Previously on Folly & Agendas & Talulah:
Days prior to the invasion of Lungmen, a pillar of light soared to the sky, piercing the clouds, sending tremors throughout the land. Its luminous rays perplexed both the Reunion and Rhodes Island. But for Kaiser Rye and Talulah, it was a mild omen.
When the invasion commenced, the tide of battle was in the city's favor, until Kaiser Rye found himself in a fateful battle between himself and Misha's brother: Skullshatterer. The battle left Skullshatterer slain, and Misha heartbroken. In his dying moments, Skullshatterer showed himself to be Alex, a young boy thrown into a ravaged world who only wants to live with his family once more.
Kaiser Rye left so Misha could grieve the loss of her brother. He brought Skullshatterer's mask with him when he encountered his former allies: Faust and Mephisto. A parlay entertained the three before Mephisto offered the Draco a proposal to lead the Reunion again. But Kaiser Rye refused, angering the young Liberi before he and Faust made their escape.
Soon after, the Draco met his former ally W. They enjoyed a short and sweet conversation before Kaiser Rye and W attacked each other. The battle ended in a stalemate as mortar fire interrupted their duel leading the Draco to his last encounter.
Patriot and his Guerrilla soldiers used overwhelming force to bring the city to its knees. Kaiser Rye fought to his last breath until he was sent flying, crashing into a building far away. Meanwhile, the Lungmen Guards fought valiantly, but they were unable to stop the Reunion attack; they were forced to retreat in the nick of time.
And from Wei Yenwu's office, agents in black raincoats went to carry out their task...
---
Days Later:
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"Mission... failed... We lost the slums."
Senior Inspector Ch'en laid her sword against her chair; she had numerous cuts and bruises all over her body. Her friend, Hoshiguma, sat across from her, covered in bandages, with a cup of coffee in hand. In the room they were sitting in, trash bins were turned over littering the floor with scraps of paper. The sound of rain beat against the window; the roar of thunder echoed above.
"We need to get the slums back," Ch'en stated. "We still have fellow officers to rescue, bodies to bury, people to save. How are our wounded doing?"
"They're recovering slowly," Hoshiguma answered.
"Slowly isn't enough. We don't have any forces able to go back into battle."
"I want the slums back too Ch'en, but we need to wait. The Reunion may have taken over Sectors 22 through 29, but they can't use it immediately. They can try to separate themselves from the city, but that's too much land to move all at once."
"Is there anyone outside of the L.G.D. that can help us?"
"So far, only Rhodes Island, but they are at their base."
Ch'en crossed her arms and leaned against a wall. Beneath her eyes were dark circle. Stacks of letters sat on top of her desk in a disorganized fashion; all of them condolence letters. Her signatures were scribbled on all of them until not a speck of ink remained in her pen.
"I don't want to send all those letters out," She said. "We need to work our hardest to get the slums back. The people, the Infected in the slums need our help more than ever."
"We are trying our best Ch'en, but are currently not ready to deploy our soldiers yet," Hoshiguma stated.
"Hoshiguma you helped the people in the slums haven't you?"
The green-haired Oni stopped herself from drinking her coffee and looked at her friend ruefully.
"I have. So did you," Hoshi replied.
"What I've done is nothing compared to you. I tried my best to assimilate the slums into Lungmen, but our own citizens won't allow it. Not even the Infected there will accept my help. The L.G.D. has done so much, but they refuse our help."
"Do you have a plan to take back the slums Ch'en?"
"Not yet."
KNOCK!*
KNOCK!*
KNOCK!*
Three quick knocks prompted Ch'en to call the visitor in, but what the messenger delivered shocked her. She grabbed her twin swords and left the room in rush, pushing the messenger aside. Hoshiguma followed to catch up to the Lung, but unfortunately for her, Ch'en was already gone.
---
In the Rhodes Island Land-ship
---
Inside her office, Kal'tsit sat down in a chair The Cautus, Amiya stood next to her hands hanging on her sides. A dim lamp light flickered over a mess of papers. Multiple pens were strewn across her desk in strange manner.
