Let's be war buddies...

[initiates]

Date & Time: 18th, beginning at 2100 hours, through to the 20th.
Location: All around Exsilium.
Characters: Everyone!
Summary: The United Earth decides Exsilium had obviously not learned its lesson back in October, and does another round of humble-making bombing for those impertinent exiles. OOC info can be found here.
Warnings: Violence, death, general gloom and doom.

The warning had gone out approximately two hours before the bombing began, broadcast to any available receptor on the island: UE aggressions incoming, bombs expected; please proceed to Catacombs immediately. It repeats over and over, right up until the first bomb, aimed at the Hold itself, silences the signal.

The air is thick with smoke and worse. Every one to two hours another bomb shakes the island. Buildings crumble and shatter, but the focus is on the Hold and the native hospital. Initiative employees, some sick as anyone else, are steadfast in their escorting natives and transports alike into the underground catacombs. For two days the bombs continue ceaselessly, dropped by their cloaked and invisible carriers overhead.

The United Earth is nothing if not thorough.

Comments

[duplicitoussight]

[He doesn't register anything off yet as he chatters away.]

Same, same. It's been really chaotic, trying to find everyone! You holding up all right?

[velveteened]

It is, isn't it? I was able to find some people right away, so I got lucky.

[duplicitoussight]

I hope they're the sort you're willing to spend hours in a cave with.

[velveteened]

Either way, we don't have much of a choice about it.

( TEASING, they totally are )

[duplicitoussight]

You're right, you're right. Ah... it's all a little overwhelming, to be honest.

[velveteened]

It - is, isn't it?

( grows a little more serious in turn, lowering his eyes. )

I don't think anyone could've expected all this.

[duplicitoussight]

... even after that mission, huh?

[velveteened]

( conceded after a beat: )

Or maybe I was too naive.

[duplicitoussight]

[It's Kano's turn to take a pause.] It's a lot different from how I thought it'd be, honestly.

[velveteened]

It might be that way for everyone who hasn't been in this kind of situation before.

[duplicitoussight]

Right, it's obviously a first for me... ah, I thought living here actually wouldn't be so bad. It wouldn't be terrible if this was our new home.

[velveteened]

It didn't seem so bad before everything started happening, right?

( flicks his eyes downwards with a sympathetic look )

[duplicitoussight]

I'd say it was actually a fun war for a little while. [Stealing art pieces, messing with shut-ins... those weren't the sort of missions that demanded the mandatory training they had to take. It'd been a game, almost.]

[velveteened]

( he nods, remembering those same missions. )

That's true! Having fun and traveling made it easy to forget it was a war at all.

[duplicitoussight]

Ku ku... maybe it would've been better to just throw us straight into it.

[velveteened]

I don't know about that.

( he closes his eyes and rubs at them once, irritated from staying open so much. )

Maybe we got the wrong idea, but there are some people I'm happy didn't have to see things like this.

[duplicitoussight]

[He watches the action before deciding to sit down in front of him.]

So, so... a nice, happy lie for those people would be kinder, you think?

[velveteened]

( he leaves his hand over his eyes as kano sits, shrugging slightly. )

If they're in a situation where they'll never find out the truth, isn't it better for them to be happy while they can?

[duplicitoussight]

That's a lot of pressure for the liar.

[velveteened]

I don't know if it counts as lying when we didn't know either, at the time.

[duplicitoussight]

In that sense, we were just misinformed. [Severely.] Ah, maybe it was a blameless mistake that could pass for us. But for the newbies who come in after this...

[velveteened]

...mm, after this. Well, ( breathes out ) the evidence will be hard to miss.

[duplicitoussight]

[He rests his head on his hand, chuckling lightly.] Sorry, sorry, I must be bothering you, huh? You seem like you're really tired.

[velveteened]

( he drops his hand in surprise, raising his gaze. )

- I do?

[duplicitoussight]

[He scoots a little to the side quietly.] It's the way you look, that's all. No offense meant!