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Darkness, complete and utter darkness. There was nothing in the world aside from the cavernous expanse of deathly black. That was it; that was the world. It meant nothing; the world meant nothing. There was nothing, no one, and no pain. And then there was light. The harsh, white brightness of it penetrated his closed eyelids and forced him to roll over. For a few moments he fought against that light, trying to push his eyes away from the sight, but his attempts were all in vain.
"Come on Montgomery, get your ass in gear!" a familiar voice commanded him. He couldn't quite place it's owner though, as his mind was still groggy and filled with thoughts of sleep. But apparently the voice didn't intend to let him sleep, and instead shoved him onto the floor. His eyes opened in a flash as his body crashed onto the cement. A shiver rolled through his body as his skin met the unforgiving chill of the cement floor. He shot a glare at the person who had shoved him onto the floor, but Marcus didn't seem to care in the slightest. He was already pulling black boots onto his feet and making his cot at the same time. "Did you not hear me Montgomery? I said get your ass in gear!" he shouted again as he threw the scratchy wool blanket over the sheets of his bed.
"Why don't you high-tail your ass out of my business." Gabriel muttered as he pushed himself to his feet and began to straighten out his own bed, slamming to single pillow into the headboard. Marcus turned around and shook his head.
"I was only trying to help you man." he muttered before buttoning up his uniform and beginning to walk towards the door. The many other guards were already filing out of the cold, emotionless building. Gabriel had only just tugged on his pants and boots but tried to chase after Marcus. He threw a hand on the other man's shoulder before he could escape. Marcus turned around but didn't say anything.
"Hey, I'm sorry."
"I wasn't kidding about getting your ass in gear." the guy smiled slightly before turning back around and walking out the door. Gabriel raced back to his bed and belongings and finished getting dressed as quickly as he possibly could. He was the last one out the door.
The sepia colored clouds seemed determined to bury them all alive in snow. White flakes fell steadily from the sky, threatening to form into a full-blown blizzard. Single flakes clumped together to form massive blots of snow. The freezing precipitation battered against the guards as they marched their way through the streets. Many complaints could be heard drifting through the doubled up lines as boots crunched through the thickly fallen snow. Gabriel stayed silent, knowing full well that this snow was his ally, and not his enemy.
The search for this girl who had escaped would be slowly, if only by a small margin, and it would give her better chances of escape. And this was something Gabriel was grateful for.
He himself was sometimes unsure of why he had decided to help Arietta. When he had found her in Lalita's home, he had every intention of killing her right then and there. This is what he had been trained to do... no, not even that. It was what he had been programmed to do. It had been drilled into him time and time again. Search, find, kill. Those were the only words that mattered to a guard of Armaelia. But Gabriel was... different. Not in the way Molly and Jason were different, he didn't possess any super natural powers. But he was different than most of the guards.
His father had just died. It was a shock, even though it shouldn't have been. The man had been sick for months, not even strong enough to lift his head from the pillow. It was known that he had little time to live, that he would die within a week or so. But death, is always a shock, even when it is expected. You know that your loved one is going to die, and soon at that. But it always comes as a surprise when they do pass, no matter what.
His mother was a basket case, and would prove to fall even further off the deep end when she learned of her pregnancy. Jason seemed to be so absorbed in his own troubles that his father's death seemed to not have an effect on him.This was when the line between the brothers began to form, Gabriel was furious with Jason for not caring about their father's death. And Jason was furious with Gabriel for being infuriated with him. The entire family was in disarray, scrambled to put the pieces of their life back together again. But it was tough work, and once a certain piece seemed to be back in order, another would fall and knock everything back down again.
Gabriel hadn't planned on becoming a guard. He hadn't even thought of the idea in the slightest. His father was the military man, and God knows what it was he did. Even his wife wasn't sure about what it was James did for the city's army. But Gabriel himself never cared for the violence that riddled the city of Armaelia. He was indifferent to this fact. Gabriel was a musician. The piano was his strong suit though he played many instruments. He was naturally talented at composing and musically gifted when it came to actually playing his work. It may have surprised some that his father fully supported his pursuing of a career in music, though it was perhaps the most difficult path to follow in Armaelia. In fact, James never pushed either of his sons to follow him into the army, he may have even pushed them away from it. For whatever the reason, James never wanted his sons to become involved in this 'war' (as he liked to call it).