"Dr. Kal'tsit, we have successfully withdrawn our troops from the Lungmen slums," Amiya informed.
"Who did you encounter in the slums?" Kal'tsit questioend.
"We have encountered an overwhelming number of Reunion soldiers. We had to fight numerous Reunion squads of different calibers during the battle. We had to defend ourselves from an onslaught of mortar fire as well."
"I have seen the mortar fire from the deck. Where was the Doctor in the middle of this?"
"The Doctor was a field commander, and he administered medical aid to all of our operators when he had the chance. He is currently taking care of our wounded operators."
"How many casualties do we have?"
"We only have ten injured operators..."
"And?"
"We don't know the whereabouts of one operator: Kaiser Rye."
Kal'tsit circled a few things on her paper before she tapped her pen on one space. She put her pen down and turned her chair around to look outside the window. The Rhodes Island land-ship was docked in one of Lungmen's ports, far enough away to stay out of the slums.
"From what we know from Kaiser Rye, he is a very strong fighter," Amiya stated.
"The report from the Lungmen Guard Department supports that hypothesis," Kal'tsit added.
"He might still be out there. In the slums."
"That's a possibility, or he could have fled the battle scene. Mortar fire and sheer numbers are more than enough to prompt even the bravest operators to retreat. Turns out we were ill-prepared for their invasion."
"The Reunion has far more members than us, but we have trained, experienced operators by our side. But the Reunion used almost every known squad of theirs to attack."
"The Reunion has a strange modus operandi. We need to be one step ahead of them..."
---
Inside the Slums:
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Countless footsteps brushed over slabs of stone. Each step is part of a movement so elegant and frightening, the night felt still amid the ever present storm. Countless corpses decorated the streets that they crossed; the rain washed all the blood away. Thunder roared above; lightning struck the ground below.
The dancers were agents in black raincoats. Conical hats protected their heads from the weather; long, beaklike noses covered their faces. As they continued on, muffled screams filled the gaps in the air, but nobody was there to hear it. Bodies started to pile up in alleys and corridors until they found themselves in the sewers where the rain can't touch them.
"Sector Twenty-Three cleared. No residents remain," One of the raincoats stated.
"Sector Twenty-Four is in progress. Enemy presence detected four blocks from 7th Street."
"The Reunion occupies the Transport Hub avoid contact at all costs."
"Mission completion: Seventy Percent."
---
A lamplight burned from afar. A former shell of a weapon sat mangled in a corner of their makeshift dwelling. A towel was gently laid over a person's forehead. The calming sounds of rain leaked into their modest abode; the residents inside seemed undisturbed by it though.
"Krr - Kah!"
A body laid on the floor of the place with a towel on the person's head. Saliva and blood escaped a man's dry lips. His body ached as he painfully carried himself into a sitting position. Numerous bones popped in his body, but he didn't seem deterred by it.
As he woke himself up from his slumber, his muscles began to tighten. His throat started to scratch before he hacked up more blood. His eyes shot open; he couldn't adjust himself to his surroundings and fainted.
"Agck! Come on! Come... on!"
A glowing halo hovered above his disoriented body. Eventually, two hands touched his temples before it slowly lifted him up in place. When the man's vision recovered, he blinked multiple times at the figure in front of him. A woman with brown hair and green eyes sat across from him. A halo and a pair of crystal wings shined brightly. She wore a jacket with torn holes exposing her shoulders. On her hands, a pair of fingerless gloves concealed dark crystals growing from her palms.
"Ha - H - Haley?!" The man uttered.
"You're finally awake Kaiser Rye..."
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(A/N): Isn't this a busy chapter?
- Thank you for reading this chapter! I have good news and bad news!
GOOD NEWS:
- I have so much more time on my hands to write this story.
- I plan on rewriting & replacing Chapter 2 next.
- The usual schedule will be one chapter advancing the plot, and one chapter replacing an old chapter labeled (STC)
BAD NEWS:
- I am preparing for major changes in my life and it might interrupt and delay my schedule here.
- It should not be a problem though; I know how to manage my time
See ya!