Zompania Draft - Draftees only, days 1-3.5

[lucetimods]

Who: All Draftees
What: This is your death. Followed by your time-traveling life and desperate bomb hunting.
When: From May 22 to May 20 to early May 23 (days 1-4)
Where: Zompania
Summary: Information post here
Rating: Varies on thread, please mark explicit material.

This post is for the draftee-only portion of the Zompania draft--the day 3 death, time travel to day 1, and then the events until the arrival of the reinforcements. Be sure to use the above info post for any plotting needs you might have. Enjoy!

Please note that there is a specific top-level comment thread for:

• The day 3 arrival of the draftees and the 6 hours that follow until the bomb is dropped
  
• Death--This thread can be treated as REFERENCE ONLY. Responding to it isn't necessary.
  
• Threads prior to departing for Zompania--post resurrection freak outs, arguments over how to proceed, etc.

All other threading, from day 1 until the reinforcements arrive, should be conducted as normal.

Be sure to tag this post appropriately: [canon] character name

Comments

Any day

[swordprincess]

[In the days following their resurrection, Karla is solely focused on her own battle. It's all she knows.]

[Those who have seen her fight may notice that she's fighting more viciously than normal. Her sword strokes are harder and fiercer, and yet still as calculated as when she's in her right mind. The growing waves of cultists charging at her do not register, nor does the pain and fatigue in her own body. The heat of the battle fuels her fire, and the only thing she's focusing on is swinging her sword, feeling the blade clash with another, or cleaving into the enemies' flesh.]

[Whether she admits to it or not, by the 4th day, she could use some help as she's on the verge of being crushed by the enemy's vast numbers...]

Day 4

[tea_lover64]

[Iroh seems a bit haunted, and a bit more gaunt than usual, but he is fighting hard and viciously. When he spies Karla getting surrounded, he makes a quick movement with his hands and summons up a blast of lightning which he uses to hit right into the back of one attempting to block off her retreat, and arcs it into another, not wasting a moment, he adds a flurry of fireballs]

Fall back to me!

[It was said as a command rather than a request. They could get a small reprieve after forming a wedge here and fighting them off. ]

[swordprincess]

[Karla only thought she had the situation under control, even as the cultists were ganging up on her. Cringing as the lightning and fireball attacks came in, she braces herself to die yet again from another bomb. But then she sees a few cultists fall, giving her breathing room.]

[She turns to the direction of the voice and sees the old man standing there. She doesn’t recognize him, nor does he look like one of the enemy. Is he calling out to her?]

[There’s no time to wonder, so she’ll assume that he is calling out to her for the moment. She slowly moves back towards him, keeping her eye on the cultists while holding her sword defensively, almost daring them to attack again.]

[tea_lover64]

[Iroh will proceed to provide cover for in the form of fire, when some of the building starts on fire, he takes a breath and begins to raise the fire up forming a wall with a small patch for her to get through. Once she gets through he will close it and add another layer to the fire before sending it in a wave towards the attackers in a large conflagration]

Quickly, this way!

[He motions for her to follow him]

[swordprincess]

[Karla doesn't even notice the fire with the open patch until she passes through it, and it closes in front of her, separating her from the attackers. When the fire waves towards the enemies, Karla decides it's safe to turn and run. That's an amazing magic technique. She's never seen a mage do that. No, this man has to be a sage, at least.]

[She takes his order, following him, while occasionally glancing behind her in case the cultists manage to get through the fire.]

[tea_lover64]

[For good measure he'll send a lightning bolt against the building to add some debris and cover the trail a bit better. He leads her on a bit of a meandering route for a time until they get to a more isolated alley. He breathes deeply for a moment before offering her some water]

Here, drink.

[swordprincess]

[As she recovers from her battle frenzy, her fatigue, hunger, and thirst rapidly catch up to her. She follows the old man with uneven steps. Where are they going? She wants to ask, but the thirst and the stench of death make it hard to speak, or even breathe.]

[She's not sure whether to trust the man, but the water is too good to pass up. She brings her sword to her sheath, taking a moment to steady it before pushing the blade within. She takes the water with both trembling hands and drinks eagerly, with one audible gulp after another. Then suddenly, she stops drinking and hunches over, coughing as the smoke irritates her throat. That's enough water for now, she decides, as she holds it out to the man.]

