Brian dammed his words for what they were. They were quickly spoken, passionate words in defense of a hope and a dream that he had conceived of with his own two hands. Yuki had attacked its basic principal and Brian snapped back. Brian saw now in Yuki’s covered eye why he often let others do the talking, in letting others speak first he could simply throw his support behind it. He didn’t have to be responsible for the actions that came at the result. Though now where no one was speaking, it was Brian who had stepped up and taken the mantle left behind by missing friends, and Yuki may be the first causality of his inexperienced tongue.

Brian stepped towards Yuki as he spoke of seeing Brian later on, and returning when the time was right. Yuki needed to know that he could come back any time, that his allegiance to the ideal wasn’t necessary this was a building and Brian had always planned to carry the hope alone. This Center didn’t need Yuki to believe in the hope! All Brian saw was Yuki’s back, swearing that he would speak up for the cause when he saw Brian at the school. Swearing on a tear stained eye patch that he would find his answers, and Brian was sure Yuki would hold that promise true. As Yuki walked away Brian tried to think of what he could say that could make things better. Nothing came to mind, and Yuki was already at the doors to leave, so leaned over the railing Brian called.

“Yuki, just come back whenever you need to.”

Yuki was already heading down the mountain today, but perhaps it wasn’t the end of things. More the beginning and Brian promised that he would learn from these mistakes. After all, he was doing something that required mistakes to be learned from, he was the first of a new breed of AHS student. He was sure he wouldn’t be the last, and AHS would continue without his support, but the students would find his doors wide open to help them.
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