But when he suddenly became severely ill, Gabriel knew that he would have to give up on his music. His father proved this true when he called Gabriel into his room. It was before he lost all energy and will to survive. But even then the man's appearance was horrifying. He had lost so much weight he looked like a living skeleton draped in pale white skin. His onyx eyes had lost their spark, and his spirit seemed to have crumpled.
"Come here Gabriel." the skeleton rasped, holding out a hand as if to beckon him, but it only fell onto the crimson sheets, palm open. Gabriel quickly made his way over to his father kneeling by the bed and looking him in the eye.
"Yes?"
"You know you have to move on from this... this music idea."
"Yes I know."
"That's no way to support your family."
"Yes father I know." Gabriel looked down at the sheets, not wanting to look his dying father in the eye. "I'm joining the guards. It's the only way to keep this house." his father remained silent for a while, and Gabriel had to look up at the man to be sure he hadn't stopped breathing.
"Well if you're joining the guards, there are things I must tell you. Things you must never speak of." And after this statement, James went on to tell his son many secrets of the Armaelia army. The two stayed locked in conversation for a good two hours, perhaps even more. Gabriel asked an occasional, but stayed silent mostly as his father rasped on and on. He walked out of that room knowing secrets he wished he had never heard.
As his boots crunched through the snow, falling in time with the rest of the guards in line, Gabriel let a small sigh escape his mouth, the condensation floating up into the air above him. Even the guards didn't truly know what they were fighting against, they didn't even know why. The changes had started long before people began falling from beyond their world and into their city. It was the power which these people gave to the super naturally gifted that was cause for alarm amongst the government officials.
The guards had stopped now to rest and search the alley ways. Gabriel walked up to Marcus, clapping him the back. "I need a favor Marcus."
"Oh no, not again Montgomery."
"Would you just cover for me?"
"Why can't you go see this mysterious girl of yours when it's night, and when I don't have to cover for you." Marcus was convinced Gabriel was sneaking away to go meet some secret girl he was seeing. In a way, this thought was partially true, though Marcus's beliefs in Gabriels intentions couldn't be farther from the truth.
"Just cover for me."
"That girl of yours better be worth it Montgomery; if you're caught you're a dead man!"
"You have no idea Marcus..." Gabriel mumbled to himself as he jogged away.
"Come on Montgomery, get your ass in gear!" a familiar voice commanded him. He couldn't quite place it's owner though, as his mind was still groggy and filled with thoughts of sleep. But apparently the voice didn't intend to let him sleep, and instead shoved him onto the floor. His eyes opened in a flash as his body crashed onto the cement. A shiver rolled through his body as his skin met the unforgiving chill of the cement floor. He shot a glare at the person who had shoved him onto the floor, but Marcus didn't seem to care in the slightest. He was already pulling black boots onto his feet and making his cot at the same time. "Did you not hear me Montgomery? I said get your ass in gear!" he shouted again as he threw the scratchy wool blanket over the sheets of his bed.
"Why don't you high-tail your ass out of my business." Gabriel muttered as he pushed himself to his feet and began to straighten out his own bed, slamming to single pillow into the headboard. Marcus turned around and shook his head.
"I was only trying to help you man." he muttered before buttoning up his uniform and beginning to walk towards the door. The many other guards were already filing out of the cold, emotionless building. Gabriel had only just tugged on his pants and boots but tried to chase after Marcus. He threw a hand on the other man's shoulder before he could escape. Marcus turned around but didn't say anything.
"Hey, I'm sorry."
"I wasn't kidding about getting your ass in gear." the guy smiled slightly before turning back around and walking out the door. Gabriel raced back to his bed and belongings and finished getting dressed as quickly as he possibly could. He was the last one out the door.
The sepia colored clouds seemed determined to bury them all alive in snow. White flakes fell steadily from the sky, threatening to form into a full-blown blizzard. Single flakes clumped together to form massive blots of snow. The freezing precipitation battered against the guards as they marched their way through the streets. Many complaints could be heard drifting through the doubled up lines as boots crunched through the thickly fallen snow. Gabriel stayed silent, knowing full well that this snow was his ally, and not his enemy.
The search for this girl who had escaped would be slowly, if only by a small margin, and it would give her better chances of escape. And this was something Gabriel was grateful for.
He himself was sometimes unsure of why he had decided to help Arietta. When he had found her in Lalita's home, he had every intention of killing her right then and there. This is what he had been trained to do... no, not even that. It was what he had been programmed to do. It had been drilled into him time and time again. Search, find, kill. Those were the only words that mattered to a guard of Armaelia. But Gabriel was... different. Not in the way Molly and Jason were different, he didn't possess any super natural powers. But he was different than most of the guards.
His father had just died. It was a shock, even though it shouldn't have been. The man had been sick for months, not even strong enough to lift his head from the pillow. It was known that he had little time to live, that he would die within a week or so. But death, is always a shock, even when it is expected. You know that your loved one is going to die, and soon at that. But it always comes as a surprise when they do pass, no matter what.
His mother was a basket case, and would prove to fall even further off the deep end when she learned of her pregnancy. Jason seemed to be so absorbed in his own troubles that his father's death seemed to not have an effect on him.This was when the line between the brothers began to form, Gabriel was furious with Jason for not caring about their father's death. And Jason was furious with Gabriel for being infuriated with him. The entire family was in disarray, scrambled to put the pieces of their life back together again. But it was tough work, and once a certain piece seemed to be back in order, another would fall and knock everything back down again.
Gabriel hadn't planned on becoming a guard. He hadn't even thought of the idea in the slightest. His father was the military man, and God knows what it was he did. Even his wife wasn't sure about what it was James did for the city's army. But Gabriel himself never cared for the violence that riddled the city of Armaelia. He was indifferent to this fact. Gabriel was a musician. The piano was his strong suit though he played many instruments. He was naturally talented at composing and musically gifted when it came to actually playing his work. It may have surprised some that his father fully supported his pursuing of a career in music, though it was perhaps the most difficult path to follow in Armaelia. In fact, James never pushed either of his sons to follow him into the army, he may have even pushed them away from it. For whatever the reason, James never wanted his sons to become involved in this 'war' (as he liked to call it).
But when he suddenly became severely ill, Gabriel knew that he would have to give up on his music. His father proved this true when he called Gabriel into his room. It was before he lost all energy and will to survive. But even then the man's appearance was horrifying. He had lost so much weight he looked like a living skeleton draped in pale white skin. His onyx eyes had lost their spark, and his spirit seemed to have crumpled.
"Come here Gabriel." the skeleton rasped, holding out a hand as if to beckon him, but it only fell onto the crimson sheets, palm open. Gabriel quickly made his way over to his father kneeling by the bed and looking him in the eye.
"Yes?"
"You know you have to move on from this... this music idea."
"Yes I know."
"That's no way to support your family."
"Yes father I know." Gabriel looked down at the sheets, not wanting to look his dying father in the eye. "I'm joining the guards. It's the only way to keep this house." his father remained silent for a while, and Gabriel had to look up at the man to be sure he hadn't stopped breathing.
"Well if you're joining the guards, there are things I must tell you. Things you must never speak of." And after this statement, James went on to tell his son many secrets of the Armaelia army. The two stayed locked in conversation for a good two hours, perhaps even more. Gabriel asked an occasional, but stayed silent mostly as his father rasped on and on. He walked out of that room knowing secrets he wished he had never heard.
As his boots crunched through the snow, falling in time with the rest of the guards in line, Gabriel let a small sigh escape his mouth, the condensation floating up into the air above him. Even the guards didn't truly know what they were fighting against, they didn't even know why. The changes had started long before people began falling from beyond their world and into their city. It was the power which these people gave to the super naturally gifted that was cause for alarm amongst the government officials.
The guards had stopped now to rest and search the alley ways. Gabriel walked up to Marcus, clapping him the back. "I need a favor Marcus."
"Oh no, not again Montgomery."
"Would you just cover for me?"
"Why can't you go see this mysterious girl of yours when it's night, and when I don't have to cover for you." Marcus was convinced Gabriel was sneaking away to go meet some secret girl he was seeing. In a way, this thought was partially true, though Marcus's beliefs in Gabriels intentions couldn't be farther from the truth.
"Just cover for me."
"That girl of yours better be worth it Montgomery; if you're caught you're a dead man!"
"You have no idea Marcus..." Gabriel mumbled to himself as he jogged away.
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