[tea_lover64]

[He was about to say slowly, but apparently she was far too thirsty for that]

A bit of a tip for next time, you should have smaller sips to start off, even if you are quite thirsty.

[He takes his water back]

We have met before you know.

[swordprincess]

S-Sorry...

[Her voice still sounds hoarse from the thirst and the grime in her throat.]

[She then blinks at him. She doesn't recall meeting him before at all, but that's nothing new. She's hardly recalled anyone she's met on her journey, as chances were, she'd never see them again.]

...We have?

[tea_lover64]

Mmmmm, awhile back now. It was only briefly. When Effie was here.

[He tips a bit of a splash of water himself]

Although, it might be hard to tell now.

[His uniform was looking worse for wear, as was his hair.]

My name is Iroh.

[swordprincess]

Effie...?

[Now that name rings a bell. Karla had basically forgotten Effie until now.]

I'm Karla...

But what happened to Effie? I haven't heard from her in some time.

[tea_lover64]

Yes. She was sent home a few months ago I believe.

[The woman was a bit ditzy, but she seemed genuinely a cheerful and well meaning individual]

Though, I am a bit curious as to why you were by yourself out there. Were you separated from your group?

[swordprincess]

[Her face is blank.]

She's...gone? And I never knew? I never got to protect her...

[At least at home, she won't have to worry about all those people whom she had claimed were out to get her.]

[As the question sinks in, Karla averts her gaze, seemingly lost.]

I'm used to being by myself...

[But this is unlike any battle she's ever fought. And her sword's hunger was just too great.]

[tea_lover64]

Do not worry yourself too much on that account. There was nothing anyone could do to change that.

[Iroh smooths his beard out a moment. He made a mental note to give it a good cleaning once this was done with]

There is much that can be accomplished by oneself, yet in these surroundings I would not recommend it.

[swordprincess]

That is true...at least she’s safe now...right?

[At least she hopes Effie was safe, but truthfully, she hasn’t learned much about Panem other than those Games that go on every year.]

[Karla herself isn’t looking much better. Her white gown is stained almost black with ashes and bloodstains, and her long black hair is tangled and frizzed. She glances down at her sword sheath, the urge to swing it picking at her. She then glances outward, where the fighting is taking place. She longs for the adrenaline rush, but knows it would be foolish to rush into battle alone again.]

But...what should we do?

[tea_lover64]

I cannot say for certain, but I hope so.

[He gives a small smile. It was an effort after these past couple of days]

Work together, cover each other's weaknesses. A single arrow can be easily broken, but several bundled together are much harder to break.

[swordprincess]

All right...what weakness should I cover?

[She feels like she's had this conversation before with someone else. Of course right now, it seems like something so far in the past.]

[She ponders over the words. Several arrows bundled together are harder to break?]

That's an interesting thought...

[tea_lover64]

If you are going to be with me for a bit, I would say closer quarters would be best to cover. As you can see, I am unarmed, and this can become problematic.

[Iroh shows his open palms. A weapon might have been helpful, but he generally fought better without them]

Relying upon others can allow you to accomplish more. If we had a bit more time, we may have organized ourselves into smaller units and parties to provide a more balanced dynamic.

[swordprincess]

Really? You're a mage, right? Or a sage?

[But wait...don't they need tomes? Karla nods weakly as she looks at his palms.]

So...you can keep enemies at a distance, and I can fight the ones that come in close.

[Sounds like a good plan, as far as she's concerned.]

Level C conversation!

[tea_lover64]

Well, I am a fire bender, I manipulate the element of fire through martial arts, so I am well versed in close combat as well.

[He takes a sip of his water]

Yes, I think that arrangement will work best for the time being.

[swordprincess]

[She manages a pale smile herself.]

That's...interesting. So you don't need tomes or anything?

[tea_lover64]

Not at all. Fire comes from within. A fire bender is strongest in the day, with the sun, but we can also operate well enough at night.

[swordprincess]

From within...?

[She looks down, bringing her hands to her chest and torso. Is she on fire inside? Are they literal flames?]

[tea_lover64]

[He pauses for a moment]

... I'll explain it to you sometime after the draft is done.

[swordprincess]

[Don't mind her; she's just being an oddball like usual.]

All right...

[She looks around again, looking for any enemies that might be heading their way.]

Should we go back into the fray? Or wait for the enemy to come to us?