♢ 11 ♢

[formervanguard.livejournal.com]

[In pops Marta, mid-walk. It's a slow walk, and her gaze is on the ground. She's sad again, and it shows in the way she's holding herself, how she's fussing with the ends of her hair with both hands, in her heavy sigh.

'The most important thing you can do right now is run...' well, may as well run to the Plane and get some thinking done, right? And what is there to think about? Well, nothing pretty. Altamira under attack, Regal and Sheena in danger, the Vanguard's twisted plans... And somehow, it all comes back to one central idea for her... ]

Is this my fault, for being so naive? ... What should I do...?

[She finds a quiet spot in the forest, beneath one of the trees near the edge. She sits on the ground, knees drawn up to her chest, and quietly lets her thoughts spin on themselves. Maybe she'll just sleep here, while she has the chance...]


((OoC: Canon bump!! Marta and Emil are now in Chapter 7! /confetti! For those keeping score at home: Magnar was defeated and the Vanguard's plans have been revealed - the group is now traveling to Mizuho.))

Comments

[oliverplus]

[nods, his expression gentle--encouraging] Yeah, 'course I am.

[formervanguard.livejournal.com]

[It takes her a few seconds to actually begin explaining, and during the silence, she fiddles with the ends of her hair. She turns her gaze to the ground.]

There's a group in my world called the Vanguard. They used to be a liberation group, because the Sylvaranti - my people - were treated as inferior people by the Tethe'allans. They changed, though. A lot. It was as if things just got worse every day. And now, they want to use a weapon that's capable of destroying a whole city or two with just a single shot.

[She visibly hesitates, and for a very long moment. She even swallows, hard.]

I was one of the people who helped create the Vanguard. And... their leader, Commander Brute... is my Daddy. [Now, she really can't bring herself to look up at Oliver.] I ran away a while ago, when things started getting horribly out of hand. But... how can something I helped to create turn out so horrible?

[oliverplus]

[Oliver visibly pales at that. and then he pulls her into a hug]

[formervanguard.livejournal.com]

[That's enough to get her to start crying it all out. She returns the hug, clinging to his shirt and letting the tears fall.]

I feel so bad about it, about everything...

[oliverplus]

[holds her tight, rubbing her back gently] Shhh. I know it hurts, but it's not your fault.

[formervanguard.livejournal.com]

But... maybe if I talked to Daddy...

[But she knows that would never work, and you can tell as much from her tone. She takes a deep breath, trying to keep from crying anymore.]

There just has to be something else I can do, other than running.

[oliverplus]

[continues to hold her, speaking softly] You haven't just been running. What have you been doing, Marta? Working to save the world, right?

[uncertainly, worried. he wants to tell Marta it's all fine as it is and she doesn't have to do anything, but if she's right and that weapon could destroy whole cities...] If you went back...what sort of things could you try? And you have people who would go with you, right? You wouldn't be alone.

[formervanguard.livejournal.com]

Of course we have. That's exactly what we're trying to do.

Well, if I went back... I think all we can do is keep the Vanguard from getting to all of the cores. Without the cores, they can't power the Mana Cannon. So, as long as they don't have the cores, or me...

And no, I won't be alone. I have Emil, and Presea, and hopefully Regal and Sheena are still okay...

[At this point, she's just sitting against him, glad for the company. She's still sad, but at least she's stopped crying.]

[oliverplus]

[as long as she needs him, he's not moving anywhere]

So they can't do anything without you there? [he wants to ask why, but he's afraid that might be prying] Then you're helping already! [encouragingly] Right?

Good. And you can talk to them, too, huh? They know all about what's going on, and they'll have ideas.

[concerned] When do you think you might hear from Regal and Sheena?

[formervanguard.livejournal.com]

[She nods.] Right. They can't. [And she wants to elaborate, because she trusts Oliver, but now that Richter's able to come to the plane... maybe his knowing would put him in trouble. So, she holds back.]

I don't know when we'll hear from them... I want to go help them, I really do. But I think right now, we need to get to the town of Mizuho. Maybe we can find them after that...

[oliverplus]

[he resists the urge to ask, instead just nodding encouragingly when she mentions going to Mizuho] If you need to go, go. But I hope you can find them soon.

[formervanguard.livejournal.com]

I hope so, too.

[She pauses... then smiles sadly, shakes her head.] Thank you, Oliver. I'm sorry I've been so upset about things lately...

[oliverplus]

Nah. [reaches out to wipe the tears from one of her cheeks. the gesture is a brotherly one; Marta is an important friend to Oliver] You've got nothing to be sorry for. Just hang in there. I know you all will pull